Definition of ICONTEC Standards

The acronym ICONTEC is the abbreviation for the Colombian Institute of Technical Standards and Certification. Is institution is in charge of unifying criteria for the presentation of reports or written works.

In the Colombian academic context

Teachers usually propose works of investigation as part of the process learning. So that the Format of the same have unified parameters, it is usual that the ICONTEC standards are used.

It should be noted that in the international context the APA standards are the most widespread, but in Colombia the ICONTEC parameters are the most used in the school and university environment.

General guidelines and recommendations of ICONTEC standards

The paper must have a quality suitable for easy reading and printing of the text. The size of the paper is variable and depends on the type of work to be done.

The recommended typeface is arial with a size of 12 points. Regarding the margins, the following measurements are proposed: 3 cm for the upper and lower margin, 4 cm for the margin

right and 2 cm for the left side. However, when the report is presented on both sides of a sheet, all margins must be 3 cm.

Pages are numbered 2 cm from the bottom edge and centered in Arabic numerals.

It is recommended that in the drafting the third person singular is used.

After each title or full stop, you must leave two spaces or lines. Within paragraphs, single line spacing must be used.

Regarding the cover, it must have a minimum information: title of the report, name and surname of the author, subject, educational institution, city and date of presentation. All this information has to be centered and using sharp capital letters.

The names of the chapters must be centered, in capital letters, in bold and double spaced.

Other data of interest

Like the APA standards or any model of standardization In research, ICONTEC standards are updated periodically.

The content of these standards also specifies the guidelines to be followed in relation to bibliographic sources, the elaboration of citations and the presentation of tables, figures and annexes.

To facilitate the work of teachers and students, manuals with ICONTEC standards are periodically published. In these manuals all the technical aspects related to the writing format are detailed.

Photo: Fotolia - chic2view

Topics in ICONTEC Standards