1. Centre of Communication & Design
English Language Programs – Level 5
Week 1 Short Task: Academic Writing Style
Writing at university is very different to other types of writing such as letters or stories. When
students write essays or assignments, they are expected to write in academic style, not to draw
attention to their personality. This kind of writing takes practice, so here are some tips to help
students write in academic style.
Use Formal Language
• Don’t use slang or casual language.
For example: don’t say kids, say children, don’t say lots of say a lot of or a large amount/number of, don’t say it
has really bad effects, say it has extremely/highly negative effects,
• Don’t use contractions or abbreviations, write the words in full.
For example: didn’t → did not, shouldn’t → should not, uni → university
• Try to avoid using phrasal verbs.
For example: Sales went up by 5% → Sales increased by 5%.
• Don’t use exclamation marks (!), etc. or …..
Use Impersonal Language
• Avoid using words like I, we and you. Instead, you could use more general words like
people, workers or students, depending on the context. For example: I think that guns are bad. →
Many people believe that guns are bad.
• The passive voice can be used to avoid mentioning any people at all.
For example: Most people know that smoking is bad for health. → It is widely known that smoking is bad
for health.
Don’t ask questions
• Direct questions are not academic style, so rewrite any questions you want to ask as
statements.
For example: What can we do to solve this problem? → Solutions to this problem must be discussed.
Use the tips above to make these sentences more academic. There might be more than one thing to
improve in each one.
Many people don’t agree with this idea.
In this essay I will tell you why smoking should
be banned.
Lots of people send their kids to international
schools.
How can education be improved?
You shouldn’t drink too much alcohol.
Lots of students need to study harder.
It’s popular in Vietnam, Korea, Japan…
Author: Louise Stringer for AEP, March 2011
Source: Tips adapted from material at
https://www.dlsweb.rmit.edu.au/lsu/content/4_WritingSkills/03academicstyle.htm

2. Centre of Communication & Design
English Language Programs – Level 5
Now, read this paragraph. There are no mistakes, but it is not written in an academic style.
Change it to make it more academic.
In my opinion, high school was really, really cool. Classes started at
around 9ish and then we had lunch break at 12 for an hour and then 4
more hours of class and so on. There were lots of subjects to study like
maths, English and history, me and my friends all liked sport the best
because we could run around and didn’t have to be inside. Once we
finished the final grade, we all applied to different uni’s. How different
do you think Uni was? It so different.
Suggested Answers
There could be many possibilities, so accept anything you think is acceptable.
Many people don’t agree with this idea. Many people do not agree with this idea.
In this essay I will tell you why smoking
should be banned.
This essay will show why smoking should be
banned.
Lots of people send their kids to
international schools.
Many people send their children to
international schools/Many children are sent to
international schools.
Driving fast is really dangerous! Driving fast is extremely dangerous.
How can education be improved? Ways to improve education need to be
considered.
You shouldn’t drink too much alcohol. People should not drink too much alcohol.
Lots of students need to study harder. A large number of students need to study
harder.
It’s popular in Vietnam, Korea, Japan… It is popular in Vietnam, Korea and Japan.
My high school was a really very normal school. We Students had to be at school at 8.30am, and
we finished classes classes finished at 3. There were lots of different types of subjects, like such as
maths, English, history, and art.… My favourite subject was science, because it’s it is really
interesting. Usually we hadthere were 6 lessons a day, but on Wednesday we only hadthere were
only 4. Everyone’s favourite day was Wednesday! This meant Wednesday was very student’s
favourite day. We allAll the students hated the uniform, because we thought it was thought to be
uncomfortable and ugly. We had to wear trousers and a shirt, but we didn’t have to wear a tie.
Wearing trousers and a shirt was compulsory, but students did not have to wear a tie.
Author: Louise Stringer for AEP, March 2011
Source: Tips adapted from material at
https://www.dlsweb.rmit.edu.au/lsu/content/4_WritingSkills/03academicstyle.htm