Getting Started
Writing a college paper can be a daunting task. Here are some tips to get started. These are not in any particular order, you may have more steps in your process, or fewer. Just take a moment to be thoughtful about your topic before jumping in! It may save you time and effort in the long run.
- Make sure to read and understand the assignment. If you have questions, talk to your professor.
- Make note of due dates.
- Think about your topic. Ask: What am I interested in that I want to know more about?
- Places to look for ideas:
- New York Times -- Current, full text access to the New York Times. Login Required. Access to the New York Times online requires an account on their website. To set up an account, go to http://www.newyorktimes.com/grouppass. You must be on campus (or simulate being on campus, such as using Witt's VPN) in order to activate the account.
- Wikipedia -- Okay, so we are not advocating using Wikipedia as a source for your paper, but it is a good place to find basic information about a topic. Many Wikipedia entries contain citations to their sources which you might be able to use.
- Current Periodicals -- Many popular and scholarly magazines and journals are available for browsing on the first floor. Walk down and take a look.
- Focus your topic. Initial ideas for topics are often too large and need to be narrowed down. Think about one aspect of your topic to focus on.
- Once you have your topic, brainstorm some questions about your topic that you want to try and answer in your paper.
- Identify your audience. Who are you writing for? What do you want them to know?
- Write an initial thesis statement just to get your thoughts down on paper.
- Think about keywords related to your topic. This will be useful when you begin to search. Think about synonyms and related terms.
Remember writing is a reiterative process! You may do some steps multiple times in order to hone your ideas into a cohesive argument.
If you get stuck at any point remember to ask for help!
