The following criteria are used for marking your essay assignment. These are criteria which have been agreed with professional colleagues, external examiners and professional standards regulators.

Literature Review

Literature may be discussed and referenced throughout the script, we will be looking for evidence of:

·      Good breadth of sources ( eg: perhaps some classic texts, professional texts, practitioner texts, academic and media depending on the topic)

·      Wider reading beyond the textbook

·      Reading from contemporary articles/seminal or ground- breaking and classical articles as well as general studies

·      Professional referencing

·      A bibliography that is focused on the topic ( but which may still include some ‘off beat’ or allusive material, if relevant)

Analysis

·      Depth and quality of analysis which closely addresses the question

·      Use of concepts, models, ideas as a framework of analysis

·      Integration of argument with the literature

·      Critical reasoning of depth and insight

·      Synthesis of description and analysis

·      Insightful interpretation; sensitive inferences

·      Mature and sophisticated judgement

·      Use of evidence to support observations

Content

·      Relevance and appropriateness of content

·      Led by the needs of the question (nothing extraneous/ irrelevant)

·      Conceptualisation

·      Clear, coherent and logical line of argument

·      Argument supported with referencing and with appropriate evidence ( facts, figures or examples etc)

·      Description eg: contextualisation; perhaps some short anecdotes/ stories for illustration

·      Evidence of broad comprehension eg: theories, concepts applied within an interpretive structure

·      Key themes identified and explored- which progress naturally

·      Conclusion which is a summation of what has gone before ( no new data introduced at this stage) and ends with a clear message to the reader

Structure and Presentation

·      Logical sequencing and flow eg: introduction, main body, conclusion

·      Clarity of structure so that points lead on in a natural, progressive and cumulative way

·      Clear organisation, perhaps with sub-headings

·      May involve some discussion of definitions; identification of issues/ problems etc

·      Well written; clarity of expression; good standard of English language/ grammar

·      Points and themes clustered in terms of their relevance/ not scattered

·      Paragraphs are linked together in a chain/ not fragmented; each paragraph adds to the meaning of the one before

·      Written in the third person tense

·      Use Harvard referencing system – consistently

·      Proof- read, spell check, grammar check; re-read your work for sense before submission (put yourself in the role of the reader)

·      Avoid tautology ie: repetition

·      Stay within the word count; declare number of words in the piece

Originality

·      Provide an unusual focus to the topic, but don’t be ‘modish’ for its own sake; can you see something new in the publicly available material?

·      Try to take a different point of view to orthodox thought (as long as you have the evidence/ can make the argument)

·      Perhaps an unusual line, even ‘contrarian’ line of argument where the material justifies it

·      Reference to contemporary events; use analogies/ use personal data where appropriate

·      Try to find and express a personal voice/ style ( but not seem opinionated)

In the end writing something which is vital, expressive, coherent, concise, insightful, persuasive etc is a craft skill which requires practice. You may not get it right straight away, but do persist. It is worth really mastering this skill because it is part of what being a ‘professional’ means and not just in management.