Writing the report

The following advice concerns methods of accumulating relevant information.

Introduction:
This is a big piece of writing that can be very timeconsuming. Therefore, the more work you can do on it early on, the better. You should allocate some time at the start for library work (without neglecting benchwork), so that you can build up a database of references. While photocopying can be expensive, you will find it valuable to have copies of key reviews and references handy when writing away from the library. Discuss proposals for content and structure with your supervisor to make sure your effort is relevant. Leave space at the end for a section on aims and objectives. This is important to orientate readers (including assessors), but you may prefer to finalize the content after the results have been analysed!

Experimental:
You should note as many details as possible when doing the experiment or making observations. Don't rely on your memory or hope that the information will still be available when you come to write up. Even if it is, chasing these details might waste valuable time.

Results:
Show your supervisor graphed and tabulated versions of your data promptly. These can easily be produced using a spreadsheet, but you should seek your supervisor's advice on whether the design and print quality is appropriate to be included in your thesis. You may wish to access a specialist graphics program to produce publishable-quality graphs and charts: allow some time for learning its idiosyncrasies! If you are producing a poster for assessment, be sure to mock up the design well in advance. Similarly, think ahead about your needs for any seminar or poster you will present.

Discussion:
Because this comes at the end of your thesis, and some parts can only be written after you have all the results in place, the temptation is to leave the discussion to last. This means that it can be rushed - not a good idea because of the weight attached by assessors to your analysis of data and thoughts about future experiments. It will help greatly if you keep notes of aims, conclusions and ideas for future work as you go along (Fig. 11.1). Another useful tip is to make notes of comparable data and conclusions from the literature as you read papers and reviews.

Acknowledgements:
Make a special place in your notebook for noting all those who have helped you carry out the work, for use when writing this section of the report.

References:
Because of the complex formats involved, these can be tricky to type. To save time, process them in batches as you go along.

*Note: Make sure you are absolutely certain about the deadline for submitting your report and try to submit a few days before it. If you leave things until the last moment, you may find access to printers, photocopiers and binding machines is difficult.