PhD – the basics’: 4. What is an Essay?

This short series of sessions are designed for candidates commencing their studies. They cover some of the fundamentals of the PhD thesis, including research design, literature review, and the problems of supervision – all the things you will need to be thinking about as you begin your studies.

The sessions are informal and you are welcome to drop into them on an individual basis, or attend the entire series. Some of the topics may well be covered by your own institutions or department. You may, however, find a different angle on the same topic useful.

What is an Essay? – in this session we’ll look at the nuts and bolts of writing an academic essay, including how to structure an argument, and how to organise your material. The session is designed for anyone who wants to refresh basic skills, or is coming into the PhD from a nonconventional route and is unsure of academic conventions. It will be of use for writing standalone essays or preparing chapters of the thesis.