A report

A report is similar to a proposal in that it is written for a clearly specified audience and typically concludes with
a recommendation. The main difference between a report and a proposal is that you are not expected to
persuade anyone. You are simply reporting on something, though you can bring in your own views. Read the
question below and think about how you can approach this task.
You are working for the International Students Team at your university, which is responsible for helping
international students settle in. In preparation for a review meeting you have been asked to write a report
for the manager of the International Students Team.
Your report should briefly describe how the team helps international students, describe any problems
you have had in the process and suggest ways these problems could be overcome.
Write your report in 220-260 words.
Before you start writing your report, consider the following.

Target audience
You are writing the report for your manager. You may be asked to write a report for a supervisor, a teacher or
even a group of people, such a sports society.

Aim of the report

The aim of this report is to identify problems with the current way of helping students settle in a new country
and suggest ways in which these problems can be overcome.

Features of a report
Title
Every report needs a title. Report titles are very easy to write, as they are fixed. A good report title is simply
Report into , in this example it would be Report into welcoming international students to [name of university].

Introduction
The introduction to a report is very formulaic (meaning you can memorise and use it). A good introduction to a
report is The aim of this report is to evaluate/summarise/propose

Sub-sections
Reports need clear sub-sections with suitable subheadings. The \subheadings are usually very short. For
example, in this example they could be Welcoming International Students, Issues, Suggested Improvements. It's
a good idea to write down your sub-headings before
you start writing. They can act as a very short plan.

Conclusion
The conclusion of a report is often a recommendation or your overall finding of whatever it was you reported
on. You should give it a subheading, which can be simply Conclusion, but may also be Recommendation or
Evaluation.

Content points You are given clear content points you must cover in this report. The content points for this
question are
 describe briefly how the team helps international students
  describe any problems you have had in the process
 suggest ways these problems could be overcome.
You need to invent the details for the report. Be as specific as you like. Reports often include dates, names,
where things happened, etc.

Language
The language of a report is always factual and formal. Do not include descriptive or colourful language. Include
facts and figures if relevant. Do not use the first person plural (I, me, my), instead express your ideas in the
passive or in indirect ways (it is important, that..., there is a need for ...)

Now write your report. Write your subheadings first to help you structure your writing. Set your timer for 30
minutes. When you have finished writing your report, read through it and check your spelling and punctuation
(capital letters, apostrophes, commas, etc.). Check subject—verb agreement, tenses and word order as well as
singular and plural nouns. Make sure you have included all content points and finished with a clear
recommendation.
Report into welcoming international students to Kaley University
The aim of this report is to evaluate the current welcome programme for international students to Kaley
University, to identify any issues and suggest solutions.

Comment: The title is clear. The name of the university has been invented by the writer. The
introduction briefly expands on the title and immediately lists the three content points which need to be
covered in this report. Words such as evaluate, identify, suggest, highlight and propose are often used in
reports.

The Welcome Programme

The programme was set up to help international students with orientating them on our campus and within the
wider community. Individual students are matched on arrival to a 'welcome buddy' (a local student). All
'buddies' are given training in how to welcome students. They give students a tour of the campus, provide
information on where to get the basics (food, books, etc.) and act as a friendly mentor to call on if the student
has questions.

Comment: The first content point is covered here. The welcome programme is briefly described. Notice
the use of the passive voice (was set up, are matched, are given). This makes the report sound factual
and formal. The present tense is used throughout as the current programme is being described.

Issues of the Welcome Programme

Although the programme is extremely successful, there are some issues.
 International students are matched with local students. This helps with integration, but some
international students can feel very overwhelmed and isolated.
 There are not enough checks to identify whether all `buddies' are fulfilling their obligations.
International students do not tend to complain about their 'buddy', even if they are not helpful, as they
worry it may reflect badly on them.

Comment: The second content point is addressed in this section. The writer has highlighted two
problems. The problems are stated as facts (simple present, no modal verbs) and listed as bullet points.

Recommendations
There are simple and cost-effective solutions to the identified problems.
 In addition to the current system, the International Student Team should run events exclusively for
International Students, for example coffee mornings or meet ups in the library. This would give
international students the opportunity to meet one another and exchange their experiences.
 These meetings would be a suitable time for a member of the team to informally check with students
how their 'buddies' are doing, thus providing valuable feedback on all 'welcome buddies'.

Comment: The final content point is addressed in this section. Clear recommendations are made to help
solve the problems identified in the previous section.
Report

A report A report is written for a clearly specified audience. Take a look at this question and think about who
you are asked to write the report for and why.

You've recently attended a team building day organised for staff of the company you work for. Your
manager has asked you to write a report on the day. You should briefly describe the event and identify
the most and least valuable aspects of the day. You should also evaluate the team building day overall
and make recommendations on whether it is worth repeating this exercise in the future.

Write your report in 280-320 words.

Before you write your report, let's think about how you can approach this task.

Target audience
You are writing the report for your manager. You may be asked to write a report for a supervisor, a teacher or
even a group of people, such a sports society.

Aim of the report

The aim of this report is to decide whether to repeat a team building day in the future. It's important that you
have the aim of the report clearly in mind before you start writing.

Features of a report
Title Every report needs a title. The good news is that report titles are very easy. A good report title is simply
Report into , in this example it would be Report into staff team building day.

Introduction
The introduction to a report is very formulaic (meaning you can memorise and use it). A good introduction to a
report is The aim of this report is to evaluate/summarise/propose____ .

Sub-sections
Reports need clear sub-sections with suitable subheadings. The subheadings are usually very simple. For
example in this example they could be The Event, Highlights, Areas to improve or Team Building Day,
Positives, Negatives

Conclusion
The conclusion of a report is often a recommendation or your overall finding of whatever it was you reported
on. You should give it a subheading, which can be simply Conclusion, but may also be Recommendation or
Evaluation.

Content points
You are given clear content points you must cover in this report. The content points for this question are
 you should briefly describe the event
 you should outline the most and least valuable aspects of the day
  you should give your recommendation on whether to repeat the day or not

You need to invent the details of the event. Be as specific as you like. Reports usually include dates, venues,
who was there, etc.

Language
The language of a report is always factual and formal, though not academic. Do not include descriptive or
colourful language. Include facts and figures if relevant. Do not use the first person plural (I, me, my), instead
express your ideas in the passive or in indirect ways (it is important, that..., there is a need for ...). Typically a
report discusses something that has happened in the past, so use the past tense. For your recommendation, use
suitable language such as (... would be suitable, ...should..., ... would be beneficial ).
Now write your report. Write your subheadings first to help you structure your writing. Set your timer for 30
minutes. When you have finished writing your report, read through it and check your spelling and punctuation
(capital letters, apostrophes, commas, etc.). Check subject—verb agreement, tenses and word order as well as
singular and plural nouns. Make sure you have included all content points and finished with a clear
recommendation.
Report into staff team building day

Comment: The introduction is one short sentence stating the aim of the report. It includes some factual
details (date, number of attendees, name of the company). Do not write things like for some- members
ef- ow company. You would never read that in a real report. Just make up numbers, names, etc.

The Event
The team building day was run by Closer Companies, a consultancy specialising in corporate events and team
building exercises. It took place on our premises during normal office hours. The invited members of the sales
team were asked to participate in a number of mainly game-based tasks. Refre.shments were provided
throughout the day.
Comment: Each section has a suitable subheading. The event is described briefly, addressing the first
content point. Again, specific details have been invented (the name of the consultancy firm). The simple
past is used to describe events that happened in the past, and frequently the passive voice is used (was
run, took place on, were asked, were provided).

Highlights
 Most activities were engaging. It was clear how they would help us work better as a team and how this
could lead to better sales.
 The organisers changed the participants around, so everyone got to work with each other at some point
during the day. This was a good opportunity for forging closer working relationships with colleagues.
 Staff talked about how excited they were to try out new ideas in the coming weeks. The training day
created a buzz in the office.

Comment: The writer chose to write the highlights in bullet form. This is not necessary for all reports,
but it works well here. Three positive points are detailed. The second content point is covered here and
in the next section. Again, the passive continues to be used when appropriate. Useful vocabulary
includes engaging activities, lead to better sales, change participants around, forging closer working
relationships, created a buzz.

Areas to improve
 It was unfortunate that not all members of the sales team could attend, as this led to a certain amount of
division within the team before and after the event.
 The pace of the activities was not always right. Closer Companies did not seem to be aware of how
experienced our sales force is, hence spending too much time on fairly basic sales techniques.

Comment: Bullet points are also used for the negative aspects of the event. Notice that instead of saying
All members should have attended the writer says It was unfortunate that .... A report should not place
blame, simply raise concerns. The writer uses hence instead of therefore, a very high level linking word.

Recommendations
AdvaTech Divisions could benefit from this type of team building day in the future. However, only if the entire
sales force were able to attend. By inviting only half the team, this team building day has been more divisive
than unifying. In addition to opening up the training day to the whole team, any provider of this service should
also be clearly briefed so they are aware of the level of expertise in our organisation.
Comment: The report finishes with clear recommendations which relate directly to the advantages and
disadvantages outlined in the previous sections. The recommendations are not personal, they are an
evaluation of the facts. The final content point is covered here. A nice expression used is more than ...,
as in more divisive than unifying.
Report

1. A local sports team in your town needs new facilities where they will train for national competitions. As
assistant coach of the team, you have been asked to visit a new sports centre and to write a report
assessing the suitability of the centre.
Write your report.

Introduction
The purpose of this report is to assess the suitability of Rotheroe Sports Centre as a possible future training
base for the Dersley Swimming Pool.

Location and Access

Rotheroe Sports Centre is conveniently located just off the Ring Road to the South of Dersley, next to the
Marston Industrial Estate. It is therefore easily accessible by private transport from most parts of the city centre
every 15 minutes from 6 am to 11 pm. However, direct services from other areas may be limited, especially
early in the morning or late at night.

Facilities
The Rotheroe Centre offers an excellent range of facilities. The swimming pool is of Olympic size and is fully
heated. It has a large spectator area and changing rooms with ample locker space and showers. In addition, the
centre has a large, well-equipped gym. On the other hand, there is no cafeteria: especially, there are no
restaurants within walking distance of the centre, which means that teams members would have to bring packed
lunches.

Recommendation
To sum up, Rotheroe Sports Centre would be able to provide the facilities necessary for the Dersley Swimming
Club to train. Most importantly, it has an excellent 50-metre pool of the type used in top-level competitions.
The slight increase in the cost of hiring the pool is acceptable, particularly in view of the fact that charges at
the City Baths are due for revision in a month’s time.