We don't always think of writing as a series of skills that we continuously build on, but this is a useful framework to think of the difference between high school and post-secondary writing. The expectations for the output of your writing are higher in post secondary, but you are building on skills that you've already developed in high school.
Instructors will expect you to be familiar with a three-point thesis statement and a five-paragraph essay structure (introduction, three body paragraphs, conclusion). In post-secondary, you will be required to build on those concepts. Depending on the course and the assignment, your thesis statement might be a claim only, and your essay may need more than three body paragraphs. Do not be discouraged! The principles of an essay are the same as in high school: Make your claim/answer your question and support it. Each body paragraph, no matter how many you have, will need a topic sentence, supporting evidence, and a clincher or concluding sentence.
In post-secondary, you are expected to support your opinions/interpretations/arguments with evidence. Evidence might be pulled from:
When using evidence, you'll be required to incorporate it in the form of a quote or a paraphrase (for more on using evidence, check out our quote, paraphrase and summary guide). One of the biggest differences in post-secondary is that quotes and paraphrases must be cited using a formal citation style such as APA, MLA, or Chicago (a list of links won't cut it anymore). These citations styles can be overwhelming at first, but you'll become familiar with them soon enough! You can get a head start by checking out our citation style guide.
There is a lot of focus on following citation styles in post-secondary because they provide guidelines to avoid plagiarism. Plagiarism is when you take credit for someone else's ideas, and it can have serious consequences (such as being kicked out!) in academia. For information, check out our academic integrity guide.
Below is a list of tools you might find useful for writing in post-secondary:
These tools break down assignments into manageable steps. Many assignment calculators also include links to resources to help you through each step of the writing process. The Seneca Polytechnic's Assignment Planner is a great place to start!
Did you know you can customize spellcheck to check for specific grammar issues or spellings? In Word, go to File > Options > Proofing. Then, beside Writing Style you can select Settings and select or deselect options
Challenge: can you find the "contractions" option to catch and avoid using contractions (like don't or can't) in your essays?
Keep in mind that spellcheckers can make mistakes, so it is important that you proofread your essay or ask someone to proofread for you to help catch errors. Reading aloud is a great editing strategy. For more editing strategies, check out our Revision Guide.
Reference managers like Mendely or Zotoro are tools that can help you keep track of your research throughout your academic career and are free to use.
Note: NWP does not endorse these tools
Visit our Writing Hub for online resources and tips for every stage of writing, from understanding assignments, to integrating quotes, to editing!
Writing in post-secondary is about entering into discussions (via writing) and critical thinking is a crucial part of this. The video below (Academic Bites, 2024) provides a good overview of the goal of most essays in post-secondary, and how you can demonstrate critical thinking.
Writing an academic paper can take a lot of time, especially if you have to do readings or research first. Leave yourself plenty of time to finish your writing assignments, and plan out this time on a calendar.
Academic writing is often about an argument - why or how something is the way it is, or the way it should be - and it's up to you to prove that argument using supporting evidence.
Coming up with a strong idea for an academic paper requires knowing information about your topic, what some of your evidence will be, and what you can say about it, before you start writing. Do your research and reading in advance.
Once you've picked a topic and done some reading, you can brainstorm or free-write ideas to get inspiration and draw connections that can help you develop your argument.
Structure is very important in academic writing. Once you know what you'll be writing about, start by making an outline so you can stay on track and make sure all the parts of your paper directly support your main idea.
Once you have a draft, re-read your writing to yourself, get a friend to read it for you, or reach out to your instructor or the writing support specialist to get feedback on areas you could improve.