Some Suggested Steps to a Successful Research Paper

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Author: Katharine Hansen

1. Choose Your Topic

• Choose your topic wisely - not too broad or too narrow, avoid controversial or overworked topics.

• Take time to narrow your topic - Do some reading on the broad subject area before narrowing - this may seem like extra work, but it will be MUCH easier to write your paper when you have intelligently narrowed your topic! Use encyclopedias, journal articles, books, web pages.

• Does some preliminary research - What kinds of information are available? Choose a topic you can easily research.

• Write a thesis statement to define the main idea of your paper. What will you describe or prove? Your thesis statement is your compass; it will keep your paper going in the right direction 2. Research your topic

• Make a list of keywords to use. (Write them down!) List synonyms - you never know what will bring up a 'hit' in a database.

• Use the Catalog to find books in the TSU collection. Try a variety of keywords, and keywords that are broader than your topic

• Use World cat to find books in other libraries. You can borrow them through inter-library loan. Allow a week or two for delivery

• Use appropriate databases to find articles.

• Use print indexes if your topic is older or historic (e.g. the Vietnam War). Try the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature - Ask for assistance - a librarian will be glad to help.

• Use the Internet wisely. Evaluate your sources, check government sites, make precise searches 3. Write the paper

• Find a way to organize your materials - chronologically, or by point or subtopic

• Don't forget that tool from English class - an OUTLINE. It will make writing easier, since you know where you are going.

• Don't expect the first draft to be a finished product. Write it up quickly and REWRITE! It's easier in the long run.

• Consider writing your bibliography FIRST - you will be less likely to overlook material and more likely to see 'the forest ' instead of 'the trees'.

4. Details Matter

• Use correct spelling and grammar - PROOFREAD.

• Use correct citation format - be consistent

• Follow the instructor's specified format. Double-spaced? Name on each page? Footnotes or endnotes? Check your assignment or syllabus to make sure you understand the requirements.

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