New students? You’ve made it to November, well done!
But now you’re probably thinking about your first assignment and wondering how to get started.
Don’t panic, the Library and Academic Skills Team can help you with this!
To tackle your assignment, you need to:
UNDERSTAND the question. Make sure you are familiar with the Learning Outcomes and be aware of what you are being asked to do.
READ widely so that you develop a strong knowledge of the topic. Use Library Search to find academic sources to do this. Avoid websites unless they are recommended by your lecturers!
PLAN your assignment according to the correct structure, whether it’s an essay, a presentation, a report, or a reflective assignment. Have a look at our Assignment Types guide to help with this.
WRITE the assignment. Use the PEEL model to help you structure your paragraphs and ensure that you are covering information in a logical order.
EVALUATE and carefully proofread your assignment. You can ask a critical friend to read it too to check it makes sense, and for spelling and grammar errors. There is an evaluation checklist in Stella Cottrell’s Study Skills Handbook – use this to make sure you have done everything you need to before you hand your work in.
The Learning and Academic Skills Pathway will guide you through the stages of completing an assignment. Explore the links and resources relevant to each stage as you work.
The Library and Academic Skills Team also have a workshop on Tackling an Assignment – book a place and attend the workshop for more support on how to do this.
But what if you need some help?
The resources above should guide you through the process independently. However, sometimes students need a helping hand. It may be that you can’t find the right evidence you need to back up what you want to write, or you are not sure whether you have structured an assignment correctly. You may be concerned that you are being too descriptive and not analytical enough. In these situations, it may be a good idea to explore one-to-one support from the Library and Academic Skills team.
