Sounding academic

All thesis writing should adopt a formal and academic register. However, what this means will vary according to the specific writing practices of your discipline. The best way to discover the appropriate formats, language and register to use in your writing is by reading widely in your discipline. You will, of course, already be doing this, but you will have been reading for content only. You may not have consciously taken notice of the discourse and rhetorical strategies that are used by writers in your area.    

Tip: If you would like some guidance about how to do this, make an appointment with Library Learning Services and bring along a couple of samples of articles from your discipline. They can help you identity the language typically used in your area.

A few language tips that can help you adopt a more formal tone.

 

1. Using the right verb forms

Avoid the use of phrasal verbs and prepositional verbs. Instead use a single verb.

According to some biologists, coming up with (phrasal verb) clear proof of the decreasing number of avian species has been difficult.

According to some biologists, determining (single verb) clear proof of the decreasing number of avian species has been difficult.

 

2. Limit adjectives and adverbs

Aim to limit your use of adjectives and adverbs when writing academically – overuse often suggests exaggeration and subjectivity.

Avoid colloquial terms and choose the more formal alternatives.

Crash test dummies are really important for automotive safety tests.

Crash test dummies are integral to automotive safety tests.

We got encouraging results using structural bamboo.

We obtained encouraging results using structural bamboo.

Aim to place adverbs mid-sentence

Actually, very little is known about the general nature and behaviour of black holes. 

Very little is actually known about the general nature and behaviour of black holes.

 

3. Limit contractions and abbreviations

Obviously, some abbreviations will be appropriate, especially in the sciences; however, contractions should be avoided.

It wasn’t proven; e.g. Marx and Engels; i.e. climate change

It was not proven; for example, Marx and Engels; that is, climate change

 

4. Avoid using too many questions

What can be done to lower recidivism?

It is necessary to consider how recidivism can be reduced.

We need to examine how recidivism can be lowered.

 

5. Eliminate redundancy

Eliminating redundancy is a key writing skill for clear academic English. Not only will your message be communicated more clearly and effectively, but you will be able to manage your word count more effectively.

There are some inorganic materials that can be used by bioengineers in the process of tissue engineering that have been shown to be very promising. (25 words)

Some inorganic materials used in tissue engineering have shown great promise. (11 words)

 

6. Use formal negatives

Change not…any → no

The analysis did not yield any new results.

The analysis yielded no new results.

Change not…much/many → little/few

This problem does not have many viable solutions.

This problem has few viable solutions.

 

7. Use passive voice appropriately

Passive voice is important for describing processes, where you do not want to emphasise the subject or agent of the action. It is used frequently in the hard and social sciences when describing experimental processes and/or data collection. However, it can be overused and too much use of it can obscure your own voice and argument.

Here, the passive voice is appropriate, as the focus is on the processes being described:

These details were determined to be similar in terms of axial stiffness…Each beam was strengthened over a length of 1500mm.

Data were collected from a cohort of students who were selected based on their socio-economic profiles.

However, in the following the active voice is the better alternative:

This section provides a summary of the experimental work that determined the process of modelling.

In response, this paper argues that intervention is necessary under certain circumstances.

Adapted from Swales and Feak, Academic Writing for Graduate Students, 2008.