How to structure an essay: Mastering essay layout

How To Structure An Essay

Figuring out how to structure an essay correctly is crucial if you want your argument, or position to be as convincing as possible. The structure of your essay helps to ensure the content flows naturally, guiding your reader through from start to finish. 

While many students know essay structure will often involve an introduction, body, and conclusion, you may need to dive deeper if you want to make your content really stand out. Figuring out how to properly organize information in your essay could be the key to a better grade. 

Here, we’re going to guide you through the basics of essay structure, to ensure you can make the right impression with each of your pieces. 

The structure of an essay: Basic elements

The structure of an essay refers to how you map the flow of information from start to finish in a piece of copy. The way you conduct your thoughts in your essay will help to transform a selection of disparate ideas into a well-formed, coherent argument. 

Consider the best books or articles you’ve ever read. Often, these pieces are effective because they present ideas in an order that makes sense. They start by introducing you to contextual information, then follow with supporting evidence and ideas, before eventually tying everything up neatly at the end of the piece. 

While the exact contents of your essay may vary, all good essays should include the following elements:

SegmentContent
Introduction— An outline of your topic
— Contextual information and definitions
— Background details
—Your thesis statement (the purpose of your essay)
Body— Core arguments (arranged one by one)
— Evidence and scientific information (for each argument)
— Aligned points connected sequentially
— All paragraphs link back to your thesis
Conclusion— Ties together all of your main points
— Highlights the point of your argument

To be effective, the structure of an essay needs to be as linear as possible. You shouldn’t be jumping back and forth between arguments from one paragraph to the next, as this makes the information disjointed, and more difficult to follow.

How is an essay structured? Information layout

Proper essay structure is all about presenting your information as clearly as possible.

The introduction

At the beginning of your essay, you need the introduction – the part of the document responsible for introducing your argument. Introductions are essential because they can determine whether someone wants to keep reading or not. 

From the moment you start writing, you should be clearly and concisely highlighting the aims of what you want to write. 

For instance, if your assignment is “Discuss the idea that logo design is important in branding”, you might start with a quote on logo design, followed by key facts and points you’re going to examine in the essay body, like:

  • Logo design elements.
  • Logo design and psychology.
  • How logo design influences brand loyalty.

Because the introduction of the essay needs to be as clear and aligned with your essay body as possible, it’s common for many students to write the rest of the assignment first, then go back to the introduction. 

Remember to include a thesis in your introduction, where you highlight what you’re going to do or prove. For example: “In this essay I will prove logos are essential to branding.”

The body

The body of the essay is the longest part. 

Even a basic essay should include five paragraphs. The first and last paragraphs will be the introduction and conclusion, while the central three are the “body”. Each paragraph or section of your essay body should establish as specific point of your argument. 

In general, background information intended to “set the stage” for your argument should appear towards the beginning of your essay, close to the introduction. You should also move from the simplest claim, to the most complicated. 

If, say, your argument is “Logo design is important”, you might start by discussing how people remember images more than text. 

By the end of your essay body, you could cover things like color psychology, and how different logos influence specific emotions. 

Remember, everything in the body of your essay needs to be relevant and linked back to the “Thesis” – the statement you make in the introduction of your essay about what you’re going to argue.

The conclusion

The end of your essay is the conclusion. This is where you draw together all of the points you’ve made into one cohesive argument. Essays shouldn’t simply end. They should remind your reader of all the important topics you’ve covered and summarize your argument. 

Don’t introduce any new ideas in the conclusion, as this just increases the chances of your readers becoming confused or distracted from the main point. By the time your reader is finished with your essay, they should feel fully convinced by your argument.

How To Structure An Essay

Structuring an essay: Options for good essay structure

While all forms of essay structure must include the introduction, body and conclusion, there are different “styles” of structure which may be applied to the way you manage the body of your essay. 

Structuring the body of the essay is often the most complex part of making sure an essay is formatted correctly for most students.

Chronological structure

A chronological approach (otherwise known as cause and effect) is the simplest way to structure the body of your essay. It allows for the discussion of events in the order in which they occur. You can address how these events or arguments are related as you go. 

For instance, in each paragraph, you’d present your argument, share some details why you think that argument is correct, and then prepare for the next idea you want to present in a subsequent paragraph or section.

Compare and contrast

The compare and contrast structure is common for essays with more than one primary subjects. A literary analysis essay, for example, would compare two different texts and an argumentative essay would assess the strengths of different arguments. 

There are two primary methods of structuring your compare/contrast essay:

  • Alternating: Using an alternating method involves comparing one subject to another, moving back and forth between the discussion of both topics in a paragraph. 
  • Block: in the block method, you cover each subject one at a time, potentially across multiple paragraphs. Here, you might write two paragraphs about one subject, then two about your second, making comparisons back to the previous section. 

Problems, methods, and solutions

Essays which concern a specific problem (practical or theoretical) can be structured according to specific problems-methods-solutions approaches. In this structure, you define the problem, characterize a theory or method to create a solution, and present the solution.

How To Structure An Essay

Tips for creating good essay structure

An essay format template may look like this:

  • Introduction: With the thesis of your argument and any required context.
  • First body paragraph: Discussing your first argument and why it relates to the thesis.
  • Second body paragraph: Discussing your second argument and why it relates to the thesis.
  • Third body paragraph: Discussing your third argument and why it relates to the thesis.
  • Conclusion: Addressing all the points and how they prove your argument.

It’s important to guide your reader through the essay as carefully as possible using methods like “Signposting” to help you. This involves clarifying your structure for yourself, as well as helping your reader to follow specific ideas.

In some cases, you may also consider using an essay overview. The essay overview is intended for longer essays, wherein the body is split into multiple sections. 

The introduction in this case will finish with an overview of what the rest of the essay will cover, with brief descriptions of the main idea and argument of each section. 

The overview allows the reader to immediately understand exactly what will be covered in the essay and in what order. 

Other tips to make your essay more effective structurally include:

  • Transitions: Transition words and phrases help to link together different ideas and guide the reader through the text. This makes your essay easier to follow.
  • Subheadings: Subheadings can be useful for introducing certain segments of an argument in a longer essay with several thousand words. 
  • Signposting terms: Terms like “In conclusion” can be helpful at calling attention to the specific point in the essay.

Ensuring good essay structure

Suitable essay structure is essential to the success of any academic document. The better you guide your reader through the course of your essay, the more easily they’ll be able to follow your arguments and agree with the statements you make. 

The more you practice your essay writing efforts, the better your structuring will become. Good luck getting your essay structure perfect! 

Fabrik: A branding agency for our times.

Rebekah Carter
Chief content writer
Rebekah Carter
Chief content writer
After achieving her creative writing degree, Rebekah delved into the business world – taking business, marketing, and SEO courses. As the chief content writer at Brand Fabrik, Rebekah creates informational articles related to creative copywriting, media and PR, fundraising, employee communications and more.

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