INSERT YOUR TITLE HERE. CHECK SPELLING CAREFULLY. USE DOUBLE-SPACING IF YOUR TITLE MORE THAN ONE LINE

By

Insert your name here

A Thesis Presented to

The Faculty of Humboldt State University

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree

Master of [Arts or Science] in [insert your Program]: [insert Option if applicable]

Committee Membership

Dr. [Insert Faculty Name], Committee Chair

Dr. [Insert Faculty Name], Committee Member

Dr. [Insert Faculty Name], Committee Member

Dr. Insert [Faculty Name], Program Graduate Coordinator

Month Year

Abstract

INSERT YOUR TITLE, THE TITLE ON THE ABSTRACT IN SINGLE SPACEED IF MORE THAN ONE LINE

Insert your name

Begin typing the text of your abstract here. The Abstract should summarize the contents of your thesis or project. Emphasis should be on what you found. The Abstract should include the following elements: the key topic or problem, your main approach (methods), one or two important results, and discuss/interpret your results or note your main conclusion. For examples of abstracts, see the Graduate Studies website and completed HSU theses on Humboldt Digital Scholar. Abstracts are read by those who are trying to decide whether or not to read the main document. Sometimes Abstracts are read by people who want to get the big picture before reading the main document. The Abstract should not exceed 250 words (approximately 1.5 pages). Literature citations and footnotes are not allowed. Page numbers on the preliminary pages are lower case Roman numerals placed center-bottom. The title page is not numbered, but is assumed to be page “i”. Therefore, the first page of the abstract is page “ii”.

Acknowledgements

Begin the text of your acknowledgements here. Acknowledgements are optional, unless your study was funded. If you received funding for your graduate project be sure to list the source. This is your chance to thank all of the people who helped you in designing, carrying out, and writing your project. If you are not including an acknowledgements section delete this page.

Table of Contents

Abstract	ii

Acknowledgements	iii

List of Tables	v

List of Figures	vi

Introduction	1

Heading Level Two	1

Method	3

Results	6

Discussion	8

References	10

Appendix	11

List of Tables

Table 1. Example of a table layout	4

List of Figures

Figure 1. Microsoft Word Format Picture dialog box	5

Introduction

Insert the text of your introduction (or first section) here. A thesis is the written product of a systematic study of a significant problem. It identifies the problem, states the major assumptions, explains the significance of the undertaking, sets forth the sources for and methods of gathering information, analyzes the data, and offers a conclusion or recommendation. The finished product evidences originality, critical and independent thinking, appropriate organization and format, and thorough documentation.

Heading Level Two

This template makes use of a feature in Microsoft Word called Styles. Using styles has several benefits including, building an automatic table of contents, consistently formatted headings, and conversion to a tagged accessible PDF. Each heading level one (e.g. Introduction) should be placed at the top margin of a new page.

APA headings 1 through 5 are already set up in this template. The built-in heading styles need to be applied to each heading added to your document. Regardless of the number of levels, always use heading levels in order beginning with level one. The table of contents in this template can quickly be updated as you add or remove headings or other text entries in your document. For help using Styles refer to “Using the templates” on the Thesis/Project Help webpage.

Heading level three. This heading is indented with the paragraph and ends with a period. Be careful when applying the heading style so that the rest of the paragraph remains as normal text. To apply a heading: 1) type the heading and the following paragraph, 2) highlight the heading, and 3) select heading level three in the Styles menu.

Heading level four. This heading is indented with the paragraph and ends with a period. Be careful when applying the heading style so that the rest of the paragraph remains as normal text. To apply a heading: 1) type the heading and the following paragraph, 2) highlight the heading, and 3) select heading level four in the Styles menu.

Methods

Begin your methods section here. The methods section describes what you used and how you did your study. This section must be sufficiently detailed so that a reasonably competent colleague would be able to repeat your work. Reproducibility is an essential cornerstone of the scientific method. This section should include your research design or approach; population and/or sample; collection and tabulation of data; and data analysis procedures. Be sure to avoid unnecessary details about common laboratory equipment (e.g. microscopes, balances, notebooks, etc.) and procedures (e.g. standard statistical analyses).

If you worked with vertebrate animals, your Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) approval number and date must be included in your methods. If you worked with Human Subjects in your research, your Institutional Review Board (IRB) approval number and date must be included in your methods.

Your methods may require a detailed description of the study site. The study site section can be a sub-section within your methods or it can be a stand-alone section just before the methods section. It is always a good idea to provide a site map of where you conducted your study.

Tables

If you will present data in table form, use the “Insert Table” tool to create accessible tables in your document. Tables should have clear column headings to provide context and assist in navigation of the table’s contents (Table 1). Identify the top row of the table as a header row in the Table Tools, Layout tab. Note: Do not use tabs or spaces to create tables. It may look like a table; however, it will not be accessible or readable by assistive technologies. Avoid merging or splitting cells. Do not insert a picture of a table. Keep tables from breaking over pages unless the table is too long to fit on a single page.

Table 1. Example of a table layout

Column Head	Column Head	Column Head	Column Head
Row 1
Row 2
Row 3

Number tables sequentially as you refer to them in your text (Table 1, Table 2, etc.). Captions should be placed above the table. You may add captions manually or by using the “Insert Caption” feature found in the Microsoft Word references tab. If you insert your table captions, you will be able to automatically update the List of Tables in the preliminary pages of this template.

Figures and Alternate Text

Alternative text (Alt Text) is a word or phrase that conveys the same essential information as the figure. Alternative text allows people with screen readers to understand the content of your pictures, charts and graphs. You will need to add alternative text to figures in order to comply with the accessibility requirements. It is unnecessary to begin a description with “photo of” or “picture of”. If the information contained in the figure is fully described in the document text or in the figure caption enter “refer to text” or refer to caption” in the Alt Text description box (Figure 1).

Figure 1. Microsoft Word Format Picture dialog box

Figures are labeled sequentially as you refer to them in your text (Figure1, Figure 2, etc.). Captions should be placed under the figure. You may add captions manually or by using the “Insert Caption” feature found in the Microsoft Word references tab. If you insert your figure captions, you will be able to automatically update the List of Figures in the preliminary pages of this template. Instructions for inserting captions and creating alternative text are available on the thesis/project help webpage.

Results

Begin your results section here. In the results section you present your findings. This is harder than it seems because often you are presenting data. Sometimes, data can be effectively presented in tables or figures. However, anything you present must be meaningful and should never be redundant. That is, you do not have to present every scrap of data. And you should not present the same data in a table and figure. If you present the majority of data in a table, use the text to point out the highlights from that table.

In scientific writing, one digit numbers are usually given word names (e.g. one, two, etc.) when mentioned in the text. Two or more digit numbers are not spelled out (e.g. 10, 11, etc.). A fraction is always spelled out in the text unless it is part of a mixed fraction that is large enough to be expressed by numerals. Numerals are used to express quantities combined with abbreviations and symbols.

Decimals and percentages are expressed in Arabic numerals. Note that unless it follows a number (e.g., 50%), “percent” or “percentage” is correct. Use “%” only in tables and figures. For table entries with a value less than one, always precede the decimal point with a "0" (e.g. 0.24 not .24).

All reported measurements and units should be metric (if this is the convention in your discipline). Abbreviations of units should be consistent and standard. Avoid the use of periods after abbreviations (cm not cm.). Be consistent in your usage. If you use cm for centimeters, use m for meters. Acronyms should be used sparingly. Spell out the acronym the first time it is mentioned (e.g., “Data were acquired by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA)”) and then use the acronym for every subsequent mention.

Discussion

Insert the text of your discussion here. This is your chance to compare and contrast the results of your experiment or study with the previously published works of others. It also gives you a chance to present the principles, relationships, and generalizations shown by your results. You should, however, discuss and interpret your results, not just summarize your results. You should also point out any inconsistencies, exceptions, or lack of correlation in your results and offer possible explanations. Practical or theoretical implications of your work should also be noted. The discussion section is also the appropriate place to make recommendations for future research (if not included in a separate section).

Conclusions, Summary or Recommendations

Conclusions, recommendations or a summary may be included after the discussion. However, it is not required. Recommendations might be particularly appropriate if the work was done for a sponsoring agency to solve some problem in resource management. If you select ‘Summary’ as your header for this section you should summarize the entire research effort.

References

Insert references here. Please check with your committee and style manual for specific requirements. Select “Bibliography” from the Styles menu for a single-spaced, hanging indented list.

The Humboldt State University Library has information about citing your sources and citation management systems. HSU Library Citing Your Sources.

Appendices

Include material too detailed or lengthy for inclusion in the body of the study (e.g., questionnaires, maps, photos, data tables, letters of permission). If your document has one appendix, change the heading above to “Appendix”. If there are two or more, label them alphabetically (Appendix A, Appendix B, etc.) in the order they are referenced in you document. Add captions for appendices using “Insert Caption” the same as for figures and tables. If you have appendices, include a list of appendices in the preliminary pages following the list of figures.

Tables and figures in the appendix may be placed horizontally or vertically on the page.