Academic Writing

A guide to the academic writing process

About This Guide

Students, professors, and researchers use academic writing in every discipline to express ideas, make arguments, and engage in scholarly conversations. It is characterized by evidence-based arguments, precise word choice, logical organization, and an impersonal tone. Strong academic writing informs, analyzes, and persuades straightforwardly and enables the reader to engage critically in scholarly conversation.


This guide is designed to provide you with resources and tips for academic writing, using the EASE of information literacy.

Explore

Understanding your topic and assignment type and exploring background research can help formulate a compelling research question to guide the research process. 

  • Assignment Types - resources on the different types of academic writing assignments with tips on how to write for each.

Analyze

Explore strategies for evaluating sources relevant to the topic and understand the value of different resource types. 

  • Resources - ebooks, print books, articles, websites, etc., with additional information on the academic writing process

Synthesize 

Incorporating information, building a cohesive understanding, and developing original insights or arguments based on the information gathered.

  • Writing Tips - Tips and tricks for writing for academic disciplines
  • Citing Sources - information on how to cite your sources in APA, MLA, Chicago/Turabian, and SBL

Evaluate

Assess the final project by reviewing its clarity, flow, and alignment with goals, identifying weaknesses, and making revisions to strengthen the overall quality.

  •  The Writing Lab - links to the Cairn University Writing Lab for gaining additional assistance in the writing process.