Presentation of academic writing is vital as it follows a formal approach for the readers and reviewers and focuses more on the formal process of informing about concepts. Similarly, an appendix is a crucial part of academic writing or projects that adds the additional authenticity of the paper while presenting majorly the valid proofs in support of the written content. Here, you will learn about the significance of an appendix in projects and how it should be drafted for a better structure of the study. By reading this, you will learn how to write an effective appendix which is considered to be an integral part of a project with the understanding of the guidelines to be used while making it and its implications of it.

What is an Appendix?

It is part of a research project which carries references and materials that might be very extensive and huge to include in the original report. The material not only includes technical drawings, graphs, raw data, and calculations but also many more things. The appendix content is summarized and then referred to as the main part of the research paper. 

The appendix uses various types of information such as:

• Surveys

To get the real picture of the findings needs to be answered precisely by the responses gathered by the respondents with the help of surveys. Many researchers used the tool of surveys as their methodology which are usually found attached in appendices. 

• Interviews

For complete transparency, the questions and real answers asked in the interviews are attached in the appendix for further reference and better understanding. 

• Research Tools

All the tools used by the researcher while studying are acknowledged in an appendix to give the reader a clear insight into the process of making. Various tools such as special software, cameras, and audio recorders are used. 

• Non-textual items

Generally, research inculcates too many illustrations, charts or photos, graphs, and tables which are even included in the appendix to authenticate the source of information and better understanding to the reader. 

• Statistical Data

Whatever data is used by the researcher no matter how long it is, the complete data must be cited by the researcher in the appendix for the reader to understand the data. No matter how small part of the data is used, it must cite the full data for better reference. 

• Correspondence

Every communication with collaborators regarding the research must be included in the appendix. It can be further processed via letters, transcripts, emails, etc. Every communication must be cited by the researcher for the reader to make an alignment with the topic. 

Actual significance and implication of an appendix

The appendix is always an additional part of the research paper. The appendix is considered as non-essential as the reader would still be able to understand the objective of the research even if it gets removed. It is not necessary that the reader would not be able to comprehend the significance and implications of research without an appendix. 

An appendix can be included for the following reasons such as:

• Lengthy and detailed information makes the reader easily summarize the body of the research. 
• Includes data that would be understood more easily and analyzed with relevant information contained in the section of the paper.
• Helps in preventing from the reader getting distracted from the main content of the paper by providing supporting, helpful and useful material.
• Providing the information in the appendix in the main content of the research could make the paper poorly structured and interruptive for the researcher. 
• It can be helpful while facing constraints on the length of the paper 
• Helps in providing additional details to the reader about the technical details, design protocols, or any research problem for further understanding. 

Guidelines to be followed in drafting an appendix

Several guidelines need to be followed while writing an appendix:

1) All the appendices should be tagged with a number, title, or letter.

2) The content page must include all the titles and numbers of the research paper.

3) In the research paper each appendix should be tagged with a letter or a number at the appropriate point. 

Certain steps need to be followed to make a proper index which is as follows:

Step 1: Gathering Content for the Appendix

• Collecting Raw Data

It is very important to collect raw data for a research paper. And, it is equally important to be cited correctly from the sources it has been taken. One of the prime examples of raw data could be calculations that have been used in the research paper. It further expands the subject of the paper and carries the findings that have been spoken in the body of the paper which includes supplementary information.

• Graphs, Images, and Charts
  
  As we know readers are more interested in visual additions like maps, charts, and photographs, and an appendix usually contains these kinds of things.
   
• Note of Instruments used

It is very important to keep the reader up to date regarding the instruments used by the researcher. It includes cell phone recordings, cameras, and any other instruments that were used for conducting the research. Mostly, readers are interested in knowing what devices were taken into consideration while doing research for the paper.

• Additional and Relevant Information

It even carries surveys, interviews, or transcripts in the appendix that may have emerged during the research of the paper apart from using instruments, raw materials, and graphs. It should include both the answers and questions of the interview that was covered in the transcripts. Apart from that, it should even add scanned copies of surveys whether done by hand or online. It should even add any other relevant information which is talked about during the body of the research.

Step 2: Formatting the Appendix

• Including Appropriate Title

It is always shown using capital letters or sentence cases at the top of the page. It is as same as the size of the headings that are used in the chapters of the research paper. There might be a possibility of having more than one appendix in the same research paper. If it is present then, the appendix needs to be tagged and referred to with the number serially. It is mandatory to start every new appendix on a new page so that it prevents confusion for whoever is reading it.

• Organize the content in order

The finest possible way to organize the appendix is according to the order of the content where the information appears serially in the research. The appendix needs to be user-friendly to be able to access the information easily by the researcher. The complex ordering of the content makes the research clumsy and complex for the researcher to study and attain a lower score.

• Included after the Reference List

An appendix is always cited after the reference list in the research paper.  It even depends upon the professor's convenience regarding where he wants the appendix to be attached. It is necessary to fulfill the stated requirements that are stated while making an appendix by the professor. They set an outlay on how to put the appendix in the research paper together.

• Page Number Insertion

To make it easy for the reader to navigate, the format throughout the research paper should be followed the same. The number should be either at the bottom right-hand corner of the page or the center of the page of the appendix in the research paper.

 Step 3: Polishing the Appendix

• Proofreading of the Appendix

It is best to keep the appendix as short as possible with the possibly relevant information only and avoid unnecessary long content making readers lose interest. There is no standard word count for the appendix. It is very important to go through what has been written in the appendix which is relevant to the body of the research. The information which is not relevant should be removed else it would clutter up and make it complex for the reader to formulate the objective of the paper. Maintaining professionalism is very important while doing research. The professor or reader will identify by reading the appendix whether the whole research is in the correct order with the body being relevant or not to the topic given. And lastly, one can navigate the research easily by referring to the appendix.

• Checking for grammar and spelling errors

The research paper and appendix should not contain any kind of spelling errors, grammatical errors, or punctuation. Spell-check tools need to be used to maintain the professional standard of the paper. This is time-consuming, but small grammatical errors may lead to losing marks in the appendix if not written properly with no spelling errors.

It would be good to conclude by saying that a research paper needs to be appealing and at the same time uncomplicated and easy to navigate through for the reader. The appendix becomes a critical part when it comes to writing a research essay. It prevents the paper from getting too clumsy and freer for re-analysis. The above-mentioned guidelines are more likely to help you in making the appendix without facing any hassle. It is always a better option to ask professors if there are any personal preferences while making the appendix in the research paper.

 

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