Report layout

The headings and content of a standard report

Generally, use the provided template and maintain the same styles, fonts and sizes, headings, etc.

Any lab report will start with some basic header fields, which need little explanation.

Title of the report

Name of the student/researcher

College number (Lxxxxxxxx)

Date submitted

If you use the laboratory report template, these fields are all on the cover sheet.

Description/Abstract

The fifth field of data in any report will be the description of the work being carried out or the hypothesis being tested. This may be as little as a paragraph (for example, when configuring a service on a server) or may run to <= 400 words (when defining the scope of a complex investigation). Look through some academic papers and read the abstracts to get an idea of length and style. Do not cite references here.

Aims

The sixth field of data in any report will be the aims of the work being carried out or the hypothesis being tested. Ideally this section will consist of a short narrative and some definite, numbered, and itemized aims. We never use bullet points in a report!

Method

The seventh field of the report will be method. This is where you will describe the steps completed during the laboratory work. You will begin by detailing equipment used (if any). Standard practice is that if you are using instruments, you include serial numbers and calibration certificate dates. On procedural work (for example, configuring servers or services) method may be the most substantial part of the laboratory report. The best way to consider what should be in this section is that it should provide adequate instructions for any other student/administrator to carry out the same work, without any other information source. It will normally consist of text and may include some screen shots. Where you are following a procedure from the lecturer’s notes, there is little point in you repeating them, you can just reference the lecturer’s notes; but do so with a formal reference. If you find a current best practice from a credible source, even better. However, the method section must contain more than a reference to a set of instructions or steps, you need narrative.

Do not show your testing in this section, but you can refer to where you test in the results section.

Results and Testing

The eight section of the report will be the results and testing, and this is where you present the data relating to your work. In scientific investigation, we decide on the tests before we begin to gather data. If your aim was to evaluate performance, what specific tests will do so?

Results are the pure data which emerges from an investigation, without interpretation. You state the facts as you have recorded them, without any bias towards your original hypothesis or aims. A good screen shot or two can enhance your results and confirm unambiguously that you have completed the work. If your report requires several screen shots/tables/figures, they are best placed in an appendix, with a figure or table number. Refer to these by figure/number from within the narrative. if you found any errors in the instructions/equipment with which you were provided, you should detail them in such a way that they can be remedied.

At the end of this section, briefly discuss your results.

Discussion/Conclusions

The final section of your report are your conclusions. In this section of your report, you discuss the results, you interpret them, and you assign significance to the results. It would be normal for the conclusions to tie closely to the original hypothesis or aims. You should state how long the work took. By award year, there is an expectation that you are reading widely. A conclusion will normally show evidence of independent study and references should be provided. You should cite the references from within the narrative.

The final document should be readable and should have a natural flow. If you have code listings, configuration listings, diagrams etc. they should be included in appendices.