Quick Tips Part 5: How to Come Up with a Thesis

By Stefanie Weisman

If you’re a high school or college student, you probably dread having to come up with a thesis.  A thesis is the argument you make in your paper based on research and/or your own experience.  Sometimes a thesis will come to you very quickly, in a flash of inspiration.  But most of the time, it takes a lot more work.

When writing a research paper, consider yourself part of a scholarly debate.  It’s perfectly acceptable – even encouraged – to challenge the ideas you read in a book or heard from your teacher.  A thesis should be your own unique, original contribution to the debate.

To come up with a thesis, think critically as you read books, articles, and other sources.  You should constantly ask yourself questions such as:

  • Why did a person or character do something?  What motivates him/her?
  • Who/ What is responsible for an event or action?
  • What is the cause of something?  What is the effect of something?
  • What is the significance of an action or event?
  • What are some potential flaws in an author’s argument or idea?  Are there other possible explanations?
  • What do you think about an issue?  Do you agree with the given interpretation?  Why or why not?
  • How did an event or action take place?  Why did it take place the way it did?
As you do research, try thinking like a reporter – always ask “who, what, where, when, why, and how?”

Do you have any tips for coming up with a thesis?


Quick Tips Part 4: How to Use Google for Academic Research

By Stefanie Weisman


  • Include “site:” to limit your search to a particular website (e.g., “site:nytimes.com”) or top-level domain (e.g., “site:.edu” – this is useful if you only want to search websites hosted by universities).

What are some Google search techniques you like to use?



Make sure you know the difference between . . .

  1.  Your vs. You’re
      • Ex.: Your paper is written very well.
  2. Its vs. It’s
      • Ex.: It’s also got amazing coffee.
  3. There vs. Their vs. They’re
      • Ex.: I’m going to be sitting over there.
      • Ex.: They’re buying a house.
  4. Who’s vs. Whose
      • Ex.: Who’s going to the baseball game tonight?
      • Ex.: Whose baseball bat is this?
  5. Who vs. Whom
      • Ex.: Who wants ice cream?
      • Ex.: To whom should I send this letter?
  6. Then vs. Than
    • “Than” is a conjunction used in comparisons.
      • Ex.: He is taller than his brother.


Quick Tips Part 2: How to Use Citations in Your Papers

By Stefanie Weisman



All of these citation styles consist of two parts:

You do NOT need attribution when:

  • You state your own, original ideas.
  • You state something that is common knowledge.



Here are some great online resources to help you with citations.

Online Guidelines:

  2. The OWL Purdue Online Writing Lab

Online Citation Generators:

  • EasyBib provides a free citation generator for MLA format.

What are some tools you like to use?
