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Even though politics is not your major, studying this subject is crucial. Politics influences our lives even if you don’t notice it. It touches multiple sides of our daily life including healthcare, education, jobs, and housing. Thus, it’s important for any person to be aware of different political aspects and to participate in the political life of the city and country.
This social discipline may not be the simplest one but is definitely very interesting. It studies multiple processes: from the formation of different institutions to the interaction between people and the government. Political science consists of a range of disciplines, so writing such a paper can help students to understand different tendencies, global events, and even society they are living in.
Unfortunately, political science papers are harder to write than a regular essay because they require thorough research in a variety of spheres, as well as mastership of critical and analytical skills to distinguish reliable facts from the lies.
The biggest challenge of mastering political science is that all the dates, processes, and names often come in two meanings and multiple variations. Thus, students need to find reliable sources, compare multiple facts, and only then come up with conclusions. Today we will tell you how to write political science papers that would earn the respect of the tutor and the audience and will help you to gain high grades with minimum efforts.
Structure of the paper
As any other assignment, a political science paper should consist of the following parts:
- Introduction;
- Main paragraphs;
- Conclusion.
The introduction should consist of a clear argument and a thesis statement. Depending on the size of the paper your first section should be from several sentences to a couple of pages long. Make sure that the introduction doesn’t occupy more than 10% of the total volume.
Another important feature is to make sure that the thesis meets all the requirements of the paper. A good idea would be to write several sentences on the literature that was used. Thus, the reader will know that provided data is taken from reputable sources and can be trusted.
The number of body paragraphs is not limited and depends on the arguments you are going to discuss. Devote a separate paragraph to one issue and break the paragraphs into subsections if necessary. But don’t forget to remain on-topic and to use transition words and phrases. They will help to connect paragraphs together and make the paper readable and smooth.
Here is a step-by-step guide on crafting a solid body paragraph:
- Start with a brief thesis. It is a starter sentence, where you’ll state what the paragraph is about;
- Provide evidence and analyze it. You shouldn’t enumerate all the facts that you have found and then start analyzing them. Do everything consistently: after the evidence comes analysis;
- Summary. Finish the paragraph with a brief conclusion of the evidence or argument and add another sentence that would lead readers to the next paragraph. Don’t forget about transition words.
Conclusion, the final part of your political science paper, should back the thesis (but not to restate it). Before writing the last section review the paper and check whether it meets the topic and your needs, whether the arguments compliment the thesis. Were you able to provide facts to back every evidence? If something troubles you, get back and rewrite the part.
Your conclusion should be a summary of everything that you have discussed. It is your last chance to state the position firmly and to impress the reader. A bad idea will be introducing new facts and statistics because this will only harm the paper’s quality. Don’t forget to explain why the topic matters and how it can help the reader, the community or even the country.
Writing a powerful political science paper
Our political science experts have written down a list of the main things to do when working on the paper. Stick to them and you’ll see that the process of crafting any academic assignment, especially on political science:
1. Identify the topic
Remember, choosing the right topic is already half of future success. You should always approach this stage with much attention. Try to pick an issue that is relatively new and stirs the minds and hearts of modern society. Thus, there will be less competition and you’ll share fresh and unique ideas with the reader.
2. Narrow the focus
You may want to cover as many issues as possible but there is a high probability of boring the reader. Being able to concentrate on the key arguments is the thing, which distinguishes an A student from a C one. Just make a list of all available arguments and ideas and narrow it to 3 or 4 most relevant.
3. Define the question and develop hypotheses
One of the biggest mistakes that students make is crafting a thesis statement right from the start. However, it’s impossible to invent a viable thesis without testing all the arguments. Thus, you should just come up with the main question and then develop a hypothesis that will be tested during your political science paper.
4. Conduct the research
Don’t forget that your paper should be based on reliable data. You may find that this stage takes too much time and would want to cheat downloading information from Wikipedia. However, teachers easily detect plagiarism, so instead of risking your grade take some time and find sources on the topic. Who knows, maybe you’ll find something interesting?
5. Define a thesis and write an outline
Only when the facts are collected and the hypothesis is tested, you can write a thesis statement. We recommend making a list of arguments and key features that you’ll discuss in the paper. This will help to stay focused and avoid tones of unnecessary information. A good idea will be creating an outline – a plan for your future work.
6. Always start with a draft
Many students avoid writing a draft because they think that it takes much time. However, this tip will actually save lots of your time – when creating the first draft there is no need to think about grammar or spelling. You just put thoughts on paper and see what comes out of it. You may be surprised to see how brilliant the ideas are when they are not disturbed with constant corrections. Just let the text flow!
7. Revise your paper before submission
Finally, when your draft is completed, it’s the right time to praise yourself with something tasty and to have a break. Go out to nature, do sports, and distract from studies. Then return to your desk and read the final draft. Is the structure smooth? Are all paragraphs on the place? Do these facts support the argument? Polish your work, eliminate mistakes and only then submit the paper.
Political science topics
Often students are given the freedom to come up with their own topic. However, this sometimes leads to bigger problems because scholars don’t know what to discuss. We’ve made a list of the most popular political science issues that you can choose:
- Pluralism;
- Political ads;
- Political Science;
- Geopolitics;
- Cultural pluralism;
- Hegemony;
- The history of political science;
- Liberty and freedom;
- Common good;
- Modern government.
No matter what topic you choose, make sure it resonates with your own interests, preferences, and ideas. There is nothing worse than discussing a subject you are not interested in.
Example of a political science paper
Democracy is a term that doesn’t have a clear definition. If you turn to several sources, it may seem that democracy is described in completely different shades and colors. Depending on various sources, the United States may be defined as a free democratic country, partially or even not democratic.
The principles that democratic governments follow often contradict each other and at the moment of using them on practice many problems emerge. So what can the United States learn from it? Which principles of democracy should be followed and which – abolished? Do you think that the USA is a democratic country? Can democracy satisfy the needs and desires of all participants of the society?
Give examples of societies, which are as close to democracy as possible.
Conclusion
Do you feel stressed and nervous every time the teacher assigns you with a political science paper? Are you stuck on a single paragraph and rewrite it over and over again not knowing what the result should be? If the answer is yes, you definitely need professional writing help.
We are a team of experienced authors and political science specialists with tens of years of experience. We’ve been helping students from all around the world to master different topics, to get an A, prepare for exams or even to enter the college they have dreamed about.
As former students, we know how challenging it is to work on political science papers or other academic assignments. Especially when there are multiple other tasks to complete. That is why we are ready to support you 24/7, give advice, and even write the assignment from scratch. You are not alone because our team of writers, teachers, proofreaders, editors, and managers is ready to work day and night to help you even with the most challenging papers and projects.