Presented by: Dudley Knox Library
Category: Research and Citation

Learn how to use Zotero, a free tool that you can use to centrally collect, manage, and format your references in APA, Chicago, IEEE, and other citation styles. We will also show you how to use Zotero's Word plug-in to cite while you write your papers or thesis.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Thesis Writing

Constructing a clear, workable research question is the most important task for any paper. An overly broad question becomes mission impossible, while an excessively narrow question won't fill the pages. Learn strategies for crafting answerable, interesting questions to keep you motivated and your reader engaged. You will be better prepared to analyze assignments and write questions to get what you need from subordinates.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Critical Thinking

Imagine a conversation among all the scholars who have contributed to your research topic. Assessing the strengths, weaknesses, agreements, and disagreements of their combined wisdom is the essence of a literature review. Using the Just War Theory, this workshop presents two examples of capturing the "conversation" and helps you identify the differences between review and critical analysis. Through guided discussion, you will be better equipped to understand and write literature reviews.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Critical Thinking

Do your academic readings make you feel like an outsider? Don't remain an unheard voice in the wilderness: learn how to construct your paper as a "conversation with others." In this workshop, inspired by the book They Say/I Say, you will learn the methods that scholars use to engage in larger debates. Your readers will understand you better, and you will stand on equal footing with the writers in your field.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

Most graduate students will, at some point, have to deliver an oral report. Knowing what to say and how to say it is a challenge. In this workshop you'll learn how to forge a powerful presentation, penetrate to the core of your subject, and pull it off in style. The instructor will deliver a sample 15-minute book review, which you will then critique. In the process, we will identify the elements of strong and weak presentations, suggesting ways that you can improve your own oral communication skills.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Thesis Writing

Master the art of knowing when and how various kinds of graphics—diagrams, graphs, photographs, tables—can clarify a process for the reader or illustrate an argument. Learn guidelines for making effective visuals, explaining them in your text, and placing them in the thesis template. By examining some student figures, you’ll see how design and annotations help the reader appreciate a figure's meaning.

Presented by: Thesis Processing Office
Category: Thesis Writing

A guide for foreign students on thesis formatting.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

You just received a paper assignment, but you can't figure out how to structure the paper you're supposed to write. Sound familiar? Learn strategies for decoding and understanding instructors' prompts, unpacking what key words mean, and identifying core tasks

Presented by: Dudley Knox Library
Category: Thesis Writing

Does your professor want you to use LaTeX to write your thesis or dissertation? Are you passionate about beautifully formatted equations? Do you want to leave the formatting woes of Microsoft Word behind for a brighter tomorrow with LaTeX? If you answered yes to these questions or are just curious about LaTeX, please join us for a LaTeX crash course that will introduce you to using LaTeX to write your thesis or dissertation. In one hour we will introduce you to the fundamentals of LaTeX so that you are equipped with the skills needed to start using LaTeX immediately

Presented by: Dudley Knox Library
Category: Research and Citation

Develop your research skills and learn how to use the library search, library databases, research guides, Google Scholar, and more!

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

You take notes and learn the subject matter, so why is it so difficult to communicate your knowledge during tests? And where does all the time go? A few key strategies can make all the difference. This workshop will provide you with techniques and step-by-step methods for studying effectively, taking useful notes, preparing for exams, and performing better during tests.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Thesis Writing

A master's degree requires mastering a field, and that mastery is demonstrated in a literature review, a required component of many theses and papers. It is not, as is often believed, a multi-title book review. It is a comprehensive evaluation of literature relevant to your research. More than a summary, it identifies strengths and inadequacies in the literature, which dovetails with your goal of adding knowledge to your field. In this workshop, you will learn how literature reviews are constructed and how to make yours justify your research.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Special Offering (four-part series)

The poets and playwrights of Classical Greece created the archetype of the military hero who fulfilled his destiny on the battlefield. These ancient concepts of courage, honor, and military glory have come down through the centuries and continue to resonate within the lives and careers of military officers. Experience a compelling sampler of literature as well as live, filmed, and audio performances that have influenced Western culture and even military policy. Join discussions that stem from your own responses, thoughts, and questions.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Planning and Organization

Academic, or research-based, writing is distinct from other forms of writing: our primary purpose is to describe knowledge, which, at the graduate level, is most likely to address the logical connections between ideas—a task that calls for structured writing. This workshop introduces basic techniques that produce readable papers—comprehensive introductions, topic sentences, and embedding structure in language—and effective tools for composition. You will learn a systematic process for learning and writing that will focus your effort where it counts the most.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Research and Citation

You've all heard what you shouldn't be doing: don’t violate the Honor Code, don't plagiarize, don't forget the rules of academic integrity. This workshop focuses on what to do to avoid these serious problems. We give you the skills to confidently incorporate others' words, ideas, analyses, models, and images into your own writing. You will gain experience summarizing, paraphrasing, and incorporating quotations from source material.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Thesis Writing

The quality of your executive summaries influences how others perceive you and your research. Executive summaries publicize your work, provide busy decision makers with actionable information, and generate readers for your research. Learn how to prioritize and organize essential information, avoid jargon, write more powerfully and persuasively, and navigate this specific form's rules. By examining excerpts, we will identify best practices and apply those lessons to summarizing research in different fields.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

So much reading, so little time! Learn Dr. Zach Shore's method of reading for argument at the graduate level, tailored to social science and business fields. Dr. Shore's "search and destroy" technique allows you to synthesize an author's arguments efficiently. Level I teaches the "search" half—how to quickly extract an author's thesis and structure from an academic article. This method takes time to perfect, but the payoff is high in terms of comprehension and time saved.

Also be sure to check out Strategic Reading II, which offers techniques for analyzing sources' arguments.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

So much reading, so little time! Learn Dr. Zach Shore's method of reading for argument at the graduate level, tailored to STEM fields. Dr. Shore's "search and destroy" technique allows you to synthesize an author's arguments efficiently. This workshop teaches the "search" half—how to quickly extract an author's thesis and structure from an academic article. This method takes time to perfect, but the payoff is high in terms of comprehension and time saved.

Also be sure to check out Strategic Reading II, which offers techniques for analyzing sources' arguments.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Critical Thinking

Level II teaches the "destroy" half of Dr. Zach Shore's "search and destroy" technique. This workshop prepares you for class discussions, argument papers, thesis writing, and more. Learn how to examine a text for its strengths and weaknesses. Identify how authors build and support their arguments, then develop your own critical response by evaluating empirical and logical evidence.

Strategic Reading, Level I is recommended but not required.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Mechanics, Grammar, and Style

Overusing passive voice is one of the most common stylistic blunders in academic writing; it can be hard to identify and tricky to fix. At the same time, passive voice does have its uses. This workshop will explain what passive voice looks like and why in most cases active constructions are a better choice. Lessons and activities will show you how to transform passive-voice sentences and also identify situations when you might want to use them. You will leave with strategies to select the best possible verbs, to craft more interesting prose, and to express your ideas more clearly

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Mechanics, Grammar, and Style

Are you more comfortable solving equations than drafting sentences? Come focus on the precise skills you need to write clear technical reports and theses. In this workshop, we will dissect a well-written report, decide what makes it effective, identify steps you can use to emulate its features, and review editing and proofreading strategies appropriate for technical writing.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Thesis Writing

Get from proposal to final draft! This once-a-week workshop series offers lessons and exercises on thesis-writing essentials, with a new topic each week. Sign up for one or all.

Presented by: Dudley Knox Library
Category: Thesis Writing

Is it time to begin your thesis? Not sure how to start? This workshop will cover academic research and writing in general, as well as the specifics of the NPS thesis process. Learn how to navigate the process and launch your thesis with confidence.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Planning and Organization

When the prospect of writing a paper feels like sinking into an abyss of uncertainty, keep in mind that writing doesn’t have to be a linear process. This workshop explores critical work you can do before you start stringing sentences together. Lean into your individual strengths and develop a personalized approach to generate, clarify, and organize your ideas.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

How is a response paper different from a reflective essay? How should you structure a policy analysis vs. a proposal? What's the difference between an argumentative and persuasive essay? Learn how to adapt the introduction, context, content, and conclusion to common paper types.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Grad School Survival

What are the common elements of academic papers at NPS? What do professors expect? Learn how the building blocks of academic papers fit together, making your papers more readable, complete, and academic. In this overview, you’ll learn about intros, conclusions, thesis statements, roadmaps, research questions, hypotheses, abstracts, citation styles, NPS resources, and more!

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Thesis Writing

Will your thesis have four or 84 figures? Images in academic writing need to be skillfully discussed in both the body of your paper and in captions. We will practice writing about flow charts, graphs, set-off quotes, and tables. A simple formula will help you consistently and professionally describe figures and their sources, and explain to your readers how each image supports your argument.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Mechanics, Grammar, and Style

To master sentences that are strong means to write with clarity, vigor, and grace. In this workshop, inspired by Strunk and White's The Elements of Style, a classic grammar how-to, you will be introduced to concepts that seasoned writers take for granted: thesis statements, topic sentences, paragraph structure, active voice, punctuation, and other elements essential to academic papers that are clear, to the point, and bold.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Planning and Organization

Learn to target appropriate academic journals for your discipline, decode submission requirements, query editors, prepare manuscripts, and address wider audiences for your academic research. This workshop covers the basics of academic publication, common obstacles, and models for adapting your research for publication as a journal article.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Planning and Organization

Do you want to impact broader military and security discussions? Learn to pitch, scope, draft, and revise short pieces for online outlets such as The Strategy Bridge and War on the Rocks. In this workshop, we will review submission requirements, learn from published writing, and show how writing coaches can help you shape your pieces for these audiences and specs.

Presented by: Graduate Writing Center
Category: Critical Thinking

Arguments are central to writing at the grad school level, and this workshop exposes the expert moves behind stealthy persuasion. You will learn how to logically organize a strong central argument, incorporate evidence, anticipate counterarguments, remedy any gaps in your defense, and ultimately convince your readers to trust your conclusions.