Peer-critique questions for Profile Essay

1. Does the Introduction grab your attention? If yes, explain why. If not, explain why not and tell them what would grab your attention better.

2. Does the essay tell a story about the interviewee? Explain.

3. How much summary is there? How many quotes are there? Does the writer let the interviewee talk or is there too much of the student’s voice in the paper? Does the student avoid the question and answer transcript? Is the writing shaped into an essay or does it simply dump information on you, the reader?

4. Look at and comment on EACH body paragraph separately. Does the topic sentence of each paragraph stick to one point the writer is trying to make?

5. Look at the conclusion of the essay. Does it wrap up the essay? Explain. Does it tie back to the thesis/introduction? Explain. Does it seem long enough or does it end abruptly? Explain what you mean here.

6. Make any final comments or suggestions about content here.

(Avoid comments on grammar, spelling/mechanics, punctuation or usage. You could refer them to the handbook but don’t become a proofreader here.)