Instruction
Does your subject include both you and your chosen field in a meaningful way?
Have you thoroughly evaluated, per class discussion, the aspect in your field you are exploring? Does it reflect professional perspectives in your discipline?
Have you thoroughly evaluated your specific, personal interest in the above aspect of your field?
Awareness of Reader/Appeals
Does the introduction grab the reader's attention and preview the essay's body?
Do you use a consistent tone, appropriate to your subject?
Is your prose concise, concrete and specific?
Are concepts in your profession/discipline made clear for the reader?
Do you appeal to emotions? Do you use scenes and images?
Do you establish your personal AND PROFESSIONAL credibility (remember: authority, trustworthiness, & relatability)?
Have you cut out clichés?
Does your conclusion answer “so what?” by recontextualizing your body material?
Research
Have you included at least three good (unbiased, current) relevant sources?
Do they directly support and/or illustrate the professional side of your essay?
Are your sources MLA formatted?
Focus
Is your essay about one thing (ie, your interest in your field)?
Does your essay stick to its central subject? Does it wander? Remember: you cannot convey to the reader your entire life story, and you don’t want to do that, anyway
Development
Do you develop your personal/professional themes through illustration—ie, scenes and images?
Is your essay clear about what it is trying to do (ie, its performatives)?
Does your essay answer the questions it brings up, in the intro and in the body?
Organization
Is there a clear plan of organization (either narrative or thematic)?
Are the paragraphs paragraphs?
Revision
Have you honestly undertaken to strengthen your essay (rather than just fix a couple sentences) through rewriting/revision?
Basic Specs
Is the essay approximately 1,200 words?
Is it double-spaced?
Have you included copies of all earlier drafts?
Is the final draft clearly marked as such?
Usage
Are your sentences standard (including punctuation)?
Is your spelling OK?