DOCTORAL WRITING TIPS: PLEASE READ-IMPORTANT-HINT, HINT, HINT Please use the tips below and I am almost certain you will get a much better grade, create very polished, doctoral-level papers, and will have a MUCH easier time on your proposal/project/dissertation as these items are REQUIRED. 1. Do not use too many direct quotes — in academia there is an emphasis put on being able to read, assimilate, and paraphrase thus the use of direct quotes is really an academic no-no in most cases. Just to give you an example, in a paper of about 10 pages I would expect to see no more than one or two direct quotes–if at all. Use direct quotes only where you need to emphasize something that is unique and requires an exact replay of whatever it is that you are trying to say. This being said, keep yourself out of harm’s way and avoid the use of direct quotes as much as possible.
2. All ‘statements of fact’ MUST be cited in your paper. All citations noted within the body of your paper, slides, tables, charts or graphs, should also have corresponding full references in the back of your paper in the References section. Only items that are cited in your paper should appear in the reference section. No other items should ever be in the reference section unless they were already cited in your paper.
3. Read all assignments VERY carefully. Too many times I see students lose valuable points as they read their assignment one time and start writing. Most of the time when this is done, critical requirements are missed, resulting in many lost points and a greatly reduced grade.
The Essay on Reading History Read Book Time
My Reading History If one were to look at my varied reading habits, they would be struck by the diversity and over all unusual ness of my mind's library. I hardly remember the plot of the first book I read, but it was called Lonesome Dove. It wasn't the actual first book I read, but I don't really count the McGregor Readers from kindergarten. I read it in first grade because of my Grandmother's ...
4. If you must use direct quotes (which again, should be infrequently at best), you absolutely positively MUST have a page number or paragraph number (if it is a non-paginated website).
This is not only an APA regulation but one that will also help you avoid a charge of plagiarism. This is VERY serious so please take note.
5. Do not use sources that are ancient unless it is truly a section using historical background. Recently I saw a student paper where they were citing current sources and then jumped in and cited a source from 1948 . . . and it was not a historical section!! This was merely an irrelevant and ancient reference that should not have been included in that paper.
6. If a central point was noted in your requirements for the assignment, make sure that you cover that exact point, making direct reference to it, citing it, and of course including a corresponding reference in the reference section. Example if you were to compare and contrast a noted author, be sure in your paper that you specifically mention that author, their works, the date of their work, and also make reference to that citation in the Reference section of your paper.
7. If you are making a general statement with a citation, then you would not use a page number or a paragraph number. Only direct quotes that should be used very sparingly would get page and paragraph numbers (Are you getting the idea you should avoid the use of direct quotes
