awaiting sme assignment

Peer Review

Manuscripts are processed and sent out for review using a standardized workflow. The following outline can be used to track the status of your manuscript. If you currently have a manuscript in peer review, you will see a status message on your Author Dashboard in ScholarOne under “Submitted Manuscripts.” All possible statuses can be found in  bold  below. For a more detailed description of the status of your manuscript, please find the appropriate step below. Note: asterisks and footnotes pertain to Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment .

The steps below begin after an author submits a manuscript via ScholarOne.  

• Undergoing initial checking:  The journal’s editorial staff check that the manuscript conforms to the journal’s formatting guidelines and editorial policies. Manuscripts are evaluated in the order they are received, unless the manuscript is a Communication in Ecological Applications , which are given priority in the system. 
• Assign the manuscript to a Subject-matter Editor (SME)**
• Reject the manuscript without review (the manuscript will move to Step 7)
• Reject the manuscript and invite resubmission (the manuscript will move to Step 7)
• Reject the manuscript with a transfer offer to another ESA journal (the manuscript will move to Step 7)
• Suggest potential reviewers
• Make a decision on the paper without further review (the manuscript will move to Step 7)
• Seeking reviewers:  The journal’s editorial staff secures agreements to review. Most submissions are evaluated by two external, anonymous reviewers – sometimes more, sometimes fewer. Sometimes the SME needs to provide additional names until the requisite number of reviewers are secured. If this happens, you will receive another notification telling you the SME has been asked to provide additional names of potential reviewers (i.e., the status will revert to “ SME check ” again).
• Awaiting reviews:  The required number of reviewers have been secured and they are actively reviewing the manuscript, with comments and a recommendation generally expected within 3 weeks of a reviewer accepting the invitation.
• Reviews in:  Once all reviewers have submitted their evaluations, the SME is prompted to make a decision. The SME will consider the reviews, and when they have decided how to proceed, they will draft a decision letter.
• Decision pending:  The decision letter drafted by the SME may include reviewer comments as appropriate and the SME may provide additional suggestions for revision. The decision letter draft is submitted for proofreading by the journal’s editorial staff. Decisions letters are proofread in the order in which the manuscript was submitted. There will be some time between a manuscript entering the “Decision pending” queue and the contact author receiving the decision letter.
• Reject with resubmission invited
• Reject without option to resubmit
• Reject with transfer offer to another ESA journal.
• If the decision was “Revise,” upon receipt of the revision, the SME will evaluate the revised manuscript and either request further peer reviews (repeating steps 4–8 above) or make a decision (steps 7 and 8 above). Manuscripts that have received a decision of “reject with resubmission invited” are handled similarly.
• The steps may be repeated as many times as necessary until a final accept or reject decision is rendered.

*  Frontiers in Ecology and the Environment does not have Associate Editors-in-Chief. Decisions about manuscripts are made solely by the Editor-in-Chief.

**  Frontiers does not have Subject-matter Editors, rather there is an editorial board of Associate Editors.

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How can I check the status of my submitted paper?

Modified on Fri, 27 Oct 2023 at 04:59 PM

To check the status of your submission in our system, log into your ScholarOne Manuscripts account, and click on “Author.” Under the Author Dashboard Section, click on “Submitted Manuscripts.” 

Please note that the following definitions generally apply to most journals. Each journal follows its own workflow, so some terms may not apply. Please contact the journal's editorial office for clarification.

Please see our resources on the peer review process and tips on How to Get Published .

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Understanding Assignments

What this handout is about.

The first step in any successful college writing venture is reading the assignment. While this sounds like a simple task, it can be a tough one. This handout will help you unravel your assignment and begin to craft an effective response. Much of the following advice will involve translating typical assignment terms and practices into meaningful clues to the type of writing your instructor expects. See our short video for more tips.

Basic beginnings

Regardless of the assignment, department, or instructor, adopting these two habits will serve you well :

• Read the assignment carefully as soon as you receive it. Do not put this task off—reading the assignment at the beginning will save you time, stress, and problems later. An assignment can look pretty straightforward at first, particularly if the instructor has provided lots of information. That does not mean it will not take time and effort to complete; you may even have to learn a new skill to complete the assignment.
• Ask the instructor about anything you do not understand. Do not hesitate to approach your instructor. Instructors would prefer to set you straight before you hand the paper in. That’s also when you will find their feedback most useful.

Assignment formats

Many assignments follow a basic format. Assignments often begin with an overview of the topic, include a central verb or verbs that describe the task, and offer some additional suggestions, questions, or prompts to get you started.

An Overview of Some Kind

The instructor might set the stage with some general discussion of the subject of the assignment, introduce the topic, or remind you of something pertinent that you have discussed in class. For example:

“Throughout history, gerbils have played a key role in politics,” or “In the last few weeks of class, we have focused on the evening wear of the housefly …”

The Task of the Assignment

Pay attention; this part tells you what to do when you write the paper. Look for the key verb or verbs in the sentence. Words like analyze, summarize, or compare direct you to think about your topic in a certain way. Also pay attention to words such as how, what, when, where, and why; these words guide your attention toward specific information. (See the section in this handout titled “Key Terms” for more information.)

“Analyze the effect that gerbils had on the Russian Revolution”, or “Suggest an interpretation of housefly undergarments that differs from Darwin’s.”

Additional Material to Think about

Here you will find some questions to use as springboards as you begin to think about the topic. Instructors usually include these questions as suggestions rather than requirements. Do not feel compelled to answer every question unless the instructor asks you to do so. Pay attention to the order of the questions. Sometimes they suggest the thinking process your instructor imagines you will need to follow to begin thinking about the topic.

“You may wish to consider the differing views held by Communist gerbils vs. Monarchist gerbils, or Can there be such a thing as ‘the housefly garment industry’ or is it just a home-based craft?”

These are the instructor’s comments about writing expectations:

“Be concise”, “Write effectively”, or “Argue furiously.”

Technical Details

These instructions usually indicate format rules or guidelines.

“Your paper must be typed in Palatino font on gray paper and must not exceed 600 pages. It is due on the anniversary of Mao Tse-tung’s death.”

The assignment’s parts may not appear in exactly this order, and each part may be very long or really short. Nonetheless, being aware of this standard pattern can help you understand what your instructor wants you to do.

Interpreting the assignment

Ask yourself a few basic questions as you read and jot down the answers on the assignment sheet:

Why did your instructor ask you to do this particular task?

Who is your audience.

• What kind of evidence do you need to support your ideas?

What kind of writing style is acceptable?

• What are the absolute rules of the paper?

Try to look at the question from the point of view of the instructor. Recognize that your instructor has a reason for giving you this assignment and for giving it to you at a particular point in the semester. In every assignment, the instructor has a challenge for you. This challenge could be anything from demonstrating an ability to think clearly to demonstrating an ability to use the library. See the assignment not as a vague suggestion of what to do but as an opportunity to show that you can handle the course material as directed. Paper assignments give you more than a topic to discuss—they ask you to do something with the topic. Keep reminding yourself of that. Be careful to avoid the other extreme as well: do not read more into the assignment than what is there.

Of course, your instructor has given you an assignment so that they will be able to assess your understanding of the course material and give you an appropriate grade. But there is more to it than that. Your instructor has tried to design a learning experience of some kind. Your instructor wants you to think about something in a particular way for a particular reason. If you read the course description at the beginning of your syllabus, review the assigned readings, and consider the assignment itself, you may begin to see the plan, purpose, or approach to the subject matter that your instructor has created for you. If you still aren’t sure of the assignment’s goals, try asking the instructor. For help with this, see our handout on getting feedback .

Given your instructor’s efforts, it helps to answer the question: What is my purpose in completing this assignment? Is it to gather research from a variety of outside sources and present a coherent picture? Is it to take material I have been learning in class and apply it to a new situation? Is it to prove a point one way or another? Key words from the assignment can help you figure this out. Look for key terms in the form of active verbs that tell you what to do.

Key Terms: Finding Those Active Verbs

Here are some common key words and definitions to help you think about assignment terms:

Information words Ask you to demonstrate what you know about the subject, such as who, what, when, where, how, and why.

• define —give the subject’s meaning (according to someone or something). Sometimes you have to give more than one view on the subject’s meaning
• describe —provide details about the subject by answering question words (such as who, what, when, where, how, and why); you might also give details related to the five senses (what you see, hear, feel, taste, and smell)
• explain —give reasons why or examples of how something happened
• illustrate —give descriptive examples of the subject and show how each is connected with the subject
• summarize —briefly list the important ideas you learned about the subject
• trace —outline how something has changed or developed from an earlier time to its current form
• research —gather material from outside sources about the subject, often with the implication or requirement that you will analyze what you have found

Relation words Ask you to demonstrate how things are connected.

• compare —show how two or more things are similar (and, sometimes, different)
• contrast —show how two or more things are dissimilar
• apply—use details that you’ve been given to demonstrate how an idea, theory, or concept works in a particular situation
• cause —show how one event or series of events made something else happen
• relate —show or describe the connections between things

Interpretation words Ask you to defend ideas of your own about the subject. Do not see these words as requesting opinion alone (unless the assignment specifically says so), but as requiring opinion that is supported by concrete evidence. Remember examples, principles, definitions, or concepts from class or research and use them in your interpretation.

• assess —summarize your opinion of the subject and measure it against something
• prove, justify —give reasons or examples to demonstrate how or why something is the truth
• evaluate, respond —state your opinion of the subject as good, bad, or some combination of the two, with examples and reasons
• support —give reasons or evidence for something you believe (be sure to state clearly what it is that you believe)
• synthesize —put two or more things together that have not been put together in class or in your readings before; do not just summarize one and then the other and say that they are similar or different—you must provide a reason for putting them together that runs all the way through the paper
• analyze —determine how individual parts create or relate to the whole, figure out how something works, what it might mean, or why it is important
• argue —take a side and defend it with evidence against the other side

More Clues to Your Purpose As you read the assignment, think about what the teacher does in class:

• What kinds of textbooks or coursepack did your instructor choose for the course—ones that provide background information, explain theories or perspectives, or argue a point of view?
• In lecture, does your instructor ask your opinion, try to prove their point of view, or use keywords that show up again in the assignment?
• What kinds of assignments are typical in this discipline? Social science classes often expect more research. Humanities classes thrive on interpretation and analysis.
• How do the assignments, readings, and lectures work together in the course? Instructors spend time designing courses, sometimes even arguing with their peers about the most effective course materials. Figuring out the overall design to the course will help you understand what each assignment is meant to achieve.

Now, what about your reader? Most undergraduates think of their audience as the instructor. True, your instructor is a good person to keep in mind as you write. But for the purposes of a good paper, think of your audience as someone like your roommate: smart enough to understand a clear, logical argument, but not someone who already knows exactly what is going on in your particular paper. Remember, even if the instructor knows everything there is to know about your paper topic, they still have to read your paper and assess your understanding. In other words, teach the material to your reader.

Aiming a paper at your audience happens in two ways: you make decisions about the tone and the level of information you want to convey.

• Tone means the “voice” of your paper. Should you be chatty, formal, or objective? Usually you will find some happy medium—you do not want to alienate your reader by sounding condescending or superior, but you do not want to, um, like, totally wig on the man, you know? Eschew ostentatious erudition: some students think the way to sound academic is to use big words. Be careful—you can sound ridiculous, especially if you use the wrong big words.
• The level of information you use depends on who you think your audience is. If you imagine your audience as your instructor and they already know everything you have to say, you may find yourself leaving out key information that can cause your argument to be unconvincing and illogical. But you do not have to explain every single word or issue. If you are telling your roommate what happened on your favorite science fiction TV show last night, you do not say, “First a dark-haired white man of average height, wearing a suit and carrying a flashlight, walked into the room. Then a purple alien with fifteen arms and at least three eyes turned around. Then the man smiled slightly. In the background, you could hear a clock ticking. The room was fairly dark and had at least two windows that I saw.” You also do not say, “This guy found some aliens. The end.” Find some balance of useful details that support your main point.

You’ll find a much more detailed discussion of these concepts in our handout on audience .

The Grim Truth

With a few exceptions (including some lab and ethnography reports), you are probably being asked to make an argument. You must convince your audience. It is easy to forget this aim when you are researching and writing; as you become involved in your subject matter, you may become enmeshed in the details and focus on learning or simply telling the information you have found. You need to do more than just repeat what you have read. Your writing should have a point, and you should be able to say it in a sentence. Sometimes instructors call this sentence a “thesis” or a “claim.”

So, if your instructor tells you to write about some aspect of oral hygiene, you do not want to just list: “First, you brush your teeth with a soft brush and some peanut butter. Then, you floss with unwaxed, bologna-flavored string. Finally, gargle with bourbon.” Instead, you could say, “Of all the oral cleaning methods, sandblasting removes the most plaque. Therefore it should be recommended by the American Dental Association.” Or, “From an aesthetic perspective, moldy teeth can be quite charming. However, their joys are short-lived.”

Convincing the reader of your argument is the goal of academic writing. It doesn’t have to say “argument” anywhere in the assignment for you to need one. Look at the assignment and think about what kind of argument you could make about it instead of just seeing it as a checklist of information you have to present. For help with understanding the role of argument in academic writing, see our handout on argument .

What kind of evidence do you need?

There are many kinds of evidence, and what type of evidence will work for your assignment can depend on several factors–the discipline, the parameters of the assignment, and your instructor’s preference. Should you use statistics? Historical examples? Do you need to conduct your own experiment? Can you rely on personal experience? See our handout on evidence for suggestions on how to use evidence appropriately.

Make sure you are clear about this part of the assignment, because your use of evidence will be crucial in writing a successful paper. You are not just learning how to argue; you are learning how to argue with specific types of materials and ideas. Ask your instructor what counts as acceptable evidence. You can also ask a librarian for help. No matter what kind of evidence you use, be sure to cite it correctly—see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial .

You cannot always tell from the assignment just what sort of writing style your instructor expects. The instructor may be really laid back in class but still expect you to sound formal in writing. Or the instructor may be fairly formal in class and ask you to write a reflection paper where you need to use “I” and speak from your own experience.

Try to avoid false associations of a particular field with a style (“art historians like wacky creativity,” or “political scientists are boring and just give facts”) and look instead to the types of readings you have been given in class. No one expects you to write like Plato—just use the readings as a guide for what is standard or preferable to your instructor. When in doubt, ask your instructor about the level of formality they expect.

No matter what field you are writing for or what facts you are including, if you do not write so that your reader can understand your main idea, you have wasted your time. So make clarity your main goal. For specific help with style, see our handout on style .

Technical details about the assignment

The technical information you are given in an assignment always seems like the easy part. This section can actually give you lots of little hints about approaching the task. Find out if elements such as page length and citation format (see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial ) are negotiable. Some professors do not have strong preferences as long as you are consistent and fully answer the assignment. Some professors are very specific and will deduct big points for deviations.

Usually, the page length tells you something important: The instructor thinks the size of the paper is appropriate to the assignment’s parameters. In plain English, your instructor is telling you how many pages it should take for you to answer the question as fully as you are expected to. So if an assignment is two pages long, you cannot pad your paper with examples or reword your main idea several times. Hit your one point early, defend it with the clearest example, and finish quickly. If an assignment is ten pages long, you can be more complex in your main points and examples—and if you can only produce five pages for that assignment, you need to see someone for help—as soon as possible.

Tricks that don’t work

Your instructors are not fooled when you:

• spend more time on the cover page than the essay —graphics, cool binders, and cute titles are no replacement for a well-written paper.
• use huge fonts, wide margins, or extra spacing to pad the page length —these tricks are immediately obvious to the eye. Most instructors use the same word processor you do. They know what’s possible. Such tactics are especially damning when the instructor has a stack of 60 papers to grade and yours is the only one that low-flying airplane pilots could read.
• use a paper from another class that covered “sort of similar” material . Again, the instructor has a particular task for you to fulfill in the assignment that usually relates to course material and lectures. Your other paper may not cover this material, and turning in the same paper for more than one course may constitute an Honor Code violation . Ask the instructor—it can’t hurt.
• get all wacky and “creative” before you answer the question . Showing that you are able to think beyond the boundaries of a simple assignment can be good, but you must do what the assignment calls for first. Again, check with your instructor. A humorous tone can be refreshing for someone grading a stack of papers, but it will not get you a good grade if you have not fulfilled the task.

Critical reading of assignments leads to skills in other types of reading and writing. If you get good at figuring out what the real goals of assignments are, you are going to be better at understanding the goals of all of your classes and fields of study.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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Types of Assignments

Cristy Bartlett and Kate Derrington

Introduction

As discussed in the previous chapter, assignments are a common method of assessment at university. You may encounter many assignments over your years of study, yet some will look quite different from others. By recognising different types of assignments and understanding the purpose of the task, you can direct your writing skills effectively to meet task requirements. This chapter draws on the skills from the previous chapter, and extends the discussion, showing you where to aim with different types of assignments.

The chapter begins by exploring the popular essay assignment, with its two common categories, analytical and argumentative essays. It then examines assignments requiring case study responses , as often encountered in fields such as health or business. This is followed by a discussion of assignments seeking a report (such as a scientific report) and reflective writing assignments, common in nursing, education and human services. The chapter concludes with an examination of annotated bibliographies and literature reviews. The chapter also has a selection of templates and examples throughout to enhance your understanding and improve the efficacy of  your assignment writing skills.

Different Types of Written Assignments

At university, an essay is a common form of assessment. In the previous chapter Writing Assignments we discussed what was meant by showing academic writing in your assignments. It is important that you consider these aspects of structure, tone and language when writing an essay.

Components of an essay

Essays should use formal but reader friendly language and have a clear and logical structure. They must include research from credible academic sources such as peer reviewed journal articles and textbooks. This research should be referenced throughout your essay to support your ideas (See the chapter Working with Information ).

If you have never written an essay before, you may feel unsure about how to start.  Breaking your essay into sections and allocating words accordingly will make this process more manageable and will make planning the overall essay structure much easier.

• An essay requires an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion.
• Generally, an introduction and conclusion are approximately 10% each of the total word count.
• The remaining words can then be divided into sections and a paragraph allowed for each area of content you need to cover.
• Use your task and criteria sheet to decide what content needs to be in your plan

An effective essay introduction needs to inform your reader by doing four basic things:

Table 20.1 An effective essay

An effective essay body paragraph needs to:

An effective essay conclusion needs to:

Common types of essays

You may be required to write different types of essays, depending on your study area and topic. Two of the most commonly used essays are analytical and argumentative .  The task analysis process discussed in the previous chapter Writing Assignments will help you determine the type of essay required. For example, if your assignment question uses task words such as analyse, examine, discuss, determine or explore, you would be writing an analytical essay . If your assignment question has task words such as argue, evaluate, justify or assess, you would be writing an argumentative essay . Despite the type of essay, your ability to analyse and think critically is important and common across genres.  

Analytical essays

These essays usually provide some background description of the relevant theory, situation, problem, case, image, etcetera that is your topic. Being analytical requires you to look carefully at various components or sections of your topic in a methodical and logical way to create understanding.

The purpose of the analytical essay is to demonstrate your ability to examine the topic thoroughly. This requires you to go deeper than description by considering different sides of the situation, comparing and contrasting a variety of theories and the positives and negatives of the topic. Although in an analytical essay your position on the topic may be clear, it is not necessarily a requirement that you explicitly identify this with a thesis statement, as is the case with an argumentative essay. If you are unsure whether you are required to take a position, and provide a thesis statement, it is best to check with your tutor.

Argumentative essays

These essays require you to take a position on the assignment topic. This is expressed through your thesis statement in your introduction. You must then present and develop your arguments throughout the body of your assignment using logically structured paragraphs. Each of these paragraphs needs a topic sentence that relates to the thesis statement. In an argumentative essay, you must reach a conclusion based on the evidence you have presented.

Case Study Responses

Case studies are a common form of assignment in many study areas and students can underperform in this genre for a number of key reasons.

Students typically lose marks for not:

• Relating their answer sufficiently to the case details
• Applying critical thinking
• Writing with clear structure
• Using appropriate or sufficient sources
• Using accurate referencing

When structuring your response to a case study, remember to refer to the case. Structure your paragraphs similarly to an essay paragraph structure but include examples and data from the case as additional evidence to support your points (see Figure 20.5 ). The colours in the sample paragraph below show the function of each component.

The Nursing and Midwifery Board of Australia (NMBA) Code of Conduct and Nursing Standards (2018) play a crucial role in determining the scope of practice for nurses and midwives. A key component discussed in the code is the provision of person-centred care and the formation of therapeutic relationships between nurses and patients (NMBA, 2018). This ensures patient safety and promotes health and wellbeing (NMBA, 2018). The standards also discuss the importance of partnership and shared decision-making in the delivery of care (NMBA, 2018, 4). Boyd and Dare (2014) argue that good communication skills are vital for building therapeutic relationships and trust between patients and care givers. This will help ensure the patient is treated with dignity and respect and improve their overall hospital experience. In the case, the therapeutic relationship with the client has been compromised in several ways. Firstly, the nurse did not conform adequately to the guidelines for seeking informed consent before performing the examination as outlined in principle 2.3 (NMBA, 2018). Although she explained the procedure, she failed to give the patient appropriate choices regarding her health care. 

Topic sentence | Explanations using paraphrased evidence including in-text references | Critical thinking (asks the so what? question to demonstrate your student voice). | Relating the theory back to the specifics of the case. The case becomes a source of examples as extra evidence to support the points you are making.

Reports are a common form of assessment at university and are also used widely in many professions. It is a common form of writing in business, government, scientific, and technical occupations.

Reports can take many different structures. A report is normally written to present information in a structured manner, which may include explaining laboratory experiments, technical information, or a business case.  Reports may be written for different audiences including clients, your manager, technical staff, or senior leadership within an organisation. The structure of reports can vary, and it is important to consider what format is required. The choice of structure will depend upon professional requirements and the ultimate aims of the report. Consider some of the options in the table below (see Table 20.2 ).

Table 20.2 Explanations of different types of reports

Reflective writing.

Reflective writing is a popular method of assessment at university. It is used to help you explore feelings, experiences, opinions, events or new information to gain a clearer and deeper understanding of your learning. A reflective writing task requires more than a description or summary.  It requires you to analyse a situation, problem or experience, consider what you may have learnt and evaluate how this may impact your thinking and actions in the future. This requires critical thinking, analysis, and usually the application of good quality research, to demonstrate your understanding or learning from a situation. Essentially, reflective practice is the process of looking back on past experiences and engaging with them in a thoughtful way and drawing conclusions to inform future experiences. The reflection skills you develop at university will be vital in the workplace to assist you to use feedback for growth and continuous improvement. There are numerous models of reflective writing and you should refer to your subject guidelines for your expected format. If there is no specific framework, a simple model to help frame your thinking is What? So what? Now what?   (Rolfe et al., 2001).

Table 20.3 What? So What? Now What? Explained.

The Gibbs’ Reflective Cycle

The Gibbs’ Cycle of reflection encourages you to consider your feelings as part of the reflective process. There are six specific steps to work through. Following this model carefully and being clear of the requirements of each stage, will help you focus your thinking and reflect more deeply. This model is popular in Health.

The 4 R’s of reflective thinking

This model (Ryan and Ryan, 2013) was designed specifically for university students engaged in experiential learning.  Experiential learning includes any ‘real-world’ activities including practice led activities, placements and internships.  Experiential learning, and the use of reflective practice to heighten this learning, is common in Creative Arts, Health and Education.

Annotated Bibliography

What is it.

An annotated bibliography is an alphabetical list of appropriate sources (books, journals or websites) on a topic, accompanied by a brief summary, evaluation and sometimes an explanation or reflection on their usefulness or relevance to your topic. Its purpose is to teach you to research carefully, evaluate sources and systematically organise your notes. An annotated bibliography may be one part of a larger assessment item or a stand-alone assessment piece. Check your task guidelines for the number of sources you are required to annotate and the word limit for each entry.

How do I know what to include?

When choosing sources for your annotated bibliography it is important to determine:

• The topic you are investigating and if there is a specific question to answer
• The type of sources on which you need to focus
• Whether they are reputable and of high quality

What do I say?

Important considerations include:

• Is the work current?
• Is the work relevant to your topic?
• Is the author credible/reliable?
• Is there any author bias?
• The strength and limitations (this may include an evaluation of research methodology).

Literature Reviews

It is easy to get confused by the terminology used for literature reviews. Some tasks may be described as a systematic literature review when actually the requirement is simpler; to review the literature on the topic but do it in a systematic way. There is a distinct difference (see Table 20.4 ). As a commencing undergraduate student, it is unlikely you would be expected to complete a systematic literature review as this is a complex and more advanced research task. It is important to check with your lecturer or tutor if you are unsure of the requirements.

Table 20.4 Comparison of Literature Reviews

Generally, you are required to establish the main ideas that have been written on your chosen topic. You may also be expected to identify gaps in the research. A literature review does not summarise and evaluate each resource you find (this is what you would do in an annotated bibliography). You are expected to analyse and synthesise or organise common ideas from multiple texts into key themes which are relevant to your topic (see Figure 20.10 ). Use a table or a spreadsheet, if you know how, to organise the information you find. Record the full reference details of the sources as this will save you time later when compiling your reference list (see Table 20.5 ).

Overall, this chapter has provided an introduction to the types of assignments you can expect to complete at university, as well as outlined some tips and strategies with examples and templates for completing them. First, the chapter investigated essay assignments, including analytical and argumentative essays. It then examined case study assignments, followed by a discussion of the report format. Reflective writing , popular in nursing, education and human services, was also considered. Finally, the chapter briefly addressed annotated bibliographies and literature reviews. The chapter also has a selection of templates and examples throughout to enhance your understanding and improve the efficacy of your assignment writing skills.

• Not all assignments at university are the same. Understanding the requirements of different types of assignments will assist in meeting the criteria more effectively.
• There are many different types of assignments. Most will require an introduction, body paragraphs and a conclusion.
• An essay should have a clear and logical structure and use formal but reader friendly language.
• Breaking your assignment into manageable chunks makes it easier to approach.
• Effective body paragraphs contain a topic sentence.
• A case study structure is similar to an essay, but you must remember to provide examples from the case or scenario to demonstrate your points.
• The type of report you may be required to write will depend on its purpose and audience. A report requires structured writing and uses headings.
• Reflective writing is popular in many disciplines and is used to explore feelings, experiences, opinions or events to discover what learning or understanding has occurred. Reflective writing requires more than description. You need to be analytical, consider what has been learnt and evaluate the impact of this on future actions.
• Annotated bibliographies teach you to research and evaluate sources and systematically organise your notes. They may be part of a larger assignment.
• Literature reviews require you to look across the literature and analyse and synthesise the information you find into themes.

Gibbs, G. (1988). Learning by doing: A guide to teaching and learning methods. Further Education Unit, Oxford Brookes University, Oxford.

Rolfe, G., Freshwater, D., Jasper, M. (2001). Critical reflection in nursing and the helping professions: a user’s guide . Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.

Ryan, M. & Ryan, M. (2013). Theorising a model for teaching and assessing reflective learning in higher education.  Higher Education Research & Development , 32(2), 244-257. doi: 10.1080/07294360.2012.661704

Academic Success Copyright © 2021 by Cristy Bartlett and Kate Derrington is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License , except where otherwise noted.

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Proposal Writing: Aligning SMEs for Proposal Success

• June 28, 2022

Effective proposal writing requires a lot of thought and a good process. When you write a response to an RFP (request for proposal), you’re aiming to convince readers that you understand their business problem and can provide a solution. You must, of course, be qualified to do so. That’s where your subject matter experts (SMEs) come in. SMEs add authority and credibility to your response. They have the knowledge and experience that your proposed solution will need.

But you’ll probably ask various SMEs to write and review content as you build your response. So how do you create a clear, compliant proposal when multiple voices provide your raw material?

Proposal software like VT Docs is invaluable here. But there’s also the question of how to get those experts on board in the first place. They have a primary job, and it’s not proposal writing. So how can you convince them to give you their best and increase your probability of a win?

Time is valuable, especially for experts

Whether your SMEs are employees or on contract, your company chose them because they are recognized experts. Their time is valuable. They could be in the middle of implementing a solution that they have already agreed upon with a major customer. This means there’s a real opportunity cost if helping with your proposal jeopardizes their other timelines. Especially if there are service level agreements in place with penalties to pay if you break them. Recognize from the start that time is money for SMEs.

Get experts on board early to optimize their contribution

We’ve written at length about the RFP response process . But when it comes to SMEs, a key step is to brief them early about this new opportunity. To get them on board as you compete to win this new business, do your best to be inspirational. Remember who you are dealing with — technical experts — and take their perspective. If this RFP opens the opportunity for them to design a creative or technically demanding solution, that could help fire them up. Assure them that you will only involve them where necessary and that you’ll be clear about what you need and when.

Make it easy for them to meet your deadlines

Do you have a knowledge base with past RFP responses? If you don’t, start building this repository now. Each RFP response contains a wealth of potentially reusable content nuggets. Information about everything from solution design to subcontractors to pricing. A detailed description your SME wrote six months ago for another RFP might still be 90% correct. Pull this content from your knowledge base and give it to your SME for edits instead of making them repeat themselves. You may also decide that it’s the SME’s job to refresh standard material so that it’s never too far out of date.

Don’t overload your SMEs with irrelevant material

A key part of your RFP response process is to shred the RFP . This involves dividing it into individual sections which lay out the customer’s requirements. You can then tackle them one by one to ensure you don’t miss anything.  VT Docs can help you do this, making it easy to generate a compliance matrix and responsibility matrix . A compliance matrix is a tool you use to cross-reference your proposal with the RFP. It’s a table that spells out each requirement stated in the RFP and then lists exactly where in your proposal (section, page number, etc.) that requirement is addressed. A responsibility matrix is a table that states who’s responsible for different parts of the RFP response process or inputs. These matrices also pinpoint which parts of the document are pertinent to your SMEs. You don’t have to send them the entire document, just the area that’s relevant to themselves.

Many SMEs dislike proposal writing – so make it easy

Your response has the best chance of success with readers if it is a clear, compelling and compliant proposal. It should be in one tone of voice that’s consistent and professional. Your SMEs may be technical experts who don’t enjoy writing, or they might not know where to start. Many SMEs also find that anything they write focuses too much on the technical “how” rather than the “why”.  While you need this technical information, it mustn’t get in the way of reader comprehension.

VT Writer eases the pain for SMEs who aren’t natural writers by scoring their writing for readability. It also flags overly complex paragraphs and passive voice, so they can focus on what they need to edit. Engineers who’ve used VT Docs tell us they like this dispassionate scoring approach. They can see what they need to change and why. The whole process makes them stronger writers.  Over time, VisibleThread can help your SMEs learn to write more direct, active sentences and clearer statements of business benefits while still covering the technical detail that customers want.

You need to prepare to work within an SME’s limitations

What if your SMEs are simply too busy or too intimidated by the writing process to give you the material you need? In that case, be flexible. Hold a question-and-answer interview with them in person or by phone. Ideally alongside an experienced writer who knows how to draw out information from (reluctant) technical experts.

Once you’ve captured their input, let your SMEs review what you’ve written. This way you can make sure you haven’t sacrificed technical accuracy for plain language. This same process can work if you’re trying to build up your SMEs’ profile with blogs and other content. You can record an interview with your expert on pertinent topics where you want your company to be a recognized authority. Do you want more inspiration on how SMEs can help improve your company’s profile on your target customers? Have a look at our webinar on “ How to Get the Most Value from your SMEs .”

The way you work with SMEs can be a risk or a success factor for your response process. VT Docs supports you at every stage of proposal writing and coordination. This allows you to get the benefit of their subject matter expertise without endangering your timelines or sacrificing readability. Here’s your at-a-glance summary of how VT Docs improves how you work with SMEs:

Compare to past proposals

How does the current opportunity compare to previous responses that you, and your SMEs, have written? VT Docs lets you find reusable content fast that can save your SMEs valuable time.

Proposal Writing Examples

In the world of proposal management, particularly in government contracting, writing a comprehensive and well-organized proposal is crucial to winning contracts. While the specific structure and headings of a proposal may vary depending on the contract requirements and the organization’s preferences, here are some key headings that are typically included:

Problem Statement or Scope of Work: This section serves as a fundamental guide within the proposal. It defines the issue or outlines the scope of work to be undertaken, along with specifying the project’s objectives and expected deliverables. This section lays the groundwork for the reader, providing a clear understanding of the challenges to be addressed and the desired outcomes.

Past Performance and Experience:  This serves as a testament to your track record. It showcases relevant previous projects and experience, offering tangible evidence of your capabilities. Additionally, this section often includes references and testimonials, further reinforcing the confidence in your ability to successfully execute the current project.

Risk Assessment and Mitigation: This focuses on proactive problem-solving. It identifies potential risks that may affect the project and outlines your strategies for mitigating these risks. This section demonstrates your commitment to anticipating and addressing challenges to ensure the project’s success.

Get SMEs on board sooner

VT Docs lets you shred a proposal in minutes and pinpoint which experts you’ll need to work with. Allowing you to get them involved (and excited about this new opportunity) sooner.

Readability feature improves your response

With VT Docs you can smooth out different tones of voice and writing styles into clear, readable prose. This improves the professionalism of your response and makes it easier for the issuing authority to read.

Objective readability tools improve teamwork

VT Writer is an expert resource that gives practical tips on how to simplify and improve the readability of any piece of prose. This means it can minimize pushback from SMEs and other review teams as you build your proposal. The feedback isn’t subjective, it’s from an impartial source. The end result is better teamwork and fewer obstacles to meeting those RFP response deadlines.

Help SMEs improve their proposal writing

Because the readability tips from VT Writer help your SMEs improve their writing over time, they can become better communicators. This will help them in all areas of their career. Including articles they author for trade publications or social media.

The Power of VisibleThread Solutions

We’re continuing to develop our solutions to make it easier for all your team members to improve the power of their communications. Our new Discovery feature will identify the strongest themes within a document and compare themes across multiple documents. This will help improve the compliance of your response. It will also highlight gaps in your proposal writing so you know where to concentrate.

Our shredding tools are also evolving so that they preserve table structures when generating compliance and responsibility matrices. This is an important feature for technical aspects of an RFP, which your SMEs will need to review and respond to.

A successful working relationship with all parts of your proposal team, SMEs included, will allow you to improve the quality of your response and your chances of winning lucrative new business.

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Before you can win a proposal, you need to ensure you write a consistent and compelling response. One that entices the reviewer to choose yours from the pile of responses they are manually reviewing. We know streamlining your subject matter experts' input to a proposal can be challenging. VT Docs ensures a compliant and consistent response, one that helps you to stand out from the competition.

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SCI 这些投稿状态都是什么意思？审稿人这些“暗语”如何应对？

SCI 期刊投稿各种状态详解及实例综合（学习各种投稿状态+投稿经历总结）

Submitted to Journal 刚提交的状态——新手请看这里！！！

一般的步骤是这样的：网上投稿-Submit a manuscript：先到每个杂志的首页，打开 submit paper 一栏， 先以通讯作者的身份 register 一个账号 ，然后以 author login 身份登录 ，按照提示依次完成：Select Article Type、Enter Title、Add/Edit/Remove Authors、Submit Abstract、Enter Keywords、Select Classifications、Enter Comments、Request Editor、Attach Files，最后下载 pdf， 查看无误后，即可到投稿主页 approve submission 或直接 submit it。

总结提示语：对于投稿之前和提交确认投稿过程，这里还需要对投稿新手强调以下几点。 因为这些小问题被编辑评个低印象分不划算，被打回也浪费了时间和精力。 一条条说来：

1)大多数系统是要求 word 投稿正文内容的，pdf 多不为接受格式。但也有很少数要求用 pdf 格式的， 务必注意细看稿约 。

2) 文献格式是否按拟投杂志标准要求核准 ？有的投稿系统是可以直接检查的。

3) 引用文献条数是否符合该杂志要求 ？有的杂志不特别要求，有的还是非常重视的。如我之前投 shock 杂志，编辑和一位审稿人都提到参考文献不要超过35条。如果你文章写完后，能够适当精简文献条数，那么，请删减几条吧。

4) 很多系统要求勾选同意一些如伦理道德的声明文件。

5) 提交后可能会有一个小栏目提示对提交图片的质量做了初步审查（不合格的最好重新作图 再上传） 。

6) 绝大多数投稿完成后需要 view submission 和最后确认（approve submission）。 view submission 就是要求你再整体看看投稿填写的这些资料信息+cover letter+正文+图片表格， 所生成的 pdf 全文是否满意、合格，也是你投稿完成前最后一次检查的机会了。

pS：有的新手可能不注意这点，提交后就不管了，还开开心心以为自己投稿成功，殊不知结果邮箱里一直没有收到投稿后的邮件回执和稿号，直到最后纳闷几天了才回去看系统状态。

Manuscript received by Editorial Office

文章到了编辑手里了，证明投稿成功！

With editor

若投稿时未要求选择编辑，则先到主编处，主编会分派给副主编或者其他编辑。这当中就会有另两个状态：

I) Awaiting Editor Assignment 指派责任编辑。

II) Editor assigned 是把你的文章分给一个编辑处理了。

III) Editor Declined Invitation 如果编辑接手处理了就会邀请审稿人了。

总结提示语：一般情况下，投稿（submit）状态后一个星期内会出现编辑处理稿件（with editor） 这个状态。 很多老外编辑恨不能理解中国人喜欢催稿 ，绝大多数情况下，他们不会像国内某些期刊一样能拖上一年半载再给屁大点休会意见。要适当给编辑一点时间处理，他们也很忙的。 不要轻易催稿 ，也有人因为催稿而立马收到杯具消息——不知是编辑不耐烦了，还是一种巧合。当然，如果 submit 四个星期后网上投稿系统还没出现 with editor 状态信息，就要 询问主编了，要注意委婉用语。不过要注意，也有期刊没有 with editor 状态。

Decision Letter Being Prepared 或 Reviewers invited

Ⅰ) Decision Letter Being Prepared 就是编辑没找审稿人就自己决定了，一般而言此时很危险。一可能是英文太差，需要语言润色。二可能是内容太差。除非大牛们直接被接收。

Ⅱ) Reviewer invited 找到审稿人了，就开始审稿。

Under review

此过程的等待较为漫长。当然之前各步骤也可能很慢，要看编辑的处理情况。

这个过程也不要轻易催稿，一般都是已邀请审稿人和已送审等过程中。 如果被邀请审稿人不想审，就会decline，编辑会重新邀请别的审稿人。

Required Reviews Completed

表示审稿意见已经返回给编辑。

总结提示语：这个状态大多情况下不会持续太久，几小时到几天为多，基本上根据最初投稿后分配的稿件编号数量可以预测到这个过程的处理时间。稍安勿躁，安心等待吧。

Evaluating Recommendation

评估审稿人的意见，随后你将收到编辑给你的 decision。

Decision in process

等待稿件处理意见。总结提示语：这时候应该全部审稿人意见回来了，编辑开始斟酌意见、处理稿件。有的稿子评价都很好，一般都很快就决定 accept 或者小修；有的稿件审稿评价均很差，则无一例外会 reject；值得重视的是： 相当一部分情况是等待时间一周以上的，多是由于审稿人意见不统一，有好有坏，这时候编辑可能会自己决定此文章的命运 ，可能充分尊重审稿人意见而拒稿（这种情 况处理也很快的），可能编委会讨论决定是再修（major revision 可能性较大，否则就直接 Reject），也可能会找一位审稿人。这时要根据不同的状态而出现等待时间不一了。

Minor revision/Major revision

小修或大修。至此问题一般不会太大，充分尊重审稿人和编辑的意见。

总结提示语：能有条件就尽量补实验，是在不行就认真考虑理由申辩，但谦虚谨慎的语气必 不可少。毕竟大修的也存在一定的拒稿率，而小修的绝大多数是能够最后搞定的。

Revision Submitted to Journal

Accepted 接受

总结提示语：这里就不必多说了。对于我们广大的硕士博士研究生而言，绝大多数人是有着 杯具经历的，那种心情大多体会过，一定要振奋精神。希望大家整理好心情，重新上路。

其他相对少见的、细分的状态

• editor assigment pending
• Editor Invited
• Removed by Editor
• Editor Declined Invitation
• Awaiting Editor Recommendation
• with editorial office 编委会讨论决定
• Transfer copyright form 签版权协议
• uncorrected proof 等待校对样稿
• In Press, Corrected Proof 文章在印刷中，清样已校对
• Manuscript Sent to Production 排版
• in production 出版中

記事 ScholarOne Manuscripts: 管理者ダッシュボード（査読プロセスのステータス）

Scholarone manuscripts: 管理者ダッシュボード（査読プロセスのステータス）, 6月 27, 2018 • knowledge.

Admin Dashboard （管理者ダッシュボード）に表示される査読プロセス中の論文ステータスは以下の通りです。

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Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) an Assignment on Course: MGT-308

A detailed discussion on SMEs the over-all concept of SMEs in Bangladesh, its classifications, features, policies and, support taken by the Govt. of Bangladesh, the difference between SMEs and large scale business, its importance in socio-economic development, its role, significance in specific sectors Etc. Hope the assignment helps to study all about the SMEs in a brief by the grace of Almighty Allah.

Related Papers

Mahmudr Rahman

e-ISSN: 2278-487X, p-ISSN: 2319-7668. Volume 16, Issue 1. Ver. V (Feb. 2014), PP 81-87

Jahangir Alam

The paper strives to analyze the management practices to realize the necessity of management development for women entrepreneurs in SME sector. This study shows the necessity of management development for enhancing competitive efficiency and effectiveness of women entrepreneurs in the SME sector of the developing economy of Bangladesh. Integrated Management Process, Risk Management and Credit Control, Productivity Management, Quality Management, Sales Management, Human Resource Management, Business Process Improvement, Health and Safety Measures and Social Responsibility are considered as the parameters to comprehend practice pattern of management development tools. Qualitative discussion along with quantitative analysis detects the necessity as well as the significance of management development for women entrepreneurs in the SME sector in Bangladesh. Keywords: Management Development, Small & Medium Enterprise (SME), Women Entrepreneurship, Performance, Effectiveness and Efficiency.

Jennifer Qi

European Journal of Business and Management

Dr Mamoon Bashir, Ph.D., MSc. FHEA

Dauda Suleman

This paper discusses the characteristics, contributions of SMEs to economic development, and the constraints to SME development in developing countries with particular reference to Ghana and South Africa. SMEs in Ghana have been noted to provide about 85% of manufacturing employment of Ghana. They are also believed to contribute about 70% to Ghana's GDP and account for about 92% of businesses in Ghana. In the Republic of South Africa, it is estimated that 91% of the formal business entities are SMEs. They also contribute between 52 to 57% to GDP and provide about 61% to employment. Notwithstanding the recognition of the important roles SMEs play in these countries, their development is largely constrained by a number of factors, such as lack of access to appropriate technology; limited access to international markets, the existence of laws, regulations and rules that impede the development of the sector; weak institutional capacity, lack of management skills and training, and most importantly finance. The paper provides some relevant recommendations to policy makers, development agencies, entrepreneurs, and SME managers to ascertain the appropriate strategy to improve the SME sector in these countries.

hanson obiri-yeboah

SSRN Electronic Journal

Fethi Rabhi

Michael Troilo

Dr Ramakrishnan Ramachandran

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