Write a report about a current topic/problem/controversy/mystery in your discipline or career field of choice. The report will be written for your fellow professionals; therefore you will write it according to the conventions and norms of your field.

Why is your topic important?

Why would anyone care about reading this report?

What is your overall thesis statement (i.e., what will you prove in this report?)

How will you support this thesis?

If you’re examining an existing problem, what are the possible solutions you will analyze?

Methodology – how did you go about researching your topic?

How did you choose your sources?

Did you use any non-traditional data collection methods?

Did you interview anyone or conduct a survey?

Data analysis and results – the information here will depend heavily on the nature of your particular topic, but this is the “meat” of your paper. This is where you will consider and analyze your topic.

If you’re examining a problem, this is where you will examine the pros and cons of each possible solution. After you’ve analyzed your data, you will explain the results of the analysis.

What were some interesting and important findings?

What do your sources say about your topic?

If you’re examining how a particular technology has impacted a business or how a law has affected an industry, what are a few specific ways that this has occurred?