Academic Writing in the Natural and Life Sciences

Writing is an essential part of the successful researcher’s skillset. However, writing at the standard necessary to publish in peer-reviewed journals can be challenging. This two-day writing workshop is for doctoral researchers in the life and natural sciences who wish to improve their academic writing skills in English.

This hands-on workshop will delve into the structure of English papers and abstracts, focusing on how you can improve the style and readability of your academic texts. You are encouraged to bring a sample of your current writing, which will serve as a foundation for peer review activities on the workshop's second day. Additionally, please bring an article from your field that you found engaging or from a journal where you aspire to publish. You will have the opportunity to submit your writing to the instructor for personalised feedback and corrections.

Aims

• You will acquire the tools and techniques needed to make your English texts more engaging and readable.
• By the end of the course and through follow-up coaching, you should have a well-crafted abstract and/or paper introduction ready for the academic world.

Participants will learn the tools and techniques that make English text more engaging and readable. Ideally everyone should come away from the course and the follow-up coaching with a well-written abstract and/or introduction to a paper.

Contents 

• The writing process and techniques to overcome writer’s block and
• procrastination
• Cultural differences in writing and reader expectations
• Introducing a narrative structure into an academic text
• Structuring an English paper
• Composing well-structured paragraphs and sentences
• Finding your scholarly voice and writing with authority
• Writing compelling titles and abstracts
• Identifying typical mistakes and how to avoid them
• Punctuating an English text
• Self-editing and concise writing
• Resources to support your writing
• Peer review feedback and feedback from the instructor

Methods

This workshop is intended to be lively with plenty of discussion, pair work and group exercises. There will be time on the second day for participants to focus on their personal writing projects. Participants will also receive individual feedback and corrections on their writing following the workshop.