How do I write a good Psychology essay?

It goes without saying that a thorough knowledge of the subject is important. In order to be able to score all the points for the outline portion of the essay you must be able to describe and explain theories and ideas clearly and concisely so that you allow yourself enough time to score highly on the discussion portion of the essay. Planning is crucial in writing a well structured, high-scoring essay. It might seem like spending 5 minutes of your time, in an exam that is tight for time already, is a waste, however, a good plan can lead to great results as you might be able to recall most information when you're not busy writing out your essay. Additionally when you've written down your ideas in concise bullet point already, your brain is ready to come up with new ideas mid-writing your essay. I would say that the most important part of writing a good psychology essay is the discussion portion. Of course, knowing your stuff about the research is important, but how you present it and evaluate it is even more important. There are many ways to do this, however I found that for me it is most useful to tackle it as if it was an actual discussion. That is, you might first make a point which puts the research in a certain light (e.g the research is valid because...), then once you develop on your point, you use a counterpoint; that is a point which puts the research in a different light (e.g even though the research is valid, it's validity is only internal...). This shows the examiner that you are able to discuss for and against a certain research, showing your critical thinking as well as your broad understanding of the topic and research.