Writing a Research Paper Abstract in the MLA Style in 5 Steps
LA format usually requires you to include an abstract in your research paper. Writing this particular section can be rather difficult because it must be very formal. This is the first thing your readers will see after the tittle of your work, and many of them won’t go any further. Therefore, you need to make sure that you make a positive impression on your audience with the few words you are allowed to use. Here is how you can achieve this goal:
- Talk to your professor.
- Research MLA format.
- Choose the type of abstract you want to make.
- Informational.
- Descriptive.
- Do some reading.
- Write an abstract to be proud of.
Although there is an official guidebook that defines MLA format requirements, some schools and teachers might change them a bit. Therefore the first thing you need to do in order to create an outstanding abstract is to get a detailed list of requirements from your professor.
Your next step is to learn what exactly the MLA formatting style entails as your abstract will need to follow the same general requirements as the rest of the paper. Usually this means that it must be double-spaced with 1-inch margins. You will need to use a legible 12-point font, like Times New Roman, for example.
Unless you have some specific instructions about this, you can choose between two major types:
In this case, you will need to include a short overview of every point of your research paper. Therefore, you will need to say a few words about the purpose of the research, methods used to conduct it, results you achieved, the conclusions you drew from them, and recommendations for further research.
This abstract shouldn’t be longer than 100 words. It must only provide the most basic information on the purpose and methods of your research.
It will be best if you start writing this part after you complete the actual paper. However, if this isn’t possible, you should do some reading in order to determine the information you will use in the article.
Now that you have all the data you need, start writing. First, you need to create an initial draft. It might be bigger than the required word count. Once you are done, edit the draft until it looks like something you can be proud of. Eliminate all the unnecessary content. Remember that every word in this section of the paper must have a purpose.