This page offers you, the student, a wide range of resources for learning independently outside the classroom. Autonomous learning is an important part of the Writing Center philosophy and your academic writing teacher can help you to identify the areas of your writing you need to work on individually. You can also continue to use this page as a writing resource after leaving CEU, and of course recommend it to your friends and colleagues.

Research Papers

The Nature of Research Writing - CEU
So what is a research paper? What kind of research and writing does it actually involve? If you want to start with the basics, take a look at our own page about planning and preparing for a research paper.

The English Research Room - Bedford/St. Martin's
A wide range of  research aids " intended to be useful for all students, instructors, and writers who engage in research and  source-based writing". Lots of guidance on research skills, particularly on the use of online sources, including an extensive research links section. There are also links to specific research resources online for various disciplines, including history, economics, political science and sociology, as well as more language and writing oriented issues.

Research Papers - University of Kansas
An extensive step-by-step guide. Very useful.

Writers' Handbook: Research Papers - University of Wisconsin
A series of quick-check bullet points. Less comprehensive than the Kansas page, but quicker to read and easier to get an overview of what's needed.

Introductions to Research Papers - Center for Academic Writing, CEU
Several students asked for more guidance on writing introductions and we couldn't find anything on the web so we wrote our own.

Getting Published

R. J. Sternberg's 21 Tips
Sternbergs famous article on ways to increase your chances of getting published.

The unofficial guide for authors - by Mike Gould
Principally focused on the hard sciences, but contains many useful tips and thoughts. (large pdf file).

Discipline Specific Pages

Penning The Past: Advice on Writing in the Historical Disciplines
- By Alyssa E. Lodewick, Department of History, Brown University
Deals with the interrelated roles of narrative and argument. Very useful when balancing these two elements in your papers.

Writing the Sociology Paper - Dartmouth Writing Program
A useful page that combines writing concerns with those of the sociologist. Helpful reading in preparing your term paper.

Political Science - University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Another overview page that nicely combines writing and discipline specific concerns. This university has a range of useful pages for various disciplines, and also good links on other writing issues. Check out the menu bar on the right hand side of the page.

Postgraduate Research in Law - University of Wollongong
An extensive and well structured page for guidance with legal studies research.

Literature Reviews

Writing a Literature Review - U. Toronto Health Sciences Writing Center
These clear and succinct guidelines are the best overview we have found. Don't be put of by the fact that the page is for students of Health Sciences; the information is just as relevant for any subject. This site is now available by subscription only, but the Toronto HS Writing Center have given us temporary permission to include this pdf file on our page.

Writers' Handbook: Literature Reviews - University of Wisconsin
Some useful basic guidelines which provide a quick overview to help you structure your review of the literature.

The Literature Review - Asian Institute of Technology
Very good basic guide to what a literature review involves. Includes tips about sources, examples of what not to do, and traps to avoid. Like everything on the Asian Institute pages, well designed, informative and interactive.

Writing the Literature Review - University of Queensland
More detailed than the University of Wisconsin page, complete with text extracts for exemplification and a frequently asked questions section at the end. Very useful.

Using Sources

Using the Work of Other Authors in your Writing - CEU
Where better to start than our own course reading on using sources? If you haven't read this already, it will give you an overview of the key issues in source use.

How to reference - Asian Institute of Technology 
A very good starting point for information on referencing. Many important questions answered.

Using Outside Sources in your Writing -  Colorado State University
A very extensive site that covers a wide range of questions from why to cite others to exactly how to punctuate a quotation within a quotation. Answers to all your questions!

Evaluating Sources - Bedford St. Martins
Useful help and suggestions on evaluating the validity and appropriateness of a source. Accessible and well organised.

Plagiarism: How to Recognize and Avoid It - Indiana University
Some basic examples of when paraphrase is or is not plagiarism. Also briefly addresses the question of 'common knowledge'. 

Writing about the work of other authors - University of South Australia
Part of a larger page on academic writing. Extensive and detailed treatment of most key issues.

Citation Styles

Documentation Styles - University of Wisconsin
Precise guidelines regarding all issues of citation and referencing. There is also specific guidance on how to write a bibliography according to Chicago/Turabian 

Research and Documentation - Diana Hacker, Bedford St. Martins
A great resource for how to cite in different styles, including useful example papers. Covers APA (social sciences), Chicago/Turabian (history) and MLA (humanities) as well as CBE (hard sciences).

Online! - Bedford St. Martins Guide to Using Internet Sources
Particularly helpful when you need to cite electronic sources - guidelines include websites, electronic books and journals and even how to correctly cite an e-mail. 

Formatting in Sociology - Purdue OWL
Few websites deal with ASA, the standard style for sociology, which is why we've included this one. It covers all the main points very effectively.

Critical Reading 

The Fundamentals of Critical Reading and Effective Writing - Dan Kurland
We quote: "Everyone complains that students cannot read well… and yet most high schools and colleges offer no course in critical reading.  This is the website for just such a course."

Critical Reading Techniques - Adison Wesley Longman
A straightforward overview of the steps of a critical reading process. 

Evaluating Information Found on the Internet -  Johns Hopkins University
Careful coverage of exactly what information to look out for when using an Internet source.

Policy Briefs

Some professors are beginning to ask students to write policy briefs. If you are given an assignment like this, try one of these links.

The Policy Brief - OSI/IPF

Guidelines for Writing a Policy Brief - Prof. Tsai - Johns Hopkins University

Position Papers

The Position Paper - Frequently Asked Questions - CEU
Our own page on position papers, especially for CEU students. The page was designed for students of International Relations, but most of what is there applies for other disciplines too.

Thesis & Research Proposals

Thesis Proposals - University of New South Wales
A well-designed, very readable site that draws a distinction between MA and PhD research. Generally useful.

Thesis Proposal Guidelines - Dept of Anthropology, Hartwick College 
Clear and simple - contains plenty of basic information which is applicable to subjects other than anthropology. 

Dissertation Proposal Workshop - UC Berkeley
Specifically for PhD proposals, but provides useful and detailed information about getting your proposal accepted.

How to Write a Research Proposal - Paul Wong PhD
This article has now been moved to an archive, but should be accessible through this link.

Writing an Outline

How to write an Outline - University at Albany, New York
A basic set of guidelines and a sample outline for a thesis. Short and simple. 

Research Paper Outline - University of Hawaii
More detailed, more guidelines but less examples. Focuses on research papers, but much of what it says is true for theses as well. 

Developing an Outline - Purdue Online Writing Lab
A detailed page from the number one online writing lab. Covers most issues.

Annotated Bibliographies

How to Prepare an Annotated Bibliography - Cornell University Library
A clear, concise introduction to preparing an annotated bibliography. An excellent place to start. 

Writing Annotated Bibliographies - U. Wisconsin-Madison Writing Center
A very detailed and extensive site, covering all sorts of aspects of writing an annotated bibliography. A wide range of options, approaches and possibilities. Complete with examples. 

Annotated Bibliography - LEO, St. Cloud State University
Useful general basic guidelines. Not as extensive as the Wisconsin-Madison site, but more manageable in size. Also a little more prescriptive, which can be good if you are confused or annoying if you are more confident.

Revising & Editing

Revising and Editing - University of Queensland 
Useful guidelines when you are trying to revise and edit a first draft

Editing and Proofreading Strategies for Revision - Purdue Writing Lab
Very detailed and precise suggestions for what to check as you edit. Rather more concerned with the micro level and somewhat prescriptive but still useful.

Three Levels of Re-"vision" - Writing Center, Portland State University
Pdf file. A good overview of the process of redrafting and polishing your work.

Report Writing  

Report Writing FAQ - University of New South Wales
A very well organised, readable site on university report writing.

Report writing - Academic Skills Programme - Canberra University
A detailed page with full guidelines. Information clearly laid out in lists and tables.

Report writing - University of Calgary
A blow-by-blow checklist. A bit technical but covers issues the above two pages do not.

Writing your Thesis 

CEU Thesis Guidelines
The standard requirements for a master's thesis at CEU in the area of organisation, layout and writing. For information on departmental requirements and deadlines for submission you should consult your departmental coordinator.

How to Organize your Thesis - John Chinneck, Carleton University 
A useful general overview - deals with the nature of research and offers a skeleton structure. As the author is a computer scientist, however, you may well want to adapt this if you use it. 

The Ph.D. Thesis - by Joseph Levine
Full details of how to approach writing a Ph.D. thesis, including tips for planning and for the defense as well as a link to a page dealing with funding proposals. A very useful document whether you stay at CEU for your Ph.D. or go elsewhere - an address to take with you! Includes loads of links to other sites. 

Writing a thesis in the social sciences - University of York
Also more oriented towards PhD study, but contains a large amount of information on serious research writing. Some of it is specific to York University, but much of it is true wherever you are.

How to Write Your Thesis - The Earth Institute At Columbia University

Extensive details and guidance, especially for students of Environmental Science, but useful for any subject. Section II:Crosscutting Issues is particularly helpful.

For links on how to manage and write your PhD dissertation, click here!

Abstracts

Abstracts- Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
Good place to start: clear question and answer approach with useful guidelines. 

The Abstract - Asian Institute of Technology
More detailed with 'common problems' section and examples to look at. 

Time Management

Time Management - University of New South Wales
Another very well organised page from this excellent Australian learning Centre. Many useful ideas and tips.

Learning, Study, and Time Management -  University of Guelph, Canada
Lots of tips and suggestions on how to manage your time better. Definitely worth a look, especially if you find yourself still writing papers at four in the morning the day before!

Oral Presentations

Designing Effective Oral Presentations - Rice University OWL
Extensive planning guidelines on goals, audience expectations, organization, visual aids, etc. A good general resource for academic and other presentations.

Giving Oral Presentations - University of Canberra 
A clear, well organised overview of most of the important issues to consider when giving a presentation.

Reading Skills

Effective Reading - University of New South Wales
Useful guidelines and suggestions on this ever difficult topic.

Notetaking Skills

Research Notes from Reading - SLC, Flinders University, Adelaide
When doing the reading for your research paper or thesis, it is crucial to take effective notes so as to avoid having to relocate and reread your sources later. This site and the others provide a good overview for research reading & notetaking.

Taking Notes from Research Reading - Writing Support, University of Toronto
So many people assume that taking notes is something they don't need to learn. This page explains why good note taking is crucial to academic writing, and gives you tips on how to do it.

5 Methods of Notetaking - California Polytechnic State University
Clear, straightforward descriptions of five ways of taking notes. Mostly for lectures, but can be applied to reading a lot of the time as well.

Career and study

Statements of Purpose - Center for Academic Writing, CEU
Have a look at our own guidelines, based on our workshops on writing statements of purpose. This site also contains links to several other sites that deal with statements of purpose. For help with research proposals, look at our thesis proposals section in the academic writing section above. 

Writing a Curriculum Vitae - Center for Academic Writing, CEU
A résumé or curriculum vitae is one of the most important documents in getting you a job or a study place, yet so many students write CVs that do not show them at their best. Our detailed website on how to write a CV gives you all the information you need. Recommended by the Careers Center! 

Cover letters for job applications - Center for Academic Writing, CEU
A résumé on its own is not enough to get you a job. This page gives clear rules and examples for how to construct a good cover letter that will respond to the job advertisement and highlight the significant features of your CV.

Grammar and Punctuation

Guide to Grammar and Writing - Capital Community College Foundation
A very useful site for grammar problems connected with advanced writing, including punctuation, sequence of tenses, compound nouns and lots more. Also has a selection of links on paragraph level issues, and a link to a related site on essay writing. 

English as a 2nd Language -  Advanced Grammar Help - Kenneth Beare
Not only extensive in itself, but is a small part of a much larger site covering 101 aspects of the English language. A bit commercial but generally very useful. 

Grammar Safari - Intensive English Institute, University of Illinois
This site encourages you to look at real language data and work out rules for yourself. An interesting approach. 

Punctuation Made Simple - Gary A. Olson
Worried about whether you need a comma or a semicolon? This site has it all and, as the name suggests, it's clearly and simply explained. It doesn't deal with defining and non-defining clauses, but then you can't have everything...

Hedging

Strength of Claim - Mike Nelson's Webpages - University of Turku
In order to distinguish between facts and claims, writers often use tentative language such as 'it seems likely that...' or 'arguably...'. This technique is called hedging. A quick overview using PowerPoint slides is available if you click on 'Hedging and Strength of Claim'. There are also other useful links.

Concordancers

CobuildDirect Corpus Sampler
Back at last, after being out of order for a year. COBUILD is the best concordancer around, and allows you extensive control over what you are looking for. The bottom half of the page gives instructions for how to look for various forms of a word, or word pairs or groups. It is also the only concordancer that can search for collocations (which words typically go together with the word you choose). NB: COBUILD uses pop-up windows, so if you have a pop-up blocker, make sure it is switched off.

British National Corpus Concordancer
Provides you with up to 50 examples of your chosen word or phrase from the British National Corpus. It shows you the whole sentence, wherever the key word is in that sentence. Unlike the Cobuild concordancer, it also shows you how many times the word actually appeared in the corpus. 

Hong Kong University VLC Web Concordancer
A small collection of texts, but you can select various different corpora, such as the Times or the novels of Agatha Christie! Enter the word you are looking for  in the empty "Search String Box",  then select "LOB" for British English, "Brown" for American English or any other corpus you prefer from the "Select Corpus" pull down box and then click on "Search for concordances".

Vocabulary References

iTools Language Tools
A collection of eight dictionaries and numerous word finding tools, including legal dictionary, computer dictionary, synonyms, related words, homophones and lots more. 

Wordsmyth Online Dictionary
A wide range of dictionaries for specialist subjects and well as for various languages. 

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
An older dictionary, but with all the common words and a rich source of definitions of obsolete words.

The Free Dictionary.com
Another wide-ranging collection of specialist dictionaries.

Plumb Design Visual Thesaurus
This rather interesting resource used to be free - now you can still have a free trial all the time under hard sell. We have kept the link here as some students say they still find it useful.

International Language Tests

TOEFL

GRE

IELTS

Cambridge Examinations in English

Multimedia resources

The CEU Library and the Center for Academic Writing have worked together to produce the Multimedia Library, which is located in the basement of the university library, and includes a variety of books, audio and video and tapes and CD ROM material for English and other languages. All of the materials are searchable through the Library webpage.