Q&A for How to Write an Academic Essay

This might be part of your thesis statement. You will want to make a statement as your thesis or claim -- so if you are answering a question you have been assigned for your essay, your thesis or claim would be your answer to the question, and then a couple reasons why that “preview” your evidence.

Never use the first person in an academic essay when you are trying to get a point across. Only include citations, references, quotes, research and own arguments/findings/conclusions. Use terms like "it can be argued" or "in contrast to this point" instead.

Writing a good introduction is like an art. However, the best way to write a proper introduction is beginning with general information about the topic (1 or 2 sentences), defining some of the important terms or subject matter (1 or two sentences), narrowing down to your topic (1 or 2 sentences) and finally writing the purpose statement or the thesis statement.

Typically, in-line citations are used like this: (Last Name, Year), so that the reader can go to your reference list and easily find the work you're referencing. For example: "Studies have shown that fish oil can help prevent macular degeneration (Jones, 2013)."

Yes, after your 1st paragraph and thesis statement, you may use a new subtopic in each new paragraph. Make sure your information is tied together well.

The ability to write a good persuasive essay can show a lot about the person and their abilities. It demonstrates their reasoning skills, ability to read and understand a text or analyze data, etc. These essays also often require the writer to make connections across various texts and link different ideas together.

It depends on the type of essay. In many essays, you can. You can always ask your teacher if you're not sure.

This will vary depending on the topic of your essay and the field of study in which you are writing. In general, it is best to use peer-reviewed works, such as academic books or journal articles.