Research Process: A Step-by-Step Approach: 4b - Outline the Paper

Oultines provide a means of organizing your information in an hierarchical or logical order.

For research papers, a formal outline can help you keep track of large amounts of information.

To create an outline:

1. Place your thesis statemtent at the beginning.
2. List the major points that support your thesis. Lable them in Roman Numerals (I, II, III, etc.)
3. List supporting ideas or arguements for each major point. Label them in capital leters (A, B, C, etc.)
4. If applicable, continue to sub-divide each supporting idea until your outline is fully developed. Label them 1, 2, 3, etc adn then a, b, c, etc.