Question

Students are told not to use personal pronouns like "you" in their academic writing. Why should writers avoid personal pronouns?

Answer 1

It's informal.

Explanation:

Formal writing should use third person only (no I, we, you, your, mine, me, etc.). Authors should not write as though they are talking to the reader. They may use "one" to refer to people. The personal pronouns he, she, it, and they may be used.

We typically talk and text/email (of course, there are exceptions) informally. Students should not write as though they are having a conversation with a close friend/family member.

Example:
One may wonder why... instead of
You may wonder why...