If you have any questions about your term paper, ask ahead of time. Instructors are usually happy to answer questions provided you’ve read the assignment or prompt first and give them enough time to answer. Do not wait until a day before the paper is due to email your instructor a question about the paper. S/he is likely very busy at that point and will probably not have time to respond. This delay also suggests to your instructor that you have not planned ahead or given the assignment the proper attention.
You’ll also want to identify your purpose for the paper. Sometimes, this is given to you, such as “Write an analytical paper about ___” or “Discuss the history of ___”. If it isn’t, you may have some freedom to determine your own purpose. Is it to persuade, inform, argue, or analyze? It’s a good idea to check in with your instructor to make sure that your goal aligns with the assignment. [2] X Research source
If you have a library, consult with your librarian. Librarians are excellent resources who can guide you to credible and relevant research sources. Make sure your sources are reliable. It’s a good idea to look in published books, peer-reviewed journals, and government or university websites. Credible, mainstream journalism sources, like The New York Times or The Guardian, are also helpful, though make sure you do not rely on editorial or “opinion” pieces as sources of fact. Keep track of your sources. EndNote and RefWorks are very handy for keeping a record of sources you consult. You may have access to these through your school. You can also keep track by writing the bibliographic information (author’s name, title, publisher, place and date of publication) on an index card or in a word processing document. Make sure you record the page numbers and sources for any quotations you copy out.
Try freewriting. Write for 5-10 minutes about whatever comes to mind about your topic. Don’t stop or edit yourself. Once you’ve written, review your material and highlight or underline things that seem useful starting points. You can repeat this exercise multiple times to generate ideas. [5] X Research source Try clustering. Clustering is a type of mind-mapping that can help you see connections between ideas. Start by writing your topic on the center of a piece of paper and draw a box around it. Then, draw a few lines extending from the box. At the end of each of these lines, write down an idea that corresponds to this topic and circle each. Continue drawing lines outward and connecting ideas until you feel like you’ve thoroughly explored the connections between facets of your topic. [6] X Research source Try questioning. The big questions, “Who? What? When? Where? Why? How?”, can help you determine what information you need in your paper. Write each question on a separate sheet of paper and respond to the question in as much detail as you can. When you hit places where you do not have answers to the question, make a note to yourself – these are places where you’ll need to do some inquiry or research.
It is common in high school to write 3-prong thesis statements, which include three main points, each of which will have its own body paragraph. This type of thesis rarely works for term papers, as they are longer and more complex essays. Go with a statement that states the main focus or claim for your paper.
Work on your paper in stages, if you can. Give yourself at least a day between each stage to allow you to come to the paper with fresh eyes.
Don’t fully write the introduction yet. It’s generally best to wait to draft your introduction until you’ve written the essay. Your thesis and argument is likely to evolve as you write, so spending too much time on the introduction up front may be a waste of time. [10] X Research source Write a placeholder outline for now. Introductions usually begin with a broad statement and narrow in until you present your thesis statement. Provide a few bullet points about where you will start and include your thesis statement. [11] X Research source
Your topic sentences should set the direction for the paragraph. Make sure they act as a “road map” to let the reader know what the main topic will be. Avoid using facts or statements that don’t give an idea of what the rest of your paragraph will argue. A good topic sentence will be informative, directional, and interesting. For example, “Salt water is not suitable for drinking” is not a great topic sentence for a paragraph on water rights, because it does not communicate the main idea of the paragraph. “It is a human right to have clean water” is a better topic sentence, because it asserts your main argument for the paragraph.
I is your introduction. II is your first body paragraph, III is your second body paragraph, and so forth. Place each Roman numeral on a new line, followed by a topic sentence. Don’t be afraid to experiment with the paragraph order. You may find that as you develop your paragraphs further, they fit better in other sections of the paper.
Place the capital letter on a new line beneath the first level. Indent the second level about 0. 5” past the first level. Many word processing programs will do this automatically. List your subtopics beneath your topic sentence. Each subtopic should be related to the main goal or idea of the paragraph. Use your research and the material you generated during prewriting to help you fill in this level.
Use this level to provide evidence or further explanation for your subpoints.
You do not have to write a full conclusion while outlining. You may not have a clear idea of how you want to conclude until you’ve written more of the essay. Common ways to conclude an essay including returning to the theme you introduced in the introduction, extending the relevance of your argument to a broader context or concern, proposing a course of action or solution to a problem, or ending with a provocative question. [16] X Trustworthy Source University of North Carolina Writing Center UNC’s on-campus and online instructional service that provides assistance to students, faculty, and others during the writing process Go to source
Begin a decimal outline with “1. 0” and each subsequent section with the next number (“2. 0”, “3. 0”, etc. ). Change the number after the decimal point to reflect new information. For example, “2. 1” might be your first subpoint, and “2. 2” would be your second subpoint. You can continue adding subsections by adding another decimal point and number, such as “2. 1. 1” etc.
Try to limit your summary to a sentence. You can also use a key phrase or a few keywords. If you’re having trouble summarizing the main idea, it could be a sign that your paragraph is wandering. Consider splitting your paragraph into two paragraphs so that you can devote one to each idea.
You may need to consider moving paragraphs around. In some cases, you’ll even need to delete – yes, delete! – and rewrite sentences or even whole paragraphs.
Physically swap the paragraphs around. Do they make better sense in another order? In a strong term paper, each paragraph will build upon the previous one, so that there is only one ideal way to structure them for your argument. If you can swap the paragraphs around easily, you may need to hone your focus. Consider adding clearer transitions and topic sentences to help make stronger connections between your paragraphs.
After you’ve revised the term paper, double-check with the new outline to make sure that you have stuck with the structure you decided upon.
