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ENGL 1300 Research Guide

Research Paper Process

Step one: define the topic. Step two: narrow the topic. Step three: gather background information. Step four: create a research question. Step five: find and evaluate sources. Step six: cite sources. Step seven: write the paper.

Starting Your Research

The first step is to choose a topic. We recommend you consider the following:

  1. What topic are you interested in?
  2. If your topic was set by the instructor, what does your instructor want you to learn by doing the research?

Once the topic is selected, you should:

  1. Do a preliminary search for background information on the topic using a reference source, such as Credo Reference (Credo).
  2. Take note of significant people, places, events, etc. Consider why your topic is important to learn about today.
  3. Narrow your topic. Focus on the aspects that the paper will discuss.
  4. Create initial thesis statement.

  5. Search for scholarly articles (recently published academic research) that support your thesis. You can find them using library databases like Academic Search Complete (EBSCO) or JSTOR Arts & Sciences I-XV (JSTOR). For additional databases, please see the "Find Articles" tab or our A-Z List.

Background Research

Search the database Credo to familiarize yourself with and explore your topic. Credo Reference gives you access to over 600 reputable encyclopedias online. Short encyclopedia articles can help you to quickly identify concepts, topics, issues, and keywords for your topic.   Credo is a scholarly version of Wikipedia and comes with properly formatted citations!