1.0: Introduction to Formatting Your Research Project

The following guidelines have been widely adopted by instructors and educational institutions to standardize manuscript formatting, making it easier for instructors to evaluate papers and theses and for writers to focus on making decisions about their research, ideas, and prose. Although these guidelines follow common conventions, acceptable variations exist. Follow the directions of your instructor, school, or publisher if you are asked to use different formatting guidelines. You should also be responsive to the specific demands of your project, which may have unique needs that require you to use a formatting style not described below. For examples of these formatting guidelines in practice, see the sample papers in appendix 4.