Research Process

Maybe you've never really written a research paper. Maybe you didn't know what you were doing last time you wrote one. Maybe it's been a while and you've forgotten. No matter what the scenario is, we can help at every step of the way.

This guide will help you through the process of research, including picking a topic, focusing you topic, finding keywords, searching library resources, evaluating sources, and citing sources.

If you are having trouble at any point during the research process, please contact a librarian and we can help you.

Check out our live and recorded webinars (Research Skills Refresh and Citation Station series in particular) and video tutorials as well.

Another good campus resource is the Marian E. Wright Writing Center, located on the third floor of the library. They help students during any stage of the writing process, including selecting a topic, developing ideas, revising and editing papers, formatting papers correctly, and citations. They also help with preparation for public speaking and presentations.

Staying organized through out your project is incredibly important. A research log is one way to keep the information and sources you find organized. Both versions have areas for your research question, the search terms and alternative search terms you use, what terms did not yield relevant results, bibliographic information about the sources you find, and notes for how the source should be used in your project.