9 Tips to Write Stellar Papers as an Environmental Science Major

Environmental science is a very popular major these days. Many people enroll in environmental science programs to learn more about what they can do to help the planet. The number of students awarded bachelors degrees in this field rose by nearly 20% between the 2013 and 2018.

There are a lot of great reasons to get a degree in environmental science. However, you shouldn’t go into the program expecting it to be easy. There are a lot of challenges that you will have to be prepared for. One of the tough realities is that you are going to have to write a lot of detailed, technical papers on your path to becoming an environmentalist.

Writing Skills Are Crucial as an Environmental Science Major

Writing is a form of art. To get better at it, you have to practice. Writing is not entirely dependent on the topic that you are discussing – it’s more of a thought process. How you write reflects your imagination. The writing process is similar in all the subjects. However, what differs is the pattern. For instance, the style that you’ll use to write an assignment will differ from that of a novel or book.

Academic writing is one of the areas that you’ll have to practice in college. This is especially true for environmental science majors. To get good grades and achieve your career goals, you’ll have to develop and improve your writing skills. In this article, I am going to share a few simple tips that you can use to improve your assignment writing skills.

You are going to have to write a lot of extensive papers when you are studying environmental science. You might have to write papers on the ozone depleting, climate change, the threat of extinction to various animals and many other issues.

Fortunately, environmental science students can thrive by learning to perfect their writing skills. Keep reading to learn more.

Getting good grades as an environmental student by improving your writing skills

To write a good paper as an environmental science student, you’ll need to invest a lot of time and energy. Topics like climate change and the depletion of the rainforest are very complicated. You can’t even attempt to write about them without having a detailed understanding of the material or having good writing skills.

One thing that most environmental science majors lack is time. They have to attend all classes, prepare for tests, complete other assignments and participate in extracurricular activities to name a few.

How you write determines your performance. You have to use the right words, spelling, and punctuation. Apart from that, your assignment needs to have the appropriate structure. Writing is going to be much less difficult when you seek some assignment help. Here are some of the best assignment writing tips for you as an environmental science major.

1.      Use all the sources of information on environmental topics

Apart from the guidelines and instructions, professors will avail several sources of information that you should use when writing your assignment. Some of the sources include reading lists, recordings, discussion boards, and sample assignments. You have to use all these sources if you want to get good grades. If you don’t understand why a particular source has been listed by your professor, you should consider seeking help. Remember, your tutors are here to help you achieve your academic goals. Therefore, never hesitate to ask questions.

You will want to be aware of the best sources on environmental issues. Some resources for anybody writing a paper on environmental topics include EnviroLink Network, GeoEngineering Watch, National Council for Science and the Environment and the Virtual Library of Ecology and Biodiversity. You will want to look into them when writing a paper on any environmental topic.

2.      Read about environmental issues every day

There is no substitute for reading. To become a great assignment writer, you have to be an avid reader. If you don’t like reading, it can be difficult for you to write.

We understand that reading about environmental topics can be extremely depressing. You are going to have to think about the fact that climate change is creating crazy weather problems as it worsens and other problems are threatening the environment. However, it is necessary to become informed enough to write environmental science research papers.

By dedicating some time to reading every day, you’ll get to adopt new ideas and inspirations. And these things will help you write better. Reading doesn’t always mean that you have to spend hours going through your syllabus. You can read anything that excites you. It could be horror, fantasy, thriller, humor, satire, fiction, or poetry. Reading will help you have a clear idea of what sounds great on paper. Plus, you’ll get to build your vocabulary.

3.      Hire a writing tutor

This is one of the best things you can do for yourself especially if you don’t have good writing skills. Sometimes, writing an assignment can be tiring and boring. Therefore, having a professional writer beside you to act as your guide will pay off in spades in the long run. Today, you can easily find an experienced tutor online at an affordable price. By hiring a writing tutor, you’ll develop your writing skills at a fast pace and get good grades.

4.      Reference all the sources

It is hard to write original papers on environmentalism without referencing major researchers. However, you are going to have to cite their work properly.

If you’ve been writing college assignments for a while, you’ve probably heard of the word ‘plagiarism’. Plagiarism is an offense that has serious consequences not only in college but also in the professional world. Plagiarism is the act of presenting other people’s ideas or words as your own. And it has serious consequences such as loss of marks, paper cancellation, or worse, suspension. In most instances, most students aren’t aware that they’ve cheated.

Plagiarism can occur due to poor paraphrasing and referencing. If you don’t know how to reference sources, you should consider visiting your school library or attending online workshops on referencing. There are many referencing platforms such as Mendeley, Google Scholar, and EndNote that you can use to retrieve information, create references and store your sources with a few clicks. Using these platforms will save you a lot of time and energy that you would have spent researching and formatting references. Familiarizing yourself with different citation styles is essential if you want to achieve your academic goals.

5.      Come up with a plan

If you want to build a house that will last for decades, you don’t start by laying bricks randomly. Instead, you focus on coming up with a solid plan.

Writing a high-quality assignment paper requires planning. You need to know the sections that your paper will have, the sources that you’ll use, and how you’ll organize the content. This is going to require you to do your research to learn more about the environmental issues that you want to focus on.

Various research studies have shown that students who write outlines before working on their papers tend to get better grades than those who don’t. Planning will not only help you save time but also enable you to achieve your goals. During the planning stage, the use of effective platforms such as Outline and OneNote will make your work easier as they’ll enable you to organize information.

6.      Edit and proofread your work

You should avoid submitting an assignment without proofreading it. Proofreading and editing your text will pay off in spades in the long run. A study conducted back in 2018 found that college students who planned and edited their essays did perform significantly better compared to those who didn’t. Proofreading helps you spot and eliminate spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors. While there are lots of software that can detect spelling, grammatical and punctuation errors, there’s not even one of them that can detect all errors. You have to go through your paper. If you cannot do this, consider handing over your assignment to a friend or supervisor to help you spot the errors. Always proofread your work at least three times before submitting it to increase the chances of getting good grades.

7.      Simplicity is key

Most students want to sound smart when writing their assignments to impress their tutors. However, you should avoid this at all costs. When writing an academic assignment, simplicity is key. Using short and simple sentences will keep your readers entertained and engaged. If you want to impress your tutor, focus on coming up with strong points instead of vague or complex words.

8.      Get feedback

When writing an academic assignment, one of the best things you can do for yourself is to ask for feedback. People interpret the text differently. Therefore, having a clear idea of what you want the reader to focus on is important. And the best way to know this is by having a family member, friend or tutor go through your work. Getting feedback is the only way to improve your performance. Don’t be afraid to be criticized. You should consider joining a writing class or forming a writing book. Finding a workshop or online course can go a long way in helping you get good grades.

9.      Develop your critical thinking skills

Critical thinking is an important skill that you need to master when you are writing assignments and studying as an environmental science major. It will help you understand, analyze and evaluate different points and come up with a good decision. As a student, you should question every piece of information that’s presented to you. A critical thinker examines different sources of information and rejects those that are not supported by facts. Using facts is essential if you want to write an essay that’s free of societal or personal bias. Writing an assignment without using your critical thinking skills will significantly lower your performance.

Perfect Your Writing Skills as an Environmental Science Major

You might have not been prepared for the level of writing that you need to do as an environmental science major. Unfortunately, this is going to be something that you can’t get around.

Writing assignments is a skill. To develop this skill, you have to be dedicated and focused. Today, most colleges offer workshops, online courses, and consultations to help students develop and improve their writing skills. Improving your writing skills will pay off in spades not only in college but also in the job market.