Weight of Paper (Hardbound)
At least 16 pound.

Margins
The gutter margin must be 1.25-1.5 inches wide to allow for binding.  All other margins must be a least one-inch wide.  Typing should start one inch from the top of the page and end at least one inch from the bottom.  (This does not include headers or footers.)

Spacing
Spacing should be used uniformly throughout the document.  Single, one and one-half, and double spacing are all acceptable.

Images
Images should be printed on the paper on which report text is printed, not glued or affixed.

Oversize illustrative material may be folded and incorporated in the bound text, or it may be placed in a pouch attached to the inside cover.

Pagination
A number should appear on every page except the title page and the blank page following it.

The preliminary pages receive small Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, etc.) that are placed in the center of the typing page, one-half inch above the bottom of the page.  The numbering should begin with "ii."  The blank page following the title page is neither counted nor numbered.  This page should be the only blank page.  The blank page and the title page are the only two pages that do not receive numbers.

The page numbers in the body of the text are placed in the center of the typing space, one-half inch below the top of the page.  An exception in the placing of the page number should be made for pages carrying a major heading (e.g., the first page of a chapter, bibliography, or appendix).  On all such pages, the number should be placed at the bottom, in the center of the typing space.  If the description of a figure is too long to be placed on the same page as the figure, it may be placed on the left side facing the figure.  The figure number must appear on both the figure and the page carrying the description of the figure.  This page must carry the number that would normally precede the page number of the figure itself (letter suffixes such as 10a, 10b, etc. should not be used).

Printing should appear on both sides of the paper (i.e., double sided).  Each page of the text should be filled unless it is a preliminary page or the last page of a chapter.  Chapters are the only sub-division in the text that require new pages.  When the text is not divided into chapters, each major division should be treated as a chapter and begin a new page.

Title
Provide the bindery with a short title (a maximum of 50 characters) for the spine.  The length of the title on the title page is not restricted.

Table of Contents
There should be a table of contents; the captions should be clear and informative and agree with captions in the text.

Abstract
The abstract is a summary of the main objectives, methods, results, and conclusions or recommendations, concisely and precisely written, and limited to 25 typed lines.  Since most readers will read the abstract to determine the value of examining the entire document, give critical information such as "The three criteria used in the study were ...." and "results showed that 29% of 358 respondents favored ...." as opposed to " criteria will be discussed" or "some respondents felt", respectively.  The abstract will be reprinted with an index of all master's projects, and may eliminate the need for a longer executive summary.  Good examples of abstracts are seen preceding articles in refereed research journals and in Dissertation Abstracts.

Footnotes
These are explanatory notes not properly a part of the text.  They should be placed at the bottom of the page to which the note applies.

References
Bibliographical material may be indicated by footnotes, but it is usually better practice to give all references used or consulted in a single "Literature Cited" or "Bibliography" section at the end of the text (but ahead of appendices).  In this case, references should be:  1) identified by name and date in the text (e.g., Dana 1948) and listed alphabetically in the bibliography, or 2) indicated in the text by numbers cumulative throughout the paper (e.g., 12) and listed by numbers at the end.

Literature Cited or Bibliography
There are several accepted styles.  Clarity should not be sacrificed for brevity.  The important thing is to be accurate, complete, and consistent.  Students should consult their major professor, style manuals, published books, or bulletins for the style used in their field.  Students often use a style similar to that used by the journal to which they plan to submit a manuscript.

Layout Order
a.  Title page (use sample format provided in guidelines)
b.  Abstract (2-3 paragraphs)
c.  Acknowledgements (optional)
d.  Table of Contents
e.  Text
f.   Appendices (optional)
g.  Bibliography