Aviation is an exciting subject, and the chances are that if you are to write a research paper on a topic in aviation, you will come to enjoy the process. There are lots of sources, topics you can write about, examples you can provide, and the list goes on. Aviation is wide and vast, and if you have faced an aviation research paper, you will have to do preliminary research the issue you think is impressive enough.
You will likely not encounter research on defining aviation. For example, the professor asking you, what aviation is and or what it is not. Earlier generations did such, and your professor would consider that too unchallenging for students of today. A lot of knowledge has been exchanged ever since the Wright Brothers made their first flight and so defining aviation is more or less not even an academic question.
Before we go even further, research is a big word to a student. It means tedious literature searches, reading, sampling, testing, interviewing, observing, and so forth. So mind that no matter what you are walking into, it will require serious attention.
You may probably ask yourself, why an aviation research paper? Could there have been another research topic after all? As a student who is preparing to take up some essential duties and responsibilities in a future career that may be aviation, you have to enter the job market when ready. The professor is bound by duty to make you the best professional there can be. In that case, an easy academic task will not help you get there. Challenging ones tend to stretch your mental capabilities which employers need out here. The first step is settling on a topic.
Choose the Topic to Hit the Audience
You have to understand that your professor is keeping an eye on a few critical items when it comes to a research paper which is why you have to exercise care and wittiness when choosing one. Not every topic is a winning topic. And even if so, there are topics that just automatically align you with good grades; those deal with current issues that have raised controversy in the academia. How about some examples of such problems?
- Discuss some transformative events in the aviation industry that led to milestone innovations towards safety.
- How has terrorism impacted the aviation industry? Discuss passenger’s perception change as well as the changes made by the federal government and their impact on the aviation industry.
- Does the loss of Malaysian Airlines MH370 signal a new threat to the aviation industry? What could be some potential solutions to such a problem?
- In the age of global warming, the aviation industry has come under ridicule for releasing greenhouse gases in the upper atmosphere. How accurate is such a statement?
- Innovations in the aircraft have recently opted for carbon fiber fuselage. To what extent do you think the material is safe enough? Is it a better option compared to aluminum or even titanium?
- How far has jet fuel innovation gone? Is there a reason to continue improving the quality of jet fuel?
- How will technology impact the future aviation industry? Do incidences of hacking threaten the industry or are they incidental events?
Now we all know quite well that we cannot enter the professor’s mind and understand his/her topic appraisal criteria. But remember, this as a rule of thumb for many academicians.
- How well has the student tackled the topic? Does the student seem to understand what they are writing?
- Is there sufficient evidence supporting the claims made? Does each new point hang on relevant and verifiable evidence?
- To what extent do the arguments reflect trends, events, and incidents of relevance to the academia?
- Does the paper merely seek to complete an assignment or does it demonstrate an analytical thinker beyond the restrictions of academics?
- How “independent” does the language in the article sound? Did the writer incorporate own thoughts or did they lift off experiences from other material?
Every rubric sent to you by the professor is more likely to elucidate on the areas you need to address. It will be easy to know what topic would fulfill the rubric and what ways of developing the paper will earn you more marks. If there is no rubric provided, then the above criteria need to be taken to heart. The rubric is in that case implied and not explicitly stated. Sometimes, your professor would just like to know how well you can develop the paper without being too “spoon-fed” in the process. However, here are a few keynotes on how to choose a winning topic.
- Ensure you are comfortable with the topic: Research is not an easy endeavor as it may seem. The first thing you want to make sure is that you are very comfortable with the topic you chose. Let it not be too challenging to the point that will eventually be fumbling while developing the paper. And do not settle on such an easy topic just for the sake of it.
- Ensure sufficient literature and examples is surrounding the topic: Research papers are typically detailed papers with a distinct direction and purpose. One of the defining features of any research paper is the ability to draw from other literature and relevant examples that feed into the authority and authenticity of your article. So only settle on a topic that fulfills such criteria.
- Ensure the topic is compelling and worth inquiry: Researches have been conducted for decades, and you might think that a good aviation research topic has already been done somewhere else. To stand from the crowd and make the professor give attention to your paper, make sure the topic is compelling and screaming attention. Something to do with a current issue, a critical matter, or along the lines of an ongoing debate could attract more attention.
If you noticed, the given topics stretch your reasoning to think what is beyond the ordinary. That is what your professor wants to get from you. But before you begin the writing process, here are some pre-writing tips that will help with the research.
Start the Writing Properly
- Conduct preliminary research: Before you begin wiring, you need to have a broader perspective on your research topic. Search relevant literature and read lots of them to find out what knowledge loophole your research can fill. Your professor will want to understand how you flesh out your ideas, and that is where preliminary investigation comes in.
- Thesis: Theses denominate every research paper. The thesis is your main argument. It is the main argument about aviation that pushed you to write the aviation research paper. All your discussions will revolve around the thesis. Make sure your thesis is straightforward, defensible, and has to be a standalone sentence preferable appearing as the last within the introduction.
- Outline: If you do not like outlines, then this is unfortunate because there is just no way you can develop a quality aviation research paper without one. Your professor will likely want to see your outline. He/she can use it as a fair assessment of the quality of your work. But even then, you need an outline as a guide to flesh out your paper.
Mind the Set Paper Structure of Your Research Paper
We have come far off. Just as a reminder, we introduced aviation research, then talked about how to choose a winning topic. We provided examples of worthy topics, then talked about three basic pre-writing tips. Let us talk about how an aviation research paper needs to be structured.
Introduction
It is standard that every research paper has an introduction. You cannot express yourself unless you let your readers understand what you have in mind or what you decided to undertake before presenting or writing. The introduction is your entry point. It is where the reader – your professor – begins to understand what your paper is all about. Your introduction should invoke your professor’s interest and entice him/her to read along. Justify why you had to conduct the research and what you will be writing about in brief. The last sentence of your introduction should be your thesis. Do not overwhelm the reader with too many explanations in the introduction. Make it short, intriguing, and up-to-the-point.
Body
After the introduction, here comes the body. Consider the body of your aviation research paper as the bulk of everything you will be writing. The body of your aviation research paper flows according to the way your arguments flow, and you must ensure that ideas are successive. When you present an idea and develop it in a paragraph, the next one should succeed seamlessly. Do your best to make the reading of your work coherent. The body must contain the following:
- Headings: Your headings must capture a compelling theme you would like to put across. Make your headings short, on-point; use them only when necessary. In other words, use headings sparingly.
- Paragraphing: Use paragraphs to develop the body. The body of your aviation research paper is built on paragraphs. Make sure that each paragraph discusses or details an idea.
- Succession: Each paragraph should end in such a way that it leads to the next. As we mentioned before, each paragraph builds from the previous one into the next. It creates the much-needed coherence for your professor to understand your arguments.
Conclusion
After exhaustively writing the body, the research paper needs a formal conclusion to cap it all. A conclusion serves at least three purposes.
- Reiterating the main points: After reading through the long body, a reader may lose track of the ideas that you have presented. To remind them again, you need to mention them while concluding.
- Confirming or disconfirming the thesis statement: Do you remember that the thesis guided your aviation research paper from the beginning. You sort out to confirm or disconfirm the hypothesis. The midsection of the conclusion should be dedicated to making a logical explanation why the outcome of the study turned out so.
- Elucidating gaps and paving the way for new research: While developing your research paper, you must have come across some grey areas that were not directly related to your thesis. If not, then your findings could have suggested that more may need to be done to confirm a claim you made. Take the last part of your conclusion to tell the reader about an area that may require further study in the future.
The Outline
Do you remember that an outline is crucial for your aviation research paper? Any competent research paper will need an outline that guides its development. Think of an outline as the items that will appear in your article from top to bottom. The outline primarily deals with the arrangement of the ideas (i.e., topics) and sub-ideas (i.e., subheadings) as you can see in the example below.
- Introduction
- Entry point _____________
- Justification _______________
- Thesis statement ______________
- Body
- Heading #1 ____________
- Point #1 ____________
- Point #2 _____________
- Point #3 ______________
- Heading #2 _____________
- Point #1 ___________
- Point #2 ____________
- Point #3 ____________
- Conclusion
- Reiteration __________
- Thesis confirmation/disconfirmation ___________
- Future research ___________
Remember to keep your outline as brief as possible without explaining more than is necessary. Your outline gives the reader a sneak peek into your research paper and should, therefore, keep words to a minimum. Your professor is looking for the arrangement of the paper, and the ideas you present and not necessarily the content of your paper. He/she will look for that in the paper itself and not the outline.
The Must-Do Polishing Activities Our Writers Advice
Assuming you have developed your paper according to this aviation research paper guide from top to bottom from the introduction to the conclusion, what do you do next? Well, the very last phase is perfecting your paper. As a student writing a research paper, language proficiency is not taken lightly by the professor assessing your work. Not at all. Therefore you must perfect your paper in such a way that it is flawless by the time you are submitting it to your professor. The following are some of the tips that could help you perfect the aviation research paper you have tirelessly developed.
- Walk off the table: Writing is a tedious mental process, and most likely by the time you are done writing your aviation research paper, you will be exhausted. Such a state is not ideal for perfecting your paper. You need a vibrant mind, and the only way to do that is by giving yourself some rest, preferably for about 24 hours, and returning to your work after. With a sharp and refreshed mind, you will be able to identify even small mistakes.
- Perfect the paper: It is virtually impossible to write without errors. For example, you may confuse ‘their’ and ‘there’ so many times in your paper. The word editor may not identify such syntactical errors, and you will have only one option: going through your paper word for word. Identify all mistakes, check the use of language, spelling, tenses, and so forth.
- One more reading: Professors are keen when it comes to paper perfection. The rubrics they provide always mention language mechanics as one of the fundamental criteria that will be assessed. So to avoid losing marks, read through your paper one more time.
- References: One more important part of your paper is the list of references. As you go through your paper one more time, make sure that all in-text citations are placed correctly, and that they feature in the reference list. The citation technique must be consistent throughout your paper.
Following these aviation research paper writing tips, you have all chances to produce a worthy research paper that will definitely bring you an appropriate mark. Good luck!