Chat on WhatsApp

Writinglib

best ways to do Academic research writing

Table of Contents

Learn about the best ways to do Academic research writing. Read this blog, you will find all the essential information that you require. 

What Is Academic Writing and What Does It Mean?

You learn a lot in college, and not all of it is recorded in the course catalogs. Many of the skills you learn will be things you learn on your own, like how to manage your time, do thorough research, and make ramen noodles in a coffee machine.

Another skill you’ll need to master in order to excel in academic writing. Academic writing is formal, objective, and scary to many students who are just starting college or graduate school.

When broken down and examined piece by piece, the fundamentals of academic writing are nothing to be afraid of. There are some requirements that must be met, but once you’ve mastered them, you’ll be on your way to the dean’s list in no time.

Certain traits can be found in academic writing.

Perhaps the most visible characteristic of academic writing is the emphasis on following a style guide. When it comes to academic writing, correct adherence to a specified style guide is non-negotiable, but nearly all material and media sources use a style guide—either one that has already been published or one that they have created themselves. If you don’t follow the style guide in your writing, you’ll almost always get a failing mark.

The Modern Language Association (MLA) style guide and the American Psychological Association (APA) style guide are two of the most widely used style guides for academic writing. Among the others are the style guides of the American Medical Association (AMA), the American Chemical Society (ACS), and the Chicago Manual of Style (CMOS). A guide like this one tells you how to format and punctuate your writing, as well as how to cite your sources.

In addition to following the style guide, the following are the basic features of academic writing:

Language, clarity, and conciseness are all critical factors to consider.

Academic writing has a formal tone to it. Aside from that, it’s made to be clear and concise, which at first glance may seem to be at odds with the use of formal language.

Many writers confuse formal language with beautiful prose. Flowery language includes the use of fancy words, complex sentences (sometimes to the point of being run-on sentences), and metaphors that are so drawn-out that they obscure the message the writer is intending to convey.

On the other hand, the formal language itself is rather different. When used to explain an author’s viewpoints, formal language is utilized because it uses the most proper, non-colloquial language possible, and it may include jargon. Sentences should be as complex as necessary to convey clear thoughts and opinions; literary features like metaphor should be employed sparingly in your writing. When they are appropriate, they are used differently than in other types of written communication. Overall, you want to achieve clarity and conciseness as your key goals.

best ways to do Academic research writing

Academic writing takes a detached, impartial approach to the subject matter under examination. The passive voice is sometimes necessary for academic writing because the tone is important, especially in the sciences, but it should be avoided whenever possible.

Grammar

Academic writing is particularly prescriptive in its style and tone when it comes to grammar. In other words, in order for your writing to be properly structured and displayed, it must adhere to strict grammar and style requirements. You have two options for finding these rules: the style guide for the content you’re currently working on and generally accepted academic writing practices. Specific restrictions, such as whether or not to hyphenate certain compound terms and when to type out numbers rather than use numerals in a sentence, are detailed in style guides. More general academic writing rules, such as writing in the third person and maintaining an objective tone, apply to all types of academic writing.

Other, more casual writing styles, on the other hand, are less concerned with “perfect grammar” vs. “incorrect grammar.” People who write blogs and ads often have to break with grammatical rules in order to make their writing more interesting and communicate more effectively.

The use of ellipses to create suspense, prepositions to end sentences, and exclamation marks to make your sentences interesting are all fantastic ways of creating catchy and conversational writing, but they have no place in academic writing.

Format

Aside from fulfilling particular grammar and stylistic standards, your academic work must be prepared in line with the style guide for your assignment. Formatting includes things like what you include in your header and footer, how you organize the contents of your cover page, and how you manage citations and references. Unless you choose another style guide, a humanities paper will almost definitely be written in accordance with the MLA style guide. The source page will be named “Works Cited” if you follow the recommendations in this style guide, and each reference’s author will be recognized by their last name followed by their first name. The APA style guide says that the references page should be named “References” and that authors should be listed alphabetically by their last names followed by their first initials for a social sciences paper.

There are a few different types of academic writing.

Academic writing is a broad term that refers to a variety of different types of work. The following are some examples:

Essays

The term “essay” refers to a short piece of writing that makes and supports an argument, comparable to a research paper.

Dissertations and theses are scholarly writings.

A thesis and a dissertation are two different types of capstone projects. The term “thesis,” in general, refers to a project finished at the completion of a master’s program (and, in certain cases, a bachelor’s degree), whereas the term “dissertation” refers to a project completed at the end of a doctorate program.

A thesis or dissertation is a major piece of writing in which the author establishes his or her eligibility for the degree sought by posing a philosophical question, making an argument, or taking an alternative viewpoint. Neither is a result of their work. The candidate’s academic advisor is in charge of that work.

Research proposal submissions

A research proposal is essentially a document in which the author requests formal sponsorship or funding to undertake his or her academic research. Research proposals are written by people who want to do research. They explain how they plan to do their research, why they chose this specific study, and what they hope to achieve as a result of their research.

Research-based papers

It is a lengthy piece of writing that demonstrates the author’s complete command of the subject matter under investigation. Almost every research paper has a thesis statement, which is a statement in the introductory paragraph that explains the author’s point of view and provides supporting evidence.

Examining the literature

When writing an academic paper, you should look at the works of other authors to summarise, describe, and analyze a topic. A literature review is what this is referred to as. In a literature review, two or more words are used to look at a subject through the lens of another. These works could be books or scholarly articles or presentations, dissertations, or other published materials, for example.

The academic writing structure

Academic writing has a logical structure that is easy to grasp, in addition to using formal language and closely following style rules. The structure of the writing varies depending on the sort of writing being created, but it often follows the outline format:

2 In the introduction, a clear statement of the thesis and goals of the work.

2 counter-arguments, discoveries, or objections to the thesis.

a. Content that facilitates the learning process

b. Supplementary material to back up the thesis

3 supporting arguments for the thesis (position, discovery, or challenge).

a. Content that aids in the learning process

b. Supplementary material to back up the thesis

4 arguments in favor of the thesis, findings, and challenges

a. Content that aids in the learning process

b. Supplementary material to back up the thesis

5 Closing Thoughts

The type of the assignment and the subject matter being discussed affect the length of the work and the number of parts contained in it. Between 150 and 300 pages, a dissertation is usually a lot longer than a few paragraphs and a few pages. An essay, on the other hand, is usually just five to seven paragraphs long and a few pages.

Citations

Another key distinction between academic writing and other types of writing is that, unlike other types of writing, you must always credit your sources in academic work. The style guide you’re using will decide the format of your citations.

Regardless of how each style guide’s citation structure varies, they all contain the same crucial information about the sources you utilize. The author’s name, the title of the work you’re citing, the work’s copyright date, and the name of the publisher that published the work in question make up this information. Consider how the most commonly used academic style guidelines suggest you format your paper:

The MLA (Modern Language Association) is an organization that promotes the study of modern languages.

• American Psychological Association (APA)

CMS (Content Management System) is an abbreviation for “Content Management System.”

Don’t undervalue the importance of citing your sources correctly—every single one of them. Although using an incorrectly formed citation when clearly attempting to properly acknowledge the work is unlikely to result in plagiarism, an incomplete or missing citation may be deemed plagiarism, according to this article. The following are some instances of possible plagiarism repercussions:

• A drop in grade

• The task is terminated automatically.

• The class was a flop.

The expulsion of a student from a course of study.

• Being suspended or expelled from your college or university

How to write an academic paper with instructions

When in doubt, always consult the style guide.

There are no grey areas in academic writing, so it’s difficult to be unclear about whether something is grammatically correct or not. Depending on your point of view, it’s either correct or incorrect. If you’re confused about something, examine your assignment’s style guide, which will lay out all of the rules for what is and isn’t acceptable. If you’re unsure about which style guide to use, ask your instructor for help.

Plagiarism should be avoided as much as possible.

For the purposes of this discussion, we mean that simply avoiding taking other people’s words when writing isn’t enough. To avoid plagiarizing another person’s work by accident, and to make sure your own work stands out as a unique piece, you should try to separate your writing from your sources as much as possible.

Even inadvertent plagiarism, as previously indicated, might result in a failing mark on your paper as well as other consequences. The plagiarism checker on Grammarly can help you avoid unintentional plagiarism while also increasing the readability of your writing. It’s straightforward: When you use the Grammarly Editor to check for plagiarism, your work will be instantly compared to the billions of other pieces of writing on the internet. Grammarly will let you know if any parts of the text need to be cited. You can then cite them as needed.

In your writing, avoid using contractions.

In scholarly writing, contractions are never used. Contractions are one of the most noticeable differences between formal and informal writing, and they are used more often in formal writing than in informal writing.

Please don’t view this as a personal attack.

If you want to be taken seriously, write your academic work in the third person at all times.first person singular (I, me) and second-person plural (you) are ineffective in academic writing because they hinder the author’s capacity to stay objective.

Academic writing is regarded as “black-tie” work.

Consider approaching the drafting of an academic essay as if it were a formal event. To be effective, your text must be “appropriately attired.” This includes following the style guide, using proper language, and avoiding the use of slang and colloquial terminology as much as possible. Contrary to popular belief, an email to your professor is considered business casual, whereas a message to your friends is considered casual communication. If you wear shorts and sandals with your friends but khakis and a polo with your professor, the terminology you use in your academic work should be a tuxedo with your professor.

You will obtain excellent grades each time you write.

A blog post, an email, a piece of fiction, or even other sorts of writing that your professor could give, such as a critical response to a reading or a class presentation, are all very different from writing an academic paper. It takes a significant amount of time and work. In order to be approved, academic writing, whether it is an analytical essay, a research paper, a persuasive essay, or any other type of assignment in this vein, must adhere to the strict style and formatting guidelines. For an academic paper, it must also be written in the right tone and with the right words.

Don’t submit your work until the Grammarly Editor has completely evaluated it. In the Grammarly Editor, you may set specific goals for your writing, ensuring that it is written in the most appropriate tone for your target audience. Choose “academic” as the domain, then “Submit” to get feedback on how to improve your writing, including word choice, sentence structure, and other elements.

Visit WritingLib for more informational blogs.

And if you need the best high-quality academic writing services then click here

Search
Generic filters
Filter by School Level
School
University