Paper should be a good manuscript bond of 16 to 20 pound quality, white, standard size of 8.5 by 11 inches. Erasable or onionskin paper is not acceptable. If the original is printed on computer paper, it must be copied onto good bond paper.
Copies are to be made at the student's expense. They should be high quality. Each student should retain the original in a safe place in case a copy is lost or damaged or more copies are needed.
The senior project should be written in the past tense. This can be awkward at first, particularly during SS 461 when the written material will be presented in the past tense and the research has not yet been started. However, this will prevent hours of re-writing when SS 462 is taken. Data and information that are presently true and current can and should be in the present tense.
The senior project should be written in the third person. The use of "I", "me", "us", "you", or "our" should not appear in the senior project. Refer to yourself as the investigator, researcher or party leader. Even then, keep these references to a minimum. Avoid using vague words such as "it" and "this". These type of words can be confusing to the reader. It is better to write out what is meant. Be particularly careful to use "that" and "which" and "affect" and "effect" properly.
Use a spell and grammar checker on the manuscript before any material is submitted to the advisor. On rough drafts, neat corrections will be accepted in pen.
A word processor set at 12 point while using either Geneva, Times, or Courier fonts is acceptable, but do not mix fonts in the same manuscript. The printer must be letter quality or laser jet. Type on only one side of the paper. The type should be clear, dark and easily readable. There should be no typographical errors in the materials turned into the advisor.
The senior project manuscript is to be double spaced. Quotations of longer than four lines are to be single spaced and indented one inch from the left and right margins. All quotations must include author, date and page where the quote appears. Materials in tables, figures, references and appendices can also be single spaced, as long as they are legible. The first line of each paragraph should be indented five spaces from the left margin except for the abstract which is not indented. Avoid hyphenating words at the right margin. Do not leave "widows", i.e., single lines of type at the bottom or top of a page. Use only abbreviations approved by the American Society of Agronomy for standard chemical, physics or, electronic terms.
The top, bottom and right margin are to be one inch. The left margin should be one and one-half inches. AU text, tables, figures, etc., should fail within these margins. Major headings of the senior project, such as ABSTRACT, TABLE OF CONTENTS, or RESULTS, should be centered and spaced down two inches from the top of the page. Centered headings, side headings, or paragraph headings should be three lines below the major heading. top margin or preceding paragraph. Below the chapter and centered headings use three spaces and below the side heading use two spaces. The paragraph heading is part of the paragraph and should be followed by a period.
Each page in the senior project is assigned a number. The title page is numbered but the number does not appear in the text. Small Roman numerals (i, ii, etc.) are used to number pages preceding the manuscript. These are centered on the page, one-half inch from the bottom of the page. Starting with the Introduction section, through the References and Appendices, the numbers should be numbered consecutively. The text should be numbered in the upper right corner, one-half inch from the top and one inch from the right side of the paper. However, at the beginning of each new chapter or major section (Introduction through References), the page number should be centered on the page, one-half inch from the bottom of the page.
Each major heading should start a new page. Every letter should be an upper case letter. Center and side headings should have the first letter of each word in the upper case. Paragraph headings should have only the first letter in upper case. Both the side and paragraph headings should be underlined.
When a center, side or paragraph heading is used, it should be preceded by an introductory paragraph to identify the subject or topic that is to be separated in the heading. When a center, side or- paragraph heading is used, there needs to be at least two such headings. Otherwise, it was not necessary to develop the heading.
Tables and figures are used to support the text or illustrate ideas. Each table and figure should stand entirely on its on merits. Tables should present numbers and have a degree of accuracy for comparison with other numbers. Figures show trends or relationships in a more general manner. Tables and figures may overlap at times, but they rarely substitute for one another.
The table or figure should be discussed before it appears in the text. The discussion should include relationships, trends, effects, units, and pertinent data that the writer wants the reader to examine in the table or figure. Remember, that the table and figure must be self explanatory
Small tables or figures can be placed directly within the text, immediately following their discussion. There should be three spaces above and below the table or figure. Tables and figures that take up more than half the page should be on a separate page. This page would appear on the next page following the discussion or reference to the table or figure. Their are many ways to reference a table or figure in the text. The three most common are "...as shown in Table 1.", "...(Fig. 1).", or "Table 1 shows...". Do not use "see table 1", "see above" or "on the following page".
Number tables consecutively with Arabic numbers and refer to them in numerical order in the text as Table 1., Table 2., etc. Refer to figures as Fig. 1., Fig. 2., etc., in the captions and in the text.
The titles of tables and figures should be brief but self explanatory. The title of a table should be at the top left hand corner of the table. The title of a figure should be at the bottom left hand corner of the figure. For both tables and figures, a period follows the Arabic number and then two spaces before beginning the title. The first letter of the first word in the tables and figures is capitalized.
Tables should contain only horizontal lines. In general, a single horizontal rule is used at the top, separating the title from the headings, a single rule below the headings and a single rule at the bottom of the table. The title should be placed above the top rule. Additional horizontal rules may be needed under spanner heads or with columns of data that has the same units. All units of measurement should be placed under the ruled line below the heading. Footnotes may be listed below the bottom ruled line.
All tables and figures in the text must be identified in the LIST OF TABLES or the LIST OF FIGURES. These lists immediately follow the TABLE OF CONTENTS. Both lists can be placed on one page, separated by a horizontal rule. If not, use two different pages. Remember that the title that appears in the list must be the exact same title that is in the text. Photographs, charts, graphs and drawings should be included with the figures. Tables and figures that are a part of the APPENDIX should be listed in the LIST OF TABLES or LIST OF FIGURES.
You are encouraged to cite only published, significant and up-to-date references in your senior project. All published reference materials used in the development of the senior project are cited and placed in the REFERENCE section. Do not cite lecture material without prior approval of the specified instructor.
Abstracts, personal communications, theses or dissertations, and secondary materials, such as laboratory manuals, should be carefully examined before including them. They should be cited as footnotes only and not placed in the REFERENCE section. Use the MLA guide for properly citing web sources.
The method of giving references in the text are many and varied. The following methods of citing references are acceptable in the senior project: the name-year system (Jones, 1986) and the number system (3). The citation at the beginning or end of a sentence might be "Smith and Jones (1988) have shown..." or "...as shown by Smith and Jones (1986).". Three or more authors, use: Smith et al. (1986). If there are two or more articles by the same author(s) in the same year, designate and "a" and "b" after the date: Smith (1986a, 1986b). Note that the number system (3)may seem to save space, but can create tremendous problems if you leave out a reference and have to renumber all of the references in the text.
The REFERENCE section appears at the end of the senior project, immediately prior to the APPENDICES. Include only those references that were cited in the senior project. They are listed in alphabetical order with the first line flush with the left margin. The references are not numbered, unless the number system was used in citing the references in the text. The references are single spaced within the citing and double spaced between the citings. Periods are used between the major divisions of the reference: after author. date. title. publication information. and at the end. Commas are used between each division. Examples are included in the Explanation of Manuscript Sections.
Additional Help on How to Do Literature Citations
The organization of the senior project is important and requires careful consideration before you begin to write. The typical format used in the Soil Science Department is outlined in this section. Modifications can be made by the student and advisor to meet the specific needs of a project. The following sections are to be included in the final senior project report:
Title Page
Approval page
Abstract
Acknowledgements
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
Introduction
Literature Review
Materials and Methods
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
References
Appendices