Step 2 · Research question

Your RQ drives the method, the structure and the argument. Most weak essays start with a weak question.

By the end of this step

  • A focused research question, with the variables named.

A recipe for a CS research question

StemTo what extent… / How does… / What is the effect of…
Changeinput size, density, key size, load factor, parameter…
Measureexecution time, comparisons, accuracy, F1, compression ratio, memory…
Techniquestwo named algorithms, models, protocols or settings
Conditionsdataset, language, range of values
The five parts Some Clever Machines Test Carefully
Stem · what you Change · what you Measure · which Techniques · under which Conditions.
Example · the hash-table essay

RQ: To what extent does the load factor (0.1 to 0.9) of a hash table affect the mean lookup time and the mean number of probes of separate chaining compared with linear probing, for 100,000 integer keys in Python?

The hash-table essay is a made-up example used throughout this guide. Write about your own question, data and decisions.

Spot the problem

What's wrong with this RQ? Self-check drill

Diagnose each question. Some are fine.

“Is quicksort faster than bubble sort?”
“Yes.” Congratulations, that's your whole essay. Only 3,999 words to go…

Make it better

✗ Weak

How effective is encryption?

✓ Strong

To what extent does AES-256 keep its encryption speed as input volume grows from 1 MB to 1 GB?

Too broad → narrowed to one algorithm, one measure and defined conditions.

✗ Weak

Which sorting algorithm is the best?

✓ Strong

How does the proportion of pre-sorted elements (0–100%) affect the number of comparisons made by insertion sort compared with merge sort on arrays of 50,000 integers?

“Best” can't be measured → name the metric and the condition you vary.

Pick the best upgrade Quick check

Which rewrite fixes the problem?

Check it against these

  • One question, written as a question.
  • Leads to analysis, not description: “to what extent”, “how significant”, “how does … affect”.
  • The answer is not obvious before you start.
  • Every variable is defined and measurable, with a range.
  • Narrow enough to answer well in 4,000 words.
  • Clearly computer science: answered with algorithmic complexity, performance metrics or computational theory.
RQ builder and checkerBuild a question from parts, or paste yours and get instant feedback.
Research it Find one research paper on your topic and read only its abstract. Can you name its question, what it changed and what it measured? Good papers make all three obvious. Yours should too.

Ready to move on?