Assignments

What is Academic Writing?

JCU lecturers discuss academic writing at university

Academic writing differs from discipline to discipline. How the writing is structured, and what counts as evidence depends on the discipline or field, such as history, zoology or physics. Use the resources on this page to assist you with writing your assignments.

It is important to reference any idea that is not your own. This is one of the key principles of Academic Integrity.

The most commonly used referencing style is APA referencing. This is known as an 'author-date' style. There are two parts to referencing. The first is called in-text referencing, which is where you reference ideas within your writing in a short form. The second is at the end of the text where you reference in a full form. The reference list begins on a new page at the end of the document and is in alphabetical order.

In APA 7th the short form looks like this:

APA Short form reference.

In APA 7th the long form for a journal article looks like this:

APA long form reference.

For more assistance with APA 7th referencing style:

APA Style Quick Guide

APA Style Common Reference Examples

Referencing Quick Guide Video from the JCU Library

For JCU Library APA guides and all other styles use the Library Referencing Guide

Essay Writing Basics

Essay Writing Basics Videos

There are some common features of academic essay writing. Essay Writing Basics contains five short videos that explain the core elements of essay writing. They introduce the basics, and give you an idea of the main elements of an essay, including how to respond to an essay question, and how to write a Thesis Statement (the sentence that contains your main point), and Topic Sentences (which start each new paragraph).

How do you prepare for Academic Writing?

JCU students discuss how to prepare for academic writing at university

A visual guide to essay writing cover.

A Visual Guide to Essay Writing

Dr Valli Rao, Associate Professor Kate Chanock, and Dr Lakshmi Krishnan use a visual approach to walk students through the most important processes in essay writing for university: formulating, refining, and expressing academic argument. Download the pdf guide by clicking the image.