What is the Difference Between Essays and Reports?
Published by at August 19th, 2021 , Revised On August 23, 2023
What is the difference between essays and reports? Report writing is a specialised skill that your academic tutor would like you to develop.
Whether you are writing a report in university or business, report writing skills are equally important to get your message across to the readers effectively.
Generally, your academic tutor decides what form of writing you must undertake and will provide the layout requirements in the assignment brief.
However, as you move towards university-level study, you will have the freedom of choice to decide what form of writing you must undertake to address the problem question.
This means that you will need a critical evaluation of what form of writing will be the most appropriate for you, considering a given academic assignment’s requirements.
Whether you are a student or a professional, it is important to understand the key differences between an essay and a report to work out why you should prefer one form of writing over the other.
This article lists the most notable differences between a report and an essay, so whenever you are unsure about which form of writing is the most suitable, you will know exactly what decision is right or wrong.
Difference Between Essays and Reports – Purpose
Purpose of a Report
Typically you will be asked to write a report if you must present an analysis of practical research results. All reports start with the topic background, research aim, and objectives to provide details of what your work will examine.
You may also include a hypothesis in your report if you are testing a proposition with your research. Depending on your topic’s nature and the report writing guidelines laid out by your tutor, you may also have to include a separate section for future recommendations in your report.
Purpose of an Essay
On the other hand, Essays find answers to a question using the researcher’s own critical evaluation of the existing theories. An essay does not directly include any practical research because it only uses the existing literature material.
Difference Between Essays and Reports – Content
The report starts with introducing the topic and lists the aim and objectives your practical research will address.
It quickly moves to report chronological actions such as gathering data and presenting findings from primary research activities and laboratory experiments before the writer finally provides an assessment of the results in the conclusion and recommendations for future sections.
The content of an essay depends on the essay question you need to answer. Whether your essay must be evaluative, argumentative, narrative, discursive, or descriptive will be determined by the nature of your essay question.
However, in general, all essays involve a synthesis of knowledge obtained from existing literature on the given question and the writer’s personal arguments and opinions based on the evidence collected during research.
Whether you have been asked to write an essay or a report, ResearchProspect writers can help you achieve the highest academic grade. We have a large team of academic writers who can meet every bit of your requirements regardless of your academic level and the academic subject.
Difference Between Essays and Reports – Formatting
A report and an essay format are similar as both include an introduction, main body, and conclusion sections. Reports include methodology and analysis in the main body and have a fixed structure.
It is recommended to check your school’s formatting guidelines if you are unsure how to format your report. Further, you can get our professional report writing service that will help you achieve your desired grades.
If you are writing an essay, the essay question’s critical evaluation will determine the structure you must follow in your essay.
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Difference Between Essays and Reports in a Table
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| Reports are written with a specific purpose and audience in mind. | Essays are written to demonstrate that the author fully understands the research question and can answer it with research. |
| All reports start with a purpose but also include details of events/results of research. As a researcher, you will be expected to describe the findings and events and critically analyze them to propose future work recommendations. | You will be required to base your essay on arguments, counter-arguments, opinions, and evidence. |
| Reports may also have separate conclusions and recommendations chapters. | An essay will usually end with a conclusion section, but it may also have an additional recommendations section in some cases. |
Despite describing these differences, it may not be easy to distinguish between an essay and a report. For example, in some academic disciplines, essays are structured like reports, with headings separating the different parts of an essay. The best practice regarding the style and format suitable to your academic discipline would be to consult your academic tutor.
Whether you have been asked to write an essay or a report, ResearchProspect writers can help you achieve the highest academic grade. We have a large team of academic writers who can meet every bit of your requirements regardless of your academic level and the academic subject.
Frequently Asked Questions
An essay is a concise piece of writing that presents an argument, opinion, or analysis with a clear introduction, body, and conclusion. A report is a structured document that conveys information, often including data, findings, and recommendations, typically with headings, sections, and sometimes visual aids.
