Top Ten Tips for Proofreading

By Alex from the Student Team

Proofreading is often overlooked or given too little importance in the writing process. But way too often marks are lost on mistakes that could have been avoided with more careful proofreading. To help you make sure that your essay will be polished to the highest standard, the Student Team have prepared some Top Ten Tips to help you proofread like a pro!

This blog post follows the content of our Top Ten Tips: Proofreading closely. If you prefer to listen, you can do so here:

It’s definitely not wasted paper! It is often much easier to work with a paper copy when proofreading as it allows you to keep your focus for longer and more directly engage with your writing. It is also more easy to access: just put it in your bag and do your proofreading whenever you have a moment to spare, in the bus or while waiting for your lecture to start.

Marks for your essay are awarded in line with a marking scheme. This will outline the key question as well as all the points you need to discuss in your essay. When proofreading, check that you have included all points mentioned in your marking scheme. Struggling with the word count? Check your marking scheme, you might have included irrelevant points that won’t bring you additional marks.

Think of your essay like a story. In order to keep the reader engaged, it need to have a clear introduction, a good conclusion and a nice and smooth transition from a paragraph to another. Always check that your essay has a ‘story-like’ flow, helping the reader to closely and easily follow your argument. Using linking phrases can help you make transitions from one paragraph to another more smooth.

It is definitely a good idea to ask your friends’ help when it comes to proofreading. Sometimes it is difficult for the writer to spot little mistakes that occur frequently, such as using to many ‘thus’s. Your friends can give you new perspectives on your piece of writing and might help you identify what you need to change to make your work sound better. One you’ve identified what the problem is, it is much easier to fix it.

When proofreading, try to look for specific things such as flow, grammar, spelling or the points covered in your argument. Look at each of these in turn, it is more difficult to spot mistakes and inconsistencies if you divide your attention.

Once you’ve checked the main text of your essay, also remember to check whether there are any mistakes in the reference list, heading and figure labels. It is easy to miss these out, so make sure you put this step on your proofreading checklist.

When editing your essay, make sure that you have used the same font size and style throughout and that the tone of your essay is consistent. Changes in formatting or tone can distract the reader and will prevent your ideas from getting across.

Try to finish your coursework at least a week ahead of deadline. It is very useful to leave it aside for a few days and then have another look at your essay. Continuously working on it might make you unable to spot mistakes or a lack of clear flow in your essay. Taking a break and then coming back to it will equip you with a new and more critical perspective!

Feedback from previous essay is a very useful tool when proofreading. Past feedback can give you a good idea of your strong and weak points in essay writing. Put in extra time and effort when checking the areas you are not so good at, for instance referencing, as use additional support to make sure you’ll submit a good quality coursework.

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