Tips Straight from Professors!
Note: These tips can be used as general guidelines for writing in Geography, as most professors agree on what constitutes good writing, but be sure to follow individual professors’ instructions and rubrics for more detailed expectations and requirements. As well, writing in Human Geography and Physical Geography can vary greatly in method and style.
Tips from ProfessorS (UPDATED 2025):
What can turn a good paper into a great paper?
- “I would say that it’s good organization and structure. A good paper answers the question; a great paper tells the reader how to get to that answer.” (Professor Bose)
- “What distinguishes a good paper from a great paper is that the latter often offers a deeper level of analysis through which the author brings a nuanced perspective to a given subject. What this often requires is that undergraduate writers narrow their area of focus to avoid taking on too much and spreading themselves too thin. In sum, with rare exception, avoid sacrificing depth for breadth.” (Professor Morehouse)
- “The difference between good and great is when not only are the technical aspects of writing really solid, but when there is evidence that the student approached the assignment with curiosity and focus such that they arrived at a new level of understanding and fresh insights during the process of writing. When we consider that writing itself is not just representation, but actually a process of analysis, interpretation, and making new connections, we are more likely to recognize that it can stimulate a deeper level of insight into the topic. The really great paper, though, is one in which, after arriving at this new insight, the student goes back and actually organizes the whole paper around their novel idea, rather than just presenting it in the final paragraph.” (Professor Cope)
- “Precision through revision. Generalizations are ‘generally’ not helpful in geography. By removing passive voice to indicate who did what, where, why, when and how, the reader can have a precise understanding of an argument.” (Professor Nelson)
- “Editing. I think many students think, “Well I wrote it, and then I read through it and corrected my spelling and errors,” but the editing process needs to be a bit critical and reflective. And sometimes you need another eye on it to do that. In academics we do that: we write and then we do some editing ourselves, but then we send it off for review. We get those reviews back and it makes us rethink and go back through to do another stage of editing. Students can do that themselves through their peers or through a tutor. I think this process can really strengthen a paper.” (Professor Wemple)
What is one thing that students should never forget when writing a geography paper?
- “Remember the instructions, the question(s) and make sure you focus on the spatial dimensions of the subject.” (Professor Bose)
- “Students should never forget their own voice when writing a geography paper. Students might feel they have to sacrifice the prominence of their own voice and perspective when writing papers drawing on scholarly research. While it is important to give space in your papers to the research and writing of disciplinary experts, it’s equally important to claim space for your own thoughts, views, and experiences. As a reader, I want to know what you think.” (Professor Morehouse)
- “An important thing to remember about Geography is that it incorporates sub-disciplines that can be in the natural sciences, social sciences, and even the humanities. All of these have different styles of writing, organizational rules, and even citation formats. Although Geography is a very ‘inter-disciplinary discipline’ it’s important to be aware of which approach is best suited to the course content and writing traditions. For example, physical geography reports will often follow a fairly strict sequence of components that are typical in natural science, while human geography papers are likely to be rooted in the social sciences or humanities. A good way to figure out what style to use is to look at what style the assigned readings used and then, of course, ask your professor for confirmation!” (Professor Cope)
- “Place matters. There are likely similar patterns and connections between many places in the world, but assuming that what you are describing happens in the same way everywhere can get a writer into trouble in geography.” (Professor Nelson)
- “Writing is a lifelong skill that you’ll need. We’re trying to teach students the kinds of writing strategies and methods that you can employ throughout life, and that are flexible enough to be relevant to different kinds of employment trajectories (whether academic or professional).” (Professor Wemple)
How important is writing in the field of geography?
- “I would say it’s crucial, especially in human/cultural geography, but more generally across the discipline. You need to be able to communicate your ideas no matter whether the audience is a policymaker, a scientist, or an activist. Learning how to be a good writer is central to being successful as a geographer.” (Professor Bose)
- “Geography literally means ‘earth writing’ so writing is very important. Throughout most of the history of the discipline, Geography was a very descriptive field, and because people are always curious about places, geographers wrote about both the natural and cultural characteristics of places as a way to try to share knowledge and make sense of the world. A lot of that writing was focused on patterns that could be observed on the landscape, such as making connections between climatic conditions and food staples in a given region. In the mid-twentieth century, the discipline went through some major shifts and became much more concerned about generating systematic, rigorous, and ‘scientific’ analysis of the earth’s processes and its peoples. These shifts led to less emphasis on description and more on developing theories, data, and analytical work that explains why natural and cultural characteristics are the way they are in various places. Therefore, ‘earth writing’ is now heavily focused on explaining the processes that underlie patterns, rather than merely cataloging the patterns themselves.” (Professor Cope)
- “Writing is very important in geography. There are different writing styles and norms across the sub-fields in geography, so it is important to ask every professor in every class about which preferred styles and norms a class will coach and re-enforce.” (Professor Nelson)
What advice would you give to a student studying here at UVM?
- “Take as many courses with as many different professors as you can. Don’t shy away from unfamiliar topics or methods – geography is an interdisciplinary field, and it can be a huge advantage to learn how to study issues from as many perspectives as possible and learn as many tools as you can.” (Professor Bose)
- “Even strong writers benefit from new techniques, challenges, and approaches, so stay open to the different styles across sub-disciplines. Also, allow yourself to have some fun while writing – moments of humor, an elegant turn of phrase, or an interesting bit of irony can work wonders on an otherwise perfunctory assignment.” (Professor Cope)
- “Take as many different geography courses as you can here at UVM. Our department is pretty special in that our faculty are doing current and relevant work on the latest ideas and problems in the physical, human, human-environment, and geospatial technologies areas of research. A strong undergraduate geography graduate will enjoy learning across this interdisciplinary discipline. You don’t need to specialize in one area too soon at the undergraduate level…save that for later.” (Professor Nelson)