Written Report

Submit the written report  by 3:00pm, APRIL 13, 2023.   NO EXTENSIONS.

In order to satisfy the requirements for PATHOLOGY 438, you must write a project report.  Two faculty members (one of whom is your 438 supervisor) read this report.

The written report is worth 45% of the final course mark.  Ask your supervisor to read your report before you give it to the examining committee.  He or she should be able to ensure that you have understood how to properly prepare the written report.

The Written Report:
This report should be put together using the same elements that appear in a journal article or in a thesis. The report should be no longer than 20 pages, single spaced, using 12 point Times New Roman font, with 1 inch margins all around. The 20 pages (upper limit) should include everything: text, graphs, tables, references, appendices, etc.  The elements to include are as follows:

Title Page: This should include the title of the research project, the student’s name, the month and year and the name of the research supervisor.  If the report includes work from other lab member, the contribution of each author should be acknowledged in an Acknowledgement Section.

Abstract: A journal style abstract (200 words or less) should be included in this report.

Introduction:  In this section, you set the stage for your research question.  Sufficient information should be provided so that anyone who is interested (faculty, staff or students) could read your introduction and understand what is known to date on the subject of your research and why your question is interesting/important.  This section should be properly referenced.  There are no rules concerning the format of references, but once you choose a format, stick with it!  For sample reference formats look in scientific journals in the library.

Materials and Methods: This section should provide enough experimental detail that someone who is knowledgeable in the field could reproduce your experiments without guessing what pH your buffers were, how hard you spun your centrifuge, how long you incubated your reaction mixture, what concentration your antibodies were, etc.

Results:  Your results should be displayed as figures or tables.  Don’t forget to label things accurately in your figures and tables.  Also, if possible, apply statistical analysis to your data (the examiners always ask for stats!).  The results section should provide a clear description of what you found in your studies. The results section cannot be composed of just figures and tables; descriptions are required.

Discussion:  This is the section in which you discuss the meaning of your results.  You should put your work in context with the studies of others.  This section is also usually well referenced.  A brief summary and conclusion at the end of discussion is required, especially when extensive results are reported.

References:  A reference list consists of those works cited in the body of the written report.  Pick one reference style and use it throughout your reference list.

Supplemental Materials: Supplemental materials should be included only if they are crucial for the report. Try to include everything in the main text of the report. If supplemental materials are included, the maximum length of the report is still 20 pages.