Everything you need to tackle your assignments with confidence — or at the very least, with correct referencing. Discipline guides, step-by-step study skills, and the people at DLC and Macquarie who can help when the due date is closer than you’d like. Start with your subject area below, then work through the study guides. Ideally before Week 12.
Find your subject area
Each discipline at Macquarie has its own referencing style and its own way of writing. Yes, this is inconvenient. No, they will not be standardising it. Open your area to see what applies to you.
Referencing: AGLC4 (Australian Guide to Legal Citation, 4th edition). Law is the only discipline at Macquarie that uses footnotes rather than in-text citations — and the only one where the footnotes can end up longer than the essay. Every proposition of law needs a pinpoint reference to a case, statute or secondary source.
Example: Mabo v Queensland (No 2) (1992) 175 CLR 1, 42 (Brennan J). | Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) s 323.
- The full AGLC4 is free online — download it once and keep it open while you write. Case names are always italicised; pinpoint to the page or paragraph, not just the case.
- IRAC / ILAC structure for problem questions: Issue → Rule/Law → Application → Conclusion. Markers look for the application — that’s where the marks are.
- Case reading: read the headnote and the orders first, then work backwards to the reasoning. You rarely need to read all 200 pages — the judges wrote them, but even they would understand.
- Legal databases: AustLII (free), Lexis+ and Westlaw via the MQ Library.
- Word limits are brutal in law — footnotes are usually excluded, so move citations there and keep your body text lean. Deleting your favourite sentence is a rite of passage.
Referencing: APA 7th edition (most units) — author–date citations in the text, full details in the reference list. Some units use Vancouver or a journal-specific style, so always check your unit guide first.
Example: Enzyme activity declined sharply above 40 °C (Chen & Nguyen, 2024).
- Lab reports follow IMRaD: Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion. Results state what happened; Discussion explains why — don’t mix them.
- Write the Method in past tense, passive voice (“Samples were incubated…”) unless your unit says otherwise. Nobody knows who incubated the samples. The samples were simply incubated.
- Figures and tables need numbered captions and must be referred to in the text (“see Figure 2”). A figure nobody mentions is just a lonely graph.
- Significant figures matter — report data to the precision your instrument actually supports.
- Use Google Scholar with the MQ Library proxy so paywalled papers open automatically.
Referencing: varies by department. History often uses Chicago (footnotes), literature may use MLA, and many humanities and social science units use APA 7 or Harvard. Your unit guide is the final word — check it before your first assignment, because using the wrong style family (footnotes vs author–date) costs easy marks. Your lecturer knows the ambiguity is character-building.
- The argument is everything. Arts essays are marked on the strength and originality of your thesis and how consistently you sustain it — not on how many books you can prove you skimmed.
- Engage with sources, don’t just cite them. “Smith argues X, but this overlooks Y” scores higher than a string of supporting quotes. Sources are for arguing with, not hiding behind.
- Primary vs secondary sources: know which your task wants. Analysing the novel, the treaty, the artwork itself is primary work; quoting critics is secondary.
- Quote sparingly — a good rule of thumb is no more than 10% of your word count in direct quotation.
Referencing: Harvard (author–date) in most units — though some use APA 7. Both put the author and year in brackets in your text, with a full alphabetical reference list at the end. Harvard has many variants: use the exact guide linked in your unit’s iLearn page, not a random one from Google.
Example: First-mover advantage is rarely durable in platform markets (Cusumano 2020).
- Reports, not essays, are the default. Use numbered headings, an executive summary, and recommendations. The executive summary is written last but read first — and by some executives, read only.
- Frameworks are tools, not answers. A SWOT with “Strengths: strong brand” earns no marks anywhere on Earth. Apply it to the specific case and draw a conclusion from it.
- Use real data: IBISWorld, Passport (Euromonitor) and company annual reports are available through the MQ Library databases.
- Group assignments: agree roles and deadlines in writing in week one. Keep the messages. You will thank yourself, possibly in front of a unit convenor.
Referencing: APA 7th edition. Psychology lives and breathes APA — it’s not just a referencing style but a full lifestyle covering headings, tables, statistics and bias-free language. Learn it properly in first year and it pays off for your whole degree. Resist it and it will find you anyway.
Example: Working memory capacity predicts reading comprehension (Nguyen et al., 2023).
- “et al.” from the first citation when there are 3+ authors (APA 7 change). Report statistics in APA format: t(38) = 2.41, p = .021, d = 0.76.
- Lab reports use IMRaD (Introduction, Method, Results, Discussion) with an Abstract. The Introduction is a funnel: broad theory → specific studies → your hypothesis.
- Hypotheses are stated before results, and the Discussion must say whether each was supported — explicitly.
- PsycINFO is your database. Search it (via the MQ Library) rather than Google for peer-reviewed sources.
- Never claim causation from correlation. Ice cream sales and shark attacks rise together every summer; ice cream is innocent. Markers watch for this above almost anything else.
Referencing: IEEE — numbered citations in square brackets, with references listed in the order they appear (not alphabetically). Some engineering units accept APA 7 instead; check your unit guide.
Example: Lithium-ion degradation accelerates above 45 °C [1], particularly under fast charging [2].
- Technical reports need numbered sections, a nomenclature list if you use many symbols, and appendices for full calculations — show only key working in the body.
- Every figure, equation and table is numbered and referenced in the text. Equations are part of the sentence — punctuate around them.
- State your assumptions. Marks come from justified assumptions and sound method, even when the final number is off. “Assume the cow is spherical” is a proud engineering tradition — just say it out loud.
- Units, always. NASA once lost a $327 million Mars orbiter over a metric–imperial mix-up. Your assignment will meet the same fate for less.
- IEEE Xplore and Engineering Village are available through the MQ Library.
Study skills guides
These apply no matter what you study. Open each guide for a practical, step-by-step walkthrough.
Most lost marks come from writing a brilliant answer to a slightly different question. Before you research anything, break the task down:
- Find the directive word — the verb that tells you what kind of thinking is required (see below).
- Circle the content words — the topic you must cover.
- Underline the limiting words — anything that narrows the scope (“in Australia”, “since 2020”, “using two case studies”).
- Read the rubric. The marking criteria tell you exactly where the marks sit. If 40% is “critical analysis”, description alone caps your grade.
- Check the practicalities: word count, referencing style, format (essay vs report), due date and submission method.
Directive words decoded
- Analyse — break the topic into parts and examine how they relate, not just describe them.
- Compare / Contrast — show similarities and differences, and say which matter and why.
- Critically evaluate — weigh strengths and weaknesses against evidence, then reach a judgement.
- Discuss — present multiple sides with evidence, then take a reasoned position.
- Explain — make clear how or why something happens: causes and mechanisms.
- Justify — defend a position against likely objections with evidence.
- Outline / Describe — give the main features accurately and concisely: the one time you are officially excused from arguing.
- To what extent — argue a position on a spectrum. “Partly, because…” is a legitimate answer; “completely” and “not at all” almost never are.
Tip: rewrite the question in your own words in one sentence. If you can’t, ask your tutor or bring it to Study Hall before you start researching.
An essay is written over weeks, not hours — you’re expected to develop your answer as you research, and to draft and rewrite several times before submitting. Rewriting means building on the previous draft, not starting from scratch (nobody is asking that of you).
The eight-step process. The University of Newcastle Library breaks essay writing into eight steps. Notice how far down the list “actually write the essay” is:
- Analyse the question — see the guide above. Steps 2–8 are wasted on the wrong question.
- Brainstorm your ideas — everything you already know or think, on one page, judgement-free.
- Do your research — with the question in front of you, so you don’t disappear down a fascinating but irrelevant rabbit hole. (You will anyway. Budget for one.)
- Write your thesis statement — your answer to the question in a single sentence. If a point doesn’t support it, it doesn’t go in the essay — no matter how long it took to research. We know. It hurts.
- Write an essay plan — one line per paragraph. Ten minutes here saves hours later.
- Draft your essay — fast and imperfect. You can’t edit a blank page, and your first draft is allowed to be bad. That’s the entire point of it.
- Complete referencing — as you go, not at 11:47pm on the due date.
- Edit and polish — in three passes: structure (do the paragraphs build the argument?), clarity (would a smart friend outside your unit follow it?), and mechanics (grammar, referencing, formatting).
Structure.
- Introduction (≈10%): three moves — an opening sentence that engages the reader, a sentence or two identifying the issues you’ll explore, then an outline of how you’ll answer the question and in what order. That order is a promise; keep it.
- Body paragraphs: one idea each. The topic sentence introduces the point, the following sentences develop it with evidence and explanation (the classic TEEL pattern — Topic, Evidence, Explanation, Link), and a concluding sentence restates the idea and links back to the question. If a paragraph runs past ~200 words, it’s probably two ideas in a trench coat.
- Conclusion (≈10%): re-read your introduction, then restate what you’ve proven and how. Summarise your main arguments (“This essay has considered…”), say why your conclusions matter, and let the final sentences draw on your evidence to land the point. Transitional openers like “Overall” or “Therefore” are your friends. New evidence is not — none, ever.
What markers of a great essay look for. The University of Melbourne’s academic skills team boils a great essay down to six things: analyse the question, define your argument, support it with evidence, reasoning and scholarship, organise it coherently, write clearly, and cite your sources. Notice that “sound impressive” is not on the list — clear beats clever, every time.
The final hour.
- Read your introduction and conclusion together — they should match, like they were written by the same person on the same essay. (Sometimes, by hour eleven, they weren’t.)
- Read each topic sentence in order — they should summarise the whole essay.
- Check every citation has a reference list entry, and vice versa.
Tip: reading your work aloud is the fastest way to catch clunky sentences. The Recharge Room is not the place for this — your room is.
Adapted from the University of Newcastle Library’s “How to Write an Essay” guide and the University of Melbourne’s “Six Top Tips for Writing a Great Essay”.
When do I need a citation?
- Paraphrased ideas — always. Changing the words doesn’t make an idea yours, in the same way that repainting a car doesn’t make it yours.
- Direct quotes — always, with page number where the style requires it.
- Data, statistics, images, figures and tables from any source.
- Not needed: Common knowledge (“the heart pumps blood”) or your own analysis and argument.
Paraphrasing properly
Read the passage, close it, and write the idea from memory in your own sentence structure — then cite it. Swapping a few words for synonyms is patch-writing and can be flagged as plagiarism even with a citation.
Academic integrity
Turnitin compares your submission against published sources and other students’ work. Contract cheating and unauthorised AI use are treated as serious misconduct under Macquarie’s Academic Integrity Policy — if you’re unsure what’s allowed in a unit, ask the convenor before submitting, and check the unit guide’s statement on generative AI.
Tools that help
Reference managers like Zotero (free) or EndNote (free through MQ) store your sources and format citations automatically.
The MQ Library’s referencing guides cover every major style with examples.
Reports differ from essays: they use numbered headings, are written to be skimmed, and usually end in recommendations. A standard structure:
- Title page — title, your name and ID, unit code, date.
- Executive summary / abstract — the whole report in miniature: purpose, method, key findings, main recommendation. Written last, roughly 10% of the word count, and the only part some readers will ever see. Choose those words wisely.
- Introduction — purpose, scope and background.
- Body — numbered sections (2.1, 2.2…) organised by theme or by your method’s stages.
- Conclusion — what the findings mean. No new material.
- Recommendations — specific, actionable, and each traceable to a finding.
- References, then appendices for raw data, full calculations, survey instruments.
Tip: a reader should be able to understand your report from the executive summary, headings and figure captions alone. Test it on a friend.
- Start from the learning outcomes in the unit guide — exam questions are written against them.
- Practise retrieval, not re-reading. Testing yourself (past papers, flashcards, blank-page brain dumps) beats highlighting every time. A textbook in full highlighter yellow is a decorated textbook, not a learned one.
- Space it out: three one-hour sessions across a week beat one three-hour cram — same time, far better retention. Your future 8:55am self will be grateful.
- For problem-based units (law, engineering, statistics): do problems under time pressure without notes. Understanding a worked solution is not the same as producing one.
- The night before: a light review, pack what you need, and sleep. All-nighters reliably lower exam performance — you cannot outrun biology on instant noodles alone.
- During the exam: read every question first, allocate minutes per mark, and attempt everything — partial answers earn partial marks; blank ones earn none.
At DLC: Study Hall runs during session and the college goes quiet during exam periods — use the study spaces, and let your RA know if noise is an issue.
- Week 1: map every due date. Pull the assessment schedule from each unit guide into one calendar. Weeks 6, 7 and 11–13 are usually the crunch — better to see that coming in Week 1 than to discover it live.
- Plan backwards from each deadline: submission → final edit (2 days before) → full draft (1 week before) → research done (2 weeks before) → question analysed (3 weeks before). Note that “the night before” appears nowhere in this sequence.
- Work in blocks: 50 minutes of focused work, 10-minute break, phone in another room. Yes, another room. It has been scientifically established that the drawer is not far enough.
- Starting is the hard part. Commit to just opening the document and writing one bad paragraph — momentum does the rest.
- If you’re going to miss a deadline, act early: extensions and special consideration exist, but they’re much easier to arrange before the due date than after. Talk to your unit convenor, and let the Dean of Students team know if something bigger is going on.
Academic support at DLC
You don’t have to figure any of this out alone — support is built into life at college, and asking for help is free. Unlike a failed unit.
Structured, supported study sessions during session. A set time and place to get work done alongside others — and a first port of call when you’re stuck on an assignment. [EDIT: add current Study Hall days, times and location]
Your RAs are senior students who’ve been exactly where you are — including, statistically, at 11pm the night before a deadline. They can talk through an assignment, point you to the right university service, or connect you with a student in your discipline.
If your studies are being affected by anything bigger — health, family, workload — come and see us early. We can help with academic assistance arrangements and put support in place before things snowball. [EDIT: add preferred contact method]
Macquarie University resources
These university services are free for all enrolled students.
- MQ Library — databases, referencing guides, and librarians who will genuinely help you search.
- Library referencing guides — style-by-style examples for APA, Harvard, AGLC4, IEEE, Chicago and MLA.
- Multisearch — the library’s single search box across nearly everything MQ subscribes to.
- Writing and learning skills support via Student Success — workshops, drop-ins and one-on-one consultations on essay writing, referencing and study strategies.
- StudyWISE — the self-paced academic skills modules on iLearn.
- Peer-assisted learning sessions in many first-year units — check your unit’s iLearn page.
- English language support for students from language backgrounds other than English.
