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How to structure an essay
This guide will give you the basics of how to organise and structure an essay. But remember that
how the essay is organised and presented does not necessarily reflect the process that you go
through in writing the essay. For example, many experienced writers prefer to write the
introduction after they have written the main body of the essay. Similarly, many writers will write a
very rough draft of a section and then move on to the next before the first one is perfect. This
process is explained more fully in the ‘Writing an Assignment’ guide. Above all, remember that
while you might be able to make a rough outline immediately, you will probably change your mind
after you do your reading and research.
In this guide, we will explain what the end product should look like in general terms.
Introduction
It may be useful to think of the introduction as a signpost to what is coming up next in the essay;
with this in mind, it is often written last. It is usually about 5-10% of the word count (100-200 words
long for a 2000 word essay). Do avoid rewriting the question! It wastes words and does not say
anything new.
Here are some of the things you might do in an introduction. It’s unlikely you will always need to
