Essay writing is a common practice in academia. No matter what you study–be it Literature, History, or Political Science–you have to write papers every now and then. But what’s the reason for that?
Paper writing is a typical assignment for most academic degrees because it allows students to apply their knowledge gained during classes. For teachers, in turn, essays show how well their students understood the material and employed it to find solutions to specific problems.
But let’s whittle the range of essay writing down to political science courses. You may wonder, “How can I write my essays on political science?” Fortunately, you’ve come to the right place. The following guide entails all you need to know to compose a top-notch, thought-provoking, functional political science paper from scratch!
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Understand the main question
The first step in writing any paper is based on reading and comprehension. You are doomed to write a clumsy and generally weak essay without it. So, first and foremost, make sure to read the assignment and understand what it is all about. What does the prompt tell and require you to do? What is the central question about? Is it short, or does it contain several questions?
If the central question includes subquestions, try to break it down into several parts and understand what they request to do. Remember that some questions may not require addressing them at all. That’s why it’s critical to do analytical work before delving into writing.
Apart from that, pay close attention to the requirements. They always include essential information to help the writer choose the right writing strategy. In other words, the requirements contain the info about sources, evidence, and other equally important things that students must meet.
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Brainstorm ideas in political science
Generating thoughts isn’t easy, especially in political science essays. The latter requires approaching the topic from various angles to come up with relevant, meaningful, and unique ideas.
You can brainstorm the topic utilizing different methods, such as clustering, freewriting, or listing. It is for you to decide which strategy can come in handy the most when writing a political science essay.
Research sources
The process of locating authoritative sources may sometimes be the most demanding and time-consuming, especially when it comes to political science. The thing is, the number of academic articles, journals, books, and other sources are so large that it is hard to find credible materials to back up your claims.
But that doesn’t mean it’s impossible. Importantly, make sure to look for reliable, updated sources published within the last few years. Besides, try to check the authors and their previous works. If their last pieces contradict one another, you can call the source dubious and keep searching for another one.
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Outline the paper of political science essay
Assume you’ve read and understood what you have to do, generated critical ideas, and have found the necessary sources for the paper. What do you do next? Design an outline, of course!
The outline is simple and easy to create, and it is an excellent way to map out your strategy and create a plan to follow. The great thing about such a layout is that it doesn’t have any required form. That is, you can craft an outline in the form of a bulleted list, clouds, or even a summary.
More importantly, the piece must encapsulate all the essential information and help you with the writing session. Depending on the time you can afford to write an outline, you can make it more or less detailed. Even several sentences about every paragraph will be of extreme help.
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Begin with the introduction
Every essay should strictly follow a specific format. Depending on the paper and its words count, the structure might contain a set of different and unique sections. Overall, every written discourse must have a clear introduction, body part, and conclusion. Let’s look at the items the introductory paragraph must have:
- Opening: The opening sentence aims to spark the readers’ attention and fuel their enthusiasm to keep reading the piece. It often includes a joke, quotation, misconception, shocking statement, etc.
- Background: Background is part and parcel of an intro, as it helps the audience get a bigger picture and understand what the topic is about.
- Thesis statement: A thesis statement is the final and most significant component of an introductory paragraph. It comprises the focal points the writer will be further developing.
Proceed to the body part
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The body part follows the introduction and traditionally consists of the subsequent elements:
- Topic sentence: A topic sentence refers to a single point from the thesis.
- Evidence: All the data intended to support the writer’s arguments. Regardless of the format (direct or indirect quotes), all the borrowed intellectual property must be cited accordingly.
- Conclusions: Conclusions are indispensable for every body paragraph; they encapsulate the key information.
- Transitions: Transitions allow the writer to improve coherence and accuracy. They are also necessary.
It’s advisable to include at least one paragraph with counterarguments to show the author’s awareness that such opposing stances exist.
Finish with the conclusion
Writing the conclusion might seem elementary at first glance. In reality, though, building a robust and precise conclusion isn’t effortless. To help you with the essay’s last part, look closely at these items:
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- Wrap up key ideas: However short your political science essay might be, summarizing the most pivotal information is a must.
- Restate the thesis: Reiterating a thesis is necessary to remind the audience of the paper’s key points and build a logical chain of supporting arguments that back up the writer’s standpoint.
- Emphasize the topic’s importance: It’s crucial to highlight the paper’s significance and leave the reader under solid impressions. It will motivate them to research the subject more profoundly.
Tips to accelerate writing
To end on a high note, here are quick tips to help you write a political science essay quickly and single-handedly:
- Remember to cite sources right away: It will prevent you from getting lost in articles and books and will help you create a reference page.
- Draft the paper as quickly as possible: It will allow you to reduce the time writing an entire paper.
- Start with any section you like: Go for it if you feel like writing a body part first!
- Take a break before editing the piece: Restore your attention and productivity before checking the essay.