How To-38: How to Write a Research Paper

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Writing a research paper can be a challenge. Not only do you have to come up with shockingly clever ideas, you also have to figure out what the so-called experts think, and learn to format your paper correctly. When you finish, you’ll be surprised at what you’ve learned. But, start early; it may take more time than you realize.

Steps

1. Decide on a topic. If it hasn’t been assigned to you, try to think of something original. Choosing something that actually interests you will make the process a lot less painful. Also, try to choose a topic on which you will be able to find outside information.
   
• Narrow the topic. Instead of writing about "Music," you could narrow that down to "Instruments," or even, "The History of the Clarinet," That will make the topic much easier to control!
  
2. Research. The whole object of a research paper is to research a topic. Utilize book and article databases at the library, reputable websites, encyclopedias and other reference books, peer-reviewed magazines, etc. Find as much as possible written about your topic and either bookmark it, or make a copy of it; you will need it later, and it's much easier to look through your copies, than to try to find that particular source again.
   
3. Read through your materials. Depending on how much information you actually have, you may not want to read everything. Try skimming through it to get the gists of each article, then go back and read the most useful parts in depth. Put a bookmark on all the important pages and write down any quotes you want to use in your paper. Highlight important passages and other useful, and usable, information.
   
4. Write your thesis statement. This is one of the most important parts of the essay-writing process. Your thesis statement is usually one sentence that states your main point, or subject. Make sure that it accurately represents what you are trying to say. Remember that you have to be able to prove, using your research, anything you say.
   
5. Write your paper. Every paragraph should work towards proving your thesis statement. Now is the time to use that information you spent so much time researching. Use quotations to reinforce your evidence and support your thesis. Always be sure to cite your sources.
   
6. Format and proofread your essay. Read your paper over for grammar, spelling, and syntax errors. Make sure you transition from thought to thought and paragraph to paragraph in a fluent fashion. You should never jump from one idea to another without some sort of transition. Check with your teacher to find out what format your paper should be in (double-spaced, 12 point, Times New Roman, for example) and what format your citations should be in (MLA, APA, Chicago, etc.). Consult a guide to learn the specifics of that format. Be sure that you have all required elements including a works cited page, bibliography, or footnotes. Before turning it in, check the paper over at least three times.

Tips

• Stick to the topic of your paper, chances are you get more points for creativity.
  
• Remember that your research paper should be based on a number of reliable materials which will support your argument.
  
• Reading your paper out loud or having a friend check it can help you find easy to miss mistakes.
  
• Also start at the end of your research paper and read the sentences in reverse order so that your eyes can catch mistakes. You may read it so many times that your eyes got to familiar with the words so reading it in reverse sentence order will help you catch mistakes.
  
• Proofread your research paper in order to get rid of punctual and grammar mistakes.
  
• Wikipedia can be a great source of information, but you have to be careful. Make sure that what you are reading makes sense; occasionally, as with any wiki, pages can be vandalized. Because of this, many teachers frown upon its use. Check with your professor before using wikipedia as a source.

Warnings

• Watch out for poor quality references. Most teachers frown upon quotes from thrown-together personal websites (complete with corny music and mouse trailers) used as scholarly references.
  
• Don't plagiarize work done by other people unless you have their permission or site where you got the information. You could be sued by the author or get a fine.

Related wikiHows

• How to Write a Comparative Essay
  
• How to Establish a Research Topic
  
• How to Do Your Homework
  
• How to Write a Letter
  
• How to Write an APA Style Bibliography
  
• How to Research Using Tafiti

Sources and Citations

• Use a citation machine to generate a well formatted bibliography. The following links provide free APA and MLA format citation machines:
  
• See Landmark's Citation Machine - Creates citations for almost any source.
  
• research paper writing - Gives information on research paper writing.
  
• StudentABC's Citation Machine - Automatically retrieves data from websites to cite websites.

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