20+ Academic Essay Examples – PDF

Researching Your Topic

1. Take advantage of your school’s resources to build your bibliography.

Now, as you conduct research, the best place to start would always be the school library. After all, libraries do not just consist of books anymore.

These days, libraries are more up-to-date with technological advancements that allow you to easily navigate through all the books and possibly other references that you might find useful and helpful. If you do not know where to begin, you can always consult the librarian for more details and information. He or she will be glad to help students out. You may also like photo essay examples & samples.

Have you ever been tasked to write the minutes of the meeting before? If you have, then you are probably familiar with the format.

2. Choose appropriate sources.

Wikipedia is a big no-no in research. For starters, it is editable by anyone and everyone. Only fools and stupid people would actually consider Wikipedia a reference. A suggestion would be to look at the references list since it lists down the sources that the editors of the page got it from. You may also check out short essay examples.

Use those sources instead to get more details and information regarding the subject matter at hand. Another advice would be to look for sources that are reputable, well-sourced, and up-to-date. Because the thing with outdated sources is that they may not be considered valid or ideally reliable anymore in the 21st century. Ideally, most of your sources should have been published within the last 5–10 years. You may also see what are the parts of an essay.

You may also try to refer to scholarly books and peer-reviewed articles from academic journals that are usually acceptable sources, including newspaper articles and magazine articles. There are days that you will be tasked to write a letter of application or any professional letter of the sort. It is important that you learn how to.

3. Read your sources critically.

A guide to Thesis Research 101: Even if you have the right source, try not to get too complacent. Because at the end of the day, that may not be the source that can provide you with answers. It always boils down to what kind of content you are exactly looking for. Read your sources thoroughly enough that you are able to extract from it. You may also like concept essay examples.

Here are some of the questions that you ought to be asking to help better understand your sources on how you should analyze your sources. There are different kinds of writing examples that you may be asked to write.

• Where is the author getting their information? Do they provide credible sources?
• Does the author provide convincing evidence to back up their arguments?
• Does the author have any obvious biases or agendas that affect the way they present or interpret their information?

4. Incorporate primary sources, if applicable.

Good and reliable sources are extremely hard to come by these days, especially if it is from primary sources. Primary sources are people who lived through the event and lived to tell the tale. They come in many different forms: personal interviews, memoirs, documentaries, books, among others. You may also see student essay examples.

Secondary sources, on the other hand, are very easy to come by. When you look at secondary sources, such as scholarly papers or news articles, you are seeing the data filtered through someone else’s perspective. Looking at primary data allows you to interpret the evidence for yourself. You may also like sample essay outlines.

Writing is not a talent, but a skill that one acquires through constant practice and determination. You should probably consult with your instructor on how you should go about adding primary sources.

5. Evaluate online sources carefully.

Now here’s where it gets tricky. Online sources. The easiest resource to find (e.g., scholarly journals, e-books), but the trickiest to determine from real or fake information.

In this world filled with fake news and fake information, how can you be sure of what they are feeding you is true or not? Include a fake research article in your research with unverified data and fake quotes, and you will end up doing the whole research again from scratch. To prevent that from happening, here are some of the questions you can ask as you read along the various sources: Here are some examples on how one writes an email.

• Are the author’s credentials given? Is the author qualified to write on the subject?
• Does the author state where they got their information? Are you able to verify the sources?
• Is the article written in an objective, unbiased manner?
• Is the article written for an academic audience? Is the content intended to be educational?
• How does the URL end? Generally, sites that end in .edu, .org, or .gov are more reputable than sites that end in .com.

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Constructing Your Essay

1. Create a clear thesis statement.

Believe it or not, this is considered the most important part of your essay as this is where you get to elaborate clearly and concisely the main argument that you are planning to make in your essay. Limit your thesis statement into one to two sentences. Afterward, you can work on building an outline and essay that ultimately supports your main argument.

2. Make an outline.

Just like writing a novel or a screenplay, you cannot simply jump and just think you can immediately concoct a story out of thin air. No sir, you need proper planning. Without proper planning, your story would turn out to be a huge colossal mess. Similar to writing your professional essay, there must be some sort of outline that you can refer to so that you do not end up getting sidetracked. Listed below is an example of such an outline.

• Introduction
• Body
  • Point 1, with supporting evidence
  • Point 2, with supporting evidence
  • Point 3, with supporting evidence
  • Counterargument(s)
  • Your refutation of the counterargument(s)
• Conclusion

3. Support each statement with examples, evidence, and an analysis.

When you work as a journalist for a prominent newspaper, you cannot simply point out that the leaders of the country are engaging in corrupt practices without concrete proof and evidence. You might end up a laughingstock or even be ridiculed by everyone around you. Your gut and your opinion does not count. Always remain objective. Once you have the proof, analyze it and present your findings to the audience in a way that they can understand. The same goes with a formal essay.

4. Write an introduction.

Before you present the main body of your essay, you will need to provide a little background on the topic. It is often easiest to write the introduction after you have already drafted the rest of your essay. The intro doesn’t have to be an exhaustive overview—just enough information to help set the stage and tell the reader the basics of what they need to know. Your introduction should also include a clear general summary of the main point of your essay, and a breakdown of how you plan to approach the topic.

5. Use transitional sentences.

Your essay should not feel choppy and disjointed. Look for ways to segue from one paragraph to another in a smooth, logical way. You might accomplish this by starting each paragraph with a brief sentence that connects it with the topic of the previous one. You may also see self-introduction essay examples.

6. Cite your sources clearly and correctly.

Plagiarism is a sin and it is a big no-no in anything. But you are allowed to paraphrase and quote directly from the proponents themselves. If you do that, you will not end up in any form of trouble. Acknowledge your sources properly.

7. Address counterarguments.

If you come across any convincing counterarguments to your thesis, acknowledge them in your essay. If you can, provide evidence to refute these counterarguments.

Addressing alternative interpretations of the evidence will show that you have researched your topic thoroughly and allow you to present your case in a fair and balanced manner. Convincingly rebutting the major counterarguments will make your own argument more compelling to your readers. You may also like informative essay examples.

8. Write a concluding paragraph.

Once you have presented your arguments and evidence, tie everything together with a concise summary. State, in a clear and confident way, why you think that your argument successfully supports your thesis, and summarize a few of the key points or discoveries that you made. If you have any final thoughts, such as ideas for further research on the topic or questions that still need to be answered, this is the place to state them. You may also check out persuasive essay examples.

Use a few sentences to reflect on the significance of your argument and how it might affect future studies of this topic.

9. Create a bibliography.

Unless you have the IQ of Albert Einstein, you cannot claim that no research or study assisted you in your research or essay. Worst case scenario, you will be sued for plagiarism and will probably be asked to pay some sort of fine. You might be interested in descriptive essay examples.

Every source or reference or book you borrow, make sure to always take note of the following information:

• The name of the author
• The title of the work
• The name of the publisher and the place of publication
• The date of the publication

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