A Complete Guide To Writing Qualitative Essays

Essay writing is a requirement that almost every college or university student must fulfill in the course of their studies. However writing a good qualitative essay is a different thing all together. There are various steps to be followed in order to compose a high quality qualitative essay.

Abstract

This is the first thing that should appear in any qualitative essay. An abstract is a short statement of between 100 to 150 words describing to the reader what your essay is all about and why you had to write it. It also elaborates to your reader what you did, how you did it and its implications.

Introduction

An introduction basically sets the stage of your essay to your readers. It is here that you open the eyes of your audience by telling them in brief what your study is all about and the reason you chose to do it. Your introduction should also provide a precise argument of your study and evidence to support it. The introduction should at least contain one paragraph.

Review of literature

Literature review puts your essay in perspective. It is a way of telling your readers that you are not the first person to write on the particular topic you are discussing. In this section, you point out different authors who have previously talked about the same issue. As much as you recognize their efforts, you also point out the weaknesses in their study which you are aiming to address in your essay. You should quote several sources for this purpose.

Objectives and methods

A qualitative essay is often carried out as a precursor of quantitative research. This section therefore highlights the reason as to why and how a research was carried out. In this section you should point out clear objectives of your study and also the methods that you used to collect your data.

Facts/evidence

As you come to the conclusion of your essay, you should point out in this section convincing evidence that you will use to substantiate your argument in the study.

Conclusion

Your conclusion is as important as the introduction. It should be appealing and convincing to your readers. It is in the conclusion that you take your stand and offer suggestions to the problems that you identified in your study. Just like the introduction, your conclusion should be brief and to the point.