Academic Coaching Blog — Writing

Has your professor ever written a margin note in your dissertation that says, "This writing is too dense.  Fix it"? There are some professors that explain what they mean. But more often than not, you're expected to think it through on your own and try to do what they want. Often the problem is you're using sesquipedalian words--and you didn't even know it.  So,  first, let's understand "dense" academic writing?    Sometimes, when you're reviewing the literature for your research topic, you may come across a journal article that is difficult to read.  The sentences are long and you struggle to...

I've just written a LinkedIn post about being authentic in writing, and not relying on AI to do the writing for you.  For those of you who aren't registered, here's the actual posting too. I want to post about authenticity today because I see the threats to that all around me. For example, I just watched some media coverage of Tilly Norwood. Never heard of her? Well, there's a link below to just some of the coverage of this AI-generated actress, who looks so real that there's even talk of her getting representation by an agent. So to get back...

So your thesis or dissertation draft has been submitted to TurnItIn, and the report says you used a lot of AI.  Even if you didn't actually use AI, a certain style of writing can raise red flags when software is used to look for content that is not original.  Supervisors and examiners may also think that the writing is not your own authentic work if it's too formulaic. Here's a short video I recorded, to offer three tips for changing the way you present your content, so that it doesn't sound AI-generated: Get in touch if you're having trouble using...

Faced with the ubiquitous use of AI by students, written exams and other forms of written evaluations will have to be replaced by oral examinations. Students will have to defend their work by explaining it in a spoken presentation, so they can talk about what they learned, instead of submitting a paper, which they may or may not have written.  That's not just my opinion. It's the opinion I just heard expressed by Derek Thompson, a journalist who has become a media sensation since he co-published Abundance with Ezra Klein. Here's his interview with Fareed Zakaria today: https://www.cnn.com/2025/09/07/politics/video/gps-0907-ai-threat-in-schools In the past few...

A new client told me yesterday that she had used ChatGPT to write her Introduction chapter.  She said that she had asked that AI assistant what should go into that chapter, and had written it up accordingly. But now she's not happy with it. It sounds awkward and stiff. She asked me if I would be able to help her add a human touch.   And of course that's the problem with using a robot (by any fancy name) to help in communicating with other humans.  No matter how sophisticated the software, it still lacks that certain something that infuses a...