ap research paper title page

Find what you need to study

Academic Paper: Introduction

6 min read • march 12, 2023

Dylan Black

Introduction (Pun Very Much Intended )

Time to start writing! As with most papers, the first section that you'll be expected to write for your academic paper is your introduction. "What's the point of the intro?" you may ask. Well, as the title of the section implies, the introduction is meant to introduce your paper and establish your narrow topic of inquiry with some basic introduction to the content matter.

It's important in AP® Research to remember that your audience will most likely know less about your specific topic than you do. After all, your research will most likely be so niche and narrow that you will be an expert on it by the time you're done with the class. Therefore, not only does the introduction serve to explain in brief terms what your research topic is and what your paper accomplishes, but it also gives context to your reader as to the larger scope of your issue, slowly but surely narrowing into your topic of inquiry. It's important to note that your introduction is not a mini-lit review. Your introduction can stay relatively broad, explaining the surrounding scope, while still explaining that you are studying a more specific aspect of a topic.

🔥 Pro Tip: Even if you are writing for an audience with way more knowledge than you, giving context is important because it establishes tone, credibility, and makes sure that your readers know what to expect. Think of the introduction as a movie trailer, but for your paper.

Your introduction will also outline the goals of your project and what you hope to accomplish by performing your research. In essence, what are you going to do? Without further ado, let's dive right in!

How to Write a Introduction

What makes a great intro great.

I'll be honest, the introduction is not a particularly difficult part of the paper to write, nor a particularly long one (we'll get into word counts a bit later). The introduction serves very specific key purposes that, if done well, make for an amazing start to a hopefully even more amazing paper.

Image from GIPHY .

Background Info / Context

Arguably the most important function of an introduction is to establish the larger context around your research question. The way to do this is by outlining the big ideas of your paper in a similar fashion to how you idealized your topic of inquiry as described in the previous guide. Starting broad and explaining the big ideas and then slowly explaining how this connects to your eventual narrow focus. Supporting this funneling of ideas can be tricky, but necessary. This is because introducing your big ideas provides context to your readers that is instrumental in understanding your narrow topic.

Where might you get the knowledge/content for your context? Well, the answer is pretty simple. Remember all that little-r research you did (and hopefully are still doing 👀)? Now's the time for you to show it off and use it! Along with using your sources as information and contextual evidence, looking at the introductions of similar papers to your discipline and topic of inquiry is an excellent strategy for making sure that you're writing your paper correctly. The tough part about AP Research is that there really is no "right" way to do things for the class, but things do have to match up to your topic. For example, a historical paper might spend a lot more time on context and establishing a proper background for a specific historical event, whereas a more scientific paper might spend a little less time on context and more time outlining the goals. Different disciplines will produce different papers.

Goals of Your Project

The next function of your introduction is to outline the overall goal of your project. What is your project going to accomplish? Whether it's answering a specific research question, or proving whether or not something is effective, or any other number of goals for your research, this must be established in your introduction. By making your goal and purpose clear from the get-go, your reader knows what to expect and what everything following is meant to do.

If you introduce your paper without at least a relative understanding of what you want to achieve, your reader won't know why they are reading the information they're reading. It would be watching a game of soccer without knowing that their aim is to kick the ball into the goal. Sure, the players are kicking around the ball and it looks like they're doing it well, but why ? What's the point? Explaining this to your readers in the context of your paper is integral to your introduction.

Image from GIPHY

Breaking Down the Rubric Logistics

The rubric what the cb expects.

Before we get into what the CollegeBoard expects on your introduction,

Image from College Board .

The rubric for AP Research is . . . interesting. Taking a look at this rubric, you may see some themes across rows. First and foremost, each row takes on roughly one of the sections in the paper. The first row is your intro and some of your literature review, the second is your literature review, the third is methodological, so on and so forth. However, you many also notice that the justifications for scores of one through five are super super vague. Very little of this rubric is tied to specific content—it's fairly holistic and subjective. The reason for this is pretty simple—every single AP Research paper is different, so the CollegeBoard needs to keep things broad. This is why so much of the rubric refers more to the writing of the paper itself and not to the content. Again, teachers who are reading your paper most likely know very little, if anything, about your topic of inquiry.

The Introduction and the Rubric

The introduction is a relatively small part of your paper, but it plays an incredibly important role, providing a larger context about the relevancy and the importance of your research and explaining the overall point of it. This corresponds mostly to row one of the rubric, though realistically the introduction doesn't really have a row of its own. Let's get a closer look.

This row primarily focuses on how narrow your topic of inquiry is presented. To move from a 1 to a 5, you'll need to express a clear, narrow topic. While the introduction is never explicitly mentioned, the explanation of your purpose and topic of inquiry starts there and if you don't address it, it will weaken your paper. Your method and conclusion play a role in this too: Your method explains how you plan on achieving your purpose and why it will do so, and your conclusion answers your research question or explains how effectively your paper served its purpose. -----

Final Thoughts

At this point you should be armed and ready to take on your introduction! The introduction, while short and quick to write, is one of the most important components to your research paper, because it sets up everything else! Think of it like a race. Even if you run a perfect race, if you trip at the very beginning, you'll be off from the get go. However, if you start sprinting the second the starting gun fires, you're sure to win. That's not to say you should focus 110% of your effort on the introduction—in fact, sections like the literature review are just as important as the content of your paper—but it is to say that you should make sure that your introduction explicitly has the things that we talked about earlier: a clear and narrow focus with broad context and an explanation of the purpose of your paper. With these tools in hand, you should be set to write the best introduction AP Research has ever seen!

Stay Connected

© 2024 Fiveable Inc. All rights reserved.

AP® and SAT® are trademarks registered by the College Board, which is not affiliated with, and does not endorse this website.

Calculate for all schools

Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, formatting guidelines for ap research paper.

I'm in the early stages of working on my AP Research paper, and I'm a bit confused about the proper formatting. Does anyone know the specific guidelines for formatting an AP Research paper, and any helpful resources or advice? Much appreciated!

In the AP Research paper, the College Board follows the specific formatting guidelines set by the American Psychological Association (APA). Besides the APA formatting rules, there might be some extra guidelines recommended by your instructor.

Here are some general APA formatting guidelines:

1. Font: Use a legible font, typically Times New Roman or Arial with a font size of 12 pt.

2. Margins: Set margins to 1 inch on all sides (top, bottom, left, right) of the paper.

3. Line Spacing: Use double spacing throughout the paper, including the title page, abstract, main text, and references.

4. Page Header: Create a running head with a brief title (maximum 50 characters, including spaces and punctuation) in all capital letters, and put the page number in the top-right corner.

5. Title Page: Include the title, your name, and your school/institution, centered on the page.

6. Abstract: Write a concise summary of your paper (typically between 150-250 words) on a separate page, following the title page. The abstract should be self-contained, describing the purpose, methodology, and findings of your study.

7. Headings: Use headings to organize the sections of your paper. APA has a hierarchy of headings; Level 1 headings are the most important, while Level 5 are the least important. Most students will only need to use Levels 1-3.

8. In-text Citations: When quoting or paraphrasing any resources, use the author-date citation style (e.g., Smith, 2021).

9. Reference List: Arrange your sources alphabetically by the author's last name in a separate section at the end of your paper, following the proper APA citation format.

For a more comprehensive understanding of the APA formatting guidelines, you can refer to resources like Purdue University's Online Writing Lab (OWL) or the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (7th edition). Always consult with your instructor regarding any specific formatting requirements they may have, and consider using citation management tools, such as Zotero, EndNote, or Mendeley, to help manage your sources and citations more efficiently.

Ensure your content is well-organized, as the AP Research paper grading rubric focuses on various aspects, including understanding and analyzing context, argument, methodology, results, and communication. Good luck with your AP Research paper!

About CollegeVine’s Expert FAQ

CollegeVine’s Q&A seeks to offer informed perspectives on commonly asked admissions questions. Every answer is refined and validated by our team of admissions experts to ensure it resonates with trusted knowledge in the field.

• How it works
• Pay for essays
• Do my homework
• Term Paper Writing Service
• Do my assignment
• Coursework help
• Our Writers

Research Paper Structure: The Complete Guide

A professional writer with ten years of experience and a Ph.D. in Modern History, Catharine Tawil writes engaging and insightful papers for academic exchange. With deep insight into the impact of historical events on the present, she provides a unique perspective in giving students a feel for the past. Her writing educates and stimulates critical thinking, making her a treasure to those wading through the complexities of history.

A research paper is an academic work depicting the design and results of a study. It can be an academic assignment in undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Moreover, it is an integral requirement in doctoral programs, where postgrads’ research papers are published in reputable journals to add credibility to their research findings. 

Ordering different parts of a research paper is critical for fulfilling academic standards, streamlining your writing, and avoiding distractions and sidetracks. Although outlining may seem like a waste of time, it is the most efficient use of your time at the pre-writing stage, as it will help you order your thoughts and ideas and develop a plan of action to follow throughout the study. 

In this post, we’ll cover the basics of the research paper formatting, provide a basic template of a research paper structure, and provide a detailed description of each section, including the title page and abstract, introduction and literature review, methodology, results, discussion, and conclusion. You can skip to a specific section if you have questions or concerns about it or check out the full article for an in-depth understanding of the full structure. 

Essential Components of a Research Paper

Unlike other types of academic assignments, research papers have a structure more complex than a simple trio of introduction, body, and conclusion. You are expected to follow the established academic norms and include specific information for your paper to have any scientific value. The basic research paper structure example comprises the following parts:

Introduction

• Literature review

Methodology

• Acknowledgments

Please note that some sections of a research paper outlined above are optional. For example, you only need to include appendices if you wish to share a large volume of data that would make the paper unwieldy. You can also adjust this research paper setup to fit your study and word count requirements better. For instance, you can combine the results and discussion sections or the introduction and literature review.

Formatting Requirements

Although the research paper structure is basically the same for all fields of study and topics, the papers can look drastically different when following research paper formatting guidelines of various formatting styles, be it Chicago, MLA, or APA. You must learn the appropriate style at the onset of the writing process, so remember to ask your academic advisor about it if there’s no mention of the formatting style within general requirements.

Once you know which research paper formatting style to use, get your hands on the relevant formatting guidebook. You can find most of the requirements online or sign out a book from a college library. Considering most formatting guidebooks are huge, focus on the main aspects that can make or break your paper, such as:

• Margins, font, and spacing. Most research paper format guidelines require 1-inch margins on all sides, a legible font of at least 12 pt, and double-spaced lines. 
• Page numbering. Requirements vary, but typically, you’ll need to include page numbers in the upper right-hand corner, half an inch from the corner.
• Headings and subheadings. Refer to MLA or APA handbooks to learn specific research paper headings requirements or ask your professor, as the guidelines differ greatly. 
• In-text citations and reference list. In most cases, research paper in-text citations require the name of the main author along with the page number or the publication year. Reference list formatting varies across different styles, but you can use automatic citation generators to speed up the formatting process.

With formatting requirements out of the way, let’s now focus on individual components of a research paper to help you understand what each section should contain to be well received.

Title Page and Abstract

The research paper title page format depends on the required formatting style:

• MLA does not require a separate title page (unless specifically requested). Instead, in the upper left-hand corner of the first page, type your name, your instructor’s name, course name, and date (each on a new line, double-spaced). After that, center the title of the page and include its text.
• APA requires a separate title page, which should include the title of the paper, your name and affiliation, as well as the course name and number, your instructor’s name, and the assignment’s due date. 

A research paper abstract is brief summary of the main points of the research paper. Depending on the formatting style, it can be from 100 to 250 words long, highlighting the research objective, key methodology, and results highlights. An abstract should help readers decide if your work is worth reading at a glance. 

An APA research paper organization requires an abstract on a separate page, with the “Abstract” heading and the paper’s summary (without indent). Below the abstract, type “Keywords:” (in italics) and list the keywords researchers would use to find your paper in the library or online. 

The opening section of the research paper outline gives students pause because they never know what the introduction should entail. If you’re stuck with writer’s block and don’t know how to start the paper, answer these four questions, and you’ll have all the major pieces necessary for the introduction:

• What’s the context of the problem? Open with a general view of the issue and its current state without going into too much detail (that’s what the literature review is for). The background information should fit within one or two paragraphs and lead directly to the next point. 
• What is the issue? The problem statement or question is the core of this part of the research paper structure. Think of it as a thesis statement for an essay. Everything you write in other sections of a research paper should always tie to your problem statement.
• How do you plan to solve the problem? You can formulate research objectives or hypotheses that your study will try to achieve or prove. Short papers typically have one hypothesis, while longer works usually have two or more related objectives.
• How will your study improve the issue? The answer can circle back to the background you laid out at the beginning of the research paper introduction and highlight the benefits (and potential drawbacks and limitations) of your research. It’s the major “selling point” of the study, which should explain why anyone should care about it. 

You can always leave the introduction for last and tackle it once the rest of the paper is done. That’s especially helpful if you use writer’s block as an excuse to procrastinate and put off writing other parts of a research paper.

Literature Review

The primary objective of a research paper literature review is to provide context and prove the relevance of your topic, as specified in the introduction. To that end, you need to find credible, objective, and relevant sources and synthesize any data pertaining to your research. It’s important to avoid simple paraphrasing or summarization of reference data and instead provide its analysis and synthesize your own hypothesis.

Aside from the similarities found in references, this part of the research paper structure should also focus on discrepancies, contradictions, and knowledge gaps. These will prove your study has merit and can resolve the existing issues. Moreover, the knowledge gaps will help lead up to your main research question, which you may repeat near the end of the literature review.

Depending on the topic of your study, you can organize the literature review:

• Chronologically. You can go from the oldest sources published to the latest or from the latest events to situations long past. This approach is often the easiest, but it doesn’t fit all topics and fields of study.
• Thematically. If you wish to cover two or more aspects of the issue, you can dedicate a subsection to each and analyze them together in the final subsection of the literature review. This is the most popular approach, as it can work for most topics.
• Methodologically. If you want to focus on the differences and similarities in research methodology, you can split the literature review into several subsections, devoting each one to a single methodology. This approach works for select subjects and can make the most of systemic studies. 

If you’re working on an empirical study, you can stop there, but if your work is mostly theoretical, this stage of the research paper writing process could also involve developing a theoretical framework. It will help put your findings and results into perspective.

Although it may seem simple at first glance, a literature review takes a long time, most of which you’ll spend looking for reliable sources. Luckily, you can easily outsource this task. All you need to do is say, “Write my paper for me”, and our experts will take over ASAP. 

The research paper methodology section is an integral part of the piece, as it helps ensure the reproducibility of your results and increases your credibility. This part should answer two main questions:

• What? What did your study involve? What resources, software, materials, or samples did you use? What were the ethical considerations of your research?
• How? How much time did your study take? How did you choose participants? How did you collect data and analyze it?

Keep these questions in mind when working out a research design, picking data collection procedures and analysis techniques. If you rely on standard methods, a quick description with a citation would be enough for the methodology part of the research paper structure. But if you employ a unique approach, make sure to describe it in minute detail to ensure anyone can repeat the process and achieve the same results. 

For obvious reasons, the methodology section will differ greatly depending on your field of study and topic. For example, qualitative and quantitative research methods are vastly different. At the same time, quantitative analysis of sociology or linguistics research will be nothing like analyzing blood tests for nursing students or analyzing the success of a marketing campaign for a business and management class. While the tools (i.e., programming language or table processing software) may be similar, the application will be different, and you should highlight these distinctions in your methodology section. 

Although you can put off working on this section of the structure of a research paper, it can be helpful to put your methodology on paper before embarking on the study. A clear idea of the protocols you plan to employ should keep your study on track and minimize methodological errors. 

The research paper results present the study findings as the ultimate product of your research. Instead of the raw data, you can present analysis results and visual aids in the form of tables, figures, and graphs, provide statistical analysis results, and refer interested readers to appendices containing raw data.

Remember to follow the formatting style requirements for tables and figures, which differ for APA and MLA. The same applies to lists and other visual aids. You should also ensure these materials do not destroy your paper’s readability. For example, a three-page table is much more difficult to grasp than a couple of charts highlighting the same data. Moreover, if you plan to present your findings on a poster or a PowerPoint presentation, it pays to work out the best way to present your insights that will fit all formats, including print and projection.

It’s important to draw the line between the results and discussion parts of the research paper structure. The first presents analysis, while the latter relies on interpretations (or implications) of that analysis. Understanding the distinction can be quite challenging, especially if you’re working out the structure of a research paper for the first time.

Discussion and Conclusion

The research paper discussion connects the introduction and research question with the study results. Instead of merely analyzing data, this section should explain whether your initial hypothesis was correct or not. Moreover, the final section, along with the research paper conclusion, should cover the implications of the findings and their potential practical and theoretical applications. This part can also include the limitations of the study and the need for further research if you feel that it could be useful.

It may seem counterproductive, but you shouldn’t shy away from shortcomings, mistakes, and negative results achieved in your study. Instead of waiting for uncomfortable questions from your instructor, present the bad along with the good and hypothesize potential ways of correcting errors or minimizing the negative influences. In some cases, negative results can be just as valuable (if not more so) than positive findings.

Remember to include the research paper references and appendices after the conclusion to wrap up your work and make it better with careful editing, proofreading, and formatting.

What is the purpose of a research paper?

The main objective is to present and share research insights and discoveries, which you should account for when structuring a research paper. Adding literature review and methodology sections is critical for highlighting the study’s relevance and ensuring its reproducibility.

How do I structure the different sections of a research paper?

Structuring a research paper means adding an introduction, literature review, methodology, results, discussion, and conclusion. You can organize each of these sections thematically or chronologically or use a funnel structure, going from the broad context strokes to a narrow view of the problem.

What are the key formatting guidelines for a research paper?

Specific requirements for the structure of a research paper outline and its contents depend on the preferred formatting style. However, at its core, each formatting style focuses on readability. That’s where 12 pt to 14 pt font size and double line spacing come from. Refer to the relevant formatting style handbook for specific recommendations. 

How do I effectively write the introduction and literature review?

The introduction is a critical part of the research paper structure that should include your primary research objective (or question), hypotheses, and the study’s relevance. A literature review is designed to support the claims you make within the introduction by generously using reference data. 

What is the difference between the results and discussion sections?

Related posts

Understanding types of tone in writing: Quick guide for college students

How to Critique a Research Article: Reveal All the Secrets

What Is Case Study | Paper Structure, Tips & Writing Guide

What are you waiting for?

You are a couple of clicks away from tranquility at an affordable price!

An official website of the United States government.

Here’s how you know

The .gov means it’s official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

• American Job Centers
• Apprenticeship
• Demonstration Grants
• Farmworkers
• Federal Bonding Program
• Foreign Labor Certification
• Indians and Native Americans
• Job Seekers
• Layoffs and Rapid Response
• National Dislocated Worker Grants
• Older Workers
• Skills Training Grants
• Trade Adjustment Assistance
• Unemployment Insurance
• Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA)
• WIOA Adult Program
• Advisories and Directives
• Regulations
• Labor Surplus Area
• Performance
• Recovery-Ready Workplace Resource Hub
• Research and Evaluation
• ETA News Releases
• Updates for Workforce Professionals
• Regional Offices
• Freedom of Information Act
• Office of Apprenticeship
• Office of Foreign Labor Certification
• Office of Grants Management
• Office of Job Corps
• Office of Unemployment Insurance (1-877-S-2JOBS)

Considerations Regarding Future Research on Use of Fees in Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Programs: Discussion Paper

Publication info, research methodology, country, state or territory, description.

This paper explores ideas for future research on application or user fees in programs administered by the Employment and Training Administration (in the U.S. Department of Labor). The paper briefly reviews federal law and regulations, related research studies, and key factors that can be used to guide possible research. The paper focuses on research related to use of fees with employers who, under title I of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, can be charged fees at the local level for certain customized services (such as for recruitment events and human resource consultation services). Possible research studies identified in the paper include: 1) a descriptive study of current use of fees by local programs (as well as of comparable commercial services to which employers have access); 2) a pilot or demonstration to test use of fees for employers in different circumstances and different types of services, and 3) a feasibility study on use of more rigorous methods (such as a randomized controlled trial or a quasi-experimental design) to test use of fees with employers.

Final Report: Considerations Regarding Future Research on Use of Fees in Employment and Training Administration (ETA) Programs:  Discussion Paper

Help | Advanced Search

Computer Science > Cryptography and Security

Title: sok: leveraging transformers for malware analysis.

Abstract: The introduction of transformers has been an important breakthrough for AI research and application as transformers are the foundation behind Generative AI. A promising application domain for transformers is cybersecurity, in particular the malware domain analysis. The reason is the flexibility of the transformer models in handling long sequential features and understanding contextual relationships. However, as the use of transformers for malware analysis is still in the infancy stage, it is critical to evaluate, systematize, and contextualize existing literature to foster future research. This Systematization of Knowledge (SoK) paper aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of transformer-based approaches designed for malware analysis. Based on our systematic analysis of existing knowledge, we structure and propose taxonomies based on: (a) how different transformers are adapted, organized, and modified across various use cases; and (b) how diverse feature types and their representation capabilities are reflected. We also provide an inventory of datasets used to explore multiple research avenues in the use of transformers for malware analysis and discuss open challenges with future research directions. We believe that this SoK paper will assist the research community in gaining detailed insights from existing work and will serve as a foundational resource for implementing novel research using transformers for malware analysis.

Submission history

Access paper:.

• HTML (experimental)
• Other Formats

References & Citations

• Google Scholar
• Semantic Scholar

BibTeX formatted citation

Bibliographic and Citation Tools

Code, data and media associated with this article, recommenders and search tools.

• Institution

arXivLabs: experimental projects with community collaborators

arXivLabs is a framework that allows collaborators to develop and share new arXiv features directly on our website.

Both individuals and organizations that work with arXivLabs have embraced and accepted our values of openness, community, excellence, and user data privacy. arXiv is committed to these values and only works with partners that adhere to them.

Have an idea for a project that will add value for arXiv's community? Learn more about arXivLabs .