Ten Tips On Writing A Paper For An Online College Course

Most students feel at loss about how to go about writing a paper for an online college course. This is a step by step guide to writing a college paper.

1. Brainstorm Ideas

Write down the topic name at the top of a piece of paper and write down everything that you know about the topic. Consider pros and cons of the subject matter as you write.

2. Decide on an Argument

After rereading your brainstorming ideas choose an argument about the subject that you can prove through writing. The goal of the paper is decided in the argument and makes it easier to convincingly present ideas.

3. Build on Your Original Ideas

Before starting to do research keep your brainstorming ideas written down earlier because it helps to keep your original ideas on hand so that it won’t be tempting to write a paper full of another person’s ideas which is plagiarism.

4. Research

Research your subject matter using textbooks, encyclopedias, journals, and reliable websites. Pay attention to both pros and cons of your argument. Later on when writing the paper you can provide rebuttals to the cons.

5. Citations

Students avoid plagiarism by using citations. Citations allow the professor to know which sources that you are referring to or quoting in your paper. Your professor should provide a citation method he or she prefers.

6. Write a Thesis Statement

A thesis statement is a one sentence statement that describes the central idea that will be argued within the paper. It is usually the last sentence in the introductory paragraph before the essay.

7. Create a Outline

Make a outline or an informal list of each paragraph that you are going to write. This helps the paper to be well organized and structured before it is written.

8. Write a First Draft

Use your outline to write your first draft. Use a topic sentence to begin each paragraph and focus on that topic within the paragraph. If a topic is really detailed divide the topic into two or more subtopics.

9. Revise

After writing the first draft take a break from writing if time allows. After a day or two reread the first draft and make sure the first draft is original, uses concise language, and is well organized. Revise the paper to improve on it. There is no limitation to the number of times a paper can be revised.

10. Proofreading for Spelling and Grammar

After an initial spelling and grammar check using a computer spell check program reread the paper sentence by sentence to ensure that there are no spelling or grammatical errors that the spell check failed to find.

In conclusion, college papers can be simple and easy to write if college students take the time to use a step by step process.