1. Confidence. It can be rather daunting to set about heavily critiquing authoritative texts, and takes some courage to put out fresh ideas of your own. As long as you are comfortable with the basic requirements of essay writing and academic conventions, you should be assured in your intellectual abilities and have the confidence to take a risk.

2. Unusual sources. Everyone’s ideas are informed by the other material out there. Rather than sticking to the basic texts or standard sources, consider following the footnotes to more unusual areas to find challenging new ideas in unexpected places.

3. Often originality will emerge after a long familiarity with central, core source materials and more contemporary and less established texts. In writing your essay, aim to move on quickly from repetitive discussions and cut to the chase. Establish the bulk of your analysis in new and emerging areas of research.

4. Critical perspective. A critical engagement with the available literature is essential for any hope of finding fresh and original ideas. Be on the look out for unwarranted assumptions in the arguments of others, and don’t be afraid to challenge these as you see fit. Disrupt the normal lines of argument to establish an original voice in your work.

5. Academic rigour. Only in mastering the basics can you reasonably hope to move on to more exciting and original substance in your writing. Familiarise yourself with the conventions of writing an academic essay, and with the standard lines of inquiry in your given subject area.

6. Wide reading and research. Originality seldom comes from isolated genius, but from critical exposure to the literature. Read widely and engage at a serious level with the available and relevant research in order to lay the foundations for originality in your essay.

7. Unorthodoxy. By choosing from the outset to adopt an unusual or marginal argumentative position, you set yourself a considerable challenge by aligning yourself against the weight of opinion. However, you will also increase the likelihood of demonstrating original ideas and avenues of inquiry. Be assured that you will be judged not on the position you take, but on the strength of your arguments.

8. Organisation. Often the main thrust of the major paragraphs in your essay will be determined by the material to which you are referring, and the references may well present an obvious set of relationships. Chronological arrangement is common as it represents the development of ideas; consider juxtaposing classic and contemporary sources to provoke new insights.

9. Language. It remains important always to use appropriate linguistic conventions and maintain the academic register throughout. Nevertheless, adopting a slightly more assertive tone can lift the quality of your writing by emphasising your own critical perspective and moving away from tired repetition of familiar discussions.

10. Outside theories. Many academic disciplines treasure a certain corpus of theoretical approaches. Occasionally, however, it is possible to bring in theoretical ideas from other related disciplines to shed a new light on old material. Such a tactic can be very enlightening, but be sure to do so only when your grasp of the outside theory is assured.

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1. Take a stand. As an undergraduate you are not necessarily always required to produce a cool, detached and balanced piece. Often the strong development of a particular thread of argument can be more rewarding, and can be countered later in seminars or group discussions.

2. Balance. The counterpoint to the previous tip, but not its contradiction. Even if you aim to take up a certain position strongly, demonstrate your recognition of the countervailing opinions. Showing that you have considered alternative positions confers a certain credibility.

3. What is it for? Aim to get the most personal educational benefit out of your work by considering why it was set, what you are expected to learn, and how it relates to the rest of your studies. Think about the module you are working towards and its objectives.

4. Be an undergraduate. You have finished school, but have taken only the first step into higher education; you must live up to newer, higher academic standards, but must also be mindful that you have barely scratched the surface of your subject. Don’t assume you know it all.

5. Read widely. Deep engagement with the relevant literature is the single most important prerequisite for high attainment in your essays. Demonstrate wide reading through your work with copious references and involved discussion of appropriate source material. Wide reading also helps you generate your own ideas.

6. Broad knowledge base. Often an undergraduate essay will require the consideration of a topic previously alien to you. It is therefore necessary either to have a broad knowledge base to begin with, or to become comfortable with grasping unfamiliar ideas, which will in turn eventually increase your general knowledge. Don’t be intimidated by the unfamiliar.

7. A variety of sources. Use all of the sources available to you to ensure that you have the most useful material, and as a demonstration of your research skills (much prized in academia). Libraries, academic and clinical journals, research papers, e-journals, newspapers, internet sources, and so on.

8. Sound use of language. Quite apart from the content and substance of your essay, the written document is an exercise in language. Spelling, punctuation and grammar are problems easier to solve than most others, so don’t let little errors slip you by.

9. Strong analysis. In writing undergraduate essays you are expected to increase substantially the level of critical, argumentative and analytical content. Pure description is never enough, and must only be used in support of rigorous analysis and logical argumentation.

10. Plan and structure. Consider each essay to be a substantial and valuable piece of work, and plan ahead to ensure you write it as well as possible. Think in advance about what you want to say, how best to express it, and the material necessary to support it, then synthesis an appropriate plan.

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1. Misreading the question. Disregard for the precise wording of the question, or poor comprehension of its meaning, can waste hours of work. Avoid this occasional but catastrophic slip by making a habit of breaking down and studying the question before you begin.

2. Beginning too late. There is nothing worse than a desperate rush to meet a deadline, especially if hours of good research are to be squandered through poor execution. Plan your time in advance and save yourself from the horror.

3. Beginning too early. A less obvious mistake, but a serious one if the temptation to make a head start compromises the thoroughness of your research. A shallow essay will not earn you a satisfactory mark.

4. Inadequate research. Following on from the previous tip, you should recognise also that even if you spend plenty of time in research and background reading, this can be far from useful if the research is superficial. Really try to engage with the texts, or risk limiting the mark you can achieve.

5. Incoherence. A poorly structured essay will fundamentally limit the value of the piece. No matter how many bright ideas are poured in, they will not be given the recognition they deserve. Bad structure disrupts the flow of arguments and discussions and makes the essay a chore to read.

6. Too few sources. There is no natural law determining the number of sources required for an essay of a given length; it is something you must develop a feel for. If your ideas are exhausted after two paragraphs, you should have done more reading before you started.

7. Scholarly clangers. Have you been referring to Dr Bloggs as ‘he’, only to discover having submitted the essay that ‘he’ is a ‘she’? Very embarrassing in a module on Feminism & Academia. Avoid such calamities by adopting an attitude of diligence and care in all things.

8. Over-reliance on the web. We have become used to quick answers to factual questions through internet search, but the lack of depth in much of the material on the web makes it often unsuitable for academic work. Authoritative texts and peer-reviewed journals carry that much more credibility.

9. Striking the wrong note. Tone is an aspect of language important enough to be given its own consideration. In academic work, choose formality over familiarity. Be mindful of your place in the scheme of things; assurance is better than timidity, but make sure you have the credentials to keep confidence from being seen as bravado.

10. Plagiarism. The biggest mistake of them all. All universities take a very dim view of plagiarism, to say the least. Quite apart from deliberate plagiarism, be certain also to avoid inadequate referencing and poor paraphrasing.

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