Maryland School of Public Policy

Writing Guidelines for Students

v.2.0August 2013

This working document, which has been reviewed by numerous faculty members,will be updated periodically. It is designed to help students develop persuasive, readable documents in response to assignments, by providing:

1. General guidance for producing papers, reports and memoranda;

2. Instruction regarding drafting;

3. Instruction regarding editing;

4. Format basics;

5. Information regarding presentations with PowerPoint;

6. References and exercises which address specific

writing challenges; and

7. Contact information for clarifying content or suggesting changes.

The orientation of these guidelines is for applied professional writing for busy people, which differs from creative writing or intensive research papers. Degree candidates are expected to adhere to these guidelines unless their instructors supplement or diverge from them.

1: GENERAL GUIDANCE

While college instructors often assign lengthy papers of 10 to 30 pages, managers in fast-paced work settings prefer brevity. These guidelinesare appropriate for both situations, but emphasize conciseness Documents created in a professional setting emphasize the inclusion only of information salient to decision making or action Research papers provide more opportunity for in-depth examination of a topic. To write appropriately, students should clarify expectations with their instructors or with their supervisors in the business world.

Listed below are tips for drafting and editing effectively.

Consider the audience. The readersarethe audience, so write to their perspective. The audience may only be the instructor, but sometimes students are told to write for other readers. Keep in mind that a written document may find unanticipated audiences, so choose wording carefully.

In most professional writing, the document must stand alone. Never assume that the reader understands the subject. State the intent of the document and present your conclusions at the beginning, which will help the reader track your argument as it progresses. Make smooth transitions from one paragraph to the next.

Pace the process. There are numerous steps in getting from the first draft to a polished product so schedule time for multiple reviews.

Distinguish among information, findings, conclusions and recommendations. Information transmits facts or other matters useful to the reader. Findings summarize salient facts. Conclusions interpret the facts. Recommendations suggest what to do about them. Recommendations should be specific and implementable. They should describe players, timing and the result being sought.Avoid expressions of personal opinion not based on factual analysis..

For lengthy documents, write an executive summary. Thesummary iswrittenwhenthe draft isalmost final and should be concise. A maximum of two pages is a basic standard, but the summary’slength is also proportionate to the overall document. Busy readers often focus on this section,only reading the body of thedocument ifmore detail is needed. Any document longer than 15 pages is likely to need an executive summary. Executive summaries are usually placed after the title page and the table of contents. Check with the instructor about this.

Executive summaries contain:

  • A description of the undertaking;
  • The methodology used and the structure of the document;
  • Major findings,conclusions and recommendationsas well as implementation options; and,
  • Areas requiring further study, if relevant.

2: DRAFTING

Drafting, consists of multiple stages as described below It begins the process of writing. Leave enough time for each stage, since faculty members expect students’ submissions to reflect investment in the process.

Planning. Since approaches vary by the individual writer, the first step should be a conscious decision about how to tackle the project at hand. Possible strategies include freewriting, brainstorming, and researching while using notations about salient points.

Outlining. For most writers, acritical writing step is outlining, which organizes the documentso that key points are addressed. Outliningsequencesa document’s flow, usinga word,phrase or statement. Statements best ensure the logical flow from point to point. The outlining function in PowerPointmakes this step easy, but some writersprefer paper to electronic versions. The final outline should be consistent with the assignment’s anticipated length.

Introductions and Leads. Every document, even a brief memorandum, should have an introduction, which states its purpose, describes its structure and cites its methodology.. If the document is not a memorandum, the introduction should state for whom it has been prepared. Start the paper with a “lead,” an umbrella statement that engages the reader’s interest while conveying intent. Since the introduction is often heavily influenced by the evolution of the text, it should be revisited once the draft is complete.

The First Draft. Once a general plan for the document has been developed, the first draft can be created. Write quickly without letting editing distract from the process.Once complete, the draft should be set asidebefore revision begins.

Reorganizing. Test the sequencing of the text. Is it in logical order? Are the most important points emphasized or buried? Should some long explanatory text be moved to an appendix? Is all of the text relevant or can some be deleted entirely?

Assertions and Facts. Persuasive assertionsare backed up with facts from credible sources. Sometimes it’s appropriate to include other perspectives. (See page 6, References and Citations.)

Graphic Support. Tables, charts, maps and other images often communicate better than words. They also break up the page visually and their inclusion can strengthen the document.Be sure to introduce the image in the textabove it and refer to the image number, e.g., “Map 1 depicts the region under consideration.” The caption for each table or graphic should explain its significance (e.g., Map 1: The Region under Study).Unclear graphics can distract the reader from the message.

Conclusions. A conclusion – not to be confused with a reasoned deduction or inference in the body of the document –is an essential final section, which summarizes findings, recommendations and proposed actions. If appropriate, it can recommend further analysis.Absence of a conclusion leaves the reader hanging.

Appendices and Attachments. Reports have appendices,memoranda have attachments. Appendicesand attachments removevoluminous supporting data from a document while ensuring that information is available to the reader. Examples include bibliographies, glossaries, lists of acronyms, backup documentation, long quotations and complex spreadsheets. The objective is to allow the body of the document to emphasizecritical information.

3: EDITING

Once a draft is organized, rewriting begins. It too consists of many separate tasks as described below.

Conciseness. Most first drafts can be reduced by one-third to one-half and still convey the meaning. Simplifyword choice and sentence structure. Make your point only once. Eliminate compound subjects, verbs, objects, and modifiers,e.g.,“determination and perseverance,” “convincing and persuasive.” Also, don’t use lofty words or modify unnecessarily, e.g., “eventual goal” or “existing development”.

Sentence and Paragraph Structure. Introduce each paragraph with a topic sentence to ensure that its point is explicit.If a sentence is three or more lines long, it may need to be broken up. If a paragraph exceeds ten linesitmay also need to be broken up.This also improves the visual image of the page. When in doubt, use a transitional phrase to introduce a new paragraph so that it connects with the previous one, but don’t overdo it. Examples of useful transitions include: “in addition,”“therefore,”“as a result”or “on a related point.”

Review Techniques. Read the document aloud. This will expose awkward writing such as run-on and choppy sentences. If feasible, have someone else read the draft to draw attention to things that may be ambiguous or confusing. Students for whom English is a second language can have a native English speaker edit their papers for appropriate usage or use the English Editing for International Graduate Students (EEIGS) resource on campus (

Person and Voice. Rarely is it acceptable to use the first person in a report or a memorandum. Third person is preferable. Use active verbs in most cases.Passive voice can be useful in some situations, but it may be insufficiently precise. Compare these examples:

“A hold was placed on the bill in the United States Senate by an unidentified senator.”

“Senator Jones placed a hold on the bill in the United States Senate.”

Tone. A document should be objective and professional. It should not be aggressive, preachy or “know it all.” A “red flag” is a term which can incite undue emotion in the reader, so search for red flags.Avoid expressions which reflect opinion. Don’t use, “I feel,” “I think” or “I believe.” Orient your writing to the expectations of the reader.

Proofreading. The last phase of editing is proofreading.This canbe done in stages. Look for and delete every unnecessary word. Check for yourpersonal weaknesses such as switching tenses, failing to achieve verb agreement or improperly using capitalization. Look for mistakes in spelling and grammar. Do not rely on Microsoft Word’s grammar or spell check alone, although the Find and Replace function will locate and remove double periodsand other easy to miss errors. Such errors may seem minor, but they detract from themessage and undermine the writer’s credibility. Some common errors are:

  1. Usingsingular verbs with collective nouns,e.g., “The company is opposed to immigration reform. It does (NOT they do)not want to lose American jobs to illegal immigrants.”
  2. Improperly selecting a pronoun as an antecedent, e.g., using “it” as a subject, even though the antecedent is not established in the previous sentence. (It would be improper to say, “The world is getting hotter and dryer. It needs to change.” – Is it the climate or the world that needs to be changed?)
  3. Using “they” for a singular person or entity of unknown gender(It is appropriate to choose either the feminine or masculine pronoun if “he/she” or “one” becomes awkward.);
  4. Failing to write out the numbers one through nine – only 10 and above are numeric;
  5. Beginning a sentence with a number or an acronymrather than spelling it out;
  6. Failing to ensure agreement betweenthe subject and verb so that a singular subject gets a singular verb and a plural subject gets a plural verb;
  7. Using tenses inconsistently, i.e. moving from present to pastor future tense with no obvious rationale. Stay in the present tense unless referring to a specific past or future situation.
  8. Choosing prepositions incorrectly, e.g. use “between” for a comparison between two things and “among” for three or more(When in doubt, consult a dictionary.); and
  9. Neglecting parallelism, i.e., when doing a numbered or bulleted list, use the same grammatical construct throughout, so, for example, if thefirst bullet leads with a verb, a noun or a sentence, all subsequent bullets should be structured the same way.

4: FORMATTING BASICS

Although standards vary from organization to organization, many are commonly held. Unless a particular instructor provides different guidance, adhere to the instructions presented below.

Punctuation. Punctuation marks are symbolswhich display the organization of written language and enhance clarity. Rules of punctuation are constantly evolving and vary among style manuals. If the instructor or organization has no preferred style, adopt a style and be consistent. Commas are often disputed territory.These guidelines, for example, do not place a comma before “and” in a series, but some style manuals disagree. In general, use fewer rather than more commas. They should be used, however, after an introductory phrase. Punctuation in lists is also a problem. The old standard is to use an introductory colon with a semi-colon at the end of each item in the list. This can be very cumbersome, so punctuation is often omitted in lists

Emphasis. Use underlining, bolding or italics sparingly, since this can be distracting. Sometimes quotes around words imply irony. Be wary of putting words or sentences in parentheses, which can give the reader the impression that the author isn’t sure whether to leave something in or take it out.

Capitalization. Capitalize only proper nouns, e.g., a specific city or state, a person’s name and formal title, or the agency/company name. Overuse of capitalization detracts from the message. If a reference is jurisdiction specific, capitalize it, e.g., the State when referring to Maryland or the City when referring to Baltimore. All the words in titles and headers except for prepositions and conjunctions are normally capitalized unless the header is a sentence. The first word in a title or header should always be capitalized.

Memoranda. When writing a memorandum, center a capitalized header, MEMORANDUM, at the top of the page. Double space. Then on the left, single spaced, each on a separate line write To:, From:, Re or Subject: and Date:. Tab over so that the actual text is aligned. Then double space and begin the memorandum. Some organizations want the address lines capitalized (TO: FROM:, etc.). Below is an example.

MEMORANDUM

To: Jane Doe, Director of the Maryland Policy Institute

From: Sam Smith, Policy Analyst Maryland Department of Transportation

Subject:Proposed Legislation Prohibiting Texting When Driving

Date:April 1, 2013

Microsoft has an embedded disagreement with this spacing principle. It refuses to single space address lines in memos and addresses in letters, so single spacing may not always be achievable.

Headers. Use headers on a separate line to introduce key sections. This makes it easy for the reader to get a glimpse of what the section will address. Headers and sub-headers usually follow the major points in the outline.

Pagination. Always number the pages, even in the earliest draft. Do not number title pages. Use Roman numerals for the executive summary and table of contents pages. Appendices can be numbered separately or they can continue the pagination from the body of the document.

Title Pages. The cover page contains the name of the report, the author(s), and for whom the report was generated.It may contain an image and may be printed on heavier bond for appearance and stability.Short papers do not usually need a title page, but the author’s name should be below the title of the paper. Formal reports normally do have title pages.

Tables of Contents. If a lengthy report is divided into chapters or major sections with various sub-sections, a table of contents is needed. Consider using the Table of Contents function in Microsoft Word, which will automatically update headers and page numbers when the text is changed.

Spacing and Bullets. Business documents are usually single spaced with a double space between paragraphs. However, check this with the instructor because some prefer that the text be double spaced. If bullets or numbers are used, double space them at the beginning and atthe end. Indent all bulleted/numbered lists andbe consistent by using one style. Always introduce bulleted lists with narrative, as is illustrated by the first paragraph of these guidelines. Be straightforward and consistent in the selection of font and bullet type; avoid decorative flourishes.

Font and Margins. The standard established in most requests for proposals is 12 point type with one inch margins on each side rather than Microsoft’s default of 11 points, which many people find hard to read. Using the business standard is preferable, but never go lower than 11 points or decrease the margins. Tables and other exhibits must fit within the formal margins.

Labelingand SourcingImages. Tables, charts, maps and other imagesshould be boxed. They are usually separately labeled and numbered, but it is permissible to call all the images “exhibits” and use a single numbering system. Titles are normally centered above the boxed image with a double space between them and the box. Keep images large enough to read easily. If necessary, put them on the page after their text reference. They must be introduced in the text before they are displayed.

Do not divide any exhibit between two pages unless it is longer than a page. Ifit is longer than a page, the row which explains the content of the columns should be reiterated on the second page. A simple way to deal with numbering during the drafting phase is to use XX as a place holder, inserting the actual sequential number only when the draft is almost final.

Be consistent with the format chosen. Don’t use titles inside the box for some exhibits and titles above the box for others. Text is usually left justified; numbers should be right justified. Sometimes the column or row titles are centered and/or bolded. Put the source below the boxed image on the left single spaced. Images should not be separated from their titles.Titles separated from their images and headers left at the bottom of the page are called “widows.”

Instructor preferences plays role here, so verify expectations with the instructor.

Acronyms. If an acronym is used more than once in a text, its first use should be written out with the acronym following in parenthesis. Thereafter, the acronym can be used alone. When beginning a sentence, the full term must be spelled out. For example, “The FTA ruled against Boeing,” is acceptable, but “FTA is opposed to the proposed regulatory action,” is not.