PROCEDURE FOR WRITING A
FORMAL LAB REPORT
Sundeep Talwar
COMPONENTS
¢ Title Page
¢ Introduction
¢ Materials & Method
¢ Results
¢ Discussion
¢ Conclusion
¢ Acknowledgements
¢ Reference/work cited page
TITLE PAGE
¢ Name of the experiment
¢ Your Name
¢ Class Name, Number, and Section
¢ Date
INTRODUCTION
¢ State the purpose of the lab.
� What is being investigated and how.
¢ Also state the hypothesize for all the
experiments/tests conducted.
¢ Explain the principles behind PCR, gel
electrophoresis and restriction enzyme.
MATERIALS & METHODS
¢ Describe how the unknown lab was performed.
� What tests were conducted and why.
¢ One can also reference the page numbers from
Edvotek for this section.
¢ Note: This section should be composed in a
manner were it can be repeated, by any
interested investigator.
RESULTS
¢ Summarize the results for all the experiments
performed.
� For example: the results on the gel.
¢ The results can be presented in a table format.
� There is no limit to how many tables. One large table which
includes all the appropriate results would suffice.
� Each table or figure must have a number and a heading
stating what the table or figure are illustrating.
� Underneath the table or figure, must have a general
summary of table or figure.
DISCUSSION
¢ Analyze and interpret the results.
� Don’t simply restate the results.
¢ State any discrepancies that might have occurred
while performing the experiments.
� For example: If the gel wasn’t appropriately run, why?
¢ Also state if certain factors might have effected the
outcome of certain experiments.
CONCLUSION
¢ Identify which phenotype you are and what it
means.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
¢ Recognize assistance achieved while performing
the experiments.
¢ In other words, the names of colleagues who
might have given advice or shared information
while performing the experiment.
REFERENCE
¢ Cite labs/literature used to perform the
experiment and/or to write the lab report
¢ Also any other resources (i.e. websites) used in
writing the lab report or conducting the
experiment.
¢ Don’t plagiarize – please cite your sources in
APA, on the work cited page.
THINGS TO CONSIDER
¢ Please write only in the third person.
¢ Use proper grammar and spelling.
¢ Use a 12 size font – Times Roman. Can be single
spaced or double, without a page limit.
¢ Make sure the lab report has all the sections, as
stated in slide #2. Make sure to address the
requirements for each section.
� Failure to address any section completely (or if its
missing) will result in deduction of points per section.
THINGS TO CONSIDER
¢ Please cite properly and don’t plagiarize. If you
need help citing ask!
� If any part of the lab report is plagiarized, it will
result in a zero for the grade.
GRADING SCALE
¢ The introduction is worth 20 points. The title
page, M & M page and result section are each
worth 10 points.
� Refer to slide # 2
� Each of the components must be addressed
completely as stated in the appropriate slides.
� If any section is incompletely addressed half the
possible points will be awarded.
GRADING SCALE
¢ The discussion is worth 20 points:
� It must illustrate the student’s thought process as
what results were expected and what was achieved.
¢ The conclusion is worth 10 points:
� State Phenotype and what it means
GRADING SCALE
¢ The acknowledgements and the work cited page
are each worth 10 points:
� If the groups members are not acknowledged the
student will receive a zero for the section.
� If the work cited page is not in the appropriate
format a zero will be given for the section grade, but
if all the sources cited on the page are not cited in the
report 50 points will be deducted for the whole lab
report, as that is considered in complete citation.
