Plan your BUSS4 Essay!

How and why to plan your essays in BUSS4

So, the BUSS4 exam is this week and no doubt you have been advised at some point to plan your essays before you start writing. You might be thinking this is a waste of time and keen to get writing, but I am producing this short blog on a Sunday night as a plea to urge you to spend just 5 minutes or so planning before you begin. The students who have produced the best mock essays for me this year are almost always the ones who have completed a plan first.

Why?
-It is easy to lose focus when writing a 40 mark essay, and a plan can help keep you on track
-You’ll feel more confident when writing your essay if you have a plan to refer back to
-It allows you to get your thoughts down at the start when you are full of energy and focused

How?
I would suggest a simple outline is the best way to plan:
-Do a list or a mind map of what your four main paragraph points will be, two points for each side
-Attach to the points the examples you will refer to in your paragraphs to back up these points
-For section A, note which bits of the source/case study you will refer to in the points
-Also note where you will refer to hooks from the question
-Finish with an outline of what your overall judgement will be, and what it may depend on

An advertisement is currently running on local radio in the North West and it states ‘begin with the end in mind’....if you know what you are aiming for and how you will evaluate then your whole essay will have a clearer structure and should flow much better

Good luck for Thursday all, and prepare well