Report Structure: Preliminaries Section, Main Report

Simple Report Sections

Introduction, including aims and objectives
Methodology
Findings/results
Discussion
Conclusions and recommendations
References

The Sections of a Simple Report-

(i) Introduction

State what your research/project/enquiry is about. What are you writing about, why and for whom? What are your objectives? What are you trying to show or prove (your hypothesis)?

(ii) Methodology

State how you did your research/enquiry and the methods you used. How did you collect your data? For example, if you conducted a survey, say how many people were included and how you selected them. Say whether you used interviews or questionnaires and how you analyzed the data.

(iii) Findings/Results

Give the results of your research. Do not, at this stage, try to interpret the results – simply report them. This section may include graphs, charts, diagrams etc. (clearly labelled). Be very careful about copyright if you are using published charts, tables, illustrations etc.

(iv) Discussion

Interpret your findings. What do they show? Were they what you expected? Could your research have been done in a better way?

(v) Conclusions and Recommendations

These should follow on logically from the Findings and Discussion sections. Summarise the key points of your findings and show whether they prove or disprove your hypothesis. If you have been asked to, you can make recommendations arising from your research.

(vi) References

List all your sources in alphabetical order, using the appropriate University of Hull style. You might find our referencing pages useful.