The statement of purpose comes early in the introduction and is often followed by a list of the specific objectives the writer expects to achieve in dealing with the topic. In the following sentences or paragraphs, the writer provides background information to help the reader understand the context, definitions, assumptions, history, and so on. The writer may close the introduction with his or her plan for organizing the main points of the paper that follows. Papers that are ten or more pages long require a title page, a table of contents, and an executive summary. They signal the start of large sections of content.
Long papers require three levels of headings.
Short papers require only two levels of headings. This is a minor heading Minor headings are typed flush left, sans serif, boldface, italic, and two points larger than the paragraph type that follows. Headings function as signposts for the reader, who should be able to see the shape of the paper simply by skimming the title and the headings. All headings at a single level must be grammatically parallel. Breaking out long lists of items that are buried in paragraph text also helps the reader.