How to write your abstract

Preparing your submission to UA may be your first experience of writing an abstract for your academic coursework but don't worry! Your abstract is just a short and concise overview to give the UA Judges a sense of what your entry is about.

You should consider the following:

Your motivations

Why did you undertake this research? Why is it important or interesting?

Your methods & approach

What different methods of research did you use? Was it a close-reading, a literature review, a long-term lab experiment, a survey etc.

Your conclusions & implications

What were the conclusions that you drew from your research? What happened in your experiment or what argument seemed to stand up to your investigation?

Extra Tips

During Stage One of the UA Judging Process, UA Judges will only look at your abstract, so make sure you take a few minutes and try to impress them!

DO

• Start with the most interesting information

An exciting first line will ensure that judges will read the full paper.

• Use the same chronological order as your paper

This will make your paper easier to follow.

• Use clear, concise language

Judges will be reading a lot of abstracts. Simple and strong statements will stand out.

DO NOT

• Use personal or emotive language

Your abstract is still a piece of academic writing.

• Include definitions of terms

Your abstract is short, you can include this information in your entry.

• Include information not in your submission

Your abstract is a summary of your coursework, not an extension of it.