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Senior Seminar
Dillard University
Dr. Amy E. Lesen
TERM PAPER GUIDELINES
This goal of assignment is to help you hone your skills in researching a topic and presenting your research in
writing. The purpose of the term paper is so you can get practice doing the following:
• Selecting trustworthy academic sources
• Building an argument or take a stance on a topic, BACKED UP BY RESEARCH YOU HAVE READ.
• Writing a properly formatted paper with:
- PROPER CITATIONS
- CORRECT GRAMMAR
- FORMAL LANGUAGE
- GOOD ORGANIZATION
You will choose a topic. You will do library research and select AT LEAST THREE RECENT (published no
earlier than the year 2010) peer-reviewed journal articles which address the topic. You must cite these
sources within the text of your report. This means you must have at least three sources in the
bibliography for your paper. All the sources in your bibliography must be cited within the body of the
report. You will write a 5 page paper (this means 5 pages of TEXT, double spaced, page margins 1 inch all
around, font must be Times New Roman 12 pt) describing this recent research and why it is important or
relevant to the field. List them at the end of the report in your “Works Cited” section.
Format of the term paper:
ON THE FIRST PAGE:
• Include your name and the date you are submitting the paper
• The title of your term paper
You should have four main sections.
1) Introduction – Explain the topic, some history of the topic in biology, and what you will discuss in the paper:
Introduce the main topic:
• Background about the topic.
• Somewhere in the introduction (usually at or towards the end of the introduction), should be your thesis
statement = What are you arguing? Or what is your question?
*The introduction sets up the rest of the paper.
2) Body of the paper. This is where you present information from the sources you read AND build an
argument, drawing your own conclusions from the sources you found. Explain why this research was important
to the field, and any new contributions made or any academic controversy it created. Be sure to put the
research into a historical context within the field.
Some general tips for writing the body of the paper:
• The body of the paper should be focused on topics or issues surrounding your main topic: for example
if your paper topic is health disparities in urban communities, you might address some of the following
issues or questions in your paper. PLEASE NOTE THIS WILL DEPEND ON THE INFORMATION YOU
HAVE FOUND IN YOUR SOURCES! - Discuss some of the main types of health disparities in cities and who is affected. (For example,
more African American people tend to have asthma in cities in the U.S.) - What are the geographic patterns of these health disparities? (For example, are there different
health disparities in cities in the north versus south? East versus west?) - What seem to be the causes of these health disparities? (For example, are highways and other
places with a lot of car exhaust situated near communities of color?) - What might be some ways to solve health disparities? (For example, regulations about where
certain pollutants can be located in cities, better access to certain types of healthcare.)
• All of this should be backed up by information you have found in your sources. And should be cited.
You may sometimes state your opinion or viewpoint, but it must be supported by evidence youhave
found.
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3) Conclusion – Summary of the arguments you made in the paper and a summary of YOURCONCLUSIONS
or OPINIONS, backed up by your research.
• Remind the reader on your main points and thesis.
• What are the take-aways?
• What are the implications for the future?
• Concluding sentence or sentences.
4) Works Cited or References – Your bibliography of at least three published sources must be in APA
format:
• This is the best reference for APA style:
https://owl.purdue.edu/owl/research_and_citation/apa_style/apa_formatting_and_style_guide/general_form
at.html
NO LATE REPORTS
A note on plagiarism:
Plagiarism: To plagiarize is “to steal or pass off (the ideas or words of another) as one’s own.” This means
that, in writing assignments, you will be expected to cite references for the information you provide, and any
time you quite directly from a source you are expected to acknowledge the quote and the source. Students
suspected of plagiarism will be questioned and/or asked to provide their sources. If the instructor feels that
plagiarism or cheating has occurred, the student could receive an F in the course and the appropriate judicial
action will be taken.
• I TAKE PLAGIARISM VERY SERIOUSLY. IT IS EASY FOR ME TO TELL WHEN YOU HAVE
PLAGIARIZED A WEBSITE OR AN ARTICLE. EXCUSES FOR PLAGIARISM WILL NOT BE
ACCEPTED. YOU WILL RECEIVE AN “F” ON ANY REPORT OR ASSIGNMENT IN WHICH YOU
PLAGIARIZE.
• Plagiarism includes: 1) Handing in the work of another student; 2) Handing in a paper or assignment that
includes text taken DIRECTLY from a website or article or book that IS NOT IN QUOTATION MARKS and
HAS NOT BEEN CITED OR REFERENCED PROPERLY.