Practices for Good Document Quality#

Formatting#

Follow the basic formatting requirements in the self-study overview. Additionally:

  • Use a consistent and professional font with the appropriate size (e.g., 11pt)
  • Maintain consistency throughout the document. This includes font styles, sizes, headers, text alignment, and other visual elements
  • Do not put content out of the margins
  • Include page numbers
  • Name the document following exactly the structure CN-self-study-X-group-XXX.pdf (e.g., CN-self-study-1-group-033.pdf) (self-study-1 is for the first part, self-study-2 for the second)

Explanation of Concepts#

  • Do not put a long block text into a single paragraph
  • Separate text into shorter paragraphs (within reason), consider using bullet points or numbering for lists
  • Use tables and diagrams when appropriate for clarity
  • Verify that figures and images are clearly readable
  • Proofread the document for grammatical errors and typos
  • Ensure a logical flow of the text, and include sufficient formality

Text and Calculations#

  • Write mathematical formulas and calculations in a math mode: \( x_1 = \frac{y \sqrt{2}}{z+5} \) instead of x1 = (y * sqrt(2)) / (z+5). Learn more here: https://www.overleaf.com/learn/latex/Mathematical_expressions
  • Elements of a notation should be in a different font/style from the rest of the text. e.g., There are \( n \) boxes. (\( n \) is in a different format)
  • Generally, show all the necessary steps in the calculations to reach the answer
  • Clearly distinguish any code snippets from the rest of the text. We suggest you use the minted package.

Templates#

  • We encourage you to use our self-study template, yet this is not mandatory
  • We recommend using our LaTeX template. See also Get Started With LaTeX
  • We also offer a Google Docs template
  • You can create and use your own template if and only if you include all the elements from the template. Submissions that do not respect this requirement will not receive any points

Why LaTeX?#

  • Clean and consistent documents
  • Easy to use within a team (especially through Overleaf Links to an external site.)
  • Widely used in academic research
  • Many libraries / add-ons are available
  • Works with version control (e.g., Git)
  • Scalable and helps with automatization
Backward Getting Started with LaTeX