Doing an essay subject at uni after only STEM a levels

I'm concerned that my essay writing skills may have slipped. At GCSE I did literally zero preparation for both English language and literature so I came out with a B. I am considering economics or social policy and economics with are of course essay based. So do essay writing skills really matter or is it the insight and subject understanding that is more important?

Reply 1

alkyone

12

I think that essay writing shouldn't worry you that much. Anyway at university for each subject there is specific formats expected and you will pick up the skill as you go. First year does not usually contribute much to your overall classification, so if the subject you choose requires a lot of essay writing, you will have that year to learn how to properly do it. Most universities also offer advice and have one to one tutorials available for people who want to learn how to approach academic essay writing.

Posted from TSR Mobile

Reply 2

M14B

18

Original post by Lucasium

I'm concerned that my essay writing skills may have slipped. At GCSE I did literally zero preparation for both English language and literature so I came out with a B. I am considering economics or social policy and economics with are of course essay based. So do essay writing skills really matter or is it the insight and subject understanding that is more important?

The skill comes back soon

Reply 3

Lucasium

OP

15

Original post by M14B

The skill comes back soon

Original post by alkyone

I think that essay writing shouldn't worry you that much. Anyway at university for each subject there is specific formats expected and you will pick up the skill as you go. First year does not usually contribute much to your overall classification, so if the subject you choose requires a lot of essay writing, you will have that year to learn how to properly do it. Most universities also offer advice and have one to one tutorials available for people who want to learn how to approach academic essay writing.Posted from TSR Mobile

Do I stand a chance of getting an offer from a top degree program? Say my grades meet the requirements

(edited 7 years ago)

Reply 4

alkyone

12

Original post by Lucasium

Do I stand a chance of getting an offer from a top degree program? Say my grades meet the requirements

I do not think it should matter if you meet their requirements and have a strong personal statement. If you research into the universities you wish to apply to and check what sort of selection criteria they have though, because some top universities have extra requirements such as interviews or submitting a sample of your writing, and decide accordingly.

Reply 5

bones-mccoy

19

Original post by Lucasium

I'm concerned that my essay writing skills may have slipped. At GCSE I did literally zero preparation for both English language and literature so I came out with a B. I am considering economics or social policy and economics with are of course essay based. So do essay writing skills really matter or is it the insight and subject understanding that is more important?

I took Biology, Chemistry and Maths at A Level, studied forensic chemistry for my undergrad and psychology for my postgrad. The only one I needed to write essays for was psychology, which was about 5 years since doing my last essay in my GCSE's but I honestly didn't find it that bad. Once you've got the basic structure down it's relatively easy to plan what you're writing about in which paragraph and how to link everything up.
A good essay is just as reliant on HOW you write it as WHAT you write. You can create the most intelligent, thought-provoking essay in the world but it'll be so hard to read if it's not written well or doesn't flow.
It might be a bit difficult to get used to writing essays again but you'll soon pick it up, especially if you'll be writing them for 3 years.

(edited 7 years ago)

Doing an essay subject at uni after only STEM a levels

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