The research project paper should consist of the following sections:

• Introduction: This section identifies the criminal justice field that the student has selected and includes a brief description of why this field is of interest (recommended length: no more than one page).
• Competencies: In this section, you will identify at least three competencies required for the selected criminal justice field and explain why each is important to the field. This section should be based upon research that you have conducted about the selected field and supported with at least two cited resources (recommended length: one page).
• Professional interview: In this section, you will summarize the interview conducted with a professional working in their selected field of criminal justice (NCIS Agent). It is important for you to begin this section by identifying the person interviewed and his or her current position (NCIS Agent) within the selected criminal justice field (recommended length: one to two pages).
• Evaluation: In this section, you will evaluate the selected field of criminal justice by discussing the following questions and supporting the evaluation with cited resources (recommended length: one to two pages):
  • How did the competencies you identified for this field of criminal justice align or differ from the information obtained during the interview with a criminal justice professional?
  • What learning goal would you like to set for yourself during this course, month, or year based on the skill sets and requirements discovered during your research and based upon the interview with a criminal justice professional?

While the level of detail in each section of the research paper will vary, it is anticipated that the final paper will be approximately five to six pages in length, not counting the cover and reference pages. Please click here to review the General Guidelines for Papers document to obtain a description of other formatting requirements.

NOTE:
Part of the purpose of a reference is to lead your reader back to the sources you used. Imagine a person reads your paper and wants to find out more information about your topic. The reader can refer to your reference list to locate the sources you used to find information. However, certain types of sources, like a private conversation, cannot be located. No one can read a transcript of your interview (unless you recorded it). The information the interviewee passed on to you is not recoverable by other researchers, so it does not go in the reference list. This kind of source (interviews, private letters and e-mail, personal conversations, phone calls, etc.) is called a personal communication. Cite it in text only, give initials as well as the surname of the person involved, and give as precise a date as possible. Again, this type of source is ONLY cited in text. There will be no reference citation on the reference list.

The two examples of how personal communication citations can be done are below:

1. T. Smith (personal communication, March 19, 2013) indicates that …
2. …from a police custody inspector’s prospective (T. Smith, personal communication, March 19, 2013).

I have attached a template.