UNIVERSITY INSTITUTE OF

ENGINEERING
DEPARTMENT OF APPLIED SCIENCES
Professional Communication Skills LAB
PCT-154

REPORT WRITING DISCOVER . LEARN . EMPOWER

 Report Writing

Course Outcome
CO Number Title Level
CO1 The course aims to stress on students awareness of Apply
interpersonal communication skills and appropriate
usage of verbal and non-verbal expression in social and
professional environment.

CO2 Make the student start and continue a conversation

naturally in English, using a number of communication Analyse
strategies as it is a tool of global Communication.
CO3 To prepare the foundations for the placement process Apply
of the student

Clipart Panda
 Report Writing
• Reports are documents used for getting and receiving actual information,
presented in writing. The main purpose is to provide information needed
for decision making.

Some points to be followed:

• Use formal language
• Use correct format and structure while writing the report
• Keep to the facts
• Use correct spelling, punctuation and grammar

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 Report
• A report is an objective and organized communication of factual
information that servers a particular purpose and is for a specific audience.

Types of reports:
• Academic Reports – while studying (Research paper, project report ,
training report etc.)
• Technical Reports -Organizations (Proposal, project reports)
• Business Reports (Recommendation report, Annual reports etc.)
• Formal and Informal Reports
• Long and short Reports

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 Formal and informal

Formal Reports: A formal report is one which is prepared in a prescribed

form and is presented according to an established procedure, to a
prescribed authority.

Informal Reports: An informal report is usually in the form of a person-to-

person communication. It may range from a short statement of facts on a
single page to a more developed presentation taking several pages.

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 Short Report (1/2)
The report is in memo form generally submitted in organizations:
• The report starts with ‘From’, ‘To’ and ‘Date’
• It states the name of the writer, the name of the person the report is
addressed to and the date of the report.
• The report must have a subject or title.
• The First section is the Introduction. It outlines what the writer was asked
to do, name of the person who ordered the report, date by which the report
has to be submitted.
• The Second section shows the steps taken by the writer. They may include
visits to places, interviews conducted, survey etc.
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 Short Report (2/2)

• The Third section consists of findings. The information can be presented

through tables and graphs.
• The Forth section is the conclusion of the report. The writer discusses the
findings.
• The Fifth section contains the recommendations and suggestions of the
writer.
• The report ends with the writer’s name and designation written on the left
hand corner of the page.

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 Purpose & Audience

Purpose:
• Is it to: Audience
• collect data and present the findings • Who will read the report
• analyze a situation or activity • What are the audience's needs, e.g.
• review and evaluate the literature on information, ideas, motivation etc.
a topic and identify issues • How much detail needs to be
included in the report

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 Examples

• To determine ways to improve employee morale.(statement)

• To design an automobile using solar energy. (statement)

• Should new computers be purchased to replace the older models.

(question)

• Should the office arrangement be closed or modular? (question)

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 Parts of a Report

• Title Page
• Table of Contents
• Executive Summary
• Introduction
• Findings Body of Report
• Conclusions
• Recommendations
• Bibliography/References
• Appendices

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 Parts of a Report
Part Description
Title Page Title, Author’s name, Date of submission
Table of Contents List of sections, sub-sections, appendices, etc.
Executive Summary Summary of entire report
Introduction Purpose, Background, Methods of Investigation,
Scope
Methods Methods or procedures which lead to findings
Findings Analysis of facts obtained
Conclusions Deductions based on findings
Recommendations Suggestions and advice based on conclusions
Bibliography/References List of references
Appendices Supplementary materials e.g. other supporting
data

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 Letter of Transmittal
Transmittal letter contains the following element.
• A statement of title and purpose of report.
• A statement of who authorized the project and when
• A statement of method used in the project or of the principal results,
conclusion and recommendations.
• An acknowledgement of any assistance you received in preparing the
material.

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 Title Page
• The title page should also contain details, including:
• Full title of the report;
• Name(s) of the author(s);
• Purpose for which the report is prepared;
• To whom it is submitted
• Name of the institution for which the report is prepared;
• Month and year of report.
• Logo (if you have one)

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 Table of contents
• Contains page numbers of the titles and subtitles of different sections of
the report.
• Structure the content of the report in a logical manner.
• Should also show the preface material, a list of tables, figures etc.,
references and appendices.

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 Executive Summary
• It is a one – two page brief overview of the report
• It is prepared for non-technical readers as managers, who are not
interested in all the technical details.
• The specific problem to be solved through the project is clearly discussed.
• The conclusion and recommendations are discussed in a separate
paragraph.

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 Introduction (1/2)
Purpose
• States the purpose of the report
• Includes what the report will recommend
Background
• Provides information on the problem or situation that gave rise to the
investigation
• May refer to secondary data, e.g. newspaper report (i.e. data that was
discovered by someone else)

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 Introduction (2/2)
Method of Investigation
• States how investigation was carried out, e.g. questionnaire used [how
many people] for [how long]
• This is called primary data (i.e. data that is discovered by the researcher)
• May include references to secondary data
Scope
• States the areas of investigation, e.g. reasons, consequences, etc., i.e.
what information you need in order to meet your purpose
• First scope item is respondents’ profile

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 Method – Collection of Data
Information is collected in two ways:

• Primary information is gathered and recorded during your research

through experiments, questionnaires, surveys etc.

• Secondary information is gathered and recorded by others in their

reports, newspapers, journals, magazines, internet etc.

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 Body of the report
The report is coherently written and there should be good linkages between
each chapter.

Analysis and Findings: Information is compared and contrasted .

Discussion: A discussion of the findings and other important issues relating
to the project.
Conclusion and Suggestions: A brief summary of what the findings were
and what the significance of the work is. Suggestions for future work are
also included here in some cases.

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 Final Section
References: This is a list of the books, reports, papers, Internet sources
and computer software that were used to complete the project and write
the report. All references listed must be cited in the report; if no references
are cited, don’t list any. References are listed in the same order in which
they were first cited.

Appendices: Any materials such as method, drawings, intermediate results,

questionnaires etc. which is not the primary concern but is used in the
project can be put into an appendix.

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 Assessment Pattern
Students are assessed on the basis of the following parameters:

• Hourly Test- 2
• Assignments
• Surprise Test
• Quiz
• End Semester Exam

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 APPLICATIONS
• Applicable to personal and professional life
• Will strengthen the Report writing skills of students
• Students will be able to write reports in a wide range of professional
situations

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 REFERENCES

• https://www.scribd.com/doc/35917081/Report-Writing-Ppt

• www.uni-mysore.ac.in/.../ppt
/035_RESEARCH%20REPORT%20WRITING.ppt

• www.colorado.edu/MCEN/Measlab/Written_reports_F06.ppt

• documents.manchester.ac.uk/display.aspx?DocID=8584

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THANK YOU

For queries
Email: [email protected]