Essays and dissertations

Introducing core academic writing skills for university study, focusing on the key forms you will encounter across your degree.

Here you will find guidance on the structure and purpose of essays, the principles of writing a literature review, and the expectations of planning and producing a dissertation. Across each section, there is an emphasises developing clear arguments, engaging critically with sources and organising your writing in a coherent way.

Essays

Essays are a core part of university life as they can help you develop the critical thinking, research and communication skills needed to engage confidently with academic ideas. They are a structured piece of writing responding to a question or on topic exploring a key issue, problem or ideas. The expectation of any essay is that it is written in a formal, academic style, engaging with the theories and debates in your subject. It should:

• address the full purpose of the assignment
• apply knowledge gained through research to develop clear, coherent and evidenced arguments
• acknowledge sources used in your work to support your discussion

Essay writing not only helps tutors assess your progress and understanding of your subject, but gives you the opportunity to think critically about your topic, engage in debates and develop your ability to communicate and organise your thoughts through writing.

Understanding what you have to do

Breaking down the question or essay title is one of the first steps in planning any assignment. Keeping a copy of the breakdown close when writing assignments will help with your writing. There are three steps to break down an essay question. Look at the steps and example below:

Here's an example:

Essay question: To what extent did social media use during the COVID-19 pandemic affect the mental health of teenagers in the UK?

• Direction words: To what extent – tells you to discuss and evaluate different viewpoints.
• Topic words: social media use, mental health, teenagers – identifies the key concept areas of the essay.
• Boundary/focus words: during the COVID-19 pandemic, in the UK – narrows the essay to a specific time period and location.

Essay planning

Breaking down an essay title or questions into direction, topic, and boundary/focus words can help you quickly understand exactly what you are being asked, which then makes essay planning much more focused and efficient. Once you have identified these elements, you can turn them into clear sections for your essay and match each section with relevant evidence and examples gathered through reading academic material before you begin writing.

Planning the structure of your essay prior to engaging with writing can allow you to break down task into manageable parts and quickly turn it into a logical essay plan, like the example below.

If you would like to learn more about planning for assignment, explore our guidance on planning.

Academic arguments

The structure of your essay plan should develop your academic argument. An argument is a claim (a statement you want your reader to accept) supported by evidence and reasoning. In the example plan above, the argument is made through three key points. The writer of the essay discusses each point by using research to evidence where their knowledge is from, what people are saying about it and why this is significant knowledge related to the essay question.

Your argument must stay within the boundaries/focus of your assignment question. This tells you what you can and can't discuss in your essay. Using the example essay question, “To what extent did social media use during the COVID-19 pandemic affect the mental health of teenagers in the UK?”, we know that the argument must focus on the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK and not at any other time, in any other part of the world. Therefore, the three discussion points of your argument could be:

1. irregular routines in lockdown increased doom scrolling and compulsive checking behaviours, raising screen time and disrupting sleep leading to depression (a negative impact)
2. intensified pressures around appearance, productivity, and online performance increased cyberbullying and anxiety (a negative impact)
3. social connections to friends and family reduced loneliness and offered support (a positive impact)

The writer needs to support each of these claims through discussion, leading to an overall argument in their conclusion.

The introduction

The introduction is the first section of an essay. It presents a general statement regarding the topic, which may include key definitions and a basic understanding of this topic in its context. It will also include a specific statement showing which elements/issues will be discussed within the assignment (your boundary and focus) and the purpose of the essay (what you intend to discuss and achieve). These statements are informed by your essay title/question and learning outcomes. The typical wordcount for an introduction is around 10% of the total word count of your essay – unless otherwise stated in your guidelines.

Make sure your introduction does not simply appear as a list of things you intend to do. For example, avoid following this structure:

• This essay will first…
• Then it will…
• Finally, it will…

Whilst you do want to highlight your intentions, listing items is purely description. Ideally, your introduction should do more than that: present a basic understanding of the key issues surrounding your topic, its context and how you intend to meet your learning outcomes.

Look at the example paragraph below as a demonstration of how to structure your introduction.

Writing the main body

The main body should be organised as a coherent sequence of paragraphs that collectively develop a clear argument. Each paragraph should focus on a single main idea, introduced with a topic sentence that signals its purpose in relation to the overall question. This idea should then be developed through explanation, evidence and critical analysis, before being linked back to the broader argument or to the next point.

Effective essays do not simply list information. Instead, they build a structured line of reasoning, where each paragraph logically follows from the previous one and contributes to answering the question in a progressively more detailed and analytical way.

For more information on writing paragraphs including critical thinking and using your research, explore the our guidance on academic writing technique.

The conclusion

The conclusion is the final section of your essay and it should do more than simply repeat what you have already said. An essay conclusion should briefly revisit the key issues raised in your introduction, summarise the main arguments of your essay and then bring everything together into a clear final thought, stating your overall position. Importantly, you should avoid introducing any new ideas or evidence at this stage, as the conclusion is about closure rather than development. As a general rule, conclusions should make up around 10% of your total word count, unless otherwise stated in your assignment brief.

Explore the example below to visualise what essay conclusions can look like.

Drafting & editing

Strong essay writing is a process, not a single attempt. Your first draft is merely a starting point and improvement comes through reviewing, refining and restructuring your work.

Good essays are usually built through careful editing – checking whether each paragraph links clearly to the question, whether your arguments are logically ordered, and whether your conclusion truly reflects what you have discussed in the main body of the essay. Taking time to revise your work helps ensure your ideas are clearer, more focused and persuasive overall.

Referencing

Referencing is an essential part of essay writing as it evidences where your ideas have come from, giving credit to original authors and strengthening the credibility of your argument. You

Following your conclusion, you will have a separate page for your reference list. This should include all the academic sources you have cited in your assignment and be organised in alphabetical order. The reference list does not count towards your overall word count. Different types of sources (such as books, journal articles and websites) must be formatted according to the required referencing style. It is essential that you check which style you are expected to use in both your assignment brief and module handbook, and then apply it consistently throughout your work.

To learn more about how to reference and referencing styles, explore our guidance on referencing.

Essay Writing Checklist

When you start your next assignment, use this essay writing checklist to help you stay on track and ensure you don’t miss any key stages of planning, writing and editing.

Critical literature reviews

A critical literature review aims to discuss the existing scholarly literature on a specific topic. It is important to note that it does not only summarise but evaluates the literature critically in order to deliver an argument. This is a skill that you have already developed when writing essays, where you discuss the value and validity of evidence to deliver your argument.

Purpose of the review

You might have been asked to write a literature review as a stand-alone assignment. More commonly, literature reviews are a part of a larger project such as a dissertation or research study. Either way, the purpose of a literature review is to demonstrate your knowledge and understanding of your topic field. The image below summarises what a literature review is for, adapted from How to do your literature review by Gary Thomas (2025).

Types of literature review

Literature reviews take different forms – from elements dotted throughout your essay to specific chapters in your research project or dissertations. It gets even more complicated when we speak of literature reviews in research. Some sources give 3, 5, 12, or even 50 types of literature review. Yet, for introductory purposes, here are the main four types in research:

Most often, the literature reviews during your studies are a narrative review where you are in charge of selecting and arranging a critical analysis of the literature into groups. That means that once you have done your searches, you also must provide the rationale why you chose some of them and ignored others. This is called being objective and is one of the foundations of a successful literature review. Also, do not forget to maintain an academic tone absent of personal biases.

Critical reading

Critical writing starts with reading, so it is important to develop critical reading skills to be able to critically engage with the different resources and develop your interpretation of these sources.

For more guidance on being critical, have a look at our content on writing technique and evaluating information.

When writing a literature review, you are required to demonstrate your competence in critical reading of literature. But what does it mean to be critical as a reader of literature?

Being critical in academic enquiry means:

• Bringing your own values, histories, experiences and intentions
• Persistently reviewing evidence and demonstrating their import
• Examining accuracy, flaws, assumptions, etc.
• Finding the existing gaps
• Looking ahead: what are the implications?

The value of your study is derived from how it fits with/expands on previous work. Take care though, the point is to show you are aware of the complexity of your topic and not to demonstrate its full extent by listing everything that is out there. Instead, be selective to show that you know your field, understand the issues and complexities, and are aware of its problems/ shortfalls.

Organising your literature review

As they review a larger size of evidence, literature reviews should not simply be summarised but integrated – showing how the different sources are related. Literature reviews can be arranged into different sections by:

• Theme
• Chronological development
• Debates, conflicts, and contradictions

Consider how the studies agree, contradict, or build on each other. As you do so, take care of your word limit as a review synthesises information and does not summarise. Remember the two key criteria of academic writing: to be clear and to be concise!

The structure below is an example of how you could organise your literature review. Always refer to your module handbook and assignment brief for specific criteria and guidance.

Summary

A literature review utilises the skills already developed when writing essays. It looks at an issue by asking a question and tells the reader an answer based on information found in the literature.

Literature reviews evaluate the value and validity of existing research on a topic. It begins with a search for literature that is then read critically to show a nuanced understanding of the current state of research that recognises its importance, strengths, and limitations.

You can learn more about searching for and evaluating literature in our guidance on finding information.

Dissertations

You started with writing essays, built up your critical thinking and writing skills as you discussed original primary sources, and you are now ready to carry out an independent research project as a final requirement.

A dissertation is a longer piece of writing that usually takes place towards the end of your course. It is an exciting opportunity for you to choose your own topic to research and then write up the findings in a structured extended piece of work.

Developing a topic

A dissertation identifies and seeks to address a question by means of a literature-based study or a practical research project. The study should raise important, interesting, and relevant issues and questions.

Your dissertation is likely to be the longest piece of research and academic writing that you undertake during your undergraduate studies. It is vital that you choose a topic that you are passionately interested in pursuing as you will be spending a significant proportion of your time on this project. Preparing a dissertation can be an exciting and challenging process so your interest in your topic will help to keep you motivated throughout the process. As well as bearing in mind your own interests and passions, it is also important to establish whether your research topic is feasible for a dissertation of the length you are required to write.

Having thought about your area of interest, start some research on the topic by asking:

• what do we know about this topic already?
• what else could be explored?
• are there other perspectives to consider?

Think about what your research could add to current knowledge on this topic and what your readers need to know.

The next step after this is to consider how you can explore the topic. This is when you move from the topic to starting to formulate a question. It is worth bearing in mind that most dissertation writers gradually refine their question as they develop their research and ideas. It is normal to develop your question at a later stage, particularly during literature review.

Planning your dissertation

The research approach you choose will vary according to your topic and the sources available. Start by considering your topic and the key questions below. These will also help you to develop your research proposal.

• what is the issue you want to address?
• why is it important?
• how are you going to examine it?
• what are the implications for this project?

Once you know what you would like to find out, then you can start considering what methods you will use. It will be useful at this stage to explore some of the wider literature on research methods so that you can familiarise yourself with the range of research methods.

If you decide to engage in a desk-based research project, this will usually mean researching your dissertation using secondary sources to present a new interpretation of your topic.

If you decide to engage in your own research, then you will need to consider selecting research methods appropriate to your area of interest. Think about what data you would like to gather and how you can gather that data. Bear in mind, that it is important to justify your choice of research method, so when you write up your study be prepared to let your reader know why your chosen approach is more appropriate rather than others.

The dissertation proposal

Your dissertation proposal will help you write your final dissertation. It should include the following:

• Your draft question/title
• The aims of your research and the questions you would like to address (refer to the key questions above under planning your dissertation)
• Your proposed research strategy and the research/data collection methods you plan to use
• The theories and/or academic concepts that inform your research
• Details of any primary or secondary sources you would like to consult (it would be useful to show that you are aware of their availability. Would you need to visit other libraries or archives? Are there electronic sources you could consult?)
• Any work you have started on your literature review. This will demonstrate that you are aware of the wider landscape of research in your area. It will also allow you to identify any relevant links between theory and practice.

The structure of your dissertation

Your dissertation should be organised as a series of chapters with the exact structure dependent on the nature of your research. The main body or chapters will be preceded by an introduction and will then be followed by a conclusion, and if relevant, any recommendations which arise from your research. Here is an example:

While it can be useful to consider each chapter as an essay in itself, one of the key differences between a dissertation and an essay is the final structure. Each chapter is built on a clear argument that then feeds into the overall document. This means that each chapter of your dissertation should have a short introductory and concluding section and should connect to the other chapters forming significant sections. This will ensure a clear and coherent dissertation, rather than producing a collection of separate chapters.

A basic structure for a dissertation based on original research

The following is a suggestion for a basic structure of a dissertation based on a practical research project. It is, however, important for you to check with your department as to whether there are any particular guidelines on structuring your dissertation.

The process of planning and writing your dissertation or independent study provides an excellent opportunity for you to demonstrate your ability to put into practice the skills you have been developing throughout your course. It is worth reflecting on the range of skills you will be able to demonstrate as you prepare your dissertation.

In addition to this, as you prepare to work on your dissertation, you might like to spend some time reflecting on the feedback you have received for your written assignments over the course. Consider whether there is anything which can help you to identify how you can develop your research and writing in preparation for work on your dissertation.

Key takeaways

We have discussed the core academic writing skills for your university journey that are involved in writing essays, literature reviews, and dissertations. It has explored their aims, form and walked through their processes in developing an argument through engagement with evidence critically in an organised way.

Credit

Written and edited by Silvina Bishopp-Martin, Bojan Koltaj, Claudia España, Michelle Crowther and Rami Younes

Last updated 2026