Thesis Templates and Support

As you prepare your thesis for deposit, please contact our office with any questions you might have.  We can answer questions related to formatting requirements, help you assemble your manuscript, and provide technical assistance with thesis submission.  We will also provide a pre-deposit check of your thesis.  Contact Erin Kaufman (erin-kaufman@uiowa.edu) for more information.

Our preliminary page templates help ensure your preliminary pages are formatted correctly and include accurate information.  There is a version for PC users and a version for Mac users.  If you want your 1) chapters and subheadings automatically numbered and / or 2) table and figure captions to include the number of the chapter in which they appear, use this template.  This template relies on a multi-level list to generate automatic numbering, and it can be difficult to navigate if you are new to using Microsoft Word to format large documents.

For suggestions on how to reduce thesis file size, download our Ways to Reduce File Size handout.

For general formatting support, download the Manuscript Construction Guidelines for PC or the Manuscript Construction Guidelines for MAC.  Understanding how to use a number of basic Microsoft Word and Adobe Acrobat tools will greatly simplify the formatting and completion of your thesis.  All topics are essential to the proper construction of your thesis or dissertation. 

Required and Optional Elements

Formatting Requirements

Page Numbers

• Preliminary page numbers begin with a lower-case Roman numeral ii on the first page following the Title Page, or the Copyright Page should you choose to include one.  Center these page numbers in the footer, 1/2 to 1 inch above the bottom of the page.
• Manuscript text page numbers must be in Arabic with a 1 on the first page of your first chapter. They may be located in the upper or lower right-hand corner or the bottom center of the page and must be consistent throughout the manuscript.

Title Page

• List your degree as it appears on MyUI.  If you have an official sub-track, you may include it in parentheses after your degree.
• List the correct month and year of your graduation.
• List the names of your committee members.  Your thesis supervisor should be listed first, followed by a comma and the phrase “Thesis Supervisor.”
• There is no page number on the Title Page.

Copyright Page

• The copyright date is the year of graduation.
• There is no page number on the Copyright Page.

Epigraph

• Text should be single-spaced and centered on the page, both horizontally and vertically.
• This page requires a lower-case Roman numeral page number, at the bottom center of the page.

Acknowledgements

• Text should be top-aligned, double-spaced, and with each paragraph indented.
• This page requires a lower-case Roman numeral page number, at the bottom center of the page.

Abstracts

An External Abstract is no longer required.

• A Scholarly Abstract (“Abstract”) is required for PhD and Master’s students, but not for DMA or MFA students.
• A Public Abstract (“Public Abstract”) is required for all students.
• Text should be top-aligned, double-spaced, and with each paragraph indented.
• These pages require lower-case Roman numeral page numbers, at the bottom center of the page.

Table of Contents

• All major headings from the manuscript must be included.  Entries should be consistently spaced.
• Entries here must match corresponding titles in the text, but should not carry over boldface, italics, or underlining from the text.
• Do not include entries for the preliminary pages that come before the Table of Contents.
• Do not include an entry for the Table of Contents in the Table of Contents.
• Include the List of Tables and List of Figures, if the thesis contains them.  Page numbering for these entries should be lower-case Roman numerals.
• Entries should not run into the page number column.
• Page numbers should be vertically aligned by the rightmost digit.
• This page requires a lower-case Roman numeral page number, at the bottom center of the page.

List of Tables / List of Figures

• Entries should be single-spaced, with a double space between them.
• Captions listed must match corresponding captions in the text, but should not carry over boldface, italics, or underlining from the text.
• Entries should not run into the page number column.
• Page numbers should be vertically aligned by the rightmost digit.
• The List(s) require a lower-case Roman numeral page number, at the bottom center of the page.

Appendices

• Treat Appendix headings (Appendix A, B, etc.) as major headings and include them in the Table of Contents.
• If more than one Appendix is included, identify them as Appendix A, Appendix B, and so on. Lettering is unnecessary when there is only one Appendix.

Headings

• Major headings should be consistently formatted in a professional manner.
• Spacing around major headings should be consistent throughout the entire manuscript.
• Different order subheadings should each have a distinct style.
• Spacing around subheadings should be consistent.
• Headings may not be placed at the bottom of the page without at least two lines of text beneath them.

Tables and Figures

• Brief descriptive titles for tables and figures must be included in the List of Figures / List of Tables (if included).
• Tables and figures may be located above, below, or adjacent to the manuscript text.
• Gaps around tables and figures are allowed if the table or figure is larger than half a page.
• Table captions must not extend beyond the width of the table(s) being described.
• Spacing between a caption and its corresponding table / figure should be consistent.
• Tables / figures that appear in an Appendix must have their own numbering system (A.1, A.2, etc.).
• If a table or figure continues to one or more following pages, the number with a “continued” notation (e.g. Table 3—continued) is placed on each page after the first.  The descriptive title is not repeated in part or full on continuation pages. A separation line is not required.

References / Bibliography

• The References heading should be treated as a major heading and included in the Table of Contents.
• References should be single-spaced, and indenting conventions should be consistent.
• There may be a single- or double-space between entries.
• References may be placed at the end of each chapter or at the end of the manuscript.
• Entries should not break across a page.

Margins 

• Margins must be a minimum of 1 inch on all sides and on all pages, including the Preliminary Pages.
• Margins should be consistent throughout the entire text.

Line Spacing

• Line spacing may be either 1.5 or double-spaced. Line spacing should be consistent throughout.

Font

• Use 10–12-point font for the body of the manuscript.  Font smaller than 8-point is not allowed.
• You may use 12-point font for major headings.  Font larger than this may be used sparingly, if at all.
• A range of font styles is acceptable, but font styles and sizes should be professional in appearance.