Student Learning Commons: Writing for university: Disciplines

The resources on this page help familiarize you with the expectations of discipline-specific assignments. Keep in mind that (a) this list is not exhaustive, and (b) your writing assignment may have specific requirements not covered by these resources. Always check with your instructor or TA.

Anthropology 

Anthropology Study Skills Guide
Education Corner: Scroll down to "Writing" Section. Includes links to other writing resources for Anthropology students. 

Business

SFU Business Writing Mentors 
SFU Beedie School of Business

Best Practices for Business Writing
Focus on report formatting and style

Principles of Business Writing (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill)
This handout explains principles in business writing that apply to many different situations, from applying for a job to communicating professionally within business relationships. 

Business Writing
Literacy and learning, resources for technical and business writing

Professional, Technical, and Job Search Writing

Formal Business Letter Template (from Thompson Rivers University Writing Centre) 

Engineering

An Introduction to Engineering Writing 
Ohio University - College of Engineering 

How Engineers Can Improve Technical Writing 
The American Society of Mechnical Engineers 

Education

Writing a statement of teaching philosophy 
SFU Student Learning Commons

English

Critical Reading Toward Critical Writing 
University of Toronto Writing Advice

Using Literary Quotations
How to incorporate material from literature into your analysis paper, University of Wisconsin, Madison

History

Writing a History Paper
SFU Student Learning Commons

A Student's Guide to the Study of History
The History Guide.org

Writing History Papers: The Short Version 
Patrick Rael, Bowdoin College

Student's Guide to Writing History Papers
McGill University Dept. of History

Writing About History and The Comparative Essay
Writing at the University of Toronto

Indigenous Studies 

*Note: These resources are broadly applicable for any writing by or about Indigenous Peoples, and not only for courses in the Indigenous Studies department. 

Elements of Indigenous Style - Dr. Gregory Younging 
"Elements of Indigenous Style provides guidelines to help writers, editors, and publishers produce material that reflects Indigenous people in an appropriate and respectful manner."

Four Feathers Writing Guide - Royal Roads University Writing Centre 
"The Four Feathers Writing Guide respectfully presents traditional Coast Salish teachings and approaches to learning to support Indigenous students develop as academic writers."

Linguistics 

Generic Style Rules for Linguistics 
General style guide for standard conventions in linguistics

How to Write a Linguistics Paper
Short guide from the University of Trier, focuses on the components of an empirical paper and how to cite works

IPA Symbols 
This website contains all of the IPA symbols, as well as the ability to easily add diacritics

SFU Linguistics Department Writing Centre 
Offers one-on-one writing consultations for students taking Linguistics and Cognitive Sciences courses

Software Resources 
SFU Linguistics Department has provided some guidance documents for using Microsoft Word and Latex to write and edit Linguistics papers 

Philosophy

Writing a Philosophy Paper
Peter Horban, SFU Dept. of Philosophy

Guidelines on Writing a Philosophy Paper
Jim Pryor, New York University

Psychology

Writing in Psychology (from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) 
This handout discusses some of the common writing assignments in psychology courses, and it presents strategies for completing them. 

Writing for Psychology
Harvard University Dept. of Psychology

Surviving (and acing) PSYC 300
Tips from a graduate writing facilitator

Writing a Case Study Report (writeonline.ca) 
This guide provides advice and resources to help you write case study reports during your post-secondary education.

Science

General writing tips for science students
Style, clarity, and paraphrasing

Writing strategies for science students
Formal lab reports and critical reviews

Writing in the Sciences
University College Writing Centre, University of Toronto

Sciences
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

How to Write and Publish a Scientific Paper by Barbara Gastel and Robert A. Day
Book in the SFU Library Catalogue

Abstracts
University of Richmond Writing Center

Reports

Scientific Research Reports
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Biology Laboratory Reports
University of Richmond Writing Center

Sociology

Sociology
University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill

Writing Sociology Papers
State University of New York, Geneseo

Additional resources

Thompson Writing Program at Duke University - Genres of Writing 
Click on each genre for detailed information - definition, questions to ask, actions to take, and helpful links).

Find additional information about how to succeed in courses and classes in specific subjects.

Academic Writing for Undergraduate Students: a collection of sample papers from multiple disciplines, with instructors' comments and students' reactions -- Monash University, Australia.

Sample undergraduate papers from the SLC writing contest

Citing and formatting

And see the SFU Library's citation and style guides for more on citing and formatting in the various styles.