Research Paper Requirements

General Guidelines

• Your paper's subject must be approved by the instructor prior to submission.
• Research papers cannot contain errors of spelling, grammar, or punctuation. Proofread carefully.
• All research papers must use MLA citation.
• All research papers must be submitted in Microsoft Word format, with a .doc or .docx suffix. No other formats are acceptable.
• All research papers must include a number of sources, including printed and internet sources. Number of sources and ratio of print/internet sources are detailed below.
• Students may use Wikipedia to help choose a topic, or to find possible sources for further research. However, Wikipedia may not be included as a reference in the bibliography.
• Research papers should include images appropriate to the paper's content.
• All research papers will be evaluated for length by word count, rather than pages, to account for differences in fonts, margins, pictures, etc. In Microsoft Word, you can check your work count by selecting Tools>Word Count.
• All papers must be submitted electronically as well as printed. Save your finished paper as "research_astudent.docx", only use your first initial and last name, rather than "astudent". If your instructor requires more than one paper, number the first one as "research_astudent1.docx", the second as "research_astudent2.docx", etc.
• All papers will be sent through Turnitin.com to assure originality. You may want to review the definition of plagiarism, and review the university's policy on academic integrity.
• No more than 33% of your paper can be cited material. You can't just string together a bunch of quotes to make a paper. Percentages will be determined by Turnitin.com.

Guidelines for specific courses

Art Appreciation and Fine Arts

• All of the general guidelines regarding citation, format, subject, etc, apply.
• Papers must be a minumum of 1,000 words.
• Papers must include three sources, only one of which may be electronic (internet).

Western Art History I and Western Art History II

• All of the general guidelines regarding citation, format, subject, etc, apply.
• Papers must be a minumum of 1,500 words.
• Papers must include five sources, only two of which may be electronic (internet).

Non-Western Art History and Art History Philosophy and Criticism

• All of the general guidelines regarding citation, format, subject, etc, apply.
• Papers must be a minumum of 2,500 words. Instructors may allow students to write two shorter papers that add up to the same word count.
• Papers must include six sources, only two of which may be electronic (internet).