How to write an abstract

Writing abstract for technical papers such as journals, technical reports, research findings etc. is crucial to getting desired feedback from readers. It is common in the world of research and academics to judge a work of literature by its abstract, hence, any writer must observe strictly the requirements and guidelines of abstract writing if he is to gain positive feedback and more readability. Here’s a complete tutorial for this, but should in case you do not have the luxury of time, here’s a summary of what is required in an abstract.

An abstract must answer these four questions;

• What was done
• Why was it done
• What was discovered/observed
• Why what was discovered/done is relevant/important

Any abstract that answers effectively these questions with proper grammatical construct is sure to do justice to the research work, technical report or journal paper. From the listed bullet points, it is seen that an abstract is best written after the write-up is finished so as to be able to articulate efficiently all the points that’ve been made. Remember also, abstracts are meant to be comprehensive summaries. Some journal publications give a limit to the number of words one may use in writing his abstract. Hence, you must learn to write not only effectively but also efficiently.

To see an example of a simple abstract written for a SIWES technical report, click here.


References:
https://www.springer.com/gp/authors-editors/authorandreviewertutorials/writing-a-journal-manuscript

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Writing an abstract for SIWES report

Do you still remember the four guidelines for writing an abstract? An abstract must answer the following questions
* What was done
* Why was it done
* What was discovered/observed
* Why what was discovered/done is relevant/important

Please note: This abstract was written by ADEOSUN Love Olayiwola and must be treated as his intellectual property. Copying or reproducing this or any part of it, in any way would be deemed illegal.



This is a comprehensive technical report on the six-month intensive industrial training I engaged in between January and July 2018 at Ikeja Electric Plc [What was done]. This training was carried out to fulfil a mandatory requirement of the Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) program for students in the field of science and engineering in institutions of higher learning in Nigeria as instituted by the Federal Government, in other to bridge the gap between the classroom and the industry [Why it was done]. My experience during the industrial training was great. I learnt basically how the theories taught in classrooms apply to the Power industry, an industry in my field of study [What was discovered/observed]. This industrial training has been effective in its aim to provide an opportunity for me to apply the theoretical knowledge I have acquired in school to industrial processes and hence helped in preparing me for the industry [Why what was done/discovered is important].

To know more about abstract writing, please click here.

With this I believe you can write an excellent abstract for your next paper.


References:
https://www.springer.com/gp/authors-editors/authorandreviewertutorials/writing-a-journal-manuscript

Photo credit: ITF Nigeria


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SIWES Report Format

The Student Industrial Work Experience Scheme (SIWES) is an accepted skills programme introduced by the federal government of Nigeria in 1974 under he Ministry of Education via the Industrial Training Fund so that student may have fair knowledge of the industry before their exit from the higher institutions.

On completion of this mandatory exercise, A comprehensive technical report is required of each student for the assessment of their SIWES programmme. While the overall format of SIWES reports may differ, underlying principles for technical report writing (and technical communication) must be observed. Below is sample of the Technical Report written following the completion of my SIWES program, formatted/corrected by Course Advisor, Engr. Michael Adedokun.

Click here to download.

Please note, this is in a .PDF format, if you need a .dotx Microsoft-Word template file, you can write me directly to have access to it (the .dotx file is quite large)


See also, how to write the abstract and introduction of a technical report.

Acknowledgement: Engr. Michael Adedokun

Photo credit: ITF Nigeria


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