Choose a Topic that Works

• Brainstorm potential topics
  • Think about what you’re interested in. 
  • Ask faculty and fellow students for suggestions, and check encyclopedias and textbooks for ideas as well. 
• Find background information
  • If you're not already pretty familiar with your tentative topic, you may need to find out more about it before you go much further.
• Narrow or broaden your topic
  • Too broad: World War I
    • Ask "Who," "What," "When," or "Where" to help focus and narrow your topic.
    • Better topic: American women's roles in WWI
  • Too narrow: Eating disorders among blue-eyed men in North Dakota.
    • Think in more general terms about your topic.
    • Better topic: Eating disorders among men

If you need help, Ask a Librarian!