How long should my draft paper be?

Since your final research paper is expected to be around 2000 words, a good rule of thumb is at least 500 words for your first draft

Do I need a cover page and reference page?

Yes. These do not count in the “word count”

Do I need to show any sources for my draft?

Yes. While you are expected to include a minimum of seven (7) sources, you are encouraged to use more sources if applicable to your topic.

Do I have to follow the headings provided in the instructions?

Yes. It may be tempting to come up with your own headings (as some of the students in the past have done successfully), most students are better off just sticking with the standard headings as these will help you structure your paper and organize your sources

It is important to take the time and go through these instructions.

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Start with a title page – the title of your research can be anything that you want as long as it indicates the core of your research (the reader has to know what topic you’ll be discussing simply by reading the title of your paper)
2. Your research paper will be structured in to 6 distinct areas (headings or section titles):

• ABSTRACT
• INTRODUCTION
• DISCUSSION
• LITERATURE REVIEW
• CONCLUSION
• REFERENCES

To help you understand the significance of each heading, following is a breakdown and explanation for each (as you can see, the first section is your abstract, and if you completed the practice activity, this section would now be finished)

Abstract

1. Introduce the topic and briefly describe what you will be discussing and why it is important
2. Remember your topics are found in your Research Topics document
3. You must choose one of the 5 topics from the list; no other topic will be accepted for this research paper, unless previously approved by instructor
4. An abstract is a summary paragraph of the entire paper and comes right after your cover page. It briefly tells the reader: topic of your paper, why the topic is important, what important research has been done on the topic, and what you, as the writer, will explore further in your paper.
5. Usually, the last sentence of your abstract is your thesis. Now that you have decided on your topic, and you have written the abstract (usually one paragraph long), it’s time to write your thesis – a thesis is the main idea that you will be researching in your paper

Introduction

1. Briefly tell the reader why is this topic of interest to you and why is it important and relevant to the study of International Relations?
2. Give details of the topic and what you plan to discuss

Discussion and background of your topic

1. This is where you go in depth, describing in greater detail your topic and why it is important and/or why you find it of interest and why it is relevant in today’s world affairs – you repeat your introduction but give it greater detail and context (numbers, surveys, graphs, charts, sources which support your argument)
2. Be specific and narrow your topic as much as possible – a topic that is too broad and covers too many aspects will be difficult to research
3. For instance, if you choose to discuss the just war doctrine, you should look at 1 or 2 wars/conflicts which you have judged to meet or not meet this criteria and make your argument based on that finding – remember that war is probably never morally or ethically justified, but can be justified for other purposes, so it’s important your paper shows your understanding of the topic.

Research and literature review of the topic

1. Discuss some of the research papers and/or articles you find that support your topic
2. Other people have researched your topic; what do they say about it?
3. Be sure to include as many sources as possible in your reference page
4. Papers without any sources will receive a ZERO – while a first draft is meant to help you define your topic and your argument, you are still expected to conduct research and read up on the topic which you plan to discuss and include a few sources

Conclusion

1. Wrap up and describe briefly what you just discussed, what you have learned and why it is important
2. Researchers often make suggestions here for further research and data collections
3. For example, if your topic discussed the impact of colonial history on present day globalization, you might suggest that research should be done in the area of global finance and how the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank are helping or not helping developing nations by lending them money, and then expecting them to pay it back once they develop – this is problematic because a nation’s resources have to be used to further advance the nation’s development, but if a country is stuck in a loop of borrowing and repaying, it may never be able to develop any industry enough to become sustainable and self-reliant

References

1. This is the section of your paper where your APA formatted references are listed
2. Minimum required sources: 7
3. No more than 2 online sources allowed – an online source is usually a website (an organization such as valenciacollege.edu or a blog)
4. Printed sources are those available in print such as books, academic journals, reports filed by institutions and organizations (United Nations, European Union, White House, Homeland Security Department) – remember that most printed sources are also accessible to you online via various portals such as Valencia College online library and JSTOR; online sources are also news papers such as Orlando Sentinel, New York Times, Wall Street Journal

While there is no specific page requirement, a typical draft is at least 500 words, double spaced; you’ll also include title page and reference page/bibliography, however these do not count towards page numbers or as part of word count – keep in mind that your final paper will be approximately 2000 pages.

DOUBLE SPACE!

Purdue Owl APA guide:

https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_format.html (Links to an external site.)