A research paper title summarizes the focus and purpose of your study. Choosing the right title is a critical step when preparing an article for journal submission. The title is the first element that journal editors, reviewers, and fellow researchers notice—especially in databases or search engine results. Concise titles that include key terms have been shown to improve visibility, citation counts, and Altmetric scores.

When creating a title, ensure it captures all essential aspects of your research, including the topic and the specific problem investigated. It should also be engaging and accessible to readers. Follow these steps to craft a compelling research paper title.

Selecting the perfect title from your manuscript’s content can be challenging. You want your title to appear in search results and attract attention from researchers in your field.

To develop an effective title, you may need to rephrase key points of your study and experiment with multiple drafts until you find the most precise and captivating wording.

In essence, a research title should:

• Accurately reflect the study’s content
• Be engaging for peers in the same field
• Contain relevant keywords that researchers might search for

To simplify this process, we’ve broken down title creation into five practical steps.

To create an effective research title, first clarify what your paper seeks to answer and what it accomplishes. Answer the following questions succinctly to identify the most relevant information for your title.

By answering these questions, you can distill the essence of your study and craft a precise, informative, and compelling research title.

Deriving Keywords from Your Research Questions

Once you have answered your research questions, extract the most critical terms from your responses to create your study keywords. Journals typically require 3 to 8 keywords, so focus only on the most significant concepts.

Selecting these keywords carefully ensures your work is discoverable by other researchers and enhances the visibility of your research.

Trimming and Polishing Your Research Title

The following sentence is an example of a research title that is too long and detailed for its purpose:

“We employed a case study of 60 liver transplant patients across the US, aged 20–50 years, to assess how waiting list volume affects outcomes; results indicate a positive correlation between increased waiting list volume and negative prognosis after the transplant procedure.”

Such sentences are better suited for the abstract or introduction rather than the title. In the next steps, you will learn how to trim and polish your title, focusing on clarity, conciseness, and key terms to craft a strong and effective research title.

To craft a working title, focus on the essential elements that describe your study while removing words that make it a full sentence. Eliminate unnecessary or redundant terms that are unlikely to be used in database searches.

Original Sentence

“We employed a case study of 60 liver transplant patients around the US aged 20-50 years to assess how the waiting list volume affects the outcome of liver transplantation in patients; results indicate a positive correlation between increased waiting list volume and a negative prognosis after transplant procedure.”

“A case study of 60 liver transplant patients around the US aged 20-50 years assessing the impact of waiting list volume on outcome of transplantation and showing a positive correlation between increased waiting list volume and a negative prognosis.” (Word Count: 38)

While this is closer to a research title, it is still longer than typical journal titles (average ≤16 words). Further trimming is needed to produce a concise title that communicates only the most essential information.

Trimming Your Research Paper Title for Maximum Impact

Details like the number of patients and exact outcomes are not central to the study’s focus, so they can be removed to create a more concise title. Similarly, methods used are usually not the primary keywords researchers search for.

Original Working Title (19 words)

“A case study of 60 liver transplant patients around the US aged 20-50 years assessing the impact of waiting list volume on outcomes of transplantation and showing a positive correlation between increased waiting list volume and a negative prognosis.”

Trimmed Final Title (15 words)

“Assessing the impact of waiting list volume on outcome and prognosis in liver transplantation patients.”

In this version, the study’s subject and objectives are immediately recognizable. Strategic placement of keywords—“Assessing” at the beginning and “liver transplantation patients” at the end— improves discoverability in search engines and databases. Research indicates that concise titles often receive more citations.

Adding a Subtitle for Clarity

If your research title could benefit from including additional details, such as methodology or study population, you can append a subtitle after a colon. For example:

“Assessing the impact of waiting list volume on outcomes in liver transplantation patients: a case study of US adult patients ages 20–25.”

While a subtitle can add clarity, adhering to strict word count limits may make it unnecessary. Always check the journal's author guidelines, as title formatting rules may vary. Following these instructions ensures your title is concise, informative, and compliant.

This table demonstrates how titles can vary in effectiveness. A strong research paper title should meet all the criteria listed below: