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University of Essex
Academic Skills at Essex
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Academic style


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01 Features of academic style     Task 1  /   Task 2
02 Distinguishing between informal and formal language    Task 3   /   Task 4
03 Writing an e-mail to a tutor    Task 5   /   Task 6

01 Features of academic style

The way you express yourself will vary according to your context. For example, if you are writing an e-mail to a friend, your language style will be very different from the style you would adopt in a letter to your bank manager.

In the same way, at university you will need to use the most appropriate style of language to convey your ideas. You must, therefore, be careful to comply with the established norms and conventions relating to academic register in your written work.





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02 Distinguishing between informal and formal language

Try in your academic writing to pay particular attention to the way you express your ideas. If your style is informal, then you will fail to make a good impression. It is essential, therefore, that you adopt a more formal register of language in your writing in order for it to be considered appropriate for the context.





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03 Writing an e-mail to a tutor

Writing an appropriate e-mail to a tutor may present problems since the medium of writing is usually considered by most people to be rather informal. It may feel unnatural, therefore, to write an e-mail in a formal register.





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Authored by: Jane McDonnell, Learning and Teaching Unit


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