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University Library Services

Study Skills- Proofreading

A Library Guide to support the proofreading and editing process

3 Stages of Proofreading

You may find it useful to review your work in three stages so you can focus on one aspect at a time.

  1. Structure and flow
  2. Academic style, spelling, punctuation, and grammar
  3. Formatting and presentation.

10 Tips for Proofreading and Editing

1. Time management - make sure to leave plenty of time to review your work before submission.

2. Read each draft multiple times, each time looking for specific issues.

3. Read your work aloud, or use the 'read aloud' function on Word. You may wish to read the full thing for clarity and then focus on specific sections.

4. Annotate your work - either print off your work and make notes or use highlighting and comments on screen.

5. Use Cite Them Right Online to check your in text citations and reference list.

6. Look at your assignment brief to check you have fully addressed the assessment criteria.

7. Refer back to previous assignment feedback to look for areas of improvement.

8. Check specific formatting requirements in your module guide.

9. Check for language and wording choice.

10. Use a checklist to ensure you have covered everything. 

The link below will take you to a suggested checklist that you may wish to use.

Resources

The video below provides guidance on how to use Cite Them Right Online to check your in-text citations and reference list adheres to the expectations of your required style.

Proofreading Video by Hannah R