FORMAT AND STRUCTURE OF RESEARCH PAPER

Font
1. Font type
serif fonts – times new roman
2. Font size
body texts – 12
titles, chapter headings, and subheadings – 16
tables, figures and charts – 11
formulas, equations, or mathematical expressions – 12 & should be written in italics

Page layout
1. Paper size – the research paper should be typewritten double-spaced in a letter-size white paper (8.27 x 11.69/ a4)
the same format in spacing also applied to the captions and the bibliography.
2. Margins – there should be margin of one inch (1”) on all sides (top, bottom, left, right) of the paper.
3. Indention – indent the first line of each paragraph. Top-level headings should be centered on the page and should
use uppercase and lowercase letters. Second-level headings should be flushed left, italized, and should be in uppercase
and lowercase.
4. Figures and tables – figures such as photos, diagrams, charts or graphs, should speak for themselves and should tell
the story behind the study. Do not put too much information in one figure. Make the figure straightforward and
understandable. The table and the figure that have to be referred to in the text should be positioned right after the
paragraph or page where these are mentioned (in case the table and the figure would not fit).
5. Alignment – in some guidelines (APA and MLA), the texts of the entire research paper should be aligned to the left
margin and not evenly distributed between margins. The research and chapter titles should be positioned at the center
of the page.

Note: For this example, instead of putting the “Name of Institution” change it to the “Name of your Title”.
PARTS OF RESEARCH PAPER

TITLE PAGE
This is the first page of your research paper. It shows the title of the study, the names of the authors, and the
name of the institution where the authors are affiliated. The most important part of this page is the title itself.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Gratitude is extended to certain individuals who provided technical help (such as technicians or research
assistants), advice and monitoring (supervisors or adviser); and if applicable, financial support (e.g., scholarships,
funding from government institutions, etc.).

ABSTRACT
In contrast with the research proposal, the abstract of the final research paper is written in past tense.
Aside from a short background of the study, the objectives of the research, the methods used, the significant findings
or results, and the conclusions are now included.

INTRODUCTION
The introduction answers the following questions:

 What is the study all about?

 What studies related to your research have led you to the current problem?
 Why was the study done? What is the significance of the study?

Sections of Introduction

BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

Provides an overview of the research. It is a brief description of some relevant literature studies that have led
you to the central question of your research.
First to two Paragraphs – talk about the past and recent developments that were significant in your field of
study. Mention how these developments have paved the way to the main problem of the study.
 Two or more paragraphs – briefly detailing the methodologies used in other studies and their purpose. Next
paragraphs, discuss briefly the methods and sampling you used and the rationale behind it. In the last part of
section, identify the research gap that has not been addressed or resolved in other studies. This will eventually lead
to the aims of your study discussed in the next sections of this chapter.

Note: This is less than two pages long. Hence, it should be concise and precise. Cite the original source of the
literature used in this section to avoid plagiarism.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

This section gives an overview of the main problem or idea and the methods used to solve that problem. It
may consist of one to two paragraphs. As much as possible, citations of other studies should not be included here
since you have already discussed those in the background of the study. At first, describe the problem and its
significance, then describe the methods that were used to address the problem.
First sentence – describe the problem
Second sentence – give the importance of solving this problem
Last sentence– tells how the problem was answered

OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY

Specific aims of the study are explained. It is written either in bulleted or numbered form. It should begin with
words such as “describe,” “determine,” etc. The specific aims of the study, the methods used, and the
corresponding results are linked to one another. I should be written in order in which they are addressed in the
methodology and the results.

SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

Aside from the importance of doing the study, the contributions of the study or its potential benefits to the
society. Identify first the general contributions your research will make to your area of interest or to the extensive
literature, then write down the specific contributions of your study to a group of people, an individual, etc.

SCOPE AND DELIMITATIONS

Describes the coverage and boundaries of the study.
Included: Duration of the study, the research locale or study area, and participants, test subjects, biological
specimens (if you will use it in experiment), limits of the study, and your choice of not including certain variables.
Describe the reasons for not doing other methods, not using an instrument, or excluding other populations or test
subjects from your study.

DEFINITION OF TERMS
Alphabetically arranged and defined according to how they are applied in the study.
Copied definitions from other sources should be properly cited.
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
Be it in the proposal stage writing, the actual experiment, or writing the final draft of the paper, it is
imperative that there is an extensive literature review (both local and foreign related studies). Do not merely
summarize what you have read in literature search; consolidate everything in logical, organized manner.
Critical thinking is enhanced when you do a comprehensive literature review.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Describes how the data gathered to fulfill the objectives of the study. It is written in the past tense and should
be linked with the objectives stated in the introduction. An introductory paragraph is written and stating the objectives
and purpose of the study. Do not copy these verbatim from the introduction. Rewrite this by highlighting the methods
or sampling techniques that were used in the study.
The methodology answers the following questions:

 How did you conduct the study?

 What were the materials and methods used to answer the goals of the study?
 What statistical tools were used to analyze the data?

STUDY AREA
It describes the area where the study is based or located. It is also called study site, study population or
research locale.

RESEARCH DESIGN
Define the research design used and give the basis for your choice.

SAMPLE AND DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUES

PROCEDURES
Write a full account of how the data were collected. Describe a step-by-step detail of what was done in the
experiments, the problem encountered, and the steps taken to fix the problem.

STATISTICAL TREATMENT
Describes the statistical tools used to analyze the data collected.

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Results are the expected outcomes of your research. The qualitative observations and measurements from your
identified variables are examples of results. It answers the following questions:

 How should data be presented (e.g., tables, graphs, etc.)?

 What were the results of your study?

The result section of the research report presents the data obtained from the experiments. It should not contain any
arguments, explanations, or generalizations as to why the data was collected.

Most of the data obtained are expressed in numbers. It is always necessary to report the average and standard
deviation. The presentation of data should be logically arranged and should follow the order stated in the objectives of
the study and the methodology. Put subheadings when necessary. Raw data are placed in the Appendices.

The discussion section is an explanation of the results of the study and how they are related to past findings or studies.

INTERPRETATION OF RESULTS
Written summaries are series of summarized statements from precise quantitative measurements.
SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
After an in-depth discussion, a separate chapter, which consists of the summary, conclusions, and
recommendations, is written.

SUMMARY
It is condensed form of the results and findings.

First Paragraph should briefly introduce what the study is about, the objectives, the significance of the study,
and the limitations encountered during the conduct of the study. Write one or two paragraphs each for methods and
results, highlighting the most significant findings. A summary of the discussion is unnecessary.

CONCLUSION
It addresses the value or implications of your study. It is related to the introduction and should answer the
statement of the problem in sequence. If the study includes a hypothesis, the conclusions section is the part where you
state whether the study supports or refutes your hypothesis.

RECOMMENDATIONS
It contains the future directions of the study or purposes new concepts for further study. It should state what
still needs to be done by posing new questions.
REFERENCES
List only all the sources cited in the paper. Make use of software such as EndNote or Mendeley to insert in-
line citations quickly and to automatically generate a list of references out of the citations you made.

APPENDICES
This section includes extra figures or tables essential to your results, documents such as permits and
certifications, raw data, and any other information such as computations.

Use these links for your guide:

https://libguides.usc.edu/writingguide/discussion
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6tR4cUbr-M&feature=youtu.be
https://lifepacific.libguides.com/capstone
https://libraryguides.umassmed.edu/capstone-resources/parts-of-paper
https://libguides.bc.edu/edpaper/sections
https://www.academia.edu/Documents/in/STEM_Education
https://library.hccc.edu/c.php?g=452139&p=3154898
https://www.slideshare.net/AndrewDomingo/parts-of-a-research-paper
https://explorable.com/parts-of-a-research-paper