Mentorship That Matters: Helping Students Write with Clarity, Emotion, and Purpose

On 20th October this year, Amulya got in touch with me about mentorship to improve her writing skills. She shared, “I’m currently working on a research paper, but I feel that my writing isn’t quite up to the mark. Since the submission deadline is on 14th November, I’m a bit anxious about finishing it on time. I would be truly grateful for your guidance and support throughout this process.” However, owing to time constraints, we couldn’t proceed with the engagement.

Challenges faced

Eventually, Amulya and her team member Sangya managed to write their thesis independently, but only to receive feedback that their paper was way too technical. She connected with me again and shared, “We are looking for writing feedback on how we could enhance our writing in the research paper. Right now, it looks so technical and mechanical, as said by one of our research mentors, there is not so much emotion that goes into it … so we would like your help with the overall flow and how to make it less rigid.”

Both Amulya and her classmate Sangya, in their early 20s, are pursuing a Bachelor of Design in Communication Design in Media and Arts from Jain University, Bengaluru. They were referred to The Write Compass by a friend.

Mentorship Process

And so we got on to a Google Meet call, and our first round of conversation was to go through their thesis. Their guide was right; it was way too technical. It did not even appear to come from a Communication Design in Media and Arts background. It seemed more of an engineering document.

Understanding their time constraints, I asked for two days and got cracking. I shared detailed, word-to-word/line-by-line feedback. Understanding that the girls had significantly less time on hand, I shared the review in parts, so they could at least start with what they had.

Outcome and Gratitude

They found my notes self-explanatory and immensely helpful. We connected again a few days before their submission, and they clarified their doubts over a Google Meet video call.

They were able to submit their thesis on time, and I received this note of thanks from the girls –

“We are truly grateful for Tanya mam’s support during this research paper journey. She explained things in a way that made even the complicated parts feel manageable. Her feedback was really honest, constructive, and encouraging. Working with her made us more confident in our writing and helped us grow as  researchers!”

Writing Tips for a Research Paper

Sharing a few tips that I shared with Amulya and Sangya, while writing any research paper, here are a few things to keep in mind:

1. When you make something too jargon-heavy, it makes you appear distant from the topic.
2. You don’t need to sound technical all the time; you can soften your tone a bit.
3. Cite more research-backed, concrete examples to make your research more relatable.
4. Avoid long, meandering sentences. Keep them simple. If the sentences are stretching over 2 lines, it’s best to split them into two meaningful sentences.
5. Add jargon and definitions only where needed. Season your thesis wisely with technical/ mechanical words – only where required (such as definitions or terminologies).
6. Try to mention why this topic/ argument/ paper excites you – why are you writing this in the first place?
7. What have you learnt from this research? How has it impacted you/ your experience as a researcher?
8. Please add a line about how this argument (for or against) has influenced your own approach.
9. As you’re wrapping up your paper, try to reinforce it with a personal insight that explains why this topic/solution matters to you as a researcher.
10. Add a line/ two about what surprised or challenged you during this process. Add your personal learning curves along the process.

If you’re feeling stuck, overwhelmed, or want to elevate your academic or professional writing, let’s connect at The Write Compass. As a Writing Mentor and Coach, I tailor my guidance to your unique style—regardless of your discipline. Book a Discovery Call today.