Key Elements Your Term Paper Has To Include

An assignment to write a term paper is a daunting task. When you were in high school you were required to take exams, or short answer quizzes. They occurred on a regular basis and all counted equally towards your final grade. In college, this is all different. You no longer get pop quizzes, and regular weekly tests on the subject. You sit in a large room and listen to lectures from your professor. You are given a list of reading materials which you must complete on your own with no direction or deadlines. Your grade is based on a single term paper which must be submitted by the end of the semester. After a few college courses, you get the hang of the procedure, but the first few times you undertake the assignments it can be quite a shock your system.

A quality paper

The great term paper starts with the selection of a topic. Hopefully, you can consult with your professor about the subject of your term paper, but many times you are given the topic. You need to do a detailed outline, complete thorough research, proofread, and edit. There are some elements that your finished product must always include:

  • Title page. This is simple sentence, phrase, or group of words which convey an overview about the subject of your paper. There are specific guidelines that must be followed concerning spacing, margins, and the necessary information that must be included on the page, such as name, date, and course title.
  • Introduction. In some cases, a professor may want an abstract before the introduction or a table of contents. If it is an especially long term paper, you may want to place a table of contents after the title page. The abstract is a miniature version of your term paper. It gives your professor the highlights of your entire paper in a condensed fashion. The introduction is an enticement, a tease to get your professor to turn the page and read more of your work.
  • Body. This is the section where you flesh out your arguments make your logical assumptions, and state the facts and evidence which are important for your issues.
  • Conclusion. After discussing all salient points of your topic, your conclusion is where you bring it all together in a coherent statement. This will be a well reasoned deduction based on the evidence from the body of our paper.
  • References. Finally, after your conclusion, you need to list all sources of material and facts you used when writing the paper, properly cited in the format approved by your school.
