What No One Teaches You About Tenses in Academic Writing

If you’re still defaulting to past tense for everything, you’re leaking authority on every page

Are you using the correct tenses for your paper?

Last month, I was reviewing manuscripts for a top conference when something struck me.

I could predict which papers would get harsh reviews within the first few paragraphs and it wasn’t because of weak research, but because of how they were written. Papers with inconsistent tenses created cognitive friction (not the sexy kind) that made me work harder to understand the authors’ logic. It was a mess. I found myself constantly translating between things like “the study showed” and “research demonstrates” and “findings will indicate” in the same paragraph. Of course, I’m exaggerating, but you get my point.

One thing I’ve noticed after being an AC and papers chair for many years, is that when reviewers struggle to follow your writing, they become less charitable toward your ideas. They just get a little bit meaner. They start questioning your attention to detail. They wonder if the same carelessness that shows up in your verb tense use might extend to your methodology or analysis. It’s not fair, but it’s human nature. Clear, professional writing makes reviewers more receptive to your contributions, while confusing tense usage puts them in a…