Consider the topic you would like to discuss in the short report. Keep the topic focused. For example, you may want to report on the importance of arts in developing a well-rounded liberal arts education. This is a large topic. One aspect of this topic could be to look at liberal arts colleges and their retention rates as compared to their course offerings.
Consult education journals and articles about the topic you choose to write about in your short report. Reputable sources will bolster your argument and main conclusions.
Write a brief introduction that quickly introduces the main topic to the reader. Use a statistic or startling fact to pull the reader in on the first sentence. The next sentences should detail the exact parameters of your short report. The final sentence of the introduction should concisely state your main argument. This sentence is your thesis statement. For example,
"Liberal arts education has come under scrutiny over the last decade, especially curricula focused on the visual arts, even though data suggests the visual arts help retention rates in certain areas of the United States."
Write body paragraphs for the report. Write about three of these paragraphs. Each paragraph should focus on a specific issue involved in the higher education world. One approach would be to discuss one influential source from education journals or government reports that bolsters your argument in each paragraph. Illustrate how that source influences your own work. Introduce each body paragraph with a topic sentence that lets the reader know what the paragraph will discuss. For instance, "Will Johnson has written many influential works on the centrality of liberal arts education in the university setting."
Write a conclusion to the report that wraps up the main points you made in the main body of the work, while also reemphasizing your main argument. Keep this final paragraph short and to the point. Keep the discussion about higher education open for further discussion. Suggest a few ways that education could be further explored in the university setting or more studies that can be conducted concerning your topic.