Category: Research paper writing guide

Jacob Malcovitch

What is a research paper thesis

Research paper writing guide

Whether your paper involves outside research or not, you need to have a thesis statement. Once you have an idea of what you want to say, and have some grasp of what others have said, you need to make your ideas more concrete by coming up with a thesis sentence(s). A thesis indicates the main argument of your academic paper. The point of any class paper is to persuade your reader that you have something to say that he or she should care about. A good thesis should be debatable, specific, and concise.
Think of yourself as a lawyer and think of defending a thesis as being like trying to convict a defendant, and think of the professor as the judge, not the jury.

Jacob Malcovitch

How to write a research paper

Research paper writing guide

First of all, make sure you understand your assignment. This seems pretty simple, right? But it’s important to take the time to carefully read over what you have been asked to do. Look for words such as discuss, analyze, evaluate and compare. Have you been asked to use specific types of information? How long should your paper be? What writing style are you expected to use?
It’s helpful to do a little background reading. Try your course textbook. Look for something that interests you. Consider different aspects of the topic. Then select a specific question or statement and use this as the focus for your paper.
Keep in mind that if your topic is too specific, you might have trouble finding enough information. On the other hand, if your topic is too broad, you might become overwhelmed by too much information! Try to find a good balance.

Jacob Malcovitch

How to start a research paper

Research paper writing guide

Starting a research paper is not an easy task! It will you some time as you will need to first choose a topic that interests you and your reader. Once the topic is chosen, you need to do a profound research on it, plan your research paper, make a rough draft, outline your introduction, thesis statement, the body of the argument, and your conclusion. It is often helpful to set up two poles, representing extreme positions, even if you want to ultimately undercut them, by mediating between them, or introducing a compromise. Situate your position within the general debate, and identify the main points you are going to use in order to argue for your position.

Jacob Malcovitch

How to write a conclusion for a research paper

Research paper writing guide

There can be many different conclusions to the same research paper (just as there can be many introductions), depending on who your readers are and where you want to direct them (follow-up you expect of them after they finish your paper). Therefore, restating your thesis and summarizing the main points of your body should not be all that your conclusion does. In fact, most weak conclusions are merely restatements of the thesis and summaries of the body without guiding the reader toward thinking about the implications of the thesis. Just as a conclusion should not be just a restatement of your thesis and summary of your body, it also should not be an entirely new topic, a door opened that you barely lead your reader through and leave them there lost. Just as in finding your topic and in forming your thesis, the safe and sane rule in writing a conclusion is: neither too little nor too much.

Jacob Malcovitch

What is a research paper

Research paper writing guide

“Research paper.” What image comes into mind as you hear those words: working with stacks of articles and books, hunting the “treasure” of others’ thoughts? Whatever image you create, it’s a sure bet that you’re envisioning sources of information–articles, books, people, artworks. Yet a research paper is more than the sum of your sources, more than a collection of different pieces of information about a topic, and more than a review of the literature in a field. A research paper analyzes a perspective or argues a point. Regardless of the type of research paper you are writing, your finished research paper should present your own thinking backed up by others’ ideas and information. A research paper involves surveying a field of knowledge in order to find the best possible information in that field. And that survey can be orderly and focused, if you know how to approach it. Don’t worry, we are here to help you with your research paper!

Jacob Malcovitch

How to write an abstract for a research paper

Research paper writing guide

Abstracts are a good way to sum up the key contents of a paper, from the research that it uses to the ideas that you want to share with the reader. Further, if you ever publish your paper, it will help readers to find and to understand what your whole paper covers so that it is easier for those readers to do quick, quality research. A good abstract is actually quick and simple, so it should not take much time to do, and it only has three basic pieces of content. An abstract summarizes, usually in one paragraph of 300 words or less, the major aspects of the entire paper in a prescribed sequence that includes: 1) the overall purpose of the study and the research problem(s) you investigated; 2) the basic design of the study; 3) major findings or trends found as a result of your analysis; and, 4) a brief summary of your interpretations and conclusions.

Jacob Malcovitch

What is research paper template

Research paper writing guide

Research papers that stand out are not just the ones which are original, thought-provoking and which contribute to the learning in your discipline, they are the ones which have been repeatedly and thoroughly prepared. What is the research paper template? Where can I find research paper template?
We have done a universal research paper template that can be used by all students to impress their instructors! This template provides authors with most of the formatting specifications required by the author for preparation of their research paper.

Jacob Malcovitch

How to write research paper introduction

Research paper writing guide

Although for short research papers the introduction is usually just one paragraph, longer argument or research papers may require a more substantial introduction. The first paragraph might consist of just the attention grabber and some narrative about the problem. Then you might have one or more paragraphs that provide background on the main topics of the paper and present the overall argument, concluding with your thesis statement.

Jacob Malcovitch

Research Paper Paragraph Structure

Research paper writing guide

Paragraphs can be of varying lengths, but they must present a coherent argument unified under a single topic. Paragraphs are hardly ever longer than one page, double-spaced and usually are much shorter. Lengthy paragraphs usually indicate a lack of structure. Identify the main ideas in the paragraph to see if they make more sense as separate topics in separate paragraphs. Shorter paragraphs usually indicate a lack of substance; you don’t have enough evidence or analysis to prove your point. Develop your idea or integrate the idea into another paragraph.