PS 4211 - Senior Seminar (Kleintop)

It is important before you start your research, to spend some time thinking about your topic. By identifying key themes, you will be able to develop a better idea of what your research might look like.

Start by trying to answer the following questions:

• What don’t you know about this topic?
• Why is it important?
• Why are you interested in it?

 Consider your assignment and its purpose. Are you writing an overview of a topic or taking a stance on an issue? Who will be reading it? There any many different types of resources and answering this question will tell you what kind of resources you should use.

• Research articles are best for writing about new developments in a field. They are the gold standard for papers in the sciences because they are written by experts, for experts. 
• Review articles are like research articles in that they look at a specific field. They are useful for learning what has been done previously and what the trends are.
• Popular articles cover very current topics. They are written by journalists for the general public.
• Books and encyclopedias are best for getting an overview on a topic. 

If you have answered "yes" to these five questions you have probably located a scientific article.

If a book or article you want is not available, use Interlibrary Loan (ILL). The Library can order books and articles from other libraries. This process takes few days but is completely free for DelVal students, faculty, and staff.

Before you submit an ILL, check Google Scholar or Summon to see if we have immediate access or if it is freely available online.

RefWorks is a new way to collect, manage, and organize research.  You can read, annotate, organize, and cite your research as well as collaborate by sharing collections.

From simple bibliographies to papers formatted with in-text citations or footnotes, RefWorks handles it all. ​To learn more about RefWorks, use our RefWorks research guide.

The Writing Center is staffed by DelVal undergraduate peer tutors who help with writing assignments in all your courses. We view writing as a process that involves planning, reading, drafting, revising, and editing—writing with substance involves discovering your meaning through brainstorming, sharing, and getting lots of feedback.

Tutors help you gain a fresh perspective on the writing process, and can assist with any stage of the process:  choosing a topic or working through writer's block, generating ideas, creating an outline, sharpening a thesis, arranging and organizing paragraphs, citing correctly and fluently, editing grammar and mechanics, and more.

Instructors receive a copy of the tutor report completed during the session, to illustrate your engagement with the writing process and meeting the demands of writing across disciplines.

Services are on a walk-in basis, so no appointment is necessary. Schedules are posted in the Writing Center, on Inside DelVal, and on professors' Blackboard course pages.

Tutors look forward to working with you!