An essay writer must know the difference between trustworthy and untrustworthy sources. Educational institutions will not accept referrals from unreliable sources. The essay writer should collect, use, and synthesize information only from approved sources specified by the instructor or university. The essay writer can select published sources that appear on trusted websites, such as peer-reviewed journals, books, or research articles. The reliability of the data collected by the freelance writer depends on how reliable the source is. If the freelance writer does not use reliable sources, they may later have a problem with the consistency, analysis, and validity of the collected data.

What do you mean by reliable sources?

The first thing an essay writer should know when collecting data and conducting research is the ability to determine whether or not the site is trustworthy. There is only one thing an essay writer should think about when visiting a site: know from experience if the information is good or not. Here are examples of good, trustworthy sites that provide trustworthy information:

• Google books
• Newspapers
• Peer-reviewed articles
• Peer-reviewed journals
• PhD or MBA thesis and research
• Public library that includes Questia
• School supplies
• Isolated studies or academic research
• Websites of educational institutions

Although Wikipedia sites are a good starting point for getting initial ideas on the topic of the essay, the background information collected from the site still needs confirmation and verification with a trusted source. Wikipedia sites have no formal control over the type and quality of the information published on their sites. This concept is the same with blogs and other articles. Using the search engine to find information can provide reliable and unreliable sources. Many sites also give opinions and reviews. If it is necessary to use the ideas presented on these sites, then it is extremely important that the essay writers validate the concept or theory with a reliable source.

Academic writers should know that government and organization websites provide reliable information. Essay writers should use the same reading strategies with printed text for electronic resource publications. Websites maintained by educational institutions are more reliable than blogs or personal websites for research. A Ph.D. or MBA thesis requires a well-balanced approach in presenting data and statistical information. Essay writers must learn to evaluate the fairness or reliability of the web content of a particular website provided on the search engine’s search page.

How do you know that a source is not trustworthy?

Academy writers don’t need to read every book or anything from cover to cover. Essay writers will definitely achieve information overload using this research technique. One approach that essay writers could use is to review the material and follow this simple guide:

• Note the publication date and version of the document
• Look at the table of contents and browse the identified sections
• Choose relevant information for best results
• Organized information gathered from other sources to confirm reliability

Essay writers can use the idea that untrustworthy sites are present, but they need reliable resources to cite and confirm the information collected. Here are examples of untrusted sources that require confirmation with a trusted source:

• Wikipedia
• Blogs
• Forums
• Questionable sites created by organizations
• Sites that provide information on biases

One way that essay writers can tell the type of organization that manages website content is by looking at the domain name or URL. The domain extension can have a two-letter country code, such as .ph for the Philippines, .us for the United States, or .uk for the United Kingdom. Educational institutions generally include .edu which may look like .edu .au for an Australian educational institution or .edu .ph for a Philippine educational institution.