Most students will have to write research papers. However, not all of them really know how to write this type of assignment, and instruction might be difficult to come by. Here’s all you need to know to get started...

Why do students need to write research papers?
A research paper is the same type of academic work as all others (essays, theses, laboratory reports, etc.). Students who want to get to the bottom of things and phenomena, understand and analyze some topics, and make some discoveries themselves write research papers.

Writing a research paper is the process of acquiring knowledge, conducting the study, and presenting findings for a grade.

 
Tips on how to start your research paper

Have research papers to write? Do not worry. Here are ten recommendations that will help you write them more easily:

1. Come up with an interesting hook
From the very beginning, your research paper must grab the reader's attention. A hook can help with this. Use good hooks for research papers to interest the reader. 

2. Competently formulate your research topic 
Don't take a question that is too broad to study. For example, if you are a fan of Stephen King, you should not research the entire body of his work. Stop at a certain period of his life, or study the history of the creation of "It," for example. What inspires you? If you get stuck on this task, ask your professor for help.

3. Analyze the scope of work
Generally, the difficulty level of the course will affect this. For example, a student must prepare about 20-30 pages of printed text to speak at a scientific conference. A dissertation can contain over 300 pages. A freshman paper might be 15 pages. Where are you at, in your degree? The scope should be appropriate to the educational level in which you're working.

4. Review previous research on this topic
Compare it with your own data and draw conclusions.

5. Formulate the purpose and tasks of the research paper
This will help prepare both your research and conclusion. Moreover, it's much better to achieve goals when you clearly formulate them for yourself. Don't start your research paper without a clear purpose.

6. Determine relevance
Outline possible ways to solve the problem you are proposing to research. Before writing an introduction to a research paper, you should ascertain why you chose this particular topic.

7. Think about what you will include in the main part, known as the body of the paper
Here, you should describe the intermediate results of the study, observations, and experiments and draw preliminary conclusions.

8. Think about the logic of your work in advance
Before starting to write your research paper, you need to determine the logic of presenting your thoughts and their sequence. A leads to B leads to C, etc. An outline will definitely help with ordering your thoughts and work.

9. Brainstorm conclusions 
It is important to correctly summarize the work done, describe its merits, and also determine future paths in the chosen area.

10. Create a bibliography
This is critical! It is comprised of a list of resources that you used in your study. It is, perhaps, the most important part of the entire paper. 

Here’s a sample outline for sections of your research paper: 
• Title page
• Table of contents
• Definitions
• Abbreviations and designations
• Introduction
• Body
• Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Appendices, if necessary

Six tips for formatting a research paper according to academic standards

As with any student work, it is important to format a research paper according to academic rules. Here are the main ones:

1. After writing, check your paper for stylistic, grammatical, or spelling errors. Write the text with one and a half spacing, 14-point font. 

2. Use graphs, diagrams, and tables as you present the material. Place additional information in the appendices. Number all tables within the section with Arabic numerals.

3. The style of references to sources throughout the work should be the same. When using direct quotations, place them in quotation marks. Your professor will note in the course syllabus which citation format to follow (APA, MLA, Chicago, etc.).

4. When formatting the title page, make sure it contains the name of the educational institution. Also, add the name of the research paper and its type (coursework, term paper, etc.). Include your name and, at the very bottom, the date. In general, before researching, writing, and formatting your paper, look at examples of finished work or ask your professor for a sample from previous years.

5. Appendices start on a new page. Write the word "appendices" in the center. 

6. The bibliography should be arranged alphabetically by the last names of the authors. Again, use the format your professor requests (APA, etc.).

These are some important rules for starting, writing, and formatting a research paper. Now on to the fun part, the one we love so much...the research and writing! You can do it!