Tips For Writing Exemplary College-Level Essays: Argue well and sound good while doing it.

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Writing a strong college essay can be challenging, but experts say that a few simple tips can make a significant difference.

“When I think of a beginning writer, telling them to write a paper isn't super helpful,” said Julie Allen, a middle and high school English tutor. “When students have a writing framework, I see a big improvement in their work. Instead of just saying whatever is in their head, I see a scaffolding,” she said.

Professors and tutors say that students can improve their writing by focusing on a strong thesis, clear organization, active voice, and concise language.

“Good writing is good manners,” said Nathan Coleman, chairman of the University of the Cumberlands History department, in a series of lectures on writing and research.

“Readers are selfish,” he said, adding that they are unlikely to engage with writing that is not interesting, applicable, or important. Using proper writing etiquette goes a long way towards making a good essay. Learning to write and doing it well is essential for communication and helps students develop critical thinking skills, Coleman said.

One of the first ways students can improve their writing is by developing a clear thesis.

It serves as the backbone of an essay, guiding the rest of the paper. Every other part of the paper aims only to support the thesis with analysis and evidence, tutors said.

Tutors agree that almost all essays are fundamentally persuasive.

“Your job is to take a position and defend it,” Coleman said, “an argument is about reconstructing a story from your evidence.” In general, the thesis should argue why something happened rather than what happened.

The argument often begins with a formulated question.

 Harvard College Writing Center published a series of writing strategies that addressed thesis development. According to Harvard, when brainstorming a paper, “A useful starting point will be to come up with a strong analytical question that you will try to answer in your essay. Your answer to that question will be your essay’s thesis.”

Analytical questions that ask “how” and “why” are more suited for analysis and serve essay writing better, according to the center.

While the thesis provides structure, tutors say that it does not have to be final. “Remember that you can adjust your thesis after you’ve started writing,” said Samantha Mager, an English tutor at the University of the Cumberlands Learning Commons. Such an integral part of an essay does not have to be stagnant. Sometimes research demands that a writer change their argument as they learn more.

Once a thesis is established, organization becomes essential.

“Constructing an outline helps you to organize your thoughts into a logical argument,” Coleman said. Each thesis usually has several pieces of evidence that support the original claim. For example, “A is true because of X, Y, and Z.” Those supporting reasons form the body of a persuasive essay.

Even for more advanced essays, Mager said she still relies on basic structures.

“Even if a lot of essays aren't five paragraphs, I still use the Five Paragraph Essay concept,” Mager said.

She laid out a simple outline for new writers: an introduction with a hook and the thesis, paragraphs with evidence and explanation, and a conclusion that restates the thesis and connects the topic to broader concepts.

 “The thing that helped me most was having a structure; something that I could look at and see what I'm missing,” said Trisan Allen, a high school senior who learned the outline technique at the beginning of middle school.

Beyond thesis and structure, surface-level clarity helps to separate strong essays from weak ones. Every sentence should be as simple as possible while still conveying the point, Coleman said, using the economy of language.

“New college writers will be very vague, and they just won't be specific,” said Danielle Kruger, another English tutor at the university. Part of her job is teaching writers to narrow their argument down and say more with fewer words.

Writers should favor active verbs over passive verbs, Coleman said, because active verbs help assign responsibility and create a clear path from a subject to an action.

“Nothing just happens,” he said. “People take actions that have consequences.”

Active verbs provide intention, function, and argumentation while remaining confident and precise. Writers ought to avoid phrases like “The ball was thrown,” Coleman said, because it hides the subject and is unclear, while a sentence like “The boy threw the ball” clearly assigns responsibility.

If a writer chooses a strong, visual verb, it carries all the description of an adverb without the extra word. Instructors said that avoiding common, noncommittal, and vague verbs helps students keep their writing clear and concise.

Finally, “Write sentences that vary in length and rhythm. Write like music,” Allen said.

Monotony bores writers just as much as it bores the readers. Generally, shorter sentences are clearer, she said. They require the reader to perform fewer mental gymnastics.

Coleman cautioned against overly long sentences. Rather, he said that writers ought to simplify their prose by keeping most sentences between seven and 21 words long.

Though writing is difficult, instructors say that discipline and practice help students to improve their skills. Focusing on clear arguments, strong structure, and concise language can help students produce more effective college-level essays.