By: Steve Patterson
Submitted: 2011-07-15 11:32:52 | Word Count: 540
When you write a college essay, you are either forming and proving an opinion or you are proving a thesis. Either way, your paper's success is totally dependent on the sources that you cite and the argument that you put forth. You can not prove your thesis in a college essay by quoting a couple of experts and then throwing out a ton of conjecture. You have to back it up correctly. The key to this is through expert resources that are properly backed up.
How do you go about finding the perfect resources for a college essay? You dig. You dig in the Internet, the library and anywhere else that you think you might find information. The Internet has made this process much easier, but you have to be careful with the Web. There are as many fake experts as there are real ones, so you can not just take someone's word for it. You have to dig deeper than that still.
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Start out by typing in your subject matter. Usually the highest search results are the most respected sources by Google, but that does not mean they are the authorities on the subject. They are, however, a great place to start on your college essay. Pull up the top search results on Google and see what they have to say. Most importantly, find out who they used for resources. As you work your way through these results you will begin to see that the same experts come up often. They are usually the "authority" on the subject at least on the surface.
Another key to finding top notch resources online is to search the .edu and .gov sites. These are notorious for being scholarly in nature, and they make wonderful expert resources for your college essay. You can find a wealth of information on these websites that educators will value when they grade your papers. To search them exclusively, follow your search term with .edu and you will get sites from those. The same goes for .gov sites.
While the Internet is a top source, you should not discount the books just yet. There are still sources out there that are in print that you can not easily find or access online. Take the time to search out the topic at the library as well. If you have a mix of web and print resources, it will carry much more weight in your college essay. They are much better when they are together.
When you quote your sources, you have to be careful that you take the time to do them right. Poorly cited sources are as bad as no sources in the eyes of a teacher, so you must take the time to do them with care. Another important thing to remember is that resources are only good if you use the information in the text. Many people just write a rambling college essay and then stick random resources at the end. This is neither professional nor is it likely to get by your teacher. Take the time to use the information that your resources provide. They should be the glue that holds your college essay together.
