Greg Hall

Department of History

Spring 2008

History 491

Research Paper Guidelines for the First Draft

Prospectus:  Use your graded prospectus as a guide to develop your first draft.  If you have any questions about the critique of your prospectus please see me.  We need to be on the same page when it comes to where you will proceed from here. 

First Draft:  In your first draft you will articulate a thesis and begin to defend that thesis with supporting evidence based on your research.  You should write at least eight to ten pages of useable text.  I’m expecting the first draft to need a rewrite, but what you have written to this point must be readable.  Obviously, you will still have more research and writing to do.  In your paper you can write parenthetical explanatory notes, which would let me know what you are still working on.  Also, you can write an explanatory note at the end of your essay, letting me know what to expect in the final draft.

Style: Use Chicago style for the first draft of your research paper.  See Turabian, A Manual for Writers or some other Chicago Style source.  Adequate citations are extremely important to successfully completing this assignment.  I’m expecting citations. 

Due Date: Thursday 4/3

Grading:  The first draft is worth 30 points. 

Late Penalty: Five points per day that the assignment is late regardless of the excuse