Academic Editing

An archive of posts related to editing and proofreading academic writing, including student essays. Find out how to edit academic work effectively.

  • Proofreading Tips: How to Proofread Quotations

    Proofreading Tips: How to Proofread Quotations

    Oct 23, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Punctuation
    • Style

    Academic writing accounts for a significant portion of many freelance proofreaders’ work. And, along with some other non-fiction, academic writing often relies heavily on quotations. It is thus important to know how to proofread quotations. In this post, we give an overview of things to consider when proofreading quotations in academic or other non-fiction writing. […]

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  • A Guide to Referencing and Religious Texts

    A Guide to Referencing and Religious Texts

    Jul 17, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Referencing and Citations
    • Style

    Religious texts, whether published as books or accessed online, often play by different rules when it comes to referencing. So, as a proofreader, you’ll need to pay particular attention to referencing if your client is citing the Bible, the Quran, or any other sacred text. Here, we set out the rules for citing religious texts […]

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  • Proofreading Checklist: Thesis or Dissertation

    Jun 27, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Resources
    • Proofreading Tips

    Whether at master’s or PhD level, theses and dissertations are complex documents. This can make them difficult to proofread. With that in mind, though, we’ve prepared this handy proofreading checklist you can use when working on a thesis or dissertation. Parts of the Thesis/Dissertation Theses and dissertations typically comprise several parts, including: A strong title […]

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  • Proofreading Tips: Titles of Other Works in APA Style

    Jun 20, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Referencing and Citations
    • Style

    The APA Publication Manual is widely used in academic writing, especially in the social and sciences. If you’re proofreading this type of writing, you need to know how to format titles of other works in APA style. Here, then, we’ll offer some advice for proofreaders on the following: Where APA style suggests using title case […]

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  • Hyphens and Dashes in AMA Style

    Jun 06, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Punctuation
    • Style

    The AMA Manual of Style (11th edition) is an academic style guide widely used in the medical sciences. As an academic proofreader, then, you may need to learn the basics of this style. And, having previously introduced the AMA referencing system, this post will focus on how to use hyphens and dashes in AMA style. […]

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  • Proofreading Checklist: Student Essay

    May 09, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Resources
    • Proofreading Tips

    Academic proofreading can be a great source of work for freelancers. But what should you look for when proofreading a student essay? In this essay proofreading checklist, we set out the issues that often affect essays, from basic typos to errors with citations and formatting. Mechanical Issues No matter the document type, a proofreader can […]

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  • A Quick Guide to Dates in MHRA Style

    Apr 29, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Referencing and Citations
    • Style

    The Modern Humanities Research Association’s style guide (or MHRA style) is frequently used in the arts and humanities, particularly in the UK. We have covered referencing in MHRA style before, but here we’re going to look at how to present dates in MHRA style. Read on below to find out what to look for when […]

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  • A Proofreader's Introduction to IEEE Style

    Mar 25, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Referencing and Citations
    • Style

    The IEEE Editorial Style Manual for Authors provides advice for anyone writing for an IEEE journal or publication. However, many technical writers and educational institutions also use IEEE style, so it is worth knowing the basics if you proofread technical writing. Here, we look at some key aspects of IEEE style that proofreaders should know. […]

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  • Academic Proofreading: A Quick Guide to Stephanus Numbers

    Academic Proofreading: A Quick Guide to Stephanus Numbers

    Mar 14, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Referencing and Citations
    • Style

    Plato is such an important part of Western philosophy that he has his own citation system: Stephanus numbers. But what do you need to know about Stephanus numbering as an academic proofreader? In this post, we’ll explain how these numbers work. What Are Stephanus Numbers? As well as being the man who gave us love, […]

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  • A Quick Guide to Dates and Times in MLA Style

    A Quick Guide to Dates and Times in MLA Style

    Feb 28, 2021

    • Academic Editing
    • Proofreading Tips
    • Referencing and Citations
    • Style

    Among many other things, the MLA Handbook (8th edition) has advice on writing dates and times. But what do you need to know about dates and times to proofread academic writing? In this post, we’ll explain the basics of dates and times in MLA style. Dates in the Main Text If an author uses a […]

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