Unit 1 Academic Skills Introduction
2 The Writing Process
Overview
Writing at the university level is not simply writing about your own experiences and opinions. In this course, you will learn how to critically read sources and extract information to support your thinking. You will learn how to conduct library database research, and you will learn how to write a research paper.
Academic writing as a process
Academic writing in college is a step‑by‑step process, not something finished in one sitting. Writers complete small tasks, such as brainstorming, drafting, revising, and checking sources, to build a strong final paper. This process is iterative, which means writers return to earlier steps to improve their ideas and make their writing clearer. Completing each small assignment helps build the skills needed for the final version
Exercise
Review the typical steps writers follow in the writing process.
Adapted from Writing a Research Paper, from the University of Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center
