Writing the introductory essay

Please note that the October, February, and April courses are onsite and the January course is online.

As part of your PhD, you will more likely be required to engage with quite a bit of writing. From the outset of your trajectory, skills such as literature research and communicating your ideas are extremely important. As such, this course, Writing the Introductory Chapter, takes you through some of the challenges that many PhDs encounter at the start of their PhD.

At FSE, the 'introductory essay' is likely to form the basis for the first chapter of your PhD thesis. It is therefore the first thing that your audience will read, and it is likely to attract a wider audience than some of the more specific papers you publish later on. As such, the information and argumentation you include, and the language you use to communicate this are extremely important.

There is no one way to write an introductory essay. This course aims to help you understand some possible ways to create this text and gives some specific advice on writing which will be applicable to other forms of writing.  

Learning goals:

• Understand the writing process from the perspective of both reader and writer
• Create an introductory essay that makes a value proposition to your field
• Creatively use ‘tools of the trade’ such as paragraphs, sentences, and stylistic considerations of phrasing to strengthen your position
• Engage actively in peer feedback both within your discipline and in others

Format and schedule for 2025-26

The course consists of eight 2.5h sessions which take place on consecutive weeks (same day/time). However, please reserve 10 weeks for the course due to potential Dutch holidays or teacher illness.

• Fall 2025 (onsite): Start on October 21 (9:30-12:00)
• Winter 2026 (ONLINE): Start on January 9 (9:30-12:00)
• Winter 2026 (onsite): Start on February 13 (9:30-12:00)
• Spring 2026 (onsite): Start on April 10 (9:30-12:00)

After registering, please write down the course dates in your calendar right away, to make sure you can attend most sessions (please see 'passing the course' below).

Prerequisites 

• Before the start of the course, you should have completed an extensive literature search and familiarise yourself with the sources. 
• A minimum of B2 English is required to understand the sessions and to actively engage in class discussions. If you suspect your English skills do not yet meet this requirement, please consider first taking the courses Scientific writing: Basics and/or Spoken English skills.

Passing the course and gaining 4 ECTS

To pass the course and gain 4 ECTS, you will need to...

• Attend at least 75% of the sessions (i.e. max 2 absences)
• Submit the homework assignments on time
• Submit the final, 3000-word essay by deadline

Note: If you further develop your essay after the course, it is possible to gain 1-4 more ECTS. Discuss this option with your supervisor.