1. How to write your 3 rd year report….. painlessly© Dr Izzat Darwazeh i.darwazeh@ee.ucl.ac.uk

2. Four main points before starting; 1.Have you done the work? 2.Do you know what is it all about? 3.Have you written 1 st and 2 nd reports? 4.Do you have a GOOD log book? IF yes, yes, yes and yes… THEN IT is easy!

3. Remember that you are writing for three main reasons; 1- To gain credit for the degree 2- To be assessed by others who are technically aware but not all are experts 3- To document your work for yourself and others Therefore, features of a good report are:- Statement of clear aims and objectives and conclusions about reaching aims Clarity and good presentation; Gives information/understanding; Reflects understanding; Good technical content; Gives the opportunity to “dig deeper” into the subject.

4. To start.. 1.Write a list of what has been done and learnt (background, theoretical, experimental, measurements..etc) 2.Decide what to include 3.From the above write down a logical (NOT chronological) structure (chapter headings/titles) 4.Refine the structure (sections in chapters, sub- sections, diagrmans..etc) Consult your supervisor

5. Report structure- general 1.Title page 2.Declaration 3.Abstract 4.Acknowledgements 5.List of figures/tables 6.List of abbreviations 7.Contents 8.The chapters 9.References 10.Appendix 1,2,3,7,8,9 MUST 5,6 ADVISABLE 4,10 POSSIBLE

6. The chapters Common features MUST be divided into sections Each MUST have an introduction Each MUST have a summary/conclusions Good practice is to make sure that each chapter is “stand alone” yet “well linked” to other chapters, especially to chapters immediately preceding and following

7. “In the beginning there was the..” Introduction Chapter 1 Short (2-5 pages) contains… Introduction (to set the scene) 1.1 Aims and objectives (possibly motivation) 1.x Structure of report 1.y Contributions/Achievements Chapter 1, is an Introduction to the report Written last

8. Then comes the Introductory/background Chapter OR Chapters Examples… P1 “Modelling GSM and 802.11 integration” P2 “design of Op Amp PID controllers for use in central heating systems” P3 “ Maxwell equations using JAVA” P4 “ Optical fibre link for video distribution” P5 “Design and implementation of high power MOS amplifier”

9. And the important bits Work Chapters How many? 1,2,3,4…??? Most important is to decide on the partitioning of these chapters. It all depends on the nature of the project and it is an individual’s choice.

10. And finally.. The Conclusions “to-conclude” (Collins English Dictionary) has two meanings!! to come or cause to come to an end or conclusion to decide by reasoning; to deduce”. Chapter (last) Short (2-3 pages) contains… Summary of work Critical commentary about the project Show the project met its aims Possible future work Lessons learnt Written last-1 (just before you write Chapter 1)

11. The last bits References Books, papers, standards, web resources, project reports, Thesis, software, presentations, lecture notes...etc MUST be linked to the text of the report Appendix Material that is helpful (to the reader) but not essential. Do not “over do it”

12. Now you have written it.. Check the “overall picture” Make sure it is all there Make sure it reads well Check the details Referencing Language and punctuations Diagrams, figures,axis, units..etc consistency in style, fonts..ets Page numbers … Remember e-submission

13. The details are in http://www.ee.ucl.ac.uk/~afernand/ProjGuideStudents.html http://www.ee.ucl.ac.uk/~dselviah/ReportOutline.html

14. Good luck It normally is fun…. and you may well have to experience it again …