How to Use Claude for Academic Research Papers

Tutorial: Follow these steps to get the most out of Claude. Each step builds on the previous one.

1Upload Your Sources

Claude’s 200K context window lets you upload entire research papers. Upload PDFs or paste text of your key sources for comprehensive analysis.

2Literature Review

Prompt: ‘Analyze these papers and identify common themes, contradictions, and gaps in the research.’ Claude excels at synthesizing multiple sources.

3Outline Your Paper

Ask: ‘Based on these sources, create an outline for a research paper on [topic] following [journal/style] format.’ Claude follows academic conventions.

4Draft Sections

Write one section at a time. Prompt: ‘Write the methodology section based on [approach]. Use formal academic tone and cite sources where appropriate.’

5Check Arguments

Ask Claude: ‘Review my argument for logical fallacies, unsupported claims, and areas that need more evidence.’ Claude is excellent at critical analysis.

6Citation Formatting

Prompt: ‘Format these references in APA 7th edition style.’ Claude handles all major citation formats accurately.

7Final Review

Ask: ‘Review this paper for academic tone, logical flow, and areas that need strengthening. Suggest specific improvements.’