The term paper is the most common the most common writing requirement of upper-division courses. But its importance is often neglected. So why is a term paper so important? Mainly because it forms a considerable part of your final grades. Also you might be deceived about its importance because it is not given much class discussion time by most teachers. This also points out the fact that if your instructions for writing the term paper, and then you are on your own to get yourself informed about it.

For writing the perfect term paper the first step is to examine all the materials regarding the subject or topic of the paper you already have. This might include resources like your text book's materials, lectures' notes, and class hand-outs. Usually your instructor will inform regarding what is expected of you. Students however, tend to disregard this and as consequence their term paper doesn't fulfill the task assigned. Needless to say, it is important that you discuss anything you don't understand, with your teacher. But sometimes students hesitate doing this, for they are afraid of making a fool of themselves in front of their teacher or class mates. This is obviously a big mistake. Because a good teacher will always answer all and each one of your questions, and will also appreciate your genuine interest in writing a quality term paper. As for your class u mates, no one cares and remembers how stupid a question you asked as long as you get amazing grades. Who would you think is a better student? The one who questions nothing and f flunks or the one who asks all he wants to and gets good grades. So the bottom line is "Get Real".

You must decide in a thesis after analyzing your materials. Most often, it is a question and you seek to or aim at answering in your term paper, but this is not a hard and fast rule. If your teacher hasn't specified that t thesis needs to be a question, then you can feel free to experiment. Why not make it interesting for yourself? Try finding a topic that interests you. It will be much easier an exercise this way and also you will have fun doing it. Your subject and thesis should fulfill the requirement; also try to estimate how long the paper will turn out with your subject. A term paper usually has pages' limits to it. So be careful not to pick the one that will be too long or too short in comparison to this requirement.

For instance you can't write a 10 page lengthy term paper on the evolution of music from classical to modern, it will be too long to cover in such a limited space. If such is the case with you then you need to narrow down your topic. Also do make sure that your topic will have enough bibliography to aid you, and do get a complete understanding of the subject before starting the paper.

The next step is the completion of the research. In most cases, you are assigned a specific bibliography, but this is only a general list of suggested books, and is not a precise list of references. In this case you first need to compile a list of appropriate reference sources. Many students fail at the actual writing because of improper, inadequate and insufficient research at this stage. In some such cases, this results due the student's sole reliance on the internet, and not making use of the precious and wide amount of information available in the library. The World Wide Web sure is a trove of information for many subjects, but for a term paper you will also need to make use of the library resources. You will surely find someone to guide you to the appropriate direction and aid you in your research in the library. First gather all the sources you can use in writing the term paper, from magazines to specialists' books on your chosen subject. Do make sure to take notes while reading and gathering your material. Inserting quotations in your term paper is necessary, but do make sure nit to include too many. Many students insert long quotations, to finish the paper quickly and to fill the space. This is not at all productive and does not look good to your instructor. Just include the necessary and quotes and the ones that are relevant to your subject. And of these quotes only include the necessary parts in your final paper, the parts that are useful and directly linked t your subject.

You need to outline your term paper, after gathering your notes or all the relevant information. Analysis is once again very important. Look at the research materials that you found and the notes that you took create the main outline of your term paper by analyzing what you want to discuss and keeping on your subject. Start writing the draft version of your paper by following this outline. Unless told otherwise by your instructor, use the simple essay format of:
Introduction
Body of the paper
Conclusion

Outline what you are going to say in the introduction, use the body to say it, and lastly summarize your paper's points and your answer to the question in the conclusion of the paper.

You need to polish this draft after you finish it for it to become the final paper. Proofreading is a definite must and should be aloud so you can hear the sense of your composition or paper. And this will make it easier to change whatever doesn't good or improper to you. Check the spelling and grammar to detect and correct any errors made. Look at the quotes you have included and check to see if they are used properly or not. The actual polishing should ideally be done two days after the draft is completed, this will help you in staying objective about your paper. If you feel and know that you are biased, better give it to someone else to read and take a note of their comments and criticisms. These steps will help you create the perfect term paper, but following through is by all means up to you. Take your assignment seriously. And if you are mature and diligent, your term paper is bound to be perfect.