Writing Your College Papers
Step 1: Choose a topic & have your topic approved by your classroom instructor.
Step 2: Find resources (articles, books, etc.) & maintain bibliographic information on all sources.
Step 3: Write your thesis statement (1 or 2 sentences that explains the main idea of your paper).
Step 4: Organize your thoughts by drafting an outline (you can always make changes later).
Step 5: Now, you’re ready to begin writing, paragraph by paragraph, using your outline as a guide.
Formatting Guidelines
Sample Thesis Statements
Oncology is a vastly growing field that is expected to grow as the aging population steadily increases and medical assistants, in oncology practices,are required to havevery specific job qualifications.
Heating, Ventilation, Air Conditioning & Refrigeration (HVACR) is agrowing career field that has several certification options, advancement opportunities, and good income potentials that one can reach asa trained and certified technician.
General equivalence mappings (GEMS) can streamline the switch from ICD-9 to ICD-10; and by using specific GEMS techniques and procedures, we can make the switch to ICD-10 more streamlined.
Title Page SampleOutline Sample
What is a quotation?
A quotation can be direct or indirect. A direct quotation reproduces another person's words exactly, using quotation marks. An indirect quotation rephrases another person's words into their own sentence or sentences. Using indirect quotes is calledparaphrasing [the information]. When paraphrasing, unless the information is “common knowledge,” you are still required to provide an in-text citation.
When should I use quotations?
You MUST use quotation marks when you want to use somebody else’s “exact words.” If you find you are overloading your paper with too many quotes, try paraphrasing or summarizing the information.
Short Quotations (less than 40 words) – See Example Below in Bold at End of Paragraph
Use quotation marks in the text of the report, followed by an in-text citation.
Long Quotations (more than 40 words) –See Example Below in Highlighted Box
Indent the paragraph on both sides and single space the entire quotation, followed by an in-text citation.
What is a citation?
There are 2 kinds of citations that need to be in your academic paper (see explanations below).
1)In-text citationsare notations in the body of your report that tell the reader where the specific information you are quoting or paraphrasing came from. Your professor should be able to look at your in-text citation, and then go to your bibliography page to find out, exactly, where you found your information.
Sample In-Text Citations UsingAPA Style
1. Book or article – no known author (Short Title, 2000)
2. Book – 1 author(Johnson, 2001) **Paraphrase needs citation
(Johnson, 2001, p. 123) **Direct quote needs page numbers
Johnson (2001) states . . .
According to one source (Johnson, 2001) . . .
3. Book – 1 author – No Date(Avery, n.d.)
4. Book – 2 authors(Johnson & Adams, 2004, p. 123-128)
5. Book – 3-5 authors1st cite: (Johnson, Adams, Jones, 2008)
2nd cite: (Johnson, et al., 2008)
6. Book – 6+ authors(Adams et al., 2001)
7. Encyclopedia – 1 author(Jones, 2002, p. 65)
8. Encyclopedia – Editor only (Thompson, 2002, p. 65) editor treated as author to match reference page
9. Magazine – no author(“Writing Mania”, 2002, p. 88)
10. Magazine – 1 author(Johnson, 2003, p. 89)
11. Website – no author. . . cited the study (“Baker Writing Study”, n.d.).
12. Website – 1 authorKeith (2000) explained . . .
13. Corporate Acronym1st cite: (United Nations [UN], 2001) 2nd cite: (UN, 2001)
14. Electronic SourcesAs Johnson (2003, 5) aptly suggests, . . . (5 means 5th paragraph)
15. Electronic Web Site. . . is a wonderful place to learn writing (
16. Unknown Author &(“Writing with APA Style,” n.d.)
Unknown Date
17. ParaphraseAccording to Cameron (2006), the writing of essays . . .
18. Direct Quoteexample (a) Pryor noted that “writing can be difficult but fun” (p. 5).
example (b) “Writing can be difficult but fun” (Pryor, p. 5).
19. Newspaper. . . substantial information (Johnson, 2009, February 10).
2) Bibliographic citationsare a listing of references that you used in your research. They are listed alphabetically (by first letters of each entry) on a page titled “Bibliography” at the end of your report. Please refer to a writer’s handbook(campus library) or an Internet site like or help you correctly format your bibliographic citations.
Sample Bibliographic Citations(APA Style)
Electronic Sources
1. Web Page – one authorLast Name, F. (Year Published, Month Day). Page or Article Title. Website Title.
Retrieved from URL
2. Encyclopedia – no authorBlood. (2009). Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved from
3. Web Page – no authorNew styles of writing. (2012). Retrieved from
4. Web Page – no dateLloyd, T. (n.d.). Writing for college. Grammar guidance. Retrieved from
5. Online NewspaperStoddard, H. (2010). High school writing. The Palm Beach Post.Retrieved from
6. Online VideoNational Geographic. (2012). Ends of the Earth: Six degrees could change the world [Video]. Retrieved from
7. Stand Alone DocumentRothchild survey. (2014). Retrieved from
8. Electronic Database w/DOI*Parapia, L. (2008). History of bloodletting by phlebotomy. British Journal of
Haematology, 143, 490 – 495. doi: 10.1111/j. 1365-2141.2008.07361.x
9. Electronic Database w/ no DOI*Schuller, B. (2014). Creative writing. Education Today, 52. Retrieved from
Print Sources*Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
1. Book – no author – EditorDucan, J. & Bradsaw, T. (Eds.). (2014). Growing trends in writing.New York: Ropubs.
2. Book – 1 authorJackson, T. (2015). The art of writing. New York: Harper & Row.
[Last, F. M. (Year Published). Book Title. City(location of publisher), State: Publisher Name.]
3. Book – 2 authorsCooper, J. & Williams, J. (2008). Fun with writing. Cleveland:Shooting Star Press.
4. Book – 6+ authorsAdams, J., Cooper, T., Mathison, C., Pressley, J., Smith, J.,Peterson, J., et al. (2012). Writing a thesis. New York: Johnson Publishing.
5. Encyclopedia – no authorIreland.(2011). World Book Encyclopedia, vol. 10, 44-48. Chicago: World Book, Inc.
6. Magazine or Journal– 1 authorJamison, T. (2009, July). The storyteller. Children’s Reading, vol. 59, 122-124.
[Author, First Initial. (Date). Title of article. Magazine Title, volume, page numbers.]
7. Newspaper ArticleJacobs, T. (2014, August 21). Essay writing in today’shigh schools. Orlando Sentinel,pp. A1, A9.
Sample Reference Page
Carrie Brang, MLIS1|PageLearning Resource Center 2016(3)