Guidelines for preparing research reports

View Full Article Guidelines for preparing research reports Research experience is as close to a professional problem-solving activity as anything in the curriculum. It provides exposure to research methods and an opportunity to work closely with a faculty advisor, graduate students, and sometimes post doctoral fellows and visiting scientists. Research usually requires the use of advanced concepts, a variety of experimental techniques, and state-of-the-art instrumentation. Ideally, undergraduate research should focus on a well-defined project that stands a reasonable chance of completion in the time available. A literature survey alone is not a satisfactory research project. Neither is repetition of established procedures. Research is genuine exploration of the unknown that leads to new knowledge that often warrants publication. But whether or not the results of a research project are publishable, the project should be communicated in the form of a research report written by the student. It is important to realize that science depends on precise transmission of facts and ideas. Preparation of a comprehensive written research report is an essential part of a valid research experience, and the student should be aware of this requirement at the outset of the project. Interim reports may also be required, usually at the termination of the quarter or semester. Sufficient time should be allowed for satisfactory completion of reports, taking into account that initial drafts should be critiqued by the faculty advisor and corrected by the student at each stage. Guidelines on how to prepare a professional-style research report are not routinely available. For this reason, the following information on report writing and format is provided to be helpful to undergraduate researchers and to faculty advisors. Organization of the Research Report Most scientific research reports, irrespective of the field, parallel the method of scientific reasoning. That is: the problem is defined, a hypothesis is created, experiments are devised to test the hypothesis, experiments are conducted, and conclusions are drawn. This framework is consistent with the following organization of a research report: Title Abstract Introduction Experimental Details or Theoretical Analysis Results Discussion Conclusions and Summary References View Full Article Reference: Stephen L. Morgan