How you research determines the quality of everything that follows. The best EEs aren't written by the smartest students — they're written by the ones who researched most effectively. Method is what separates good from great.
Where to Look
Start broad and go deeper. A general web search gives you definitions, context, government data and policy documents. Google Scholar gives you peer-reviewed arguments, models and academic debate. Full research papers and original datasets — often only found as PDFs — are where the strongest essays distinguish themselves. Most students stop too early.
Google Scholar Search Strategy
Search Narrowly
Not "Inflation India" but "monetary policy transmission India inflation." Specificity gets better results.
Sort by Relevance
Not by date. New doesn't mean good. Influential doesn't mean outdated.
Open 3 Papers Max
Scan abstract, introduction, and conclusion. If it doesn't directly help, discard it.
Follow Citations
Good papers cite their sources. Follow references to find foundational research.
Search Operators
| Operator | What It Does | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Quotes "" | Exact phrase search | "voter behaviour social media" |
| filetype:pdf | Only PDF results | climate change impact filetype:pdf |
| site: | Search specific domains | inflation data site:gov |
| intitle: | Search in page titles | intitle:"extended essay" guide |
Evaluating Sources
For every source you include, document three things:
- 1The core claim (one sentence)
- 2The evidence or method used to support it
- 3Any limitation or bias to be aware of
Red flags: blog posts with no citations, news articles used as analysis (they're fine for context), papers that only describe without arguing, anything without a clear methodology.
Free tool
Track your sources as you research and generate your MLA bibliography automatically with the EE Dump.
Go deeper
Want the full research system — the step-by-step method for building your source base before you write? It's inside the research module.
Key Takeaways
- Start broad, then go deeper: general search → Scholar → full papers
- Search narrowly and sort by relevance, not date
- Each sub-question needs 2-3 strong sources
- Document core claims, evidence, and limitations for every source