At some time during your education, it is likely that you will be asked to write a research paper. This is a report that is focused on a topic and which contains supporting evidence based on facts and other relevant information. It is often considered to be a difficult and somewhat tedious type of paper to write. But if you know the correct way to approach such an assignment then it really does not have to be difficult. These steps will guide you through the process of writing a good research paper with the minimum amount of fuss.
Step 1: Choosing Your Topic
The most difficult part about any research paper is always coming up with a topic to focus on. This may be a little easier if you have been assigned a particular theme, but if not, then you will need to start thinking of what you will write about. This could be the chance to write about an issue you feel strongly about, or you could do some research into what sort of things currently hot topics are. Once you have your overall theme, you can then begin to look for specific questions relating to your topic as this is where you will find your thesis statement.
Step 2: Gathering Your Sources
The foundation of a really great research paper is having plenty of supporting evidence and factual information to draw upon. You will build this basis by gathering as many credible sources as possible. The most obvious place to start looking is in the library where you should be able to find many books on your chosen subject.
You should also look to periodicals including magazines, newspapers, journals and scholar’s papers. These are the most credible sources of information. Depending on the topic that you are working with, you may also wish to approach experts in the field and conduct your own research by interviewing them.
Of course, we live in a digital age, so we cannot ignore online research. However, you must exercise caution when choosing your online sources. It is wise to avoid personal sites, blogs and wikis as these are either based on opinion rather than fact or are offering third, or even fourth hand information which may not be as accurate as they lead you to believe. If you do choose to use online sources, then you need to seek out credible websites from professional associations, educational establishments and credible newspapers.
Step 3: Start Making Notes
Once you have accumulated your source material, you will need to start scanning through everything in order to select the information that will be relevant to your paper. You will be able to eliminate many of the sources immediately, but where you do come across something useful you will need to start making notes about points that you might like to include or discuss.
The method that you choose for taking notes is entirely down to your own personal choice. There are countless methods and you have likely found one that suits you already, so stick with it. You just need to make sure that your notes are well organized and that you keep track of which sources they relate to. Citing your sources will be very important when it comes to actually writing your research paper.
Step 4: Writing Your Research Paper Outline
Prior to actually starting to write the first draft of your research paper, you need to develop an outline which details how you will bring together all of the information collected in the previous steps. This is essentially like an essay plan that you would create for other types of essays, but with much more detail. When creating your outline you should insert your points along with corresponding notes and arguments. This helps you to build a clearer image of the finished report in your mind and will help flag up any areas that need more research.
Step 5: Writing Your First Draft
Now that you have all of the hard work out of the way, you can start to write your first draft. If you have collected sufficient source material and created a strong outline, then you should find it much easier to pull it all together into one coherent report. Start by clearly stating your thesis statement and as you work through your outline, be sure to refer back to that and support your points with properly cited sources.
Step 6: Editing Your Research Paper
Your first draft is probably going to be messy and won’t flow smoothly from one point to the next, but that’s okay! That is why we redraft and edit to improve the rough material. You may find that your chosen order does not really work. So you will want to rearrange some paragraphs or perhaps add or remove some of them. It is always best to step back from your work for a day or two before editing – this helps you to come at it with fresh eyes.
Step 7: Proofreading
How to write a good research paper for sure? Don’t forget about the final step – to proofread your work. You need to make sure that you have not made any spelling or grammar blunders as this can lose you marks. You also should check whether it is properly formatted and you have cited all your sources. It is also a good idea to control that every single source cited is also listed in the bibliography at the end of the paper.
Writing a research paper need not be as tedious as you fear it will be! All it takes is planning and research. If you follow these steps, you will find it much easier to make your way through the entire process with little to no stress.