Help me out. Please?

Question

This is my freshmen year at collage. I need help on how to write a term paper. Can anyone help me out?

Answer 1

Generally, the requirements for a term paper are expressed by your specific professor. If I were you, I'd check my syllabus to see if it said what the professor expects to see, as far as term paper guidelines.

My professors generally expect an MLA style paper. In the case of an upper-classman's research class, however, they might call for an APA formatted paper, though it is not as commonly used as the MLA format. Since you are a freshman, I recommend the MLA style.

I'll include links to a page that tells you about both styles, further. Good luck!

Answer 2

First, make sure you have all of the information given by the instructor about what your term paper should include. Most will give you a topic and a page length, at the very least. Some give far more information about how they want the paper to be written and what should be included. Don't assume that all faculty members want papers written in the same way.

Secondly, the subject matter of the course makes a difference. I would expect an English paper to look rather different from a math paper, or even a business paper.

Thirdly, you need to do research on the subject, to get sources you will cite (refer to). Make sure that you know where you got your information, and write down the author, title of the article and journal or book, along with the page number, publisher, and date of publication for any information you find so that you can do a bibliography and footnotes or endnotes.

Organize your paper. Write an outline for what you want to say. You need a thesis statement at the beginning of the paper, and a number of thoughts which will prove your thesis, each of which can be a separate section and can be fleshed out. Then you need to draw conclusions at the end.

Write it. If you are not comfortable with your writing (and it sounds like you aren't), have someone else look it over and make suggestions on it, then rewrite. Know that it may take a few tries before you get it right; don't expect that your first version will be what you turn in.

As far as format goes, there are a number of books which will give you information on such things as how to include quotations, how to cite your information, etc., and different schools and/or teachers may require different ones. If your school doesn't have a specific requirement, you will impress your teacher if you even ask! If s/he doesn't have a preference, go to the bookstore and ask for a book on formatting for term papers, then make sure your paper fits that format.

To me, a term paper which follows the rules, is decently written, and answers the specific questions I asked in a standard way earns a B or a C. If you really want to get an A, know that you will have to come up with a creative way of thinking about or presenting the information. I want to feel that the student has really thought about the issue in question and has discovered something which, while it may not be entirely new, is at least new to him/her.

Good luck! Know that it will be much easier the second time you are assigned a paper.

Answer 3

look at www.cliffnotes.com and on college prep/SAT website.

general tips:
1)always check spelling
2) make sure you have answered the question and not strayed from the topic
3) always cite sources
4) write it in stages- rough draft with main points, and subsequent drafts with more detailed analysis developing the argument
5) The paper should always convey what YOU think and what YOU learnt and should not read like a compilation of other person's writings.

Good luck :)

Answer 4

Buy Strunk and White's "The elements of style"

It's the best writing guide out there.

Answer 5

Here is a step-by-step guide. Don't sweat the entire process, just look at it in little bites & it will be less intimidating.

http://www.gale.com/free_resources/term_paper/index.htm

Answer 6

Make sure you have thesis. Make sure paragraphs are least five six sentences long and make sure it is interesting