Project Format, Style and Preparation
You must use the APA Style Sheet to prepare your report. Please refer to it for footnotes, bibliography, headings, and other style issues. The final approved report should be on acid free paper measuring 8.5 x 11 inches and presented in portrait orientation. It should be error free with no visible corrections (no cross outs, typeovers, or handwritten corrections). There should be no perforations or staples. Some links that may be helpful to you are listed below.
Helpful Links
- Report Writing Reference Links
- MLA Style:
- APA Style:
- APA Style's Official Site
- APA Style Guide
- APA Citation Style
- Books and Notes:
- Information Manager Software:
Report structure
With the exception of the number and names for chapter and appendices, you should strictly adhere to the structure outlined in the project template. While all projects are expected to have an introduction as Chapter 1 and a literature review as Chapter 2, the rest of the chapters may vary depending on the nature of your project and the requirements of your committee. For system development and design science research projects, your project may be comprised of the following chapters:
- Introduction
- Literature review
- System description/design
- Case study
- Conclusions
For a social science research project, your project may be comprised of the following chapters:
- Introduction
- Literature review
- Research methodology/design
- Results and discussion
- Conclusions
Preparing the Manuscript
The final project report should be prepared in accordance with the following instructions for consistency and to facilitate the binding process.
- The project should be written in clear and concise English and free from grammatical and typographical errors. It is your ultimate responsibility to ensure the quality of your report.
- Use the project template provided and adhere to the following pre-defined styles:
- ‘Title’, e.g., project title on the title page
- ‘Heading 1’ for level 1 headings, e.g., chapter names
- ‘Heading 2’ for level 2 headings
- ‘Heading 3’ for level 3 headings
- ‘Normal’ for body of text
- ‘Table’ for table caption (placed above the table)
- ‘Figure’ for figure caption (placed below the figure)
- Use Microsoft Word to automatically generate the table of contents, list of tables, and list of figures. Refer to the help for additional information if necessary
- Pages should be printed on one-side only.
- Adhere to the numbering style in the project template.
- Figures, including graphs, table, charts, and photos or pictures are to fit on the 8 1/2 x 11 paper. They may be in landscape orientation and you may use a smaller font (no smaller than 8 point).
- Printing should be done using a letter quality printer.
