About this course: This course teaches scientists to become more effective writers, using practical examples and exercises. Topics include: principles of good writing, tricks for writing faster and with less anxiety, the format of a scientific manuscript, peer review, grant writing, ethical issues in scientific publication, and writing for general audiences.
Who is this class for: This course is for undergraduate and graduate students; medical students; scientists; medical professionals; and science writers.
Created by: Stanford University
Taught by: Dr. Kristin Sainani, Associate Professor
Health Research and Policy
| Level | Beginner |
| Commitment | 8 weeks of study, 3-5 hours/week |
| Language | English |
| How To Pass | Pass all graded assignments to complete the course. |
| User Ratings |
Syllabus
WEEK 1
1
Unit 1 introduces the course and reviews key principles of effective writing. In particular, you will practice cutting clutter from writing.
7 videos
- Video: 1.2: Examples of what not to do
- Video: 1.3: Overview, principles of effective writing
- Video: 1.4: Cut the clutter
- Video: 1.5: Cut the clutter, more tricks
- Video: 1.6: Practicing cutting clutter
- Video: Demo Edit 1 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 1 Homework
WEEK 2
2
Unit 2 focuses on writing with strong, active verbs. Lessons include how to: write in the active voice; avoid turning verbs into nouns; choose strong verbs; and get to the main verb of a sentence quickly.
7 videos
- Video: 2.2: Is it really OK to use "We" and "I"
- Video: 2.3: Active voice practice
- Video: 2.4: Write with verbs
- Video: 2.5: Practice examples
- Video: 2.6: A few grammar tips
- Video: Demo Edit 2 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 2 Homework
WEEK 3
3
Unit 3 reviews how to vary sentence structure and write strong paragraphs. You will practice using the dash, colon, semi-colon, and parentheses, as well as writing well-organized and concise paragraphs.
8 videos
- Video: 3.2: Practice, colon and dash
- Video: 3.3: Parallelism
- Video: 3.4: Paragraphs
- Video: 3.5: Paragraph Editing I
- Video: 3.6: Paragraph Editing II
- Video: Module 3.7: A few more tips
- Video: Demo Edit 3 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 3 Homework
Graded: Paragraph editing exercise
WEEK 4
4
Unit 4 reviews the writing process. I will give you tips for making the writing process easier, more efficient, and more organized.
7 videos
- Video: 4.2 Overview of the writing process
- Video: 4.3 The pre-writing step
- Video: 4.4 The writing step
- Video: 4.5: Revision
- Video: 4.6: Checklist for the final draft
- Video: Demo Edit 4 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 4 Homework
WEEK 5
5
Unit 5 reviews the sections of a scientific manuscript. You will learn how to format tables and figures, and how to write results, methods, introduction, and discussion sections.
9 videos
- Video: 5.2: Results
- Video: 5.3: Practice writing results
- Video: 5.4: Methods
- Video: 5.5: Introduction
- Video: 5.6: Introduction practice
- Video: 5.7: Discussion
- Video: 5.8: Abstract
- Video: Demo Edit 5 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 5 Homework
WEEK 6
6
Unit 6 discusses the peer review process, as well as ethical issues in scientific publishing. You will learn how to avoid plagiarism, determine authorship, submit a paper, write a peer review, and avoid predatory journals.
9 videos
- Video: 6.2: Authorship
- Video: 6.3: The Submission Process
- Video: 6.4: Interview with Dr. Bradley Efron
- Video: 6.5: Interview with Dr. George Lundberg
- Video: 6.6: Interview with Dr. Gary Friedman
- Video: 6.7: Doing a peer review
- Video: 6.8: Predatory journals
- Video: Demo Edit 6 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 6 Homework
Graded: Essay
WEEK 7
7
Unit 7 reviews types of writing beyond original research manuscripts. You will learn how to write review papers, grants, letters of recommendation, and personal essays.
7 videos
- Video: 7.2: Grants I
- Video: 7.3: Grants II
- Video: 7.4: Grants III
- Video: 7.5 Writing letters of recommendation
- Video: 7.6: Writing personal statements
- Video: Demo Edit 7 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 7 Homework
WEEK 8
8
Unit 8 reviews communication with broader audiences. You will learn how work with the media, be interviewed, conduct an interview, and write about science for general audiences.
8 videos
- Video: 8.2: Panel Interview
- Video: 8.3: Writing for general audiences
- Video: 8.4: Writing a science news story
- Video: 8.5: Interviewing a scientist
- Video: 8.6: Social media
- Video: 8.7: Concluding Remarks
- Video: Demo Edit 8 (Optional)
Graded: Unit 8 Homework
Graded: Lay summary exercise
FAQs
How It Works
Coursework
Each course is like an interactive textbook, featuring pre-recorded videos, quizzes and projects.
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Certificates
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Creators
Stanford University
The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University or Stanford, is an American private research university located in Stanford, California on an 8,180-acre (3,310 ha) campus near Palo Alto, California, United States.
Ratings and Reviews
Exceptional courses with superb professor!
It's a wonderful course with great examples and very useful for practical application! Thank you
Very informative. I have learned many new techniques in just the first week.
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GS
The instructor is very clear and not boring at all. She makes the course really interesting and engaging. I just loved all the knowledge she could pass on throughout the course.
I loved the fact that she taught not only scientific writing, but also writing an essay, reviewing articles - all of which is important in scientific career.
I also loved the presentation about Tweeting and Social Media. Although, i think she went too much into the details, which was not too relevant.
One thing i did not like was a presentation about grant-writing. The instructor made a voice presentation of 22 minutes with a monotonous voice. It was a bit boring and i got distracted because of it. So, i had to listen to her presentation at least two times to understand, which is difficult because i do not have much time.
Overall, great great great course!! Thanks to the main Professor!