Self-assessment for text quality

Presentation

  • Is the presentation in line with the requirements? (e.g., not too many headings, inappropriate bold face and italics, etc.)
  • Is the layout consistent throughout the text?
  • Are there no spelling and punctuation errors?
  • Have all grammatical errors been resolved?
  • Are all numbers formatted correctly, according to US or UK English?
    • Decimal points, not commas (e.g., the average is 10.52, and not 10,52)
    • Separation of groups of digits (e.g., there are 1,531 users in the data set, and not 1531; similarly, there are 1,531,213 song plays, instead of 1531213 song plays)
    • Drop leading zeros (e.g., .15 instead of 0.15)
  • Is the thesis confirming to the length requirements?
  • Have all figures and tables been formatted properly?
  • Are all references correct and up-to-date?

Text type

  • Have the rules of an academic paper been applied correctly (e.g., writing actively)?
  • Is the text type appropriate for the audience (i.e., non-colloquial?)?
  • Is there no mix of different text types?

Content

  • Does the reader still have questions after reading the text?
  • Does the text contradict itself?
  • Is all the information presented in the text correct?

Structure

  • Is the coherence between the different paragraphs clear?
  • Are the paragraphs structured similarly, and of approximately the same length?
  • Have sufficient link words been used to indicate coherence?

Formulation

  • Is the formulation understandable, to the point, and attuned to the audience?
  • Is the style consistent throughout the text?
  • Are the sentences and word choice correct?