Writing A Research Paper In University: Useful Tips To Follow

Writing a research paper for a university class is significantly different than writing papers at the high school level. In high school, teachers tend to walk students through the process step-by-step so students understand what they need to do. In college, the instructors expect that you can write your own research paper all by yourself. In a perfect world, every student would have paid attention to the paper writing process in high school, but since many students did not, they still need help in college. Here are some tips to help you complete your project:

Use a Writing Website for Help

Use an online writing lab. Most colleges and universities give their students access to writing labs. These include everything that students need to know from how to write an abstract to how to write the bibliography entries in common styles like APA and MLA. Instead of bothering your instructor with questions about nit-picky little details, you can turn to online writing labs for the answers. If you cannot find the answer on the online writing site, you can always turn to other websites from other colleges or professional organizations.

Buy a Style Guide

Another good idea for research paper writing is to purchase your own style guide. Even though online writing labs have plenty of information about styles, the actual guides will have everything that you need to know. These will include all of the formats for the sources you find during your research. They will also include the citations that you need to use when you include direct quotes and paraphrases in the paper itself. Since style guides are updated occasionally, your style guide should be valid for your entire time in college.

Write with Specific Language in a Professional Style

Write in a professional style. All papers you write at the college level need to be written for a professional audience. Your high school instructors might have enjoyed your unique voice in first-person papers; but in college, you need to write in the third-person and with appropriate terminology. You should never use contractions or abbreviations that you would use in a text message. Make sure that you always use words that are specific to your topic and if you need to, define them in context so your reader will understand what you are trying to prove.