Course Papers

There are four kinds of "common" genres for course papers. However, for some assignments, instructors will actually be asking you to mix or blend these genres. Having a good understanding of each of these common genres prepares students to ask their professors more productive questions about the expectations for specific assignments.

Note about downloading sample papers: You must download the paper completely, not view it in your browser, to read the descriptions of the writers' moves that you can model in your own writing.

For more about genres and a complete list of kinds of acedemic writing and models, check out this page at Duke University!

Sample Methods Paper