Research Paper Planner

A 6-week summer session, a 10-week quarter, and even a semester can seem short, so save time!

(Note: The schedule below assumes that you will receive your assignment in
Week 1 or Week 2 of the term. Check with your instructor or your librarian for
advice on adjusting this schedule if you get your assignment after Week 2.)

Step 1 : Get Started

WHEN?
Summer Session (6-week): Week 1
Quarter: Weeks 1-2
Semester (16-week & 18-week): Week 2

Be sure to:

• Read and understand your assignment
• What is an academic paper?
• Try the Road to Research online tutorial
• English as a second language
• Use the Assignment Calculator to create your own research schedule

STEP 2: Pick and focus your topic; write a hypothesis or argument

WHEN?
Summer Session (6-week): Week 2
Quarter: Weeks 2-3
Semester (16-week & 18-week): Weeks 3-4

• Topic invention techniques
• Thought starters
• Brainstorm topic search words. Choosing a topic
• Narrow or broaden your topic
• Try it! Topic Narrowing/Broadening Exercise
  

  STEP 3: Design research strategy and choose useful information sources

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Week 2
  Quarter: Weeks 2-3
  Semester (16-week): Weeks 3-4
  Semester (18-week): Weeks 4-5

  • Check the flow of information
  • Select an appropriate type of information source

  Step 4: Use encyclopedias to get a topic overview

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Week 3
  Quarter: Weeks 4-5
  Semester (16-week): Weeks 5-6
  Semester (18-week): Weeks 6-7

  • Library Spot Encyclopedia
  • More online encyclopedias (some free, some for UCLA students, staff, and faculty only)
  • Wikipedia - Is it acceptable for college level research? Check links below AND ask your instructor
  • Nature article comparing it favorably to Encyclopaedia Britannica and supplementary information
  • New York Times article, Anonymous Source is Not the Same as Open Source
  • IPTA Blog, The Problem with Wikipedia

  Step 5: Find useful books

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Week 3
  Quarter: Weeks 4-5
  Semester (16-week): Weeks 6-8
  Semester (18-week): Weeks 8-9

  • Watch a video on how to use the Catalog
  • Search the UCLA Library Catalog
  • Evaluate books
  • Find College Library books on the shelf: ground floor (Powell) and 1st floor (Powell)

  STEP 6: Find useful periodical (magazine, journal, newspaper) articles

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Weeks 3 -4
  Quarter: Weeks 4-7
  Semester (16-week): Weeks 8-10
  Semester (18-week): Weeks 9-11

  • Find article index databases by subject
  • Evaluate article index databases
  • Scholarly Journal Articles v. Popular Magazine Articles
  • Watch videos on how to find useful articles
  • Evaluate articles
  • Google Scholar
  • Learn how Google Scholar compares to article databases
  • Get Articles for free!
    • Search the UCLA Library Catalog for periodical subscriptions (e.g., Newsweek)
    • Use the BOL proxy server off campus (UCLA students, staff and faculty only)
    • Request a FREE copy of an article UCLA does not own (UCLA students, staff and faculty only)
  • Try It! Road to Research: Find It! Articles, Exercise

  STEP 7: Find authoritative, accurate, complete, and up to date web sites

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Weeks 4-5
  Quarter: Weeks 4-7
  Semester (16-week): Week 10
  Semester (18-week): Week 11

  • Thinking Critically about Web 2.0 and Beyond
  • Hoax? Scholarly research? Personal opinion? You decide!
  • Try it! Internet Evaluation Form (UC Berkeley)

  STEP 8: Outline paper

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Week 4
  Quarter: Weeks 5-7
  Semester (16-week): Week 11
  Semester (18-week): Week 12

  • Writing a Research Paper (See links on left side of page.)

  STEP 9: Analyze, compare and contrast the evidence, come to your own conclusions, and write first draft

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Weeks 4-5
  Quarter: Weeks 7-9
  Semester (16-week): Weeks 11-13
  Semester (18-week): Weeks 14-17

  • Plagiarism -- What is it?
  • Bruin Success with Less Stress (tutorial on plagiarism and documentation)
  • Planning and writing a research paper

  STEP 10: Conduct additional research, if necessary

  WHEN?
  During any term, periodically reevaluate, and repeat Steps 4-7, as needed

  STEP 11: Revise and rewrite

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Weeks 5-6
  Quarter: Weeks 8-9
  Semester (16-week): Weeks 12-15
  Semester (18-week): Weeks 14-17

• Get Writing Help (Covel Commons)

  STEP 12: Put paper in final form

  WHEN?
  Summer Session (6-week): Week 6
  Quarter: Week 10
  Semester (16-week): Week 16
  Semester (18-week): Week 18

  • Why do I need to cite?
  • Which is Which? What is Where?
    To determine correct citation format, first figure out what kind of item you want to cite.
  • How to cite: KnightCite or Citation Machine