Step 1: choosing a topic

The first step towards writing a research paper is deciding on a topic. Your instructor may assign a topic or you may have to come up with one on your own. If you have to choose your topic, you may want to brainstorm by thinking about your class:

• What have you been talking about?
• What have you been reading?
• What interests you most?

Write down your ideas and some key words you might use to describe each one. Then, state your topic as a question. For example, if you are interested in finding out about the use of alcoholic beverages by college students, you might pose the question, "What effect does the use of alcoholic beverages have on the health of college students?" It's important to have more than one idea and to be flexible - you may have to narrow, broaden, or even change your topic as you move through the research process.

Go on to Getting Some Background Information

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