Précis writing in a nutshell

Much ado is made about the difference between a précis and a summary. It is said that while both are brief, a précis—as the word itself suggests—is more precise or exact in matching the language and structure of the original passage (and so less brief), while the summary is more interpretive and freer. 

For CSS students however, these differences are minutiae that can be safely set aside. 

The nitty-gritty of summary writing is identical to that of the précis writing process.

1. Locate the central idea or the thesis. 

2. Distill each paragraph down to one point (maybe a single phrase or even a complex sentence).

3. Figure out how each paragraph point is related to the thesis. For each paragraph, ask: Is the paragraph about a cause or factor that motivates or explains the thesis? Is it an effect or outcome of the thesis claim? Is it an aspect, sign or manifestation of the central idea? And so forth. 

4. Connect these paragraph points into relation clusters: For example, all paragraph points that express a cause should be lumped together. 

5. Rewrite the original passage in your own words, with the help of (1) and (4).      

How long should your CSS essay be?

I think Sir Francis Bacon, the father of the English essay, would probably have failed the CSS Essay Exam, if he had left the exam room filling just three pages of the answer book with his signature pithy prose. Doubtless even one page of Baconian prose is a powder keg of wit, wisdom and wisecracks. But remember the CSS Essay is not intended to measure your intellectual erudition or literary brilliance.

It is aimed at assessing your ability to present your point of view on a topic coherently, comprehensively and compellingly. That entails some expectations about structure and detail. 

The essay must conform to a recognisable essay architecture and include sufficient and satisfactory resources in its support. 

True, both these conditions could be met in a one pager. However, there is a reason why you are allowed three hours to write the essay. 

Also, remember the CSS  Essay is part of a competition, and the length of the essay you produce will invariably get compared to the average length of a typical essay the examiner is evaluating. 

Many successful students recommend the 5000-word mark as the gold standard. 

I personally think this figure is on the higher side. Realistically speaking, if you are able to churn out even 4000 words of coherent and compelling prose in the CSS examination room, you have good reason to keep your chin up.              

The proof of the essay is in the evidence

Sometimes people ask a deceptively simple question about things. It goes something like this: What is the most important piece of X? What is the most vital organ of the human body? What is the most critical component in a motor car? What is the most important part of an essay?

All such questions have the same answer: It depends! Every piece is important in its own way. You need the engine to drive the car forward but without the nuts on the wheel you can't get the vehicle go very far. Likewise, the brain and the heart matter obviously more than most organs in particular ways, but you need teeth to grind the food and nose hair to filter the dusty air you breathe, and through a complicated chain of relations, the teeth and the nose hair enable the brain and the heart to receive the energy they need to function. 

The same is true for the essay. The thesis of the essay is at the heart of the essay. But unless you feed the essay with concrete and varied evidence, the essay will have no life. 

To repeat, the supporting evidence must at once be specific (e.g. quotations, examples, stories and facts) and diverse (e.g. not all quotes or just stories).