Writing

Writing for academic and legal studies

During your studies in this program, you will be expected to write several 'essays'. For each subject, you may write several short answer responses to specific questions or a relatively short essay, and also a longer research-based essay. Whether answering a question briefly or at length, all academic writing needs to be based on extensive reading, and sources carefully acknowledged.

To manage the various writing tasks well, you need to:

• understand the difference between description, explanation and argumentation
• understand the text composition process
• consider a range of evidence, and form clear opinions
• organize your textual product according to the established pattern or 'logic' of academic essays
• carefully summarise, paraphrase and reference the words of others
• write concisely and coherently
• expand your vocabulary