Writing Guides

📝 What is an abstract? 

An academic abstract is a concise summary of a research contribution such as a paper or presentation. Abstracts are typically written for two reasons: 

1. To summarize a research project or presentation, in which case the abstract says what the research discovered and how. 
2. To propose a research project or presentation, in which case the abstracts says what the research will try to discover and how. 

Whether you are applying to present at a conference, proposing an article to a journal, or summarizing your finished research article, you will want to consider the following.

🔬 Content

As an in option #1 above, abstracts typically provide a brief overview of what was done and why (purpose), how it was done (method), what was found (findings), and the implications and importance of the work (discussion and conclusions). 

Alternatively, as in option #2 above, abstracts can be are written in a promissory voice and discuss how the research will be done and what the significance of the findings might be.

To help format your abstract, you may want to adapt the IMRaD model for research articles and/or CaRS model for research article introductions, as abstracts provide a condensed overview of the article as a whole. Indeed, many journals in the sciences and social sciences explicitly require IMRaD headings in abstracts. 

📏 Length

Keep it short. Abstracts are typically 150-300 words in length; however, this can vary, so be sure to check any submission requirements and follow instructions carefully.

💻 Format and style

• Generally, keep your abstract to one paragraph (except in cases where paragraphing or headings are mandated, e.g. through IMRaD categories) 
• Generally, write in clear, plain language avoiding technical jargon, especially if you are intending to share your work with a broad audience who may or may not be familiar with the topic of your work.
• On the other hand, jargon may sometimes be appropriate for presentations or publications with highly specialized audiences. 
• Make sure to proofread for grammatical and spelling errors and adhere to style or citation guidelines.  

👥 Abstracts for conference presentations 

Presenters are academic conferences are selected through a peer-review process; they typically submit abstracts and a committee affiliated with the conference organization reviews the abstracts for relevance and rigour. 
For more detailed guidance on how to write a conference abstract, you may wish to consider this helpful guide published by Brian Hotson on the Canadian Writing Centre Association website.