Internship report: how to make it correctly

Contents:

During the learning process, students face many practical trainings that they will need to complete. This is done to consolidate all theoretical knowledge in practice and to get closer acquainted with their future profession.

At the end of the practice, a defense takes place, and the student will need a recommendation from the practice site and a report on the completed practice.

Usually, each institution has its own specific requirements for the structure of the report, but in many cases, such reports follow standard elements.

Today, we will find out how to properly format a practice report.

Title Page of the Practice Report

• Name of the institution;
• Specialty;
• Topic and type of practice;
• Place of practice;
• Student and supervisor information;
• At the bottom center of the page, the city and year of the practice are indicated.

Structure of the Report

Title page — as with any student work, it should include the name of the institution, specialty, topic and type of practice, student and supervisor information, city, and year of practice.

Calendar planning — includes a table that lists the dates and program of the practice.

Practice diary — records what the student did each day and what they learned during this time.

Recommendation — written directly by the practice supervisor, describing the student, their interest in the practice, and personal qualities demonstrated during the practice.

Contents — includes sections that fully describe the stages of the practice according to the program.

Rules for Formatting a Practice Report

Requirements for formatting a practice report are usually established by the higher education institution according to national standards.

The report should consist of 20–25 pages, each of which should be numbered. The report must be written in the official language, on white A4 sheets. Line spacing should be 1.5, and the font must be Times New Roman, size 14. Margins: left — 30 mm, right — 15 mm, top and bottom — 20 mm.

Numbering of sections and subsections of the report is done only with Arabic numerals, and all sections must strictly correspond to the structure of the practice program. Illustrations placed on separate pages are not included in the total page count. All references to illustrations in the text must correspond to their sequence numbers.

Requirements for Formatting Practice: How to Properly Format a Practice Report

The report must describe the work completed by the student during the practice, but it should not be a word-for-word copy of materials. Only your own thoughts and conclusions based on the completed practice should be presented.

The main text is recommended to be written in the third person, e.g., “we think,” “we believe,” as the pronoun “I” is not allowed in practice reports.

All text must be typed in black; if the report is handwritten, the ink must be black. Bold, underlined, or italicized fonts are not allowed; the font must be standard — Times New Roman.

The report is divided into sections and subsections, with points and lists included if necessary. Each section usually starts on a new page and is numbered with Arabic numerals sequentially. The section title is centered and uses Times New Roman, size 16.

Titles of sections and subsections should be concise, without word breaks. The space between a section title and a subsection is 8 mm.

The report is formatted on A4 sheets, including the title page. Frames and similar elements are not used. Margins: left — 30 mm, right — 10 mm, top — 15 mm, bottom — 20 mm.

Pages are numbered starting from the title page, but the number is not shown on it.

Features of Structuring Parts: How to Format a Practice Report

Let’s review the rules for formatting all parts of the report in order.

Formatting the Title Page

The title page is the first page of the practice report. Its structure and design are almost identical to the title pages of term papers, theses, or other student works. All information is indicated according to the methodological guidelines of the university or college.

General Rules for Formatting Contents

The contents reflect the structure of the report and consist of sections and subsections with page numbers.

To create an automatic table of contents in Word, you need to:

1. Place the cursor at the beginning of the required section or subsection.
2. In the “References” menu, select “Add Text” and specify the level (1, 2, 3).
3. Repeat these actions for all elements of the work (introduction, sections, conclusions, bibliography, appendices).
4. To display the ready table of contents, select “References” → “Table of Contents” → “Automatic Table”.

If changes are made and pages shift, the contents can be easily updated by right-clicking and selecting “Update Field” (either page numbers only or the entire table).

Introduction in the Practice Report

When writing the introduction, it is important to include the following points:

• Relevance of the topic;
• Purpose of the practice;
• Tasks assigned to the student;
• Brief information about the practice site.

Requirements for content and formatting of the introduction may vary in different institutions. Therefore, before preparing the text, familiarize yourself with methodological recommendations or clarify details with the practice supervisor.

Features of the Main Part of the Report

The main part of the report is divided into sections and subsections. If necessary, subsections can be divided into separate points. Each point should contain complete information and not consist of a single sentence.

Numbering rules:

• Sections, subsections, and points are numbered with Arabic numerals;
• Subsection and point titles are written with an indent, starting with a capital letter, without a period or underline at the end;
• Sections are numbered sequentially (1, 2, 3…);
• Subsections are formatted as 1.1, 1.2, 2.1, etc.;
• Points are designated with three-level numbering — e.g., 1.1.1, 2.2.1.

This formatting ensures that the report is logical, structured, and easy to read.

Formatting Figures, Tables, and Graphs — How to Format Practice

All appendix elements in the report must be labeled in Times New Roman, with the caption below the figure. The figure title should clearly reflect its content and role in the text, illustrations are marked with “Fig.” and numbered sequentially within the section.

Such figures are placed in the text only after the text where the element is mentioned.

How to Fill in the Practice Diary

The practice diary in the report reflects the entire sequence and chronology of events during the student’s practice.

The diary format is simple: stitched A4 sheets, with at least three columns: date, completed tasks, and supervisor’s signature.

To avoid forgetting anything, it is recommended to fill in the diary daily.

The required diary structure:

• Title page with information about the university, department, and student;
• Section with detailed information about the student and supervisor;
• Practice dates, practice plan, and calendar schedule;
• Practice work notes (date, completed tasks, supervisor’s signature);
• Student recommendation by the supervisor.

The diary plays a key role in practice, as without it, the practice and its defense are impossible. In the diary, the student documents all tasks and achievements completed during the practice.

Thanks to the diary, instructors evaluate the student’s practical work and skills gained during the practice. The student also demonstrates achievements and abilities through the diary.

To avoid missing important details, fill in the diary daily. The information should be based on the practice completed according to the student’s practice plan and formatting rules.

Errors in Formatting the Practice Report

Incomplete reporting of practice content or failure to follow the report format is the most common mistake by students who neglect report formatting rules. Inaccurate or irrelevant information also affects the evaluation.

In evaluating the report, instructors pay special attention to the formatting of the work. The report should be neat, without punctuation or other errors. Avoid corrections and strikeouts; it is better to fix everything before submission to ensure proper formatting.

Certain symbols are prohibited in practice reports (educational or industrial):

• Diameter symbol (write “diameter” instead);
• Minus symbol “-” for negative temperature (use the word “minus”);
• Standard indices without registration number;
• Mathematical symbols <, >, and = without numerical values.

If your report includes abbreviations or specific terms, include a section with explanations before the table of contents.

The practice report reflects the student’s work results and professional competencies, so it must be formatted at a high level. Studying common formatting errors and examples of practice reports helps avoid mistakes and earn a positive evaluation.