The singular skill that our postgraduate students most lack is writing. In spite of all the ideas, arguments, readings, writing lets them down. Not surprising as it is also the skill in which they are least trained; as if one intuitively knows how to master academic writing 1.

I don't believe this is about being a native English speaker or not (though it helps if you are), but about devoting robust time and space, infrastructure and resources, in the teaching project, to learn, practice and master writing, in and of itself.

This not something I was trained in either. It is something I have learnt, through exercise and practice, drafting and crafting, editing and re-editing, and reading, above all else. My writing is always work in progress, never a complete project, never not a struggle...

How we write is how we communicate to specific audiences, how we orient readers' expectations, how we set up arguments, how we interact with debates in our field, how we present 'data', even make it say things it was hardly saying - its a craft, a skill...

We cannot presume students intuitively know this, just as no academic does. It must be taught, and especially in contexts where students do not write at school or even UG, and are first gen learners. Students: prioritise mastery over writing than over content. That is learning.

(my writing on Twitter is so shit, full of typos and grammatical errors ... but look, I'm still writing ;))

One or maybe two further thoughts: PG students in the humanities learn quickly the power of jargon (prob the only thing we teach them!), how to use 'affect' and 'intersectionality' as a way to be most audible to us; to be imprecise and obscure, as eloquence...

PHD students in particular do this, and are not pushed by supervisors to do otherwise (why 'affect'? I often write in feedback). This is similar to colleagues who treat writing merely as form of communication, and by failing to teach students to write, set them up to fail.

Academics: work with editors and proofreaders, if you can. I have learnt A LOT working with different editors, from those who work for media to friends and colleagues who are not academics, and who have all have forced me to take seriously each and every word I use.

(don't be defensive if your work returns with lang/writing edits. i've had that and the feeling of wanting to die, but if i trust the person at the other end, i have appreciated and benefited from their close reading and care with my words)