The Research Paper, in the case of retrospective and prospective studies, grows from your Research Protocol.  Your protocol necessarily addresses the Introduction and Background of your study and relies upon citations and references from the peer reviewed literature to justify the value of the proposed research project; it also describes the methodology for the study, which defines how and what data will be gathered.  The standard format for a research paper includes the results and conclusion from your study, which cannot be written until data collection and analysis is complete.

In order to make the best use of your time and effort, the CORE Research Office suggests that you view the entire research project as a continuum, rather than a successive series of discrete benchmarks.  In this way, the first step in the process – the research protocol – becomes the foundation for each step in the project, including the eventual dissemination of your research findings.

If you prepare your protocol with the eventual end in sight, then the initial sections of your finished document – the Introduction and Background, the Methodology, and the References – will be ready to accept the addition of your Results and Conclusions.  With assistance from the CORE Research Editor, your finished manuscript can be finished in short order following the end of data collection.

Remember, the finished document is the foundation for the other two recommended research outcomes – the Research Poster and the Research Presentation.

Before you begin your research (or before you get too far along the continuum) take time to consider the target audience for the results of your study.

• Targeting a specific journal (or journals).
• Choose your target(s) in the planning stages.
• Review the journal content and topic areas covered.
• Be sure your topic fits.
• Consider contacting the editor to “pitch” your idea.
• Review the Information for Authors.
• !! Follow the submission guidelines to the letter !!

Knowing the style and format for the target publication will help to limit your revisions.

• Submission Guidelines will dictate the editorial style for text, figures, and paper format.
• Published journal articles can serve as “templates” to guide you in preparing your submission.
• Reading the journal will help you gauge tone, voice, and vocabulary.
• Tailor your work to fit the audience.

As you write your paper:

• Write your paper in a logical, easy-to-follow manner.
• Do not make abrupt or hard-to-follow leaps from topic to topic.
• Focus upon relevant research issues.
• Be aware of tangential threads/issues that emerge.
• Resolve each issue introduced in your paper.
• Tie up all loose ends.

As you write your paper, as well as when you have finally finished with the document;

• Share your writing with peers and friends.

• Take note of where they get lost or questions that they may have.
• Revise as necessary to keep your reader engaged.
• Revise as necessary to maintain focus on your research question and the conclusions that answer it.