Understanding a Research Assignment
Instructors in different disciplines will have different reasons
for requiring you to write a research paper, and different expectations. Literature
instructors might expect you to make judgments about the structure of a story
or poem; science instructors might want you to gather evidence about the state
of current research on medical or scientific topics.
Scholarly writing in each discipline follows certain conventions
or formats that are required for citing your sources and arranging your information.
The society of language and literature scholars, the Modern Language Association,
uses a set of guidelines known as MLA style. The American Psychological Association
uses APA style. Some groups of scholars use a footnote system, while others use
a numbering system. Your instructor should provide you with information about
the particular style you should use in your research paper.
CHECKLIST: Reviewing Your Research Assignment
- Review your assignment from your instructor.
- Has a topic been assigned? If so, continue on to Establishing a Schedule. If not, go to the section on how to Find a Topic.
- What documentation format will you be using? MLA, APA, CMS or CBE?
Establishing a Schedule
The fundamental steps for producing a research paper are as
follows; for each step, you should decide on a deadline date. This will help ensure
that your final manuscript will be ready to be turned in by the final due date.
There is specific information on each step located in this Web site, as indicated.
| Date |
Task |
| 1. |
Topic approved by instructor.
See Finding a Topic, for information
on choosing and refining a topic. |
| 2. |
Reading sources and creating a working bibliography.
See Understanding and Finding "Source"
Material, Preparing an Annotated
Bibliography. |
| 3. |
Creating notes.
See Creating Effective Notes. |
| 4. |
Drafting the paper.
See Research Paper Paradigms, Drafting
the Paper in an Academic Style and Writing
the Introduction, Body, and Conclusion. |
| 5. |
Formatting the paper.
See Revising, Proofreading, and Formatting
the Rough Draft; see also the End
Notes & Bibliography tab for guidelines on using different citation
formats in different disciplines. |
| 6. |
Writing a list of sources.
See the End Notes & Bibliography
tab for guidelines on the citation formats used for different disciplines.
|
| 7. |
Revision and proofreading.
See Revising, Proofreading, and Formatting
the Rough Draft. |
| 8. |
Submitting the manuscript.
Plan well in advance to meet this final deadline. Your instructor will indicate
how he or she would like to receive the final manuscript — on paper,
on disk, or via e-mail. |
| 
