Suggestions for Finding Your Topic:

• Discuss your topic with the Instructor
• Ask a Librarian at the Consultation Desk in the Information Commons to help you choose a topic or refine your topic idea.
• Go to the Reference Collection and look over the index and the article titles in a specialized encyclopedia that covers the subject area or discipline of your topic (for example, psychology, United States social history, women's studies, linguistics, environmental studies, etc.).

Find a Topic

Sometimes deciding exactly what you want to research can be the most difficult part of the whole research process. Most good research starts with a question or two. There are many places you can go to find ideas and questions to turn into interesting research topics. Here are just a few suggestions . . .

• Do you have a personal interest?
• State your topic in a questions. This will help you clarify your thoughts.
• Look through some reference sources for background information.
• Browse the shelves of a library or bookstore - Look at current magazines, newspapers, television, and other forms of media.
• Talk to your friends, classmates, professors, librarians.

Useful Sources for Finding Ideas: Books, Databases & The Internet