It is not a secret that a research paper is a common task for students and also the first step towards a scientific career. We are going to share tips on how to write and format a high-quality research paper in electronics engineering.
What is a research paper?
A research paper is a student, scientific or journalistic work that contains a detailed overview of a particular topic, problem, phenomenon, or concept. Teachers often assign a research paper as homework to enable students to independently strengthen the skills of collecting, analyzing, synthesizing, organizing, and presenting large amounts of information. In addition, while working on the research paper, students master the scientific style that they will need later.
Engineering is not an easy discipline. And writing a research paper on it or doing assignments is sometimes very difficult for students. For example, when completing assignments in civil engineering, students may be dumbstruck since the topics are very difficult sometimes. In this case, it is better to ask for civil engineering homework help on special services.
How to plan a research paper?
Usually, all research papers have the same structure. They include the following structural sections: “Introduction,” “Main part,” “Conclusion.” It is important to remember that the introduction and conclusion should contain no more than 10–15% of the total research paper.
In addition, each research paper should also have formal subsections “Title Page,” “Contents,” or “Research Paper Plan” and “References.” At will and if necessary, the “Appendices” section is also added to the research paper.
Let’s find out more information about all subsections in order:
- The title section contains a mention of the educational institution, subject, or discipline – electronics engineering, topic, author, and supervisor of the paper, as well as the year the work was written. The title section is drawn up in different ways, depending on the educational institution where the author of the research paper studies, so for correct formatting, you should ask the teacher for a sample of a title section.
- The “Contents” or “Research Paper Plan” section contains all the information about the content of the paper, indicating the pages. It is important to remember that the “Contents” section is added mainly to those works that have two or more sections in the main part. In research papers with a smaller volume, the “Contents” or “Summary Plan” sections usually do not make sense since the structure and content of the work are already clear and simple. However, if the teacher says that the Content is a mandatory section, then it should be added, regardless of the length of your research paper.
- In the introduction, the student sets out the relevance of the topic, names previous researchers of the topic, and determines what goals and objectives their paper is faced with. In the introduction, the author also briefly describes the structure and content of their work.
- In the main part, you state the body of the research paper, reveal the topic with reference to existing research. This section is formatted with a presentation at the top of the page centered on the title of the chapter and paragraph. The main text is typed with two spaces indented. The second and following chapters are drawn up by analogy. The end of the text part is necessarily accompanied by brief conclusions. You can make the research paper more visual with the help of tables, illustrations, charts, and diagrams. The chapters correspond to approximately the same volume.
- In a conclusion, the author of the research paper sums up the work and talks about the results that have been achieved in the paper.
- The references are added to the sources that the author of the research paper used to write the work. It is important to remember that not only those studies cited in the paper should be added to the list of references, but also those that the author used to prepare the text of the research paper, even if they were not included in the body of the main part.
How to write a research paper: General tips
- Adhere to the formal requirements for the format and writing of a research paper. Correctly formatted work will be evaluated higher because one of the key tasks in writing a research paper is precisely the correct format.
- Avoid plagiarism in your paper. Despite the fact that the research paper does not require scientific novelty, and this work will be based on other research in one way or another, you should approach writing responsibly. Try to rephrase current thoughts in your own words. It may be difficult at first, but over time you will master this skill, and it will be easier for you to compose and write other scientific papers. You can check your research paper for plagiarism for free on many services. Keep in mind that your teacher can also use these services to authenticate your work, so play it safe and be academically virtuous.
- Before starting work, make a research paper plan for yourself. First, explore the database of information sources and relevant scientific literature. Based on what you read, make a rough work plan. From this draft plan, you will later be able to compile the Content section, which will be included in the final version of your research paper.
- Be sure after writing the text of the research paper, re-read your work several times to check it for typos, syntactic, factual, and logical errors. During the writing and due to repeated reading of the same thing, students miss mistakes. In this case, install a special program that can identify mistakes on your computer. These free artificial intelligence apps can automatically find flaws in text and show them to you. Another way to effectively get rid of mistakes is the help of a friend. Agree with a classmate to review the texts of each other’s research papers.
- Write a research paper in a scientific style, avoid colloquial formulations, and writing in the first person. Instead, use the list of recommended linking phrases provided by your supervisor.
- Drafts of the “Introduction” and “Conclusion” can also be written before the “Main Part.” However, experienced scholars advise writing these descriptive sections at the very end, when the body of the text is ready. Then you will have a solid foundation, and it will be easier for you to describe the content, goals, relevance, and other important points.
- Start working on the research paper in advance in order to have time to go through all the stages of preparation without haste. In the bustle, you will make many mistakes in both format and content. Doing the work at a relaxed pace, both the quality of the result and your emotional state will be better.
How to format a research paper?
The font size used is usually 11. The font is Times New Roman. Line spacing is 1.5. The text of the research paper should be aligned in width, and the contents of the Title Page and section headings should be centered.
Each new section must be started on a new page. To avoid manually indenting, use the tool that does it automatically. Numbering should be on each page, in the upper right corner, except for the title page. It is included in the general numbering; however, 1 is not put down, and the numbering of the research paper starts from page 2.
Footnotes and references to sources can be formatted in two ways. The first of these is to move links down the page where the source was mentioned. The second is to add after the mention of the source in square brackets its number from the Reference List and the page on which the cited passage is located. Ask your teacher about the method that is recommended for your research paper.
The list of references should be drawn up in alphabetical order and according to the rules of your educational institution; however, they change from time to time. You can find the current requirements on the site of your university. There are also online tools that can automate the bibliography process for you.
Use our recommendations, and you will write an excellent paper in electronics engineering. Good luck!
