GENERAL FORMATTING

Paper: 8.5 x 11-inch white bond paper with the appropriate logo Paper Size

Margins: The left margin must be 1.5 inch and the right margin may only be set to 1 inch for all
pages

A top margin of 1.75 inch must be set for the following: first page of
each section chapter in the front matter as well as the main body sections
(title page for chapters, reference and appendices). All subsequent pages
must be set at 1 inch. Bottom margin should be set at 1 inch for the main
text except for page number.

Page number: All page numbers must be placed at the bottom right corner. There should be
assigned number for every page of the research except for the abstract.

Justification: The body of the entire research paper should have full-justified typing.

Line Spacing: The body of the entire research paper must be double-spaced.

1. Tables, figures and its captions, and bibliography use single space.
2. Entries between bibliographies are double-spaced.

Font size: The body of the entire research paper must be set in 12-point size.
Font style: Times New Roman
Smaller point size may be used for the following: body of tables, body of figures,
documents attached in appendices (e.g. questionnaire); and other parts of the main text
such as computer code, quotation or dialogue).
Paragraph: New paragraphs should be indicated by a consistent tab indentation of one-half
inch. There are no skipped lines between paragraphs.
Tables and Figures: A table or figure must be embedded in the text. Two double spaces should
be left above and below the table or figure. Tables and figures should have consecutive
numbering throughout the research paper.

All tables and figures must fit within the margins. The number and caption of a table
must be placed above the table with the same typeface and font size as the text of the
research paper.

The number and caption of a figure must be placed below the figure with the same
typeface and font size as the text of the research paper.

Chapter 1 – The Problem and Its Background

This chapter is an overview of the research discussing issues that leads to the conceptualization
of the problem. It establishes the rationale, context and general direction of the study in light of a
thorough literature review. This part discusses how the study is related to the current research
work in the field and identifies the specific gaps that still exist and its contributions to the body
of knowledge and target beneficiaries through integrated review of literature and conceptual
framework.

Background of the Study

Provides sufficient information for the readers to understand the topic you are researching about.
It discusses the context of the problem and in what situation or environment can it be observed.

Statement of the Problem (Research Questions)

This section discusses what it is that we do not know, the gap in our knowledge this research
will fill, needs to be improved, and what is it that you want to find out. This section is a
question that’s broad enough to stimulate your interest and narrow enough that you can
provide a convincing answer.
Furthermore, this part also describes steps the researcher will take to try and fill this gap or
improve the situation, and systematically enumerate specific questions to achieve the
research objectives.

Hypotheses (if applicable)

This section describes what ideas are suggested as possible explanations for the problem,
situation or condition and will be proved to be correct or incorrect by the research.

Scope and Limitation of the Study

This section describes whether the study is limited to a specific geographical area or people, or
to only certain aspects of the situation. It discusses if there are any aspects of the problem the
researcher will not discuss, and any factor, condition or circumstances that will prevent the
researcher from achieving all his/her objectives.

Definition of Terms
These are terms defined according to how they are used in the study in order to understand the
problem and avoid ambiguous meaning to terms which can be otherwise interpreted in different
ways. Terms defined should be arranged in alphabetical order and acronyms should always spell
out fully, especially if it is used for the first time and not commonly known.