How to write a strong reference letter

As a professional academic or businessperson, a rewarding aspect of your role is the opportunity to write letters of recommendation, or reference letters, for either students or employees you have supervised or managed within your workplace. Even if you use professional proofreading services to speed up the process, writing reference letters can become extremely time-consuming, especially if you are doing so for the first time.

Knowing about the main sections that you should include in your reference letter can accelerate the process tremendously. This is because, once you know the structure, the text itself tends to come much more rapidly. In many cases, referees find that, having figured out a logical and reasonable structure, the letter almost writes itself. In addition to making use of professional proofreading, following the structure described below is worthwhile.

 

1. Greeting

All good reference letters begin with the correct salutation. In most cases, especially when you are not on friendly terms with the recipient of the reference letter, you should use a formal salutation. In rare cases, you can use an informal greeting.

Often, the employee or student you are referring will give you the name of the recipient, meaning that you can simply address the letter directly to them (e.g., “Dear Mr. Jones”). If you are unsure about the name of the recipient, use the salutation “To whom it may concern”.

 

Image: Think about whether you should use a formal or informal salutation

2. Opening paragraph

The first paragraph of your reference letter should set out all the critical information about who you are, who you are referring, and why you are referring them. Begin by stating who you are and what your professional role is, and briefly explain how long you have known the candidate. You can end this section by describing the position you are recommending the candidate for, and briefly explaining why you are their referee.

 

3. Main body

In one, two, or three paragraphs, describe the candidate’s suitability and, for lack of a better term, sell the candidate. Try to be as concise as you can, and remember that the recipient of your letter, as a busy recruitment professional, has limited time. Therefore, consider restricting yourself to a description of the candidate’s main attributes (especially those that make them a suitable person for the role) and their qualifications or achievements.

 

Image: Knowing the details about the candidate you are referring is vital

4. Closing paragraph and contact information

Use the closing paragraph of your reference letter to reiterate your endorsement of the candidate. Also, just in case the recipient of the letter would like to contact you for more information, remember to include your contact information, such as your phone number and email address. You can then end your letter with an appropriate valediction (e.g., “Sincerely” or “Best Regards”).

How to publish your journal article: 5 straightforward steps

For researchers and academics who are in the early stages of their career, the need to publish journal articles is well-known. Even if you use proofreading, rewriting, or editing services to speed up the process of writing your journal article, the next step – that is, publishing it – is not as simple or convenient. For this reason, here are five straightforward steps to follow if you are in the process of publishing your journal article.

 

1. Choose your journal

The first essential step to publish your journal article is to choose the type of journal that you will write for. At the outset, research journals related to your field and try to choose one that has the narrowest possible scope. For example, if you want to write up your research results on the performance of surgical staff in an intensive care unit, consider journals like Critical Care Medicine or Journal of Intensive Care Medicine.

 

2. Check your journal’s author submission guidelines

Every reputable journal offers detailed author submission guidelines. These guidelines will be publicly available on the journal’s website, and so you should be able to find them fairly conveniently.

Your journal’s author submission guidelines will contain clear and comprehensive instructions for the formatting, referencing, word count, and use of language in your journal article. It will also provide information about how you can submit your paper and any additional materials or resources that are needed (e.g., an abstract, keywords, and so on).

When you are writing your journal article, it is always useful to have checked your target journal’s author submission guidelines in advance. If you don’t, you may have to make some changes to your manuscript before submitting it.

 

3. Edit and proofread your journal article

This is a critical but regularly overlooked stage. Use an editing and proofreading service before you consider submitting your journal article, and once the editing process is finished, be sure to proofread your document thoroughly (if your editor has not done so already).

 

4. Write your cover letter

In your cover letter, state what the journal article you are submitting is about, but don’t go on for too long about this. Remember that the person reading your cover letter will also be reading your article, and so there is no need to go into any great level of detail.

Consider writing about the context surrounding your journal article, including your academic career, your interests, and the contributions of your research. Mentioning these issues is likely to have a significant impact on the way you are received by your reviewers.

 

5. Revise your journal article and resubmit

Journal articles are seldom accepted without a request for revisions from your peer-reviewers at the journal. It is important to understand that even if you’ve put substantial amounts of time and energy into your manuscript, you will invariably receive a set of recommended revisions. At this point, follow the instructions and guidance of the reviewers, and once you’ve done so, you will be ready for resubmission and, finally, publication.

 

Reasons to Hire a Proofreader or Editor

Three of the most popular writing services available today are known as proofreading, editing, and rewriting services. The most unfamiliar to you among these is likely to be rewriting, also known as “paraphrasing”, which is not the focus of this article. Instead, proofreading and editing is the focus, and – in particular – the question of why to hire proofreaders or editors.

Good writing relies on strong proofreading and editing services, and receiving a rewriting service where necessary can also be beneficial. The general case for hiring a proofreader or editor arises from clients – whether students, businesses, authors, or scientists – who are interested in working with an expert to optimise their chance of publication.

Five other, more specific, reasons why you should hire a proofreader or editor are given below:

 

1. Save yourself some time

Having a proofreader or editor check over your work will save you around 30-60 minutes for every 1,000 words included in your manuscript. If you are a researcher, businessperson, or student who wants to maximise your productivity, avoiding spending 5 hours (or more) proofreading or editing your 5,000-word journal can prove definitive in advancing your standing.

 

2. Save yourself the frustration

Editors and proofreaders have streamlined and perfected the process of checking documents for accuracy, flow, spelling, referencing (in-text and end-of-text), grammar, punctuation, readability, concision, general English language editing, and all other areas relevant to publication. They can execute the task quickly, systematically, and effectively, whereas you – working alone on your document – are not as well-positioned to improve your manuscript.

 

3. Enhance academic and scientific writing

To ensure you write with the concision, clarity, and matter-of-factness required in academic, technical, and scientific writing, working with an experienced editor is essential. Many experienced proofreaders are available who can assist you with this task, but if your document is currently in very bad shape, contacting an editor rather than a proofreader is strongly recommended.

 

4. A new look

When you work with an editor, you don’t just get a fresh pair of eyes; at the same time, your manuscript receives an overhaul. The editor’s role is to ensure that your document is as strong as it can be, and unlike a friend or colleague – who might hesitate to suggest that you should delete a section or change some content in your written work – a qualified and experienced editor is ideally positioned to look at your document with a critical and constructive perspective.

 

5. Develop other projects

If you are a busy researcher, student, or professional, balancing several projects at a time can be challenging. For this reason, working with a proofreader or editor can lighten your workload, allowing you to focus on multiple long-term tasks simultaneously. For example, if you are publishing a book, you can recruit an editor to work with you on the proposal, editing, and formatting phases; and you can work with other editors and proofreaders at the same time to prepare job or university applications, to write letters, or to create marketing or research materials.  

 

 

Advantages of correct drafting and editing as an author, and how to do it

Book proofreading services UK can prove valuable for authors, writers, and academics, especially during the drafting process of their manuscript. The purpose of this article is to describe the drafting process, to examine its benefits, and to outline the role of editing and proofreading services in drafting and publishing written work.

The first stage of the drafting process involves deleting material. It is a difficult phase, especially when working with a proofreader or editor, but experienced editors will preserve your authorial voice. During this stage, you should return to the start of your document and then proceed through each sentence while you check for repetition, errors, or sentences that lack concision (i.e., that could be re-written to shorten them, without losing any meaning). Many people find it helpful to print out a copy of their writing at this point. One of the main reasons for this is to avoid straining one’s eyes at the computer screen, as well as to enhance error-spotting on paper.

The second stage of the drafting process is to rewrite material. In the first stage, you are likely to have found many areas where, for example, the same thing could be said in a more succinct or precise way. Therefore, by rewriting these phrases, sentences, or passages, you can help your reader to follow your argument, improve your document’s overall flow, and enhance the structure and readability of the text. Using editing and proofreading services at this stage can allow a fresh, well-trained pair of eyes to check over the sentences you are unsure about. Professional paraphrasing services, which are available at companies such as Proofessor.co.uk, can also be invaluable during this stage.

The third stage of the drafting process is concerned with double checking everything. When you have finished the previous stage – that is, rewriting material – the manuscript is likely to look significantly different compared to when you started. For this reason, it is necessary to start from the beginning of your document (or, at this point, potentially the end), and work either forwards (from the start) or backwards (from the end) to check that everything has been properly finished. Reference formatting, document formatting, and general language editing are critical factors to consider during this stage.

When the third stage is finished, the final stage – in this case, the last check – begins. While an editing service is valuable during the rewriting and initial check stages, working with a proofreader can be much more useful at the final check. This is because most of the major areas for improvement will already have been identified at this point by the editor, or by yourself. The final check allows any hard-to-spot typographical, punctuation, or spelling errors to be caught before the document is used. When it is undertaken systematically, drafting with professional editors and proofreaders can greatly improve your document’s readability and effectiveness, as well as your chances of publication.

4 critical reasons to seek out professional proofreading

Many students and academics still believe that proofreading their work is a waste of time, but this overlooks the countless benefits offered by editing and revising your written work. If you don’t have the time to check over your work, using professional proofreading services is a perfect way to achieve clear writing without having to interrupt your productivity and usual workflow. With this theme in mind, the purpose of this article is to outline four key reasons why it is worth seeking out professional proofreading.

1. Productivity

The need to double-check your scientific manuscript, student essay, or marketing presentation can interrupt your productivity and usual workflow. This is because, once you’ve written a document, re-reading it – rather than moving onto another task – is time-consuming. For this reason, seeking out professional proofreading services plays a valuable role in increasing your productivity.

To give another example, if you are ready to submit your PhD thesis in preparation for your upcoming thesis defence, spending time editing and proofreading your manuscript can reduce the time you have available for other important tasks. Many PhD theses are over 100,000 words long, and if other duties are pressing, including time spent on thesis defence preparation, professional proofreading becomes worthwhile.

2. Authority

The smallest grammatical error in a document can have a significant influence on the authority of the arguments and statements you make. One of the main reasons for this is because the reader may begin to think that you were not paying attention while writing the document. In a student essay, markers and other readers of your document may wonder: “If the writer didn’t proofread their work properly, what does this say about the thoroughness of the research?”

3. Machines vs. Humans

Spellcheckers in the twenty-first century, such as Grammarly, rely on sophisticated, state-of-the-art techniques such as artificial neural networks and deep learning to offer recommendations to writers. Even spellcheckers like Microsoft Word, despite using less advanced technologies, can be helpful when reading and writing documents.

Although these spellcheckers are advanced, they are still no match for a proofreader or editor (even a poorly-trained service provider). At the most basic level of language, for example, software applications such as Grammarly and Microsoft Word cannot identify mixed-up homophones (i.e., words that have different spellings but the same sound, such as “bear” and “bare”).

4. Improve Your Marks

For students who are writing academic essays, and even authors who are self-publishing or opting for a more traditional publication route, seeking out a proofreader for your work can significantly improve your chances of success. Proofreaders, given their qualifications and experience, can offer a professional edge in polishing your writing. For example, many universities offer up to 15% of the marks in an academic essay for spelling, grammar, and written communication, which highlights the importance of working with a proofreader, the benefits are that your writing technique will improve, as most providers identify and give details of the areas of improvement to their client's work.

Why paraphrasing services is such an essential skill?

Paraphrasing services take a “target document”, such as a webpage, blog post, or academic article, and transform it, thereby producing a “new document” with the same meaning, but with a different structure, vocabulary, and general appearance. Using a paraphrasing service is a quick, affordable, and efficient strategy for avoiding plagiarism checkers, or even for speeding up your research process, but knowing how to paraphrase – or “rewrite” – a piece of text is an essential skill in itself.

In academic writing, paraphrasing is a requirement

Many students, especially first-year undergraduates in subjects other than English or History, are frustrated to find that their lecturers often mark them down when they use direct quotations to support their points in academic writing. They complain that it is somewhat arbitrary to force them to do paraphrase, or rewrite, direct quotations rather than simply embedding the quotation in their document. Whatever your opinion here, it is indisputable that, to produce high-quality academic writing, you must be an adept paraphraser. For this reason, paraphrasing is certainly an essential skill.

For students and researchers, paraphrasing underpins efficient research

The notable mathematician and physicist Richard Feynman, aside from making all sorts of ground-breaking discoveries in theoretical physics, was an adept teacher. One of his pedagogical discoveries is now popularly referred to as the “Feynman technique”. The starting point of this technique essentially amounts to writing down everything you learn about a given issue in your own words, which is to say, rewrite – or paraphrase – what you just read. Therefore, for people who are engaged in research, you are much more likely to remember what you come across, which saves you vast amounts of time, if you paraphrase the material as you encounter it.

For businesses, paraphrasing is a money-saver

The first reason why knowing how to paraphrase is crucial is that it saves you money. For example, if your organisation’s content marketing strategy relies on creating as much high-quality written text as possible, which you intend to spread across the Internet, then you might see how useful paraphrasing is. In particular, instead of writing original content, you can find content that you like elsewhere online and rewrite it. This immediately avoids the problematic issue of plagiarism, and it also saves you from having to hire somebody to write original material.

Paraphrasing improves the quality of your written work

If you do it well, paraphrasing improves your written work and helps your reader understand the points you are trying to make much more easily and with significantly less friction. That is to say, paraphrasing is not just useful as a way to avoid accusations of plagiarism; in addition to this, paraphrasing can enhance the readability of your work, and thus – whoever your intended reader is – it can allow you to communicate much more effectively with them. For example, if you are tempted to quote directly from a source text that is badly written, or which uses a far greater number of words than is actually necessary, your skill as a paraphraser can allow you to refine and simplify the source text.

Dangers of avoiding proofreading services

 It is surprising that many writers, even reputable and well-known academics and researchers, do not see the dangers of avoiding proofreading of their work. If you – as an author, student, or professional – are unfamiliar with the negative effects of avoiding proofreading, then the value of a proofreading service, including professional proofreading services, will certainly be overlooked. More and more writers today, in a bid to improve their CVs, books, PhD proposals, assignments, websites, or business plans, recognise how essential it is to check over their written work for spelling, grammar, and punctuation errors, which is known as “proofreading”. This is clearly reflected in the growing demand for high-quality proofreading services, which are becoming increasingly available on the Internet today.

However, it is still true that many writers overlook the dangers of avoiding proofreading, and they are not knowledgeable about how negatively impactful low-quality written work can be. One of the clear dangers associated with avoiding proofreading relates to the likelihood of miscommunication, and the costs that come with undiscovered miscommunication. Consider that you, a professional academic in this example, want to ask someone whether they will be “on board” for a conference, but you accidentally write “on the board” instead. A quick proofread of your request, would catch this error, and – needless to say – it would save you from the calamity that this error would doubtless cause.

Whatever kind of writer you are, and whatever the purpose of your writing is, ensuring that your reader understands you – with a minimal amount of friction – is, of course, fundamental. In certain cases, however, avoiding proofreading can lead to risks and levels of friction that may be career-ending, or – at the very least – career-stunting. For example, taking again the example of a professional researcher, it is well-known that career advancement in this field relies on the regular publication of scholarly articles. If you continually avoid purchasing a proofreading service, or proofreading your own work, then the journals that you submit your articles to are likely to view you unprofessionally. As a result, their willingness to publish your work is probably going to be low.

This article has only touched on a few of the ways that avoiding proofreading your work can lead to negative results. However, as most of us know based on intuition alone, there are many more scenarios in which grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors could cost you dearly. Therefore, given the value of proofreading, and given how it can spare you from various dangers, it is well worth considering checking over your work a second or third time before publishing or submitting it.