Writing process

15 Layout requirements

General

This chapter provides some general guidelines when you decide on the formating of your text.

Chapter headings

Find clear, simple and informative headings.

Distinguish different levels of headings, e.g. fontsize.

Use either sentences case (start each heading with a capital letter; all other words in lowercase), or title case (initial letter of first word  and first letter of each main word are capitalized; conjunctions  [and, or] or prepositions [of, in] are not capitalized). Whatever style you use, be consistent.

Each chapter starts on a new page.

Numbering chapters

Use Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3) rather than Roman numerals (I, II, III).

Only chapters (starting with Introduction) are numbered. Abstract, table of contents, list of figures/tables, glossary, references, or appendices are not considered chapters and usually not numbered.

Space between lines and paragraphs

Make your document reader friendly:

Leave space between paragraphs, or

indent first line of each new paragraph.

font
  • use serif body typefaces (e.g Times New Roman) for the main text of a document because they easier to read
  • sans-serif fonts heading font (e.g. Arial, Helvetica) are recommended for headings/titles, and online douments
font size
  • 8-10 pts for longer citations indented as a separate paragraph
  • 11-12 pts for main text
  • 14-16 pts for headings/ titles

the smaller the font, the lower the hierarchy

line spacing/ margin
  • 1.3-1.5 pts
  • 2-3 cm margin

Serif fonts have serifs, which are small lines at the end of each character. They are easier to read on printed documents. Find some more information on serif fonts here.

You can also find layout guidelines for review and final submissions_Kontext 1 written at Lucerne University of Applied Sciences & Arts, School of Engineering & Architecture.

For cover pages of any report or thesis, the following information has to be provided:

  • kind of work (project report, seminar paper, industrial report, Bachelor – or Master thesis)
  • name(s) of authors (first name, surname)
  • title/ subtitle of work
  • name(s) of lecturer(s)/ coach(es)
  • name of university
  • name of module
  • place/ submission date

Cover pages do not include the logo   of the university.

Some courses might require additional information. Ask your lecturers about it.

Licence

Academic Writing in a Swiss University Context Copyright © 2018 by Irene Dietrichs. All Rights Reserved.