BIOLOGY4C09/4F06 SampleMidYearProgressReport

GeneralTips:
Adheretothedeadline OnecopytobesubmittedtoeachofyourSupervisorandCosupervisor(s) TheCourseCoordinatorandAdministratordoNOTrequireacopy Yoursupervisormayhavegivenyouadifferentframework,whichisfinebecauseyour supervisoristheonlypersonwhowillmarkthiscomponentofyourthesis/project.

PLEASEMAKESURETHATYOUGETYOUROWNREQUIREMENTSCLARIFIEDFROMYOUR SUPERVISOR.

1.WriteinaClear,FocusedandLogicalManner
Regardlessofyourwritingstyle,youneedtowriteinaclear,focusedandlogicalmanner.Use correct grammar and punctuation, no slang please. When you have questions, you should consultyoursupervisordonotmakeassumptions. SuggestedLayout: UseyourNovemberreportasastartingpoint,makethechangessuggestedbyyoursupervisor afteritwasreadandgraded,andnowexpandthedocumenttoincludemoredata. Thereportshouldbewritten1.5ordoublespaceusing12pointfont(TimesRomanorArialare popularfonts).Use0.75inchmarginsallaround. Coverpage 1page Name,ProjectTitle,yourName,Student#,program,Supervisor(s) Name(s),Date,Course TableofContents 12pages ListofFigures 12pages Abstract 1page Summarize your entire report: brief introduction, provide rationale for studies, state hypothesis to be tested and/or objectives of project, summarizeresults,concludingsentence(ortwo).
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Introduction

710pages Startwithgeneraloverviewofthefieldunderwhichyourresearchfalls. Thengetintospecificsanddetails.Usesubheadingstohelporientreader toyourtrainofthoughtandlogic.Setthestagefortherationalebehind yourproject. Onesentence. List34objectives,12sentenceseach. Verybriefandsuccinct,pointform.

Hypothesis Objectives

Methods&Materials24pages Succinctlydescribethemethodsusedinenoughdetailsothatanother studentcanrepeatyourexperiments. Results Asmanypagesasnecessary(1015pages?) Includedatatodate.SummarizebutdonotDISCUSSyourresults. Discussion Asmanypagesasnecessary(510pages?) Discussresultstodateinthebigschemeofthings.Whatdidyourdata contributetotheresearchfield?Whatshouldbedonenexttoaddressor clarifyunansweredquestions? References Asmanypagesasnecessary. PleaseuseanacceptedstylesuchasinthejournalsCell,Mol.CellBiol., J.CellScience,J.CellBiology.etc.oroneappropriatetoyourresearch field. Thisisajustasuggestedlayout.Ifpossible,takealookatthereportsofprevious4thyear thesisstudentsinyourlaboratory. Themoreeffortyouputintothisdocument,thelessyouwillhavetoworkonitinMarch2010, andyoucanfocusyourwritingthenontheresultsanddiscussionaspectofyourthesis. A figure is worth a thousand words. If possible, include at least one model diagram that capturestheoverallresearchthemeofyourprojectorthelab.

2.HaveYourProposalEditedbyatLeastTwoPeople
Themorefeedbackthebettersincetheywillseeitfromdifferentperspectives. Pleaseplanaheadandaskthegradstudentsiftheyarewillingtodothisandmeetwhatever deadlinetheygiveyouforgettingittothem.Remembertheyhavetheirresearchanddeadlines aswell.
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 SincethereportisduethesecondweekofJan,Isuggestsendingittothegradstudent(s)as soonasyouarebackfromthebreak(ifnotbefore)withtheagreementthattheywillreturnit to you by the Friday before the deadline so you will have the weekend to make all their suggested changes and corrections. Feel free to make different arrangements with the editors.Somegradstudentsmayaskyouforadraftsooner.Remembertheyaredoingyoua favor!

3.PleaseBudgetYourTimeAccordingly.
Workwillexpandtofillthetimeallottedtodoit.Sosetconcretefinitedeadlinesandstickto them.Thekeytoenjoying4thyearisTIMEMANAGEMENT. YoumustbudgetMeTimejustlikeyoubudgetstudying. Useittoreadoneresearcharticle,organizeyourweeklyschedule,runerrands,groceryshop, fillinapplicationformsetc. SaveblocksoftimeonSaturdays&Sundaysforstudying&writingratherthangroceryshopping etc. Cutbackonyourvolunteeractivities(shoulddonomorethan10hrs/week)