College English Essay Simplified - How to Format, Choose Topics, and Craft a Thesis Statement

This blog consists of the steps and tips for college English essay formatting, topic selection, and writing the thesis statement to guide you in writing a winning essay. Let’s delve into it to explore these. 

Whether you are taking an English course or completing your degree in English literature, you are likely to write an English essay. An English essay is an organised interpretation and discussion of the literature work in English. Many students are stressed out while writing this essay. 

According to the study by ResearchGate, writing anxiety is the prime concern of many students. The main reasons for this anxiety include inadequate topic knowledge, low self-esteem, language difficulty, lack of structure knowledge, and limited time. However, by knowing the college essay format, topic, and thesis statement, they can craft a winning document.

In this blog, the experts of the Fast Assignment Help share holistic details about formatting, choosing the topic, and writing a winning thesis that will help students write an essay without any anxiety. 

So, let’s start with formatting the English essay.

How to Format the College English Essay?

There are two common formatting styles: APA and MLA. Have a look at the below to explore how you can format your English essay according to these formatting guidelines.

APA Formatting Style

• Title Page: The title page in APA style includes the title of the essay in a centred, bold title case, the writer’s name, the institutional name, and the page number.

• Header and Page Number: The header is added to every page of the essay in APA style. This header includes the title of your essay in all capital letters at the left corner, and at the top right corner, write the page number.

• Spacing: Use double spacing for all the text and set the page margin to 1 inch. 

• Font: Always write your document in a readable and clear format, such as Times New Roman 12 pt or Calibri 11 pt.

• Citation: For in-text citations, write the last name of the author and the publication year within the parenthesis. 

• Title: Write the title in bold and in the title case on the first page of the essay. 

• Reference Page: Add the reference page at the end of the document. Arrange all your references alphabetically by author’s last name. 

MLA Formatting Style

• Title pages: MLA style doesn’t require a separate title page. You can write the title and other details on the first page of your English essay in MLA style. Write the title at the centre of the first page. After that, write your name, your teacher’s name, your course name, and the due date. Write all these details in the left alignment.

• Spacing: Like the APA style, use double-spacing for text and margins of 1 inch in your essay. 

• Header and Page Number: Add the header on each page of your college English essay with the last name of the author and page number at the right side of the page.

• Citation: In the MLA style, an in-text citation is used to reference the sources. For this citation, write the last name of the author and the page number within the parentheses.

• Font: Use readable font size and style such as Times New Roman 12 pt or Calibri 11 pt.

• Work Cited Page: There is a separate page for the work citation in MLA style. List all the sources that you have used alphabetically according to the writer’s last name. 

So, you have learned the common guidelines of MLA and APA format styles; now, you just have to explore which style you are expected to follow. Selecting the right formatting style for your English essay is essential to ensure that your document meets the expected standards. If you face difficulty in formatting your essay, you can hire UK-based professional essay writers for this task. 

Now, move on to exploring the best way to choose the right topic for your essay.

How to Choose the Right Topic for a College English Essay?

After exploring the formatting guidelines, the next step is choosing the right topic for your college English essay. The topic is the main idea on which you will write your entire essay. Therefore, you must choose the right topic to make your writing successful. Follow the below steps to pick a good topic.

Explore the Sources

Most students are like the blank tablet when they have to choose the topic for their college English essay. They have no idea on which topic they can write a perfect college essay. If you are one of them, don’t worry we have a solution for your problem. The best way to pick a topic for the essay is to explore the sources such as books and encyclopedias.

These sources provide you with a good overview of the subject matter. You will also explore various terms and valuable concepts which you can select for your essay writing. Additionally, you can consider the concepts or ideas that intrigue you during the class.

Pick the Right Topic

So, while exploring the sources, you have come across various potential topics, and now is the right time to pick the right one. Follow the below tips to pick the right topic.

• Choose a topic that can be reasonably addressed within the word count limit provided in the requirements.

• Ensure that your topic is not too broad; it is difficult for you to cover it within the word limit. Also, make sure it is not too narrow; you will not be able to collect relevant data on it.

• Identify whether you are supposed to analyse, interpret, compare or contrast some issues. This evaluation directly impacts the approach of your topic selection.

Convert Topic into Research Question

This is the last step of the topic selection for the college English essay. Framing your topic into a question will give you confirmation of whether your selected topic is right or not. When you have a research question for your essay, you can better search on your topic and try to answer it because research is not passive, it is the answer to a query. 

Furthermore, this will help you to select the voice of your essay. For instance, when you translate your topic into a research question, you get to know whether you have to describe a concept, compare two events, or analyse some problem. You can buy online English essays if you face any difficulty in choosing the topic and ensure higher grades. 

How to Write a Thesis Statement for a College English Essay?

The thesis statement is the most important part of your paper and comprises the main concept of the essay. Generally, it comes at the end of the introductory paragraph. The length of the thesis statement depends on the essay type you are writing; however, every statement comprises the main topic that you are going across the entire document. 

Follow the below steps to write a compelling thesis statement for a college English essay.

• Once you have selected the college English essay topic, start developing a working thesis, which is the first question that comes to mind after crafting a topic.

• After doing some preliminary research, try to write a tentative answer to your working thesis. At this stage, writing is as simple as possible.

• Now, expand your answer and give the reasons for this answer and how you will convince your readers. This will be your potential thesis statement. 

• Finally, refine your thesis statement and ensure that your statement consists of all the key points of your college English essay. 

For better understanding, check out a thesis statement example from a college English essay by Slideshare.

Conclusion

Writing a college English essay is a challenging process that requires critical analysis, strategic planning, and in-depth research. The most important tasks of this writing process are choosing a topic, formatting, and crafting a thesis statement. If you have done these three tasks effectively, there are higher chances that you earn higher grades in your English essay.

In this blog, we have shared key steps and valuable tips for formatting your essay, choosing the best topic, and writing a strong thesis statement. For additional support, you can avail of essay writing services from a trustworthy writing agency such as Fast Assignment Help. The professionals of this company can help you with college English essay format, topic selection, and thesis statement. 

References

1. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/379519081_An_Analysis_of_the_Level_of_Students%27_Anxiety_on_Their_Writing_Skills

2. https://www.slideshare.net/slideshow/english-thesis-statements/85749807