Ivy League students: How do you write essays (especially a Political Science essay)?

College Life
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<p>Hi all,
I go to an Ivy League school, just declaring my major as Political Science this sem. I’ve tried hard in my classes, but the highest essay mark I’ve gotten is a B+. How do you bring it to an A? What are some tips that you have?
Thank you
p/s: I’m talking about In Class essays.</p>

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<p>bumppppp
help</p>

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<p>Have you asked your professors? Campus writing tutors? Writing tutor can work with you on stylistic stuff; instructor can tell you if it’s content that’s lacking.</p>

<p>There’s no magic trick to writing that anyone here could impart to you. I assume you’re writing standard five-paragraph essays, or a scaled version that gets you to the length you want. </p>

<p>That said, even with grade inflation, a B+ is a respectable grade. You’re in a big pond.</p>

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<p>In class essays tend to grade more on content than style, so you may want to consult a professor or TA about what you can do to improve (although, a really particularly poor written essay can knock you down a grade or two). It may be that your argument isn’t strong enough or that you’re not supporting your thesis adequately or any number of things. The only way to know is to ask for help from people who have actually read your essay.</p>

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<p>Here’s what I do (I usually ace in class essays):</p>

<p>Background strategy:

  • Review themes & class notes the night before, if you have the essay prompt, search the readings for things that relate to the questions
  • take notes on patterns or similarities in the themes covered during the period leading up the the exam so that you can quickly think of a coherent argument
  • example: for one class we had to read parts of the Bhagavad Gita, Exodus/Genesis, and the Daodejing for the last section of class; I reviewed all class notes then wrote down a list of similarities and differences side by side; then went through each chapter looking for examples to support these patterns</p>

<p>Writing the exam:

  • in the example above, one of the questions given asked to compare and contrast the major sacred works & themes seen in them; I immediately re-wrote the outline I had made the night before about similarities and differences</p>

<ul>
<li><p>read the exam question again and answer the question with your thesis (I.e. These sacred texts have many similarities regarding xxx). Then in the rest of the intro state some general trends you will say in the essay (2-3 sentences)</p></li>
<li><p>for each paragraph, support your thesis with a thematic example from the texts(I.e. ‘One similarity can be seen in the methods of achieving salvation’) . Start reciting examples from the texts supporting this statement in the body of these paragraphs. You want to have maybe 3-6 of these, depending on the course/time allowed)</p></li>
</ul>

<p>-maybe state an alternative interpretation if you have time at the end </p>

<ul>
<li>restate your overall point/observation/arguments and/or</li>
<li>conclusion restating yiur thesis</li>
</ul>

<p>Good luck hope this helps, usually works for me</p>