Term Paper:
Using the knowledge that the student acquires during the course, the student will prepare an empirical research paper.
- The papers should not exceed 15 double spaced pages, not including cover page and appendices.
- Papers are to be RESEARCH PAPERS. Remember that work that you use from other authors MUST be referenced. Since it is assumed that you are not an authority on the topic that you are writing, it is expected that this paper is an overview of many different sources of information. These must be contributed to the author using the APA format.
- This is your paper and not the cut and paste of someone else’s work. The internet has led to a false sense of what research is all about. Those new to research tend to think that it means spending an afternoon surfing the internet and then an afternoon cutting from material available. Keep in mind that the Internet is: (1) not quality oriented as it has good materials and not so good materials, and the Internet does not know the difference; (2) the Internet is NOT a sole source location. In particular, sources such as Wikipedia are the works of individual submitters which are not reviewed. Thus while many entries provide excellent information, some are fundamentally flawed or just plain wrong. Keep in mind that the Boston University Library as well as your local, state and the national US Library of Congress have extensive online services. USE THEM.
- The research paper must include a bibliography of information and works cited.
- The paper should be prepared using the APA writing style and guideline for references’ format. You must provide a bibliography, and all direct quotations and data sources must be properly cited. The Department uses the APA style as to facilitate both, reading the paper and understanding references without being cumbersome as some of the other styles (such as Chicago or MLA). Students can download the student style guide from APA Style® Help) web site.
