As a college student, academic writing is one of the tasks you can not avoid. And considering that academic writing needs critical thinking, a good structure, and a concise format, you will need to learn all the essential details about it.
No matter what term your instructor gives to your writings, analysis essays, term papers, assignments, research papers, etc., the same principles work for them all. And if you do not know how to write these papers, you will need the help of academic writing services similar to CustomWritings.com and its professional essay writers.
If you ask how is academic writing different from other types of writing, or what are different types of academic writing, this article answers all these questions.
Primary Types of Academic Writing
There are four primary types of academic writing; each type has its own style, purpose, principles, and features. Here are the four types of academic writing styles.
Analytical Writing
Whenever you need to write an analytical academic paper, you will most likely need the principles of the different types of paper writing. After all, analysis is one of the most important intellectual skills in academic life.
Analytical writing involves describing and analyzing data, facts, and information and reorganizing it into types, categories, and sections. This is different from other formats where you just need to state facts and explain them; analytical writing dives deeper.
Many words in your academic writing include; examine, relate, analyze, contrast, compare, relate, etc. And some processes involved in writing an analytical paper are.
- Planning out the papers content, data, and information. Thus creating an outline alongside.
- Analyzing all facts and data before grouping and organizing them.
- Use flow charts, tree diagrams, tables, and shapes for analysis.
- Write a concise introduction (it should not be as detailed as a thesis statement)
Descriptive Writing
Descriptive writing is the most straightforward of all styles and the most common. Just as the name implies, you are to describe a subject, person, experience, event, image, or place; just name it. In describing the subject, you give information and state facts to educate your audience.
If your instructor uses the following terms for your assignment, know that it is descriptive writing (describe, define, summarize, report, identify, record, etc.)
Descriptive academic writing does not need any complex procedure when you are writing them. All you have to do is
- Create an outline
- Collect information, data, and facts on the subject.
- Write about it
Persuasive Writing
Persuasive writing is a step further from an analytical essay; that extra step is your opinion. Your opinion might be an argument, interpretation, recommendation, or evaluation. So, after analyzing and organizing the facts, data, and information, you will add your opinion as a discussion or conclusion.
And even though it is your opinion, the opinion must be backed with evidence, either a research finding, views from professionals or authoritative bodies, or published articles.
To know persuasive writing, your instructor uses terms like discuss, take a posture, choose a stand, argue, evaluate, etc.
You will need to understand the topic and do the following to form your point of view.
- Note patterns that repeatedly come in the data.
- Choose the most substantial and most convincing evidence.
- Write out different opinions and interpretations.
- List the real-life consequences of these interpretations and opinions.
- Create your point of view.
Once you know your stand, here is how to air your point of view.
- State why you support that point of view
- List the evidence and sources that support your point of view
- Separate your point of view into parts
And while presenting your point of view, ensure
- You clearly state a reason for your claims
- Your assumptions and claims are valid and have evidence to back them up.
- You use the necessary evidence to make a clear point.
Critical Writing
Critical academic writing is the style primarily used in research and advanced undergraduate and postgraduate papers. It is also a step further from persuasive writing. While persuasive writing needs your point of view, critical writing needs another point of view in addition to yours.
First, you explain an opposing opinion (a researchers argument), evaluate the view, then give your opinion or debate.
The phrases used to describe it are similar to those used in persuasive essays, including debate, evaluate, disagree, and critique. These are the common examples of critical writing journal articles and literature reviews.
Here are some steps involved in critical writing:
- Summarize what you will be giving opinions about. This can be the primary assumption, methodology, or interpretation.
- Form your opinion about the article. The opinion can include issues about the topic, what could be better, and defense against other peoples opinions/critiques.
- Talk about your point of view with evidence. The evidence could be a reference to research data or an authoritative body, and it could also be logical reasoning.
To write a critical academic piece, you need a strong background in writing because it is not as straightforward as the other genres. You will require in-depth knowledge of the topic and the issues surrounding it. Also, you will need to know how to develop the essay and paragraphs to analyze the various interpretations and give your argument.
Rules That Apply to All Academic Writing Types
Even though some types of academic writing are more complex, some rules are common to all. Here are some of them
- Explicit description: All types involve describing the subject and ensuring the reader understands.
- Create an outline: This makes your work easier. Create a system, then use it as a guide to achieving detailed writing.
- Use short sentences: No one wants to read long sentences, not even in an academic piece. So, find a way to shorten your paragraphs. You can teach writing an idea or point per paragraph.
- Use active voice: Using passive voice in your writing makes it harder to comprehend.
- Use the correct language: The language used in academic writing should be concise, formal, and explicit. Choose your words carefully.
- Include references: You should give credits to all your sources at the end of your papers. Also, endure you get references from authoritative sites only.
- Do not plagiarize: Even if you want to quote an authority, ensure you do not plagiarize and give credit to the source. Plagiarism is highly frowned upon in academic essays.
Academic writing is not your regular type of writing. And since you can not avoid it as a college student, you either learn how to write it or employ academic writing services online.
Once you can figure out what type of academic writing you are working on, your work is halfway done; create an outline, and get to work.