Writing & Citing FAQs
Online Tutorials | General Writing
- Online Tutorial in Effective Writing PracticesThe purpose of this tutorial is to help students quickly review common mistakes made in English grammar, punctuation, organization, and writing styles. From Northern Illinois University.
- Pamphlets on Common Writing SituationsEach pamphlet deals with a specific writing situation. Most pamphlets are available in html and pdf versions. From the Indiana University - Blooming Writing Tutorial Services.
- Symptoms and Cures for Writer's BlockFrom the Purdue University Online Writing Lab (OWL).
- Video Tutorials | WritingA series of instructional videos aimed at offering clear explanation of some key writing concepts and practical strategies for putting that advice to work. From the Portland State University Writing Center.
- Writing a Scientific Research PaperFrom the Yale University Writing Center.
- Writing a Thesis or DissertationFrom the Yale University Writing Center
- Writing the Thesis IntroductionHIGHLY RECOMMENDED! Page from the LibGuide on Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Paper by Dr. Robert Labaree of the University of Southern California Libraries.
APUS APA Style Guide
APUS APA Style GuideThe APUS students' guide to APA format. Click to download the PDF version.
Find Writing Assistance
- Writing@APUSThe APUS Library’s writing reference resource for students and faculty designed to supplement and complement writing instruction delivered across all disciplines.
- Writer's Reference Center This link opens in a new windowOnline reference for writers, with learning tools to write and research effectively.
- Tutor.com
Get started using Tutor.com, tutoring help for APUS students.
Thesis Structure vs Thesis Format
How a thesis is structured is not the same thing as how it is formatted.
STRUCTURE refers to the intellectual arrangement of the thesis. A useful analogy is a cookbook cake recipe. Typically, a cake recipe is structured in the same way.
Cake Recipe Model
- Oven Temperature
- List of Ingredients
- Assembly/Cooking Instructions
- [Chef's Notes - Optional]
A thesis follows a standardized academic structure.
Thesis Model
- Abstract
- Introduction
- Literature Review
- Methods
- Findings/Results
- Discussion
- Conclusion
- References
The End of Program Assessment Manual for Graduate Studies outlines the structure requirements for the thesis/capstone paper.
FORMAT refers to the visual presentation/layout of the thesis, such as margins, line spacing, etc.
Using the cake analogy again. You can use a single recipe to make the same cake, but you can decorate it differently. That is, you can use different styles of decoration.
Academic papers have a required format, or editorial style. The "decoration" or format instructions are found in style guides.
The purpose of a style guide is to provide uniformity in writing and documentation/ citation styles and in formatting a document. Following a standard guide ensures that your paper is professional-looking and readable. Journal publishers typically require authors to follow a specific style guide, so it is a useful skill to know how to use one!
Links to all of the different style guides used in APUS courses on the library's Writing Help Guide: http://apus.libguides.com/writing/citation
For additional information on using style guides successfully, see the Using Style Guides page on this guide.
Distinguishing between Scholarly & Popular Periodicals
Learn to distinguish between scholarly and popular articles in this video by Vanderbilt's Peabody Library.
Online Tutorials | Sentences & Paragraphs
- Writing Clear, Concise SentencesFollow the principles below to write sentences that are clear, to the point, and easier to read. Nine sections. From the University of Wisconsin - Madison's Writing Center.
- Writing Skills: The ParagraphThe paragraph is the most important unit of a well-written essay. The paragraph has a specific structure and standards that make it effective and enjoyable to read. In this writing lesson we will look at how to construct good paragraphs and improve writing with better flow and clarity. Includes quiz and transcript.