MBA Writing Diagnostic

4 Pages Posted: 9 Jun 2009

See all articles by James Rubin

James Rubin

University of Virginia – Darden Graduate School of Business Administration

Abstract

This note delineates proper writing mechanics—issues of style and organization—in a business-school context. Rather than touch up on the many forms of business writing, it focuses instead on how to write cogently, succinctly, and correctly in a business, and business school, setting.

Excerpt

UVA-BC-0216

Rev. Oct. 16, 2009

MBA Writing Diagnostic

The purpose of this note is to aid students and instructors in evaluating writing mechanics—issues of style and organization—in a business-school context. In this sense, it follows the relevant precepts for this audience set out in Strunk and White's The Elements of Style. This note does not touch upon the many forms of writing frequently used in business, though it does supplement Mary Munter's The Guide to Managerial Communication.

The issues raised here are the kind most commonly found in writing by people trained in analytical thinking. On the one hand, given the current emphasis of secondary and university education, it is possible that high-achieving students have done little essay writing and therefore little editing for clarity of the type that is common in courses that further the lessons of introductory composition. Training in basic logic seems a thing of the distant past, and exists, for our purposes, largely in the training programs of consulting firms.

On the other hand, a predisposition to analytical thinking tends to raise issues of “audience,” both on the level of style and organization. For a bright, analytical person, it is tricky to make ideas plain without sacrificing content. Sometimes it is a case of wordiness; more often it is leaving out supporting details or evidence that may be obvious to the writer, but not to the reader.

. . .

Keywords: writing introductory MBA executive memo report presentation skills

Suggested Citation

Rubin, James, MBA Writing Diagnostic. Darden Case No. UVA-BC-0216, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1416509 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1416509

James Rubin (Contact Author)

University of Virginia – Darden Graduate School of Business Administration ( email )

P.O. Box 6550
Charlottesville, VA 22906-6550
United States
434-924-4830 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://www.darden.virginia.edu/faculty/rubin.htm

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