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How to Improve Your Research Skills: 6 Research Tips

Written by MasterClass

Last updated: Aug 18, 2021 • 3 min read

Whether you’re writing a blog post or a short story, you’ll likely reach a point in your first draft where you don’t have enough information to go forward—and that’s where research comes in.

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Successful Scientific Writing and Publishing: A Step-by-Step Approach

John k. iskander.

1 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia

Sara Beth Wolicki

2 Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health, Washington, District of Columbia

Rebecca T. Leeb

Paul z. siegel.

Scientific writing and publication are essential to advancing knowledge and practice in public health, but prospective authors face substantial challenges. Authors can overcome barriers, such as lack of understanding about scientific writing and the publishing process, with training and resources. The objective of this article is to provide guidance and practical recommendations to help both inexperienced and experienced authors working in public health settings to more efficiently publish the results of their work in the peer-reviewed literature. We include an overview of basic scientific writing principles, a detailed description of the sections of an original research article, and practical recommendations for selecting a journal and responding to peer review comments. The overall approach and strategies presented are intended to contribute to individual career development while also increasing the external validity of published literature and promoting quality public health science.

Introduction

Publishing in the peer-reviewed literature is essential to advancing science and its translation to practice in public health ( 1 , 2 ). The public health workforce is diverse and practices in a variety of settings ( 3 ). For some public health professionals, writing and publishing the results of their work is a requirement. Others, such as program managers, policy makers, or health educators, may see publishing as being outside the scope of their responsibilities ( 4 ).

Disseminating new knowledge via writing and publishing is vital both to authors and to the field of public health ( 5 ). On an individual level, publishing is associated with professional development and career advancement ( 6 ). Publications share new research, results, and methods in a trusted format and advance scientific knowledge and practice ( 1 , 7 ). As more public health professionals are empowered to publish, the science and practice of public health will advance ( 1 ).

Unfortunately, prospective authors face barriers to publishing their work, including navigating the process of scientific writing and publishing, which can be time-consuming and cumbersome. Often, public health professionals lack both training opportunities and understanding of the process ( 8 ). To address these barriers and encourage public health professionals to publish their findings, the senior author (P.Z.S.) and others developed Successful Scientific Writing (SSW), a course about scientific writing and publishing. Over the past 30 years, this course has been taught to thousands of public health professionals, as well as hundreds of students at multiple graduate schools of public health. An unpublished longitudinal survey of course participants indicated that two-thirds agreed that SSW had helped them to publish a scientific manuscript or have a conference abstract accepted. The course content has been translated into this manuscript. The objective of this article is to provide prospective authors with the tools needed to write original research articles of high quality that have a good chance of being published.

Basic Recommendations for Scientific Writing

Prospective authors need to know and tailor their writing to the audience. When writing for scientific journals, 4 fundamental recommendations are: clearly stating the usefulness of the study, formulating a key message, limiting unnecessary words, and using strategic sentence structure.

To demonstrate usefulness, focus on how the study addresses a meaningful gap in current knowledge or understanding. What critical piece of information does the study provide that will help solve an important public health problem? For example, if a particular group of people is at higher risk for a specific condition, but the magnitude of that risk is unknown, a study to quantify the risk could be important for measuring the population’s burden of disease.

Scientific articles should have a clear and concise take-home message. Typically, this is expressed in 1 to 2 sentences that summarize the main point of the paper. This message can be used to focus the presentation of background information, results, and discussion of findings. As an early step in the drafting of an article, we recommend writing out the take-home message and sharing it with co-authors for their review and comment. Authors who know their key point are better able to keep their writing within the scope of the article and present information more succinctly. Once an initial draft of the manuscript is complete, the take-home message can be used to review the content and remove needless words, sentences, or paragraphs.

Concise writing improves the clarity of an article. Including additional words or clauses can divert from the main message and confuse the reader. Additionally, journal articles are typically limited by word count. The most important words and phrases to eliminate are those that do not add meaning, or are duplicative. Often, cutting adjectives or parenthetical statements results in a more concise paper that is also easier to read.

Sentence structure strongly influences the readability and comprehension of journal articles. Twenty to 25 words is a reasonable range for maximum sentence length. Limit the number of clauses per sentence, and place the most important or relevant clause at the end of the sentence ( 9 ). Consider the sentences:

• By using these tips and tricks, an author may write and publish an additional 2 articles a year.
• An author may write and publish an additional 2 articles a year by using these tips and tricks.

The focus of the first sentence is on the impact of using the tips and tricks, that is, 2 more articles published per year. In contrast, the second sentence focuses on the tips and tricks themselves.

Authors should use the active voice whenever possible. Consider the following example:

• Active voice: Authors who use the active voice write more clearly.
• Passive voice: Clarity of writing is promoted by the use of the active voice.

The active voice specifies who is doing the action described in the sentence. Using the active voice improves clarity and understanding, and generally uses fewer words. Scientific writing includes both active and passive voice, but authors should be intentional with their use of either one.

Sections of an Original Research Article

Original research articles make up most of the peer-reviewed literature ( 10 ), follow a standardized format, and are the focus of this article. The 4 main sections are the introduction, methods, results, and discussion, sometimes referred to by the initialism, IMRAD. These 4 sections are referred to as the body of an article. Two additional components of all peer-reviewed articles are the title and the abstract. Each section’s purpose and key components, along with specific recommendations for writing each section, are listed below.

Title. The purpose of a title is twofold: to provide an accurate and informative summary and to attract the target audience. Both prospective readers and database search engines use the title to screen articles for relevance ( 2 ). All titles should clearly state the topic being studied. The topic includes the who, what, when, and where of the study. Along with the topic, select 1 or 2 of the following items to include within the title: methods, results, conclusions, or named data set or study. The items chosen should emphasize what is new and useful about the study. Some sources recommend limiting the title to less than 150 characters ( 2 ). Articles with shorter titles are more frequently cited than articles with longer titles ( 11 ). Several title options are possible for the same study ( Figure ).

Two examples of title options for a single study.

Abstract . The abstract serves 2 key functions. Journals may screen articles for potential publication by using the abstract alone ( 12 ), and readers may use the abstract to decide whether to read further. Therefore, it is critical to produce an accurate and clear abstract that highlights the major purpose of the study, basic procedures, main findings, and principal conclusions ( 12 ). Most abstracts have a word limit and can be either structured following IMRAD, or unstructured. The abstract needs to stand alone from the article and tell the most important parts of the scientific story up front.

Introduction . The purpose of the introduction is to explain how the study sought to create knowledge that is new and useful. The introduction section may often require only 3 paragraphs. First, describe the scope, nature, or magnitude of the problem being addressed. Next, clearly articulate why better understanding this problem is useful, including what is currently known and the limitations of relevant previous studies. Finally, explain what the present study adds to the knowledge base. Explicitly state whether data were collected in a unique way or obtained from a previously unstudied data set or population. Presenting both the usefulness and novelty of the approach taken will prepare the reader for the remaining sections of the article.

Methods . The methods section provides the information necessary to allow others, given the same data, to recreate the analysis. It describes exactly how data relevant to the study purpose were collected, organized, and analyzed. The methods section describes the process of conducting the study — from how the sample was selected to which statistical methods were used to analyze the data. Authors should clearly name, define, and describe each study variable. Some journals allow detailed methods to be included in an appendix or supplementary document. If the analysis involves a commonly used public health data set, such as the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System ( 13 ), general aspects of the data set can be provided to readers by using references. Because what was done is typically more important than who did it, use of the passive voice is often appropriate when describing methods. For example, “The study was a group randomized, controlled trial. A coin was tossed to select an intervention group and a control group.”

Results . The results section describes the main outcomes of the study or analysis but does not interpret the findings or place them in the context of previous research. It is important that the results be logically organized. Suggested organization strategies include presenting results pertaining to the entire population first, and then subgroup analyses, or presenting results according to increasing complexity of analysis, starting with demographic results before proceeding to univariate and multivariate analyses. Authors wishing to draw special attention to novel or unexpected results can present them first.

One strategy for writing the results section is to start by first drafting the figures and tables. Figures, which typically show trends or relationships, and tables, which show specific data points, should each support a main outcome of the study. Identify the figures and tables that best describe the findings and relate to the study’s purpose, and then develop 1 to 2 sentences summarizing each one. Data not relevant to the study purpose may be excluded, summarized briefly in the text, or included in supplemental data sets. When finalizing figures, ensure that axes are labeled and that readers can understand figures without having to refer to accompanying text.

Discussion . In the discussion section, authors interpret the results of their study within the context of both the related literature and the specific scientific gap the study was intended to fill. The discussion does not introduce results that were not presented in the results section. One way authors can focus their discussion is to limit this section to 4 paragraphs: start by reinforcing the study’s take-home message(s), contextualize key results within the relevant literature, state the study limitations, and lastly, make recommendations for further research or policy and practice changes. Authors can support assertions made in the discussion with either their own findings or by referencing related research. By interpreting their own study results and comparing them to others in the literature, authors can emphasize findings that are unique, useful, and relevant. Present study limitations clearly and without apology. Finally, state the implications of the study and provide recommendations or next steps, for example, further research into remaining gaps or changes to practice or policy. Statements or recommendations regarding policy may use the passive voice, especially in instances where the action to be taken is more important than who will implement the action.

Beginning the Writing Process

The process of writing a scientific article occurs before, during, and after conducting the study or analyses. Conducting a literature review is crucial to confirm the existence of the evidence gap that the planned analysis seeks to fill. Because literature searches are often part of applying for research funding or developing a study protocol, the citations used in the grant application or study proposal can also be used in subsequent manuscripts. Full-text databases such as PubMed Central ( 14 ), NIH RePORT ( 15 ), and CDC Stacks ( 16 ) can be useful when performing literature reviews. Authors should familiarize themselves with databases that are accessible through their institution and any assistance that may be available from reference librarians or interlibrary loan systems. Using citation management software is one way to establish and maintain a working reference list. Authors should clearly understand the distinction between primary and secondary references, and ensure that they are knowledgeable about the content of any primary or secondary reference that they cite.

Review of the literature may continue while organizing the material and writing begins. One way to organize material is to create an outline for the paper. Another way is to begin drafting small sections of the article such as the introduction. Starting a preliminary draft forces authors to establish the scope of their analysis and clearly articulate what is new and novel about the study. Furthermore, using information from the study protocol or proposal allows authors to draft the methods and part of the results sections while the study is in progress. Planning potential data comparisons or drafting “table shells” will help to ensure that the study team has collected all the necessary data. Drafting these preliminary sections early during the writing process and seeking feedback from co-authors and colleagues may help authors avoid potential pitfalls, including misunderstandings about study objectives.

The next step is to conduct the study or analyses and use the resulting data to fill in the draft table shells. The initial results will most likely require secondary analyses, that is, exploring the data in ways in addition to those originally planned. Authors should ensure that they regularly update their methods section to describe all changes to data analysis.

After completing table shells, authors should summarize the key finding of each table or figure in a sentence or two. Presenting preliminary results at meetings, conferences, and internal seminars is an established way to solicit feedback. Authors should pay close attention to questions asked by the audience, treating them as an informal opportunity for peer review. On the basis of the questions and feedback received, authors can incorporate revisions and improvements into subsequent drafts of the manuscript.

The relevant literature should be revisited periodically while writing to ensure knowledge of the most recent publications about the manuscript topic. Authors should focus on content and key message during the process of writing the first draft and should not spend too much time on issues of grammar or style. Drafts, or portions of drafts, should be shared frequently with trusted colleagues. Their recommendations should be reviewed and incorporated when they will improve the manuscript’s overall clarity.

For most authors, revising drafts of the manuscript will be the most time-consuming task involved in writing a paper. By regularly checking in with coauthors and colleagues, authors can adopt a systematic approach to rewriting. When the author has completed a draft of the manuscript, he or she should revisit the key take-home message to ensure that it still matches the final data and analysis. At this point, final comments and approval of the manuscript by coauthors can be sought.

Authors should then seek to identify journals most likely to be interested in considering the study for publication. Initial questions to consider when selecting a journal include:

• Which audience is most interested in the paper’s message?
• Would clinicians, public health practitioners, policy makers, scientists, or a broader audience find this useful in their field or practice?
• Do colleagues have prior experience submitting a manuscript to this journal?
• Is the journal indexed and peer-reviewed?
• Is the journal subscription or open-access and are there any processing fees?
• How competitive is the journal?

Authors should seek to balance the desire to be published in a top-tier journal (eg, Journal of the American Medical Association, BMJ, or Lancet) against the statistical likelihood of rejection. Submitting the paper initially to a journal more focused on the paper’s target audience may result in a greater chance of acceptance, as well as more timely dissemination of findings that can be translated into practice. Most of the 50 to 75 manuscripts published each week by authors from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) are published in specialty and subspecialty journals, rather than in top-tier journals ( 17 ).

The target journal’s website will include author guidelines, which will contain specific information about format requirements (eg, font, line spacing, section order, reference style and limit, table and figure formatting), authorship criteria, article types, and word limits for articles and abstracts.

We recommend returning to the previously drafted abstract and ensuring that it complies with the journal’s format and word limit. Authors should also verify that any changes made to the methods or results sections during the article’s drafting are reflected in the final version of the abstract. The abstract should not be written hurriedly just before submitting the manuscript; it is often apparent to editors and reviewers when this has happened. A cover letter to accompany the submission should be drafted; new and useful findings and the key message should be included.

Before submitting the manuscript and cover letter, authors should perform a final check to ensure that their paper complies with all journal requirements. Journals may elect to reject certain submissions on the basis of review of the abstract, or may send them to peer reviewers (typically 2 or 3) for consultation. Occasionally, on the basis of peer reviews, the journal will request only minor changes before accepting the paper for publication. Much more frequently, authors will receive a request to revise and resubmit their manuscript, taking into account peer review comments. Authors should recognize that while revise-and-resubmit requests may state that the manuscript is not acceptable in its current form, this does not constitute a rejection of the article. Authors have several options in responding to peer review comments:

• Performing additional analyses and updating the article appropriately
• Declining to perform additional analyses, but providing an explanation (eg, because the requested analysis goes beyond the scope of the article)
• Providing updated references
• Acknowledging reviewer comments that are simply comments without making changes

In addition to submitting a revised manuscript, authors should include a cover letter in which they list peer reviewer comments, along with the revisions they have made to the manuscript and their reply to the comment. The tone of such letters should be thankful and polite, but authors should make clear areas of disagreement with peer reviewers, and explain why they disagree. During the peer review process, authors should continue to consult with colleagues, especially ones who have more experience with the specific journal or with the peer review process.

There is no secret to successful scientific writing and publishing. By adopting a systematic approach and by regularly seeking feedback from trusted colleagues throughout the study, writing, and article submission process, authors can increase their likelihood of not only publishing original research articles of high quality but also becoming more scientifically productive overall.

Acknowledgments

The authors acknowledge PCD ’s former Associate Editor, Richard A. Goodman, MD, MPH, who, while serving as Editor in Chief of CDC’s Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report Series, initiated a curriculum on scientific writing for training CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence Service Officers and other CDC public health professionals, and with whom the senior author of this article (P.Z.S.) collaborated in expanding training methods and contents, some of which are contained in this article. The authors acknowledge Juan Carlos Zevallos, MD, for his thoughtful critique and careful editing of previous Successful Scientific Writing materials. We also thank Shira Eisenberg for editorial assistance with the manuscript. This publication was supported by the Cooperative Agreement no. 1U360E000002 from CDC and the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. The findings and conclusions of this article do not necessarily represent the official views of CDC or the Association of Schools and Programs of Public Health. Names of journals and citation databases are provided for identification purposes only and do not constitute any endorsement by CDC.

The opinions expressed by authors contributing to this journal do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, the Public Health Service, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or the authors' affiliated institutions.

Suggested citation for this article: Iskander JK, Wolicki SB, Leeb RT, Siegel PZ. Successful Scientific Writing and Publishing: A Step-by-Step Approach. Prev Chronic Dis 2018;15:180085. DOI: https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd15.180085 .

Home › Study Tips › 11 Tips to Improve Your Research Skills for Academic Success

11 Tips to Improve Your Research Skills for Academic Success

• Published May 24, 2024

Strong research skills are a must-have skill for academic success. Why are research skills important?

They’re essential for academic success. You need them for all term papers, research reports, and assignments. These skills also help to deepen your understanding of all the topics in your curriculum. 

By design, research questions are not answerable by simple Google searches. They require planning, hypothesis evaluation, data or information analysis, critical thinking, information synthesis, logical and well-thought-out presentation, and more.

With these skills, you can produce credible, logical, accurate, and plagiarism-free research efficiently and promptly. 

Moreover, being a skilled researcher is not only necessary for academic success. It is a lifelong competency that would remain helpful in your future career and personal life. 

Some tips you can adopt to improve your research skills include understanding the research process, using library resources, effectively searching the internet, adopting proper citation and referencing, developing your analytical skills, managing time efficiently, utilising academic support services, enhancing your note-taking capabilities, using primary sources only, and avoiding confirmation bias. 

Below, we examine these strategies to help you improve your research skills. 

1. Always Create a Research Strategy Document

Think of strategy as a roadmap highlighting how you want to attack the research problem. We believe creating a strategy before diving knee-deep into research provides clarity and saves you time.

Some of the constituents of the strategy document include:

• Research goals
• Research deadline
• Rewriting the research problem the way you understand it, in your own words and simple terms. Then, translate the research problem into a research question. “HR managers are struggling to attract and keep top talent with top talent spending an average of 6 months in each role” is an example of a research problem, while “What strategies and techniques can HR managers adopt to better attract and retain top talents?” is an example of a research question.  
• Outline the major outcomes the research must fulfil. For example, “The research must provide a nexus between company actions and top talent loyalty, in addition to providing actionable tips for HR managers.”  
• Identify the type of research you’re doing. There are three categories of research: basic vs applied, exploratory vs explanatory, and inductive vs deductive research. 
• Findings from preliminary research. We recommend quick preliminary research to see the resources, including scholarly knowledge, readily available in the public domain. This step can help identify a new angle to pursue your research from or drop if you reckon other researchers and authors have adequately dealt with the question, preventing you from wasting time and resources on research that adds no additional value to the body of existing knowledge. 

2. Understand the Research Process

The research process consists of six major stages, including topic selection, literature evaluation, refining the research topic, relevant information gathering (could also include sampling and recruitment, depending on the topic or research focus), data analysis, and knitting everything together. 

Topic Selection

Sometimes, your tutor may provide the research topic. However, you’ll likely need to work with your supervisor to choose a topic for your thesis and undergrad projects. 

For your choice of research topic, it’s imperative to think of your current interests and future ambitions. 

Beyond top grades, your undergrad research may serve as evidence of your interest in a particular area and be helpful for future academic and career progression. 

Every research topic or question starts from a broad problem statement, which you can then fine-tune after exploring the existing body of knowledge in that field. 

Overall, a great topic has the following characteristics:

• Focused on a single issue. However, you may subdivide the issue into several interconnected but related problem statements.
• Researchable with credible sources. For example, requiring proprietary data that is not readily available may seriously hamper your success. 
• Feasible and specific. Additionally, ensure that you have adequate time and resources to complete the study before the due date. 
• Avoids value judgement questions like “Is vitamin D better than magnesium in treating bone issues?”
• Not close-ended such that the answer is a simple yes or no. The lack of clear answers provides room for robust investigation and is where your arguments shine. 
• The answer to your question should not be readily available. It must require rigorous work and iterative problem-solving to complete. 
• The topic must be original and address a relevant industry or niche problem. Originality doesn’t mean other researchers haven’t attempted something similar but that you’re presenting a new angle. 

Literature Review

The goals of conducting the literature review include:

• To ensure other researchers haven’t answered the research question before and that the study will contribute significant value to the existing body of knowledge.
• To identify gaps in existing works and determine how your project will fill that gap. In essence, the research must considerably add to existing knowledge or improve on earlier methodologies. Without meeting these standards, most research journals will not accept your work. 
• The third goal is to help you evaluate the research methods, research design, data sources, and key concepts other researchers adopted for their work. 

A literature review is a lot of work and requires scouring through numerous academic journals, books, and online publications. 

You can leverage AI tools like Elicit AI, Research Rabbit, Semantic Scholar, and Connected Papers to find papers, summarise studies, conduct citation-based mapping, find similar research papers, and more. 

Refine Research Topic

Armed with more information, context, potential data sources, availability of reliable and credible data, and the scope of work required from your literature review, you often need to refine your topic. 

For example, your research question may be too narrow if you find very few credible papers and books on the subject. Your research topic could also be suffering from being too broad. 

You can finetune a broad project topic by asking the why, what, who, where, and when questions. 

Which group of people are you targeting for the research? What geographic location would the study be limited to? Why do you think the research is relevant? What period would you limit the research to?

For example, “What will be the impact of climate change in the United Kingdom?” is quite broad. What kind of impact are we talking about? Economic? Migration? Health? 

A more specific variant of the question would be: “How will climate change affect net migration between the UK coastline and major cities in the next 20 years?” 

Data Gathering

Collecting data is the heart of the research process. This step allows you to gather variables essential for reaching conclusions. Depending on your research question, these variables can either be qualitative (non-numerical) or quantitative (numerical). 

You may gather data through one or more of the following methods:

Surveys are a series of questions used to extract specific data from a sample of the target population. When running surveys, you should take note of the following:

• Sample size: Ensure the number of participants adequately represents the population. 
• Bias: Ensure the questions do not tilt respondents in a particular direction or the sampling is not based on subjective measures. For example, assuming the age of shoppers who walk into a store can lead to bias. 
• Ambiguity and clarity: Avoid ambiguous questions that are prone to personal interpretation. “Do you drink plenty of alcohol during the week?” is subjective because the answer depends on who you ask. 
• Resource management: The larger the sample size, the more expensive and time-consuming the survey process is. 

Experiments

Experiments will be your go-to research method if you’re in any natural and physical sciences programme. It’s easier to establish a cause-and-effect relationship with experiments than with surveys. 

A typical example of an experiment involves splitting test subjects into a control and an experimental group. The researchers then give the latter group a medicine, drug, or treatment or subject them to changes. 

The researchers then evaluate the two groups for a specific variable. If the variable varies significantly, then suffice it to say that the changes made to the experimental group are responsible for the significant differences in the observed variable. 

Observational Studies

Observational studies are more popular in social sciences for obvious reasons. They involve going to the field to observe the attitudes and behaviours of a specific group in the natural habitat. 

Observational studies may either be participant observation or nonparticipant observation. The former involves the researcher staying in the same habit as the group they’re observing, while the latter is the reverse. 

Participant observation may influence how the target population acts. So, it’s imperative to conduct the study such that your presence is not disruptive to the data collection process. 

Existing Data

In every sector or industry, there’s existing data that can help with your research. Need economic activity data on the UK? The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is perhaps the most credible primary source on the subject matter. 

What about data on the UK environment? The Department for Environment, Food & Rural Affairs data services platform (DSP) is your best bet. 

Beyond facts and figures, court records, medical records (without personally identifiable information), and police interview tapes can also be excellent sources of information. 

Data Analysis

You have gathered all the data you need to answer your research question. Now, this is where you begin to look for clues, determine relationships between variables, establish trends, find patterns, and more. 

For numerical variables, you’ll need complex statistical techniques to extract insights from the data. Tools like Statistical Analysis System (SAS), R, Python, MS Excel, and the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) can help with quantitative data analysis. 

Some tools can help with most qualitative methodological techniques. Examples of these tools include nVivo and ATLAS.ti. It’s imperative to note that while these tools are helpful, you’ll need to put on your sound critical thinking cap to ensure your analysis is accurate. 

Result Discussion

The data analysis above will provide evidence to prove or disprove your hypothesis or question. The discussion section helps you convey these results in a deeper conversation. 

What results do you have? What are the implications of such results? How relevant are the results from both a statistical point of view and practical applications? 

These and many more questions are the answers this section should provide. Furthermore, share the limitations of your research and potential avenues for further exploration. 

If there’s any additional tip we would leave you with here is to stay with the facts and provide your findings in context with previous studies. Doing this strengthens your argument and makes your research more credible and citable. 

3. Use Library Resources

Librarians curate only authoritative and credible sources. These sources include books, journals, and databases. 

Another benefit of using library resources is that they are organised, making it easy for you to find the resources you need. 

As a college student, you should never pay out of pocket for any resource. Your school library probably already provides access to that resource. If not, you can make a request, and it’ll most likely be granted. 

So, what kind of resources are available?

• A searchable library catalogue tool, basically a search engine for academic sources
• Access to third-party databases
• Extensive collection of e-books
• Access to conference papers, newspaper articles, and other credible publications
• Subject Librarian to help you with resources not in the library catalogue
• Reference management tools and resources on how to use them

Tips to Search Databases

• Use the truncation symbol (*) and the wildcard symbol (?) to broaden your search to ensure you do not miss out on relevant results due to spelling or plural versions. For example, “agricultur*” will provide search results that include the following words: agriculture, agricultural, and agriculturalist. “Lab?r” will search for resources with both “labor” and “labour” in them. 
• Use boolean operators. We discuss this extensively below. The same principles apply here. 
• Use inverted commas to search for a specific phrase together. We also explain this below. 
• Leverage proximity search: This tells the database to return results that have words within certain distances from each other. For example, typing “labour same union” on Web of Science returns publications with “labour” and “union” in the same sentence. Typing “labour union ~4” on JSTOR retrieves records where “labour” and “union” are only separated by four words. 
• Combine the methods above to create more sophisticated search queries.

4. Effective Internet Research

The internet is a treasure trove of information and resources. That said, you must be cautious of every page on the internet, especially in the age of AI content. 

Every source for a research project must be up-to-date, factual, unbiased, and from a credible source. True story: we’ve seen students quote data from satirical publications. 

Moreover, most pages on the internet don’t go through a review process and may be rife with misinformation. 

Just because a page appears on number one of your search results doesn’t make it a great resource. The article author or publisher may just be great at search engine optimization. 

Assessing a Website’s Credibility and Accuracy

Many people create websites to make money. While some provide some measure of value, others simply do not care. 

Moreover, some of these websites may present information from the owner or author’s bias. For the most part, it’s best to stick with non-academic resources provided by government agencies and reputable organisations. 

You can evaluate a website’s credibility by examining:

• The About Us page: Who or which group owns the website? What are their goals?
• The author bio: Who’s the author, and what’s their qualification and experience to authoritatively speak on the subject? You may do further Google and social media (LinkedIn in particular) investigations to assess the author’s qualifications. 
• Domain ownership: Use whois.net to track who owns a website. This information may or may not be available. 
• Articles dates and recency: Avoid undated websites and articles using dated facts to draw recent conclusions.  

Internet Search Techniques

Here are a few techniques to help you find relevant pages that answer your search queries. 

Use Inverted Commas

Search engines will treat each word in your search query as individual keywords without inverted commas. 

So, you may get web pages that only contain the term “anatomy” or only “heart” if you type heart anatomy without quotation marks.

However, encasing your keyword in quotation marks, like this: “heart anatomy” only returns results with the exact phrase, thus providing fewer web pages to examine. 

Boolean Operators

Boolean operators include AND, OR, and NOT. They can be a powerful way to hone in on the sources you need. 

Boolean Operators 

Example 

Search result includes web pages containing keywords joined by AND

“Traffic data” AND “London” 

Search result includes pages with one or all the keywords linked by OR

“Manager” OR “Coordinator” 

NOT or – 

Excludes web pages with a particular term from the search result. Helpful when a term skews your search results

-animal or “NOT animal”

Used to include a term that must be included in the results. Helpful for narrowing a broad search query

2024 United Kingdom Elections report +fraud +voting pattern

Brackets ()

Powerful for combining boolean operators. Helpful when a keyword also has a popular synonyms or alternative

Project (manager OR coordinator)

Site: 

Provide search results from the website you provide only. Helpful when searching a website like the ONS for data

site: https://www.ons.gov.uk/

Search Engine Tools

Search engines have additional tools to help you refine your search. Google, for example, has tools to limit the results to those published within a specified date range. 

You may also limit results to a particular file type, such as images, books, videos, and news. 

Use Different Search Engines

Each search engine has its own unique algorithms (set of rules to arrange web pages in search results). Trying a new search engine may just be the trick you need. 

Examples of other search engines to try include:

• www.duckduckgo.com
• www.bing.com
• www.ask.com

Use Google’s Advanced Search Tool

Google’s advanced search tool allows you to enter multiple parameters to refine your search. Behind the hood, the tool simplifies the use of boolean operators. Instead of typing boolean operators, you simply enter terms in textboxes. 

You can specify other parameters like the last time the authors updated the website, region to target, and language. 

5. Citation and referencing

Any idea, words, data, images, infographic, or information you take from any source requires a reference. Without citations, you’re practically stealing someone else’s ideas and thoughts. 

Many schools have strict rules against plagiarism, including formal warnings, suspension, admission withdrawal, and other penalties. 

Aside from helping you avoid plagiarism, citations also make your work more authoritative and persuasive. 

There are multiple referencing styles, including AMS (American Meteorological Society), APA (American Psychological Association), Chicago, Harvard, MHRA (Modern Humanities Research Association), OSCOLA (Oxford Standard for the Citation of Legal Authorities), and others. 

Your student handbook will usually provide which of the above styles your programme uses. 

Tips For Managing Citations and References

• Make a list of your references and cite them as you write.
• Add notes to each reference, highlighting the sections, paragraphs, and pages you’re most interested in.
• Be consistent with the reference style you use. 
• Familiarise yourself with the project’s reference style.
• Use referencing tools. Examples include EndNote, Zotero or Mendeley. Practice with the program to ensure you know the type of information required and where to input it.

6. Develop Analytical Skills

Per the Rockwell Career Centre, “ analytical skills are problem-solving skills that help you parse data and information to develop creative, rational solutions.”

Analytical skills are essential to every step of the research process, especially in objectively analysing the problem and the result of your experiments. 

Analytical skills require critical reasoning, understanding different concepts (including complex and abstract ones), explaining or articulating your thoughts, applying what you read to tackle problems, and much more. 

Strategies for analysing and synthesising information

1. gain foundational knowledge.

Nothing strengthens your ability to critically analyse the data you’ve gathered than having a solid grasp of the basic concepts in the area you’re investigating. 

For example, you can’t discuss recidivism without understanding the court and prison process.  

2. Create an information matrix

An information matrix is a table that helps organise your sources by major themes. Identifying key ideas from sources is an integral part of information synthesis. 

Here’s an example with five sources:

Theme 

Quality time

Words of affirmation

Acts of service

Physical touch

For each source, enter what they say about each major theme you identified. Leave the corresponding cell blank if a source is mute on a theme. 

Create a new row if any of the sources present a compelling key theme that aligns with your research. 

3. Summarise and Paraphrase the Original Source

Summarise and paraphrase important ideas and quotations you lift from sources. This primarily means presenting your original thoughts and interpretation of the content in the source. 

To paraphrase, you must understand the original source. So, this is good practice for information synthesis. If you’re struggling to paraphrase or summarise an idea, maybe you do not understand it yet. 

Doing this keeps quotes to a minimum, which can help you achieve better grades. Additionally, it promotes the use of your own voice more and to avoid plagiarism. 

4. Improve your comprehension skills

Some of the ways you can improve your comprehension skills include:

• Broadening your vocabulary often by reading widely and critically
• Recollecting the main points and critical details about the text from memory
• Reading in a distraction-free environment
• Slow down and embrace active reading. The Open University defines active reading as “ reading something with a determination to understand and evaluate it for its relevance to your needs.” This process involves highlighting key texts, raising questions, explaining the text to others, self-testing with flashcards or help from a colleague, and more. 
• Summarising and identifying key ideas

5. Identify the Context of Each Source

While two papers may speak about the same topic, they may approach the subject from totally opposite angles. This makes it hard to do an apples-to-apples comparison. Identifying the context helps you avoid this pitfall. 

7. Time Management in Research

Strategies and tips for effecting time management in research include:

1. Setting Realistic and Attainable Goals

Earlier, we mentioned how it’s imperative to choose a research topic that you can complete within the deadline provided by your tutor. Doing otherwise will only lead to poor time management. While you may complete the research, other areas may suffer. 

2. Fix Regular Schedule

Creating a schedule helps you devote ample time to the research daily. Consistent attention is better than last-minute rushes. A regular schedule helps avoid procrastination, interruptions, and lack of discipline.  

How many hours you commit daily will depend on your other commitments and the research deadline. It’s important to design your schedule such that you’ve completed your research report far ahead of the deadline. 

3. Incorporate Task Lists for Each Block of Time

Approach each block of time you schedule with a task list. Doing so helps you focus and prioritise important tasks. 

4. Avoid Multitasking

Focus on one task at a time and finish the same before doing something else. Multitasking is often unproductive and can be a source of stress when you fail to achieve anything noteworthy. 

5. Leverage Technology

Tools for project management, to-do lists, and calendar apps can help you implement the time management strategies shared above and help you stay organised.  

6. Ask For Help

Ask for help from your tutor, coursemates, and librarian whenever you’re stuck. Also, use the numerous free resources available to you. 

7. Take Breaks and Reward Yourself 

Bake breaks into your schedule to alleviate stress and ensure you operate optimally. Additionally, reward yourself for completing the tasks on your to-do lists. 

8. Utilise Academic Support Services

Most universities offer programs to help students achieve academic success, including those geared towards how to conduct research and improve research skills.  

If you’re unaware of the academic support services on offer, it’s important to ask. There’s no shame in asking for help. You’d be amazed at how much help these centres offer. 

One of the best ways to identify the areas you need to work on is to ask your tutor for feedback and help. 

Typical academic support services include:

• Writing guidance
• Peer tutoring
• After-school programmes
• Counselling
• Academic monitoring
• Experiential learning

9. Enhance Note-Taking Techniques

Note-taking is essential during research projects as it’s a vital tool for information synthesis. Note-taking helps you organise the points in the sources you’re reading. It also helps avoid being overwhelmed by the volume of resources you must review. 

Here are some tips to make note-taking fruitful:

1. Think Of Your Research Goals

Your research goals will determine what you prioritise during note-taking. There’s no point in extensive note-taking if the content doesn’t help you strengthen your arguments or answer your research question. 

2. Use Headings, Subheadings, and Numbered List to Organise Key Ideas

This is similar to the information matrix we discussed above. However, this is more like a fleshed-out version. Use indenting and numbering to create idea hierarchies that distinguish major points from minor ones.  

3. Adopt One of the Many Note-Taking Methods

Examples of note-taking methods include the mapping method, the Cornell Method, the sentence method, and the outlining method. Diving into each of these techniques is beyond the scope of this article.  

4. Use Colours and Symbols

Create a colour code for identifying themes and crucial sections. You may also underline important keywords or circle data points that buttress certain themes. These colours and symbols help simplify and visualise ideas. 

5. Create Linkages Between Ideas

Highlight ideas or variables that have clear relationships. The relationship can be causal or correlational. State what this relationship means for your research question. 

6. Leave Space For Future Comments And Questions

Leave room to add more information, such as comments, questions, and reactions. As you read more, you’re likely to come across new information that may challenge or buttress the ideas you found earlier. 

10. Engage with Primary Sources

You may find the answer to a search engine query in a news article or even a random article. It’s advisable and more prudent to search for the primary source. 

So the Guardian can publish details about digital imaging delays in the United Kingdom, but NHS England is the primary source of that information. You must cite the latter and not the former. 

The same applies to academic sources. A paper may make a statement and cite another author or study. You must track the other study to cite it as a separate source in your bibliography. 

One of the importance of using primary sources is the secondary source may have taken the information out of context or reported the same to fit a particular narrative. 

Reading the primary source yourself ensures you have all the contexts and the data as the primary authors presented it. 

11. Avoid Confirmation Bias 

Simply searching for papers and studies that align with your position is a limiting research strategy. 

We recommend seeking studies and sources that challenge your assertion. This is a far more enriching prospect that adds depth to your research. 

Research projects don’t necessarily have to be right or wrong but a means to provide informed arguments based on facts, logical reasoning, and strong analytical skills. 

Research studies enhance ongoing conversations, adding a new point of view to the existing body of knowledge. 

Master Research Skills for Successful Research Reports

Academic success at all levels require research skills that can translate any topic into detailed, coherent, logical, and credible reports, whether it’s quantitative or qualitative research. 

We believe the tips outlined in this article can transform your research skills, but it requires putting them into practice. 

Not only would your research skills take a leap, but other attending skills like comprehension, analytical, and how to tie information together would also improve. 

Additionally, you’ll master project management, time management, and reference management tools useful in other areas of your life. 

Do you want to dig deeper into these strategies through specialised 1-on-1 tutorials or group sessions? Immerse Education’s Online Research Programme is tailor-made for specific subject study and led by tutors from world-renowned Oxbridge and Ivy League universities.Moreover, our accredited Online Research Programme is an excellent choice for students aged 14-18 who want to improve their research skills while earning valuable UCAS points for university applications. Explore our accredited Online Research Programme today.

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20 Ways to Improve Your Research Paper

So, you want to improve your research paper? You’ve come to the right place. Many authors are looking for guidance when publishing their work and we understand that writing up research is hard. We want to help where we can. At MDPI, we are committed to delivering ground-breaking scientific insights to the global scientific community. Here, we provide 20 useful tips to improve your research paper before submission.

1. Choose a specific and accurate title (and subtitles)

This is a very important part of your manuscript and can affect readership. People often choose what to read based on first impressions. Make sure your title doesn’t put people off. The title should give an overview of what your paper is about. This should be accurate and specific and reflect the content of the paper. Avoid jargon where possible. Don’t forget about section titles and table and figure captions. They should be accurate and specific. Readers tend to skip to the content they want to read. You can find even more useful advice in our article on choosing the best research paper title .

2. Writing an interesting abstract can improve your research paper

The abstract is the first part of the paper that’ll be read. You need to persuade the reader to continue reading. A clear abstract should outline the workings of your research. This will help you to carve out a very specific space in your field. You should also consider other published work in the field. Mention some notable achievements and explain how your research builds on them. This will help you place your research. Those who know the area well will be able to understand which direction you’re going in. A great way to make your abstract more dynamic is to add a graphical abstract or video. It should describe the methodology within your paper. This additional media quickly summarises your paper. It makes it more visually appealing to readers at first glance.

See the journal’s Instructions for Authors page for more information about graphical abstracts.

3. Be selective with keywords

On our journals’ webpages, we use keywords for indexing. This makes work more searchable. Many researchers search the MDPI site using keywords related to their field. This gives you a chance to get more eyes on your paper. Make sure your choices are precise and are not in the title already. You want to cover as much ground as possible.

Depending on the journal, keywords that are also in the journal’s name are sometimes not allowed. For example, authors cannot use the keyword “soil” when publishing in Soil Biology & Biochemistry . You can check the journal’s webpage for more details. Get in touch with the Editorial Office if you have any questions.

4. Make sure that your research is novel

Have you conducted a thorough search of the latest findings? Knowing about these will improve the originality of your work. Reviewers are asked to rate your manuscript on novelty. Your research should advance the current knowledge in your field. Avoid repeating what may already be out there.

You can cite other works and add them to the content of your paper. This shows that you’re aware of the current knowledge in your research area. You should add your own work and findings that bring something new to the field. Editors like studies that push the boundaries and have new and unexpected outcomes.

5. Ensure that your results are exciting

Your results should not only be novel, but also significant. Attracting readers and citations will be easier if the results are exciting. Interesting and exciting work will encourage others to build on what you have discovered.

6. To improve your research paper, keep it simple

When it comes to research, it’s easy to get lost in your own paper. But, there is value in keeping it simple. This will make your work more accessible to others. It may even improve its success. Keeping your paper simple (English included) also means making it consistent. We have a handy guide that can help with this! Avoid including information that is unnecessary. Review what you have written so far – if you can delete something, then you should.

7. Don’t self-plagiarise!

Perhaps you want to repeat something that you have already mentioned in a previous research paper. Be careful, reusing your own words is self-plagiarism.

Self-plagiarism is a problem because you are just producing a copy of your work from before. This creates the illusion of new ideas when there aren’t any. This can happen without you realising it, so be careful. To avoid this, use short quotes from your past paper. You should place these in quotation marks and cite the original. Be succinct but comprehensive.

MDPI takes plagiarism very seriously and we (and other publishers) do our best to ensure that it is not present in our authors’ research by using a plagiarism detector that reviews online content for similarities. This helps to ensure that our it is ready to be published. As part of MDPI’s anti-plagiarism regulations, image manipulation is also not permitted. The peer review process involves an assessment of images and figures.

8. Use the journal template, even in the early stages

Peer review can be a nerve-wracking process. You are waiting for opinions on whether your paper should be in a journal or not. We understand that this is a stressful time for our authors so we do our best to encourage reviewers to provide their reviews as soon as possible.

You can increase your chances of good reviews by making sure your work is clearly organised and easy to understand. Templates are great for this and can definitely help you to improve your research paper throughout the writing process. This can give your paper a more professional look from the outset. It’s also important to maintain good formatting throughout.

Using the template from the start will save you a lot of time later. You can avoid spending precious time transferring your manuscript into the MDPI format. You won’t be at risk of possible errors caused by a late move-over.

9. Keep the topic relevant to the research field or journal

Some journals or Special Issues have broad scopes, while others are narrower. Research papers need to fit well within the range of the topic. This can sometimes be as simple as adding a paragraph of context to cement your paper’s relevance.

You can find information about the scope on journal webpages. You can also reach out to the Editorial Office if you have any questions.

If your work doesn’t fit into the specific scope, an editor may encourage you to submit to a different journal or Special Issue.

10. Keep in touch with co-authors

To improve the direction of your paper, check in with the other authors often. Obviously, this is only if you have co-authors.

Reviewing other sections of the paper can help to ensure that you don’t repeat yourself. It’s a good opportunity to make sure that the English is standardised as well.

11. Swap and share ideas to improve your research paper

Research can be solitary. It is easy to forget that there are other people – co-authors, colleagues, peers, associates – in the same boat as you. Their feedback can help you spot mistakes that you may have missed. Meeting with a colleague can also give you a break from your paper and allow you to come back to it with a new mindset.

12. Write methods and results first, then abstract, introduction and conclusion later

This is commonly given advice, but is worth noting. The content and tone of your paper may change as you write it. You’ll have a better overview of your findings, and be able to include key points from the paper. The introduction and conclusion will be more refined when left until the end.

13. Check your plots and graphs

Nothing in your paper is as important as your data. Your discoveries are the foundation of your work. They need to be clear and easy to understand. To improve your research paper, make sure graphs and images are in high resolutions and show the information clearly.

14. Customise your graphs using external packages in Python

You can use external packages like MatPlotLib or MATLAB to make the creation and editing of high-quality graphs and plots easy and efficient.

15. Improving the language can improve your research paper

It is important to make sure your English is as good as possible. This may mean proof-reading the paper several times (or having someone else look at it).

We can help you edit your project

Improving your research paper can be challenging and time consuming. Academic editing can also be tricky sometimes, and it always pays off to have a professional look at your work. If you’re still not sure, don’t have time, or want a pro to look at your references, let our skilled English Editors help. Visit MDPI Author Services now for a free estimate for fast, accurate, and professional editing.

16. Follow the instructions to format your paper

Review the house rules for the journal and follow these with care. Each journal has an ‘Instructions for Authors’ webpage. It provides extensive information on how to present your work and improve your research paper. Take these into consideration when coming up with the final product.

17. Be thorough with author contributions and acknowledgments

Make sure to add the names of colleagues and supervisors who helped with your paper. This may seem obvious, but there are often people you forget. This may include thanking your funder or grant provider.

18. Declare any conflicts of interest

All authors need to state whether they have any relationships or interests that could influence the paper or its outcomes. This may include (financial or non-financial) connections to organisations or governments.

19. Don’t forget about the importance of references

It may surprise you that many papers are submitted without evidence for their claims. Editors return these papers, and time is then lost in the publication process. The author then needs to locate the sources and resubmit the work. Make sure to provide citations where necessary. If you want to know more about how to cite your work, we have a handy guide to review on this very subject.

Tools like EndNote and Mendeley can help you with the formatting of references in your paper. These manage your references based on what you enter and then organise them in the References section. You can also use free reference generators. For example, the online tool ‘Cite This for Me’ allows you to format individual references.

20. Read through it again

This is where you need to take a step back from what you have written. Looking over your work with a fresh set of eyes is a great way to improve it. Sleep on it and come back in a few days to check your work. A final scan may help you find minor errors and put your mind at ease. Once that’s all done, you can submit your manuscript. You’ll generally receive a response in 1-5 working days. For more details on our speedy submission process, take a look at our article on MDPI submission statuses .

Going through these tips can help you improve your research paper during the writing process. This can increase your chances of having your work published, read, cited, and shared.

During this time, you may be feeling worried or nervous. And that’s perfectly normal! You’re about to release your findings into the world. If you feel tense about this process, you’re not alone. It takes a lot of courage to put ideas out there, even ideas that you’re happy with.

Once you’ve published your manuscript, make sure to share it wherever you can. Talk about it on social media and put a link on your website.

Is there anything else that you do to improve your manuscripts? Make sure to share it in the comments below!

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53 comments.

I am a senior and currently writing my last research paper. This information was very useful for me. Thanks for putting it out there!

Thank you very much. I need this in my report and in my studies. God bless!

Really helpful. Please share more tips on improving your write-up when writing a research paper.

Hi Sami, thanks for the comment.

You may also be interested in reading about how to choose the best title for your research paper .

Thanks for your nice work. I will apply these points on my paper will edit it…

Thank you, Katherine. Can I transfer it into Chinese and share with the students?

Hi Chenghua, thank you for the comment.

Please feel free to share the article far and wide! Glad it can help your students.

what happens when we discover a new concept during our research? whereas at the beginning we had not predict it? Defining it in the introductory part isn’t very fair, isn’t it? Thanks

Hi Messka, thank you for the comment.

Agreed. That’s why the advice in #12 is so powerful. Things change as you’re trying to get it right, so it’s always best to leave the introduction and conclusion to the end.

This is really helpful article, keep it up

Thanks for reading! We’re glad you found the article useful

Thank you Ms. Katherine. It is very useful and enlight me..

Hi Teguh, you’re welcome. Thanks for reading the MDPI Blog.

Thank you so much Mam.. Really it is very useful information mam..

Hi Sivaranjani, glad this helped! Good luck with your manuscript!

Thank you very much, for this concise and informative piece.

Thanks for reading, Saliu!

Very precise and very informative. It will be by personal giude moving forward

We’re glad you found this article useful, Yao!

Very useful informations.

Thanks for reading, Chetan!

Informative and good guide for Phd researchers.

Thanks Olaniyi!

Thank you MDPI for valuable information

Thanks for reading, Sardar!

Thank you very mutch for your valuable information.

Very outstanding and informative. This will go along way toward improving my manuscript

Thanks for sharing such an informational article which will a great help to the students.

Good guidelines

Nice quotes

Thanks for this great and concise work.

Nice… it’s very useful for new beginner’s

Certainly very helpful tips indeed. Thank you MDPI for this kind exercise.

Valuable and concise 100%

This is helpful. I have leant a lot from the quality research tips you provided.

Interesting write up for research

These 25 ways of improving my research are very helpful because they touch every area of a research scheduling and arrangement. Most exciting is the suggestion to write the introduction and conclusion last. Hearing this for the first time; I will adopt it

Many thanks MDPI

It’s really nice points

Thank you 🙏

very informative and substantive article

Good pieces of advice

Very informative guidance. Thank you for sharing.

Hello very interesting tips.

Its really useful for new researchers.

Nice writing

The information provided is very important to write a good research article

Amazingly helpful article, from a PhD candidate!

Hello, Very interesring

Thank you for your valuable 25 ways to improve the research .would you include examples or case studies . Thank you

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• Research paper

How to Write a Research Paper | A Beginner's Guide

A research paper is a piece of academic writing that provides analysis, interpretation, and argument based on in-depth independent research.

Research papers are similar to academic essays , but they are usually longer and more detailed assignments, designed to assess not only your writing skills but also your skills in scholarly research. Writing a research paper requires you to demonstrate a strong knowledge of your topic, engage with a variety of sources, and make an original contribution to the debate.

This step-by-step guide takes you through the entire writing process, from understanding your assignment to proofreading your final draft.

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Table of contents

Understand the assignment, choose a research paper topic, conduct preliminary research, develop a thesis statement, create a research paper outline, write a first draft of the research paper, write the introduction, write a compelling body of text, write the conclusion, the second draft, the revision process, research paper checklist, free lecture slides.

Completing a research paper successfully means accomplishing the specific tasks set out for you. Before you start, make sure you thoroughly understanding the assignment task sheet:

• Read it carefully, looking for anything confusing you might need to clarify with your professor.
• Identify the assignment goal, deadline, length specifications, formatting, and submission method.
• Make a bulleted list of the key points, then go back and cross completed items off as you’re writing.

Carefully consider your timeframe and word limit: be realistic, and plan enough time to research, write, and edit.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

There are many ways to generate an idea for a research paper, from brainstorming with pen and paper to talking it through with a fellow student or professor.

You can try free writing, which involves taking a broad topic and writing continuously for two or three minutes to identify absolutely anything relevant that could be interesting.

You can also gain inspiration from other research. The discussion or recommendations sections of research papers often include ideas for other specific topics that require further examination.

Once you have a broad subject area, narrow it down to choose a topic that interests you, m eets the criteria of your assignment, and i s possible to research. Aim for ideas that are both original and specific:

• A paper following the chronology of World War II would not be original or specific enough.
• A paper on the experience of Danish citizens living close to the German border during World War II would be specific and could be original enough.

Note any discussions that seem important to the topic, and try to find an issue that you can focus your paper around. Use a variety of sources , including journals, books, and reliable websites, to ensure you do not miss anything glaring.

Do not only verify the ideas you have in mind, but look for sources that contradict your point of view.

• Is there anything people seem to overlook in the sources you research?
• Are there any heated debates you can address?
• Do you have a unique take on your topic?
• Have there been some recent developments that build on the extant research?

In this stage, you might find it helpful to formulate some research questions to help guide you. To write research questions, try to finish the following sentence: “I want to know how/what/why…”

A thesis statement is a statement of your central argument — it establishes the purpose and position of your paper. If you started with a research question, the thesis statement should answer it. It should also show what evidence and reasoning you’ll use to support that answer.

The thesis statement should be concise, contentious, and coherent. That means it should briefly summarize your argument in a sentence or two, make a claim that requires further evidence or analysis, and make a coherent point that relates to every part of the paper.

You will probably revise and refine the thesis statement as you do more research, but it can serve as a guide throughout the writing process. Every paragraph should aim to support and develop this central claim.

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A research paper outline is essentially a list of the key topics, arguments, and evidence you want to include, divided into sections with headings so that you know roughly what the paper will look like before you start writing.

A structure outline can help make the writing process much more efficient, so it’s worth dedicating some time to create one.

Your first draft won’t be perfect — you can polish later on. Your priorities at this stage are as follows:

• Maintaining forward momentum — write now, perfect later.
• Paying attention to clear organization and logical ordering of paragraphs and sentences, which will help when you come to the second draft.
• Expressing your ideas as clearly as possible, so you know what you were trying to say when you come back to the text.

You do not need to start by writing the introduction. Begin where it feels most natural for you — some prefer to finish the most difficult sections first, while others choose to start with the easiest part. If you created an outline, use it as a map while you work.

Do not delete large sections of text. If you begin to dislike something you have written or find it doesn’t quite fit, move it to a different document, but don’t lose it completely — you never know if it might come in useful later.

Paragraph structure

Paragraphs are the basic building blocks of research papers. Each one should focus on a single claim or idea that helps to establish the overall argument or purpose of the paper.

Example paragraph

George Orwell’s 1946 essay “Politics and the English Language” has had an enduring impact on thought about the relationship between politics and language. This impact is particularly obvious in light of the various critical review articles that have recently referenced the essay. For example, consider Mark Falcoff’s 2009 article in The National Review Online, “The Perversion of Language; or, Orwell Revisited,” in which he analyzes several common words (“activist,” “civil-rights leader,” “diversity,” and more). Falcoff’s close analysis of the ambiguity built into political language intentionally mirrors Orwell’s own point-by-point analysis of the political language of his day. Even 63 years after its publication, Orwell’s essay is emulated by contemporary thinkers.

Citing sources

It’s also important to keep track of citations at this stage to avoid accidental plagiarism . Each time you use a source, make sure to take note of where the information came from.

You can use our free citation generators to automatically create citations and save your reference list as you go.

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The research paper introduction should address three questions: What, why, and how? After finishing the introduction, the reader should know what the paper is about, why it is worth reading, and how you’ll build your arguments.

What? Be specific about the topic of the paper, introduce the background, and define key terms or concepts.

Why? This is the most important, but also the most difficult, part of the introduction. Try to provide brief answers to the following questions: What new material or insight are you offering? What important issues does your essay help define or answer?

How? To let the reader know what to expect from the rest of the paper, the introduction should include a “map” of what will be discussed, briefly presenting the key elements of the paper in chronological order.

The major struggle faced by most writers is how to organize the information presented in the paper, which is one reason an outline is so useful. However, remember that the outline is only a guide and, when writing, you can be flexible with the order in which the information and arguments are presented.

One way to stay on track is to use your thesis statement and topic sentences . Check:

• topic sentences against the thesis statement;
• topic sentences against each other, for similarities and logical ordering;
• and each sentence against the topic sentence of that paragraph.

Be aware of paragraphs that seem to cover the same things. If two paragraphs discuss something similar, they must approach that topic in different ways. Aim to create smooth transitions between sentences, paragraphs, and sections.

The research paper conclusion is designed to help your reader out of the paper’s argument, giving them a sense of finality.

Trace the course of the paper, emphasizing how it all comes together to prove your thesis statement. Give the paper a sense of finality by making sure the reader understands how you’ve settled the issues raised in the introduction.

You might also discuss the more general consequences of the argument, outline what the paper offers to future students of the topic, and suggest any questions the paper’s argument raises but cannot or does not try to answer.

You should not :

• Offer new arguments or essential information
• Take up any more space than necessary
• Begin with stock phrases that signal you are ending the paper (e.g. “In conclusion”)

There are four main considerations when it comes to the second draft.

• Check how your vision of the paper lines up with the first draft and, more importantly, that your paper still answers the assignment.
• Identify any assumptions that might require (more substantial) justification, keeping your reader’s perspective foremost in mind. Remove these points if you cannot substantiate them further.
• Be open to rearranging your ideas. Check whether any sections feel out of place and whether your ideas could be better organized.
• If you find that old ideas do not fit as well as you anticipated, you should cut them out or condense them. You might also find that new and well-suited ideas occurred to you during the writing of the first draft — now is the time to make them part of the paper.

The goal during the revision and proofreading process is to ensure you have completed all the necessary tasks and that the paper is as well-articulated as possible. You can speed up the proofreading process by using the AI proofreader .

Global concerns

• Confirm that your paper completes every task specified in your assignment sheet.
• Check for logical organization and flow of paragraphs.
• Check paragraphs against the introduction and thesis statement.

Fine-grained details

Check the content of each paragraph, making sure that:

• each sentence helps support the topic sentence.
• no unnecessary or irrelevant information is present.
• all technical terms your audience might not know are identified.

Next, think about sentence structure , grammatical errors, and formatting . Check that you have correctly used transition words and phrases to show the connections between your ideas. Look for typos, cut unnecessary words, and check for consistency in aspects such as heading formatting and spellings .

Finally, you need to make sure your paper is correctly formatted according to the rules of the citation style you are using. For example, you might need to include an MLA heading  or create an APA title page .

Scribbr’s professional editors can help with the revision process with our award-winning proofreading services.

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Checklist: Research paper

I have followed all instructions in the assignment sheet.

My introduction presents my topic in an engaging way and provides necessary background information.

My introduction presents a clear, focused research problem and/or thesis statement .

My paper is logically organized using paragraphs and (if relevant) section headings .

Each paragraph is clearly focused on one central idea, expressed in a clear topic sentence .

Each paragraph is relevant to my research problem or thesis statement.

I have used appropriate transitions  to clarify the connections between sections, paragraphs, and sentences.

My conclusion provides a concise answer to the research question or emphasizes how the thesis has been supported.

My conclusion shows how my research has contributed to knowledge or understanding of my topic.

My conclusion does not present any new points or information essential to my argument.

I have provided an in-text citation every time I refer to ideas or information from a source.

I have included a reference list at the end of my paper, consistently formatted according to a specific citation style .

I have thoroughly revised my paper and addressed any feedback from my professor or supervisor.

I have followed all formatting guidelines (page numbers, headers, spacing, etc.).

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