Skip to Main Content

Extended Essay: 8 Simple Steps to writing an Academic Essay... and Outlines!

What is an Academic Essay?

Academic essays are formally written, informative pieces of writing which present the writer's perspective on the topic, using research and evidence to;

  • initiate a debate 
  • develop an argument
  • identify and analyze a concept
  • defend an idea or present a point of view.

Academic essays are also;

  • unbiased
  • focused and well structured
  • well sourced using primary, secondary and or tertiary research
  • accurate and consistent
  • critical
  • balanced and objective (NOTE: For this reason, academic essays are usually written in the 3rd Person)

IMPORTANT: Your evidence must be properly cited and referenced.

This page gives guidance about the Steps you need to take, and the Structure (outline) required for an academic essay.

8 Simple Steps

Choose an Essay Topic

  • What is the main idea you want to write about
  • Choose a topic you are interested in and have a good understanding of
  • Check any subject specific requirements and subject guidelines found here

Formulate a Research Question

  • What is the specific question your essay needs to answer
  • Make sure it is a question, not a statement

Conduct research to provide the information you need to support your arguments

  • Primary research: collecting original data through surveys, interviews and/or experiments
  • Secondary research: collecting existing data and informaiton that has been created by someone else
  • Tertiary research: using textbooks, encyclopedias and reference books to gain a general understanding of your topic

Create an Essay Outline

  • Provides a basic structure which can be adjusted to the specific needs of your topic and subject area
  • Must include details about; an introduction, the body of the essay and the conclusion
  • More details found elsewhere on this page

Write the Introduction

  • Provide background information on the topic
  • State your Research Question
  • Present your theory, hypothesis or thesis

Write the Body Paragraphs

  • Paragraphs develop your arguments and supports each point with evidence
  • Each paragraph should focus on one main point
  • Each main idea should include a topic sentence that introduces the idea, supporting evidence and a transition sentence that connects to the next paragraph

Write the Essay Conclusion

  • Provides a summary of your main arguments
  • Restates your Research Question and your throy, hypothesis or thesis

Revise and Edit your Essay

  • Review your essay for:
  • Grammar, punctuation and logic
  • Table of Contents, Bibliography and Appendixes
  • Labeling on images, graphs and tables
  • Formatting as per the formatting checklist provided by your Supervisor

Structure of an Essay... the Outline

This outline gives a basic structure for an essay that suits most subject areas, and can be adjusted to suit others. It is a starting point to organizing your ideas and ensuring that your essay is clear, states your points is a well structured and logical progression, and designating which evidence supports each point to answer your question.

There are 3 main parts to an essay; the Introduction, the Body of the essay, and the Conclusion.

  1.  Introduction

    • Brief overview of the topic

    • Research Question in context

    • Your main argument or thesis statement

  2. Body

    • First Main Point

      • Supporting evidence

      • Explanation and analysis

    • Second Main Point

      1. Supporting Evidence

      2. Explanation and analysis

    1. Third Main Point

      1. Supporting Evidence and analysis

  3. Conclusion

    • Restate your main argument or thesis statement

    • Summarize main points

    • Final thoughts and implications

 

IMPORTANT: When you are creating your outline, discuss the subject specific requirements with your supervisor (for example, some IAS subjects and most Science subjects will require 'Methodology' as part of the structure), and then fill in the necessary information under each heading.

Be specific about your points of discussion and which evidence you will use to support your argument. The explanations and analysis should look at how each piece evidence supports your point and helps to answer your Research Question.

You can include as many points as you need to fully answer your question. You can use more than one piece of evidence to support each point.

It is, however, recommended that you don't belabor or over explain a point.