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教授學者們通常會規範寫作標準，制定如何撰寫碩博士論文與學術文章以及格式要求。學術界所評定的標準植基於以何種撰寫方式會被認可，何種撰寫方式則會被拒絕。本專欄提出「12個獲得學術認可的論文撰寫技巧」，幫助你寫出符合規範與認可標準的文章。
The community of scholars has rules that govern how dissertations, theses and other academic papers are composed and formatted. Academic convention has established what is acceptable and what is not. Following is one of 12 recommendations to help you submit a conventional and acceptable paper.

Tip 3 –Identify correct format and style for your paper
技巧三：論文書寫格式與風格

Every academic writer hopes to have a paper published and widely read within the academic community. While that is a reasonable hope, it can be a distracting one during a paper’s planning and composition. A paper need satisfy just one reader for success: the classroom instructor who assigned the paper. Failure to pass the muster of that professor precludes broader acceptance.
每位作者都期望論文作品能成功刊登於國際期刊，並受到學界的廣泛閱覽。雖說這是一個合理的期望，在論文計畫與構思的過程中，它卻也容易分散你的注意力。其實，論文只需要滿足一位讀者就可視為成功，那位讀者就是：給予你論文題目的課堂教授。教授通常會整理出論文不被接受的普遍原則，以自身經驗告訴你，你的論文可被接受或是會被拒絕。

In terms of format and style, this is not as arbitrary as it sounds. The mechanical presentation of a paper is governed largely by universal sets of rules. Individual professors can, and do, slightly tweak the rules to satisfy professional preferences. However, the common rules work to the advantage of all writers by giving to each a uniform structure for presentation of material.
談到格式與風格，其實沒有字面上看來那麼嚴格。學界公認的法則規範了論文制式的呈現方式。教授不但可以，並且能夠微調規範，以表現該學術專業領域偏好的論文形式。然而，透過論文制式呈現的架構，的確讓許多作者獲得普遍正確書寫的原則與優勢。

So at the outset, the author of a paper must be certain about what format or style is required—not suggested—by the assigning professor. If the class instructor glances at a submitted paper and returns it to the author, it is certain the author has failed to follow a professor’s formatting and stylistic instructions. Before content can be evaluated, presentation of the material is evaluated.
所以一開始，論文作者必須瞭解課堂教授期望論文必備，非選備，的格式與風格。倘若教授對你遞交的論文一瞥後就直接退回，很明顯的，作者並未按照教授所要求的格式與風格來撰寫。在評論你的論文內容前，論文的呈現已第一步被打了分數。

Several styles are used across academia. Some familiar ones include the Modern Language Association (MLA), which is popular in liberal arts and humanities writing; the Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), which has more general usage; the American Psychological Association (APA), for social sciences; and the Council of Science Editors (CSE), for scientific papers.
寫作風格用於不同的學術領域。舉例來說，學界所熟悉的「美國現代語言學會寫作手冊」(Modern Language Association ,MLA)在人文學科領域廣泛採用；「芝加哥格式手冊」(Chicago Manual of Style, Chicago)詳述完整格式規範與細節；「美國心理學會寫作手冊」 (American Psychological Association, APA)是社會科學領域普遍採用的格式；「科學編輯委員會」(Council of Science Editors , CSE)主要用在科學領域。

The different styles can vary in their citation requirements and formatting. The writer of a paper must know which style is assigned. Example of differences: The MLA does not require a title page—but the professor might anyway; the APA generally requires a title page, which should be numbered 1; whereas in Chicago usage, if a title page is included, it should not be numbered 1.
不同寫作風格，引述與引用的條件與格式也不同，作者必須清楚自己遵循的是那一類風格。舉例來說，MLA不需要標題頁(封面)－不過，或許你的教授會需要；APA一般是需要標題頁，通常在第一頁；而Chicago若放標題頁，則大多不是第一頁。

In-text citations also vary. They range from MLA’s strict use of authors’ names and publication data in parenthesis to CSE’s less complicated use of numbers that link to a reference section. From an academic writer’s point of view, there is no best way to format and cite. There is only the required way, as assigned by an individual professor. Carefully heed such instructions.
引述與引用寫法也各異。MLA在引述作者與作品名稱方面相當嚴謹；CSE強調參考文獻數字需清楚明確標示等等。從論文作者的觀點來看，沒有完美的格式與寫法，只有被課堂教授需求、要求的寫法。作者們務必謹慎留心教授對文體格式的要求與期望。