Biography education
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Basic guidelines
- Purpose: understand the context and purpose for which you are preparing the bio. Research! At 11, he got his first guitar, a symbol of his journey into the world of sound. In that case, the theme of overcoming adversity is present and has been identified.
Usually, a biography has several themes running throughout, so be sure your students work to identify more than one theme in their subject’s life.
BIOGRAPHY WRITING Tip: #4 Put Something of Yourself into the Writing
While the defining feature of a biography is that it gives an account of a person’s life, students must understand that this is not all a biography does.
That’s where the independent scholar bio can come in handy: it still establishes you as an expert with experience but doesn’t include a formal affiliation. Even early in your research career, it's worth thinking about crafting your bio. Research!
While the chances are good that the student already knows quite a bit about the subject they’ve chosen.
It needn’t be more than a couple of paragraphs, but the writing should be strictly factual, focusing only on the objective details of what happened.
Once they have completed this, it’s time to rewrite the paragraph, but they should include some opinion and personal commentary this time.
The student here aims to inject some color and personality into their writing, to transform a detached, factual account into a warm, engaging story.
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To Conclude
By this stage, your students should have an excellent technical overview of a biography’s essential elements.
They should be able to choose their subject based on their interest and worth and consider the availability of information.
That’s why students must choose their subject well.
- Mention your professional position – it gives readers an introduction to what you do.
Why it’s good: If you are between roles or undertaking casual roles across multiple institutions, you may want to formulate your bio in a way that sidesteps naming a position and an institution.
Count tweets at @CountVonCount.
When to use it: The detailed biography is often used by more experienced academics who have published extensively and have notable public outreach activities or collaborations that they want to include or multiple affiliations with different institutions. Long live the King!
Elvis Presley: A Teen’s Take on the Rock ‘n’ Roll Icon”
Elvis Presley, born January 8, 1935, was a revolutionary force in the music world, earning his title as the “King of Rock ‘n’ Roll.” Exploring his life, even as a 16-year-old today, I’m captivated by the impact he made.
Hailing from Tupelo, Mississippi, Elvis grew up in humble beginnings, surrounded by the love of his parents and twin brother.
How to Write an Academic Biography
Most early-career academicians and PhD students spend a lot of time in research. A biographer needs to gain and maintain the trust of the reader.
Fortunately, themes shouldn’t need to be forced. Generally, around 150–400 words, long bios include the following critical elements in addition to the core points provided in the short bio –
- Recent or ongoing research projects
- Anecdotes and pivotal developments that marked a turning point in your career
- Significant publications and conference presentations
- Research grants, academic awards, and honours received
- An explanation of how your research is situated within the broader field of study and share your vision for contributing to the academic community or society at large
- Acknowledgement of mentors who have guided and inspired your academic pursuits.
It’s just a case of learning how to spot them.
One way to identify the themes in a life is to look for recurring events or situations in a person’s life. In this case, depending on where the bio will appear, including an email address or a website that isn’t likely to change can be a good way to make it nice and easy for people to contact you.
The academic-adjacent bio
Formula: Up to you!
- Proofread: Check and edit your bio carefully to avoid errors in grammar and spelling. Engage in extensive reading, explore various sources, watch documentaries, and glean all available information to provide a comprehensive account of the person’s life.
Creating an outline is essential to organize your thoughts and information.
Chances are 100% that they’ll still need to undertake considerable research to write their biography.
As with many types of writing, research is an essential part of the planning process that shouldn’t be overlooked.