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Research Skills: Graduate Research

Introduction

In graduate school "research" has more than one meaning. This guide will focus on the fundamentals of source research - finding appropriate information, articles, and other types of resources to use in your graduate-level writing.

Graduate writing calls for ​building a comprehensive understanding of a subject.

You will be expected to

  • form your own opinion about the information 
  • build ideas 
  • formulate questions about your field of study or current practices  

As a graduate student, you are on your way to being a scholar in your field.  Remember, to use scholarly/peer-reviewed resources in graduate-level writing. 

Libguides for Graduate research

Types of research to use

While doing research, you will find different types of sources focused on different methods of research (statistical, empirical, theoretical, experimental, etc.). The styles of research listed below are ones that will provide the needed depth of information, analysis, and knowledge building content to help you support your ideas and claims in your writing. 

  • Quantitative
  • Qualitative
  • Conceptual/Theoretical
  • Meta-analysis
  • Literature Review

Avoiding Plagiarism

Literature Review

Literature reviews are part of every graduate paper you will write and will help you build your theoretical framework for your dissertation research. Here are a few examples of literature reviews. 

Citation Guides and Help