This document provides instructions for students to follow in preparing their final research paper. It includes directions to select a topic, write a thesis statement, and create an annotated bibliography with at least five scholarly sources. The topic and thesis must relate to the student's academic field. For the annotated bibliography, each source citation is to be followed by a short paragraph summarizing how the source will support arguments in the paper. The paper itself must be 5-7 pages long and follow APA style guidelines, using at least two primary sources and one multimedia source. It should demonstrate skills in academic research such as use of credible sources and relevance to the topic.

1. Final Research Paper Preparation
Review the Final Research Paper instructions located within the
Final Research Paper link in your online course or under the
“Components of Course Evaluation” section of this guide. The
Final Research Paper is due in Week Five. To help with the
preparation of the paper, complete the following and submit it
to your instructor for feedback.
Topic:
Refer to the Final Research Paper guidelines for your topic
selection. Confirm your topic, and identify how this selection
relates to your academic and professional pursuits. Review the
feedback from your topic choice presented in the Week One
discussion. How did your argument stand up to the examination
of your peers?
Thesis:
Write a direct and concise thesis statement, which will become
the point or perspective you will argue or prove in the Final
Research Paper. Refer to the Ashford Online Writing Center for
information on how to develop a solid thesis statement.
Annotated Bibliography:
To help prepare for your final paper, you will be writing an
annotated bibliography to indicate the quality of the sources you
have read. Please make sure to cite each source using APA
style. After each citation, write a brief paragraph (around 150
words) summarizing the source and examining how it will
support you in defending your argument. For more information
and example of an annotated bibliography, please refer to
section 7.7 in the Ashford Writing Center within the Learning
Resources tab on the left navigation toolbar in your online
course.. Keep in mind the Academic Research standards for all
Ashford University Papers.
Academic Research Standards
Academic research and papers must meet certain standards of

2. quality recognized by the academic community. What
constitutes quality, academic research?
Primary sources, which are documents from the time period
being discussed
Secondary sources supported by research in primary sources
Credible sources (experts in the area of study)
Relevant research (materials are pertinent to the area of study)
In graduate work, the use of peer-reviewed journal articles
(journal articles reviewed by recognized experts in the relevant
field of study) is required.
Educational and Government websites may be appropriate in
some cases, but should be evaluated carefully.
The paper must be five to seven pages in length (excluding the
title pages) and formatted according to APA style. You must use
at least five scholarly sources, three of which can be found in
the Ashford Online Library, to support your points. Of the five
sources, two will be your primary sources, and one will meet
the multimedia requirement. For information regarding APA,
including samples and tutorials, visit the Ashford Writing
Center within the Learning Resources tab on the left navigation
toolbar.
Carefully review the
Grading Rubric
for the criteria that will be used to evaluate your assignment.
The paper must use the templete below

3. Title of Paper
Name
Ashford University
Date

4. Instructions
: Delete this section as well as my specific instructions.
Replace those instructions with your responses/criteria of the
paper.
Topic:
Just list your topic here
Thesis Statement:
Write your thesis statement here.
Remember that a thesis is ONE sentence that provides the main
assertion your paper will be focused on explaining/supporting.
You should NOT use first person in the thesis or any part of the
paper.
(so no I, me, we etc. in your writing).
You should also avoid using an announcement style thesis such
as “This paper will…”
You will write a paragraph introduction giving a general
overview of your topic

5. and then you will end it with that one sentence thesis statement.
Annotated Bibliography:
(At least five scholarly sources –
at least three from the Ashford library and at least one
multimedia source)
(remember this is your references in APA format, and a
short summary
in your own words of what the source is about and how it will
help you write your paper.
Your summary should be a paragraph or two explaining what is
in the source.
You should NOT copy/paste the abstract, but should write the
summary in your own words).
Make sure that all the sources are scholarly, at least two are
primary sources, and at least four are journal articles from the
Ashford library. (no wikipedia, infoplease, etc.)
Please write each source under the appropriate heading below.
I have placed one example in each.
Please delete my example and replace with your own sources.
** You can find addition examples here:
https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/614/03/

6. Example of a source from Ashford Library (please delete from
your final version)
Tolbert, C.J. (DECEMBER 2010). Mini Symposium: Race and
the 2008 Presidential
Election.
Political Research Quarterly
, Vol. 63, No. 4, pp. 860-862.
Retrieved from
http://www.jstor.org/stable/25749255
The article speaks to Barack Obama being the first African
American president of the United States.
It also speaks to his campaign strategy of hope and change.
The article also makes mention of the civil rights movement of
the 50s and 60s from an equality perspective.
It also covers the mobilization of minority voters during this
time.