9 Keys To Writing A Good College Essay – A Quick Guide

To write a good college essay, it must have many key elements. A good college paper takes time and must have many key elements for it to be even considered a good paper. For a college paper to be considered good it must have a thesis, evidence to back up that thesis, a consistent body, transitions, outside material, correct spelling and grammar, satisfactory sentence structure, works cited page and proper formatting.

  1. Thesis
  2. All papers must have a thesis. Without one, your paper is not a proper paper. In fact, it’s not a paper at all if it doesn’t have a thesis. Ensure you thesis is clearly stated and understood. This is what my paper is about, is what your thesis should answer.

  3. Evidence
  4. In all papers, you must back up your thesis. Without evidence you’ve then just made a statement. A statement that is not supported, and therefore, is just an opinion. A college paper is not an opinionated article.

  5. Body paragraph
  6. Your body paragraph should be consistent. All paragraphs in your body must be related to each other in some form or way and must be absolutely related to your thesis. Do not go off topic.

  7. Transitions
  8. Your paper should be smooth and flowy not choppy and hard to read. Any paper should flow and be easy to follow. If your paper is not then, you need to go back and reword the entire thing.

  9. Outside material
  10. If your paper is a research paper, then you should have in-text citations. You must always give credit to what you re-worded, summarized or simply quoted to be in your paper. Never forget to give credit where it is due to. If you don’t, your college will take the steps required in the plagiarism policies they set forth for all students to read and understand.

  11. Spelling and Grammar
  12. You are a college student and are no longer in grammar school. Understand that your instructor will not want to read a paper that had obviously been forgone when it came to spell check or even proofread.

  13. Sentence Structure
  14. Sentence structure is important for all papers and must be followed to the T. Understand what your instructor is asking you and know how your paper should look like.

  15. Works Cited Page
  16. All papers either have a Works Cited Page or a Reference page. Understand that your sources must be in the correct format depending on what type of paper you were asked to write.

  17. Proper Formatting
  18. This pertains to MLA, APA or Chicago formatting. Understand what type of paper you are writing and how it should look.

These are the nine steps to follow to write a proper college essay. Remember that a thesis is required, evidence is needed, a consistent body is desired, transitions are wanted, outside material is used, correct spelling and grammar is required, satisfactory sentence structure is mandatory, works cited page or a reference page is mandatory and proper formatting is mandatory in order for your paper to turn out to be a good essay.