The way college instructors grade essays often seems mysterious. Unlike scores from multiple-choice tests or math assignments with clear-cut answers, essay grades can feel frustratingly arbitrary and hard to interpret. As a writing counselor, I frequently meet with peers who struggle to understand why they get Bs on their essays when they feel that they have the potential to break into the A range. I firmly believe that we should not assign too much weight to grades (a percent will never speak to your true intelligence or value as a student); however, I also understand that everyone deserves the tools to strive towards their academic goals. If you’re looking to boost your essay writing, here are five simple hacks:
- Read the prompt (then reread it again!)
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I know that being told to read the prompt may seem insultingly simple. You’re probably screaming at your screen, “I swear that I already do that!” But, in my experience, most students don’t truly read their assigned essay prompts. To read a prompt is more than passively scanning the text; you should actively read it at least twice and leave plenty of annotations. I’d even recommend for you to rewrite the prompt in your own words or in checklist form, to refer back to when writing. This way, you’ll make sure to touch on every required idea! Lots of students end up with B essays because even though they write wonderfully on a topic, they leave out a subtle dimension of the prompt’s assigned task. In order to avoid this common pitfall, build the habit of spending more time dissecting the prompt at hand.
- Cut out clunky phrases
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You could write an essay with a sharp and creative argument, but if the paragraphs are too clunky, readers will finish your essay with a slightly lower overall opinion. Time and time again, I’ve seen students get marked down because wordiness and repetition obscured their careful research. One easy way to identify clunky phrases in your essays is to command f for terms like “serves to” or “is showing.” Always substitute these phrases for stronger verbs! Other techniques for achieving concision include paying close attention to active versus passive voice and limiting negative phrasing. Switching passive voice to active voice will eliminate extraneous uses of the “to be” verb, and focusing on positive phrasing will remove unnecessary uses of “not” and “no.”
- Master the quote to analysis ratio
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During my freshman year, one of my English professors told me that every quote cited from an outside source should come along with three original sentences. This basically means that at least 75% of each essay body paragraph should be your own words! By selecting great quotes to back up your arguments, you are setting yourself up for a good grade. But if you stop short, and don’t follow up each quote with ample analysis, you won’t be able to break through to an A. So, before turning in an essay, always go through and visually scan the composition of each paragraph. If a long quote is messing with your 1:3 ratio, either cut down the quote or add in another explanation sentence.
- When in doubt, over cite
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Lacking consistent citations is a no-brainer way to lose points on any college essay. My students often tell me that they struggle to discern when a citation is necessary, so they leave citations out for fear of deciding incorrectly. If you have similar citation misgivings, I’d recommend for you to just cite whenever it’s possible! I’ve never seen an instructor penalize a student for over-citing, but under-citing can lead to very serious cases of accidental plagiarism. I understand that navigating citations and bibliographies can be super tricky, so definitely check out resources like the Purdue Online Writing Lab and EasyBib for more tips. Also, keep in mind that the more college essays you write, the more you’ll hone your citation skills. Don’t let initial intimidation get you down!
- Reverse outline to check your work
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In a B-tier essay, each body paragraph will have a clear and unique topic. In an A-tier essay, all of these ideas will also seamlessly tie together and fit under your thesis. How do you ensure your body paragraphs properly connect? Reverse outlining! In order to create a reverse outline, you roughly draft your entire essay then paste your thesis and body paragraphs’ topic sentences onto a new document. This process reveals your essay’s logical skeleton. As you carefully read over the reverse outline, ask yourself if the topic sentences seem to flow in the correct order. Factors to take into consideration when pondering this issue include: Do the topic sentences mirror the order of ideas in your thesis? Do the topic sentences have signal phrases like “further” that bridge the paragraphs’ ideas? Also, consider if each of your topic sentences has a unique argumentative verb. Forcing yourself to analyze the reverse outline like this is an amazing technique for refining your essay’s argumentative structure.
So, with finals on the horizon, take a look at your last B essay and identify which of these tips might help you solve your writing woes. Did you forget part of the prompt or a couple of citations? Did you lack analysis, concision or a logical throughline? Once you note which of these five problems gave you trouble, I hope you apply my tips to overcome the hurdle on your next assignment. Happy writing, you’ve got this!