There is no template for writing a good essay. How we teachers and examiners regard quality in this context is dealt with in a separate paper, Vad är en bra uppsats? [What is a Good Essay?], which also marks the start of the essay course (the paper will be available on this website and the
Student Portal
). Nor does the department prescribe any particular pattern for an essay. The important exception to this rule concerns the size.
It is the quality of the essay, not its scope, that is assessed. An essay seldom becomes better by being made longer.
- Normal size: 10000 – 15000 words, including notes and list of references.
- Upper limit: 16000 words. If the essay is over this limit it will not be considered at a seminar.
In addition to this it is allowed to add an appendix containing, for example, a questionnaire or a central document.
The upper limit is equivalent to just about 40 pages with normal line spacing, typography/type area (margins) and typeface.
Note! For download on the website to work at the time of handing it in, you must first save it in Word format (old version, with the extension .doc). You save your essay as .doc by choosing “save as” and “Word 97-2003 document".