As a student, you need to score better grades on your research papers in order to obtain higher GPA. Here are the six tested and proven steps that you can follow to consistently write ‘A’ grade papers irrespective of what your skill level is currently:
#1: Build your thesis around an idea, premise or claim
It is your thesis and you need to take it in the right direction. In the introduction, state clearly as to what you will be discussing in the thesis. Otherwise, your paper will be ambiguous, vague, and not different from those that are submitted by others. You must also tell the readers as to what they would learn by reading your thesis. No one will read your thesis if they are not going to learn anything new.
#2: Prepare an outline as to what you want to include in your paper
Preparing an outline helps you to remember what you should do next. It also hastens the writing process and ensures that the writing is properly organized. It is difficult to define as to exactly how you should write an outline, but here are a few suggestions:
Figure out what you want to write and how you want to present the same.
Include supporting arguments.
Tie all the ideas together and give a definitive conclusion.
#3: Do research to gather the information you need
It involves listing down the sources that could provide information in support of your idea. Preparing an outline helps to focus and speed up the research process. This is because you know exactly what you are looking for. Depending on the direction taken by a source, you can decide whether to add the same to your list or not. Do not look for perfect sources. Look for sources that can support your argument.
#4: Start writing the thesis
You are now ready to start writing your thesis. However, you may be required to do more research as you write if the topic is of complex nature. As you have already prepared the outline, you can go about detailing each of the subtopics in it. However, it is important to keep in mind the fact that whatever you write after the introduction should be focused on your thesis.
#5: Read through your thesis and correct errors
It is important to read through and edit your paper. This enables you to rearrange subtopics (if required), improve the presentation, and eliminate grammatical errors and typos. The end result is that you will score better grades on your thesis. Editing also involves analyzing as to how effective you have been in getting the message across to the readers as in your outline. You may have to tweak and refine your writing to get closer to your goal.
#6: Prepare a checklist of the things to be included in your paper
This may be the final step, but a crucial one. The checklist enables you to ensure that you have not forgotten to include everything needed to make your paper appealing in terms of content, structure, and presentation.
