Skip to Main Content

Introduction to Academic Reading and Writing: Revise and Edit

Writing Tip Icon

Read your paper aloud and listen for lack of clarity, awkward phrasing, and errors in grammar and word choice.

Revise and Edit

Revise using the following questions: 

  • Does my paper have a clearly presented purpose? Is this in the form of a concise and specific thesis statement?  

  • Does my paper answer the question posed in the assignment prompt? 

  • Does the body of my paper adequately support my purpose or thesis statement? 

  • Are my body paragraphs organized around single points, with clear topic sentences and sufficient evidence? 

  • Do I have a clear and compelling introduction that draws the reader in and introduces my purpose? 

  • Do I have a distinct conclusion that summarizes my paper and provides recommendations, implications, or applications for the reader? 

Edit using the following questions: 

  • Have I formatted my paper according to the required style guide (APA, MLA, etc.)? 

  • Have I correctly and consistently used in-text citations? 

  • Have I included a correctly formatted Works Cited or References page? 

  • Is my language formal and academic? 

Revise and Edit Contents

Reverse Outlining

Reverse Outlining is a helpful strategy for checking your paper for structure, organization, and relevance of content.

© 2010-2018 The Writing Center at UNC Chapel Hill