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| Graduate School |
| Guide to Theses and Dissertations |
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| Graduate School |
| Guide to Theses and Dissertations |
| The "Original Copy" of a thesis/dissertation must also include the following: | ||
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Library Rights Statement | The Library Rights Statement gives the library
the right to allow researchers to use the thesis before it is bound. Permission may be
granted or waived depending on the candidate's wishes. The signed Library Rights Statement
is needed only for the "Original Copy". A copy of the Library Rights Statement is included or may be printed
from the linked page and used in submitting the thesis. Only one copy (on regular paper)
is needed and should be put in the "Original Copy" envelope. |
| Short Title | If the title is more than 40 characters (including spaces), the author must provide a shortened title of 40 characters or less (including spaces). This short title is used on the spine of the bound thesis. Only one copy (on regular paper) is needed and should be put in the "Original Copy" envelope. |
| Font size | Must be at least
10 point. We recommend 12 point. Typeface of an unusual or large
format is not allowed. The only exception to this requirement is the use of special symbols required for scientific or mathematical expression,
figures, graphs, charts, etc. * One font size must be used throughout the thesis/dissertation including titles, headings, etc..* |
| Spacing | The entire thesis is double-spaced. However, figure text, captions, long quotations, and footnotes may be single-spaced. Reference and bibliographic entries may also be single-spaced within each citation, but must be double-spaced between each entry. |
| Sections/Chapters | All major sections, such as chapters, acknowledgements, appendices, etc., begin on a new page. |
| Paper | 8.5 x 11" white acid-free, 20-pound (or 24-pound) paper. Unbound. Only one side of the paper may be used. Off-white or colored paper is not allowed. |
| Margins | 1 1/2" on left, at least 1" on all other sides. Margins may be greater than these specifications. We recommend the left margin be 1.7 inches (this is due to possible shifting of text during printing or copying). The entire thesis must follow these specifications. |
| Numbering | Must be consecutive throughout. Do not number the title page, approval page or abstract page(s). Preliminary page counting (only) begins with the first "Abstract" page being counted as ii. Actual pagination numbering begins with the first page after the abstract. Text begins with "1" (Arabic numeral). All pages except title page, approval page, and abstract must be numbered. Additionally, all tables and figures must be numbered consecutively as they appear throughout the thesis. |
| Placement of Page Numbers | All preliminary page numbers are placed at the bottom of the page, centered, 1/2" from the bottom. Numbers within the text may be placed in one of two locations. Whichever location within the text is chosen, the location must remain consistent throughout the document. (1) If numbered at the top, numbers must be at least ½" from the top of the page and at least 1" from the right hand edge. (2) If numbered at the bottom, at least ½" from bottom of page and centered. No dashes are allowed around page numbers. |
| Headings | No running headings are allowed. |
ORDER OF ELEMENTS (IN REQUIRED ORDER) |
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Preliminary material
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Blank Page (not
numbered) (acid-free paper for "Original Copy" & Copy 1) Title page (not counted, not numbered) Approval Page (counted, but not numbered) Abstract (counted but not numbered) Acknowledgements (optional) (numbered in lower case Roman numerals) Preface (optional) (numbered in lower case Roman
numerals) List of Tables (numbered in lower case Roman numerals) List of Figures (numbered in lower case Roman numerals) |
| Text | [text] (all text
is numbered consecutively in Arabic numerals beginning with page 1 and ending with last
page of bibliography) List of References (optional) (numbered in Arabic numerals) Appendices (optional) (numbered in Arabic numerals) Blank Page (not numbered) (acid-free paper for "Original Copy" & Copy 1) |
| DESCRIPTION OF ELEMENTS | |
| Title Page | Must conform to the Title Page Sample included with this Guide. Must be double spaced. No bold face or italic fonts are allowed. Should follow the basic page layout and spacing as the sample. |
| Approval Page | Must conform to the Approval Page Sample included with this Guide. Must be double spaced. No bold face or italic fonts are allowed. Should follow the basic page layout and spacing as the sample. One acid-free page with the original signatures of the official committee, plus the Dean of the Graduate School, is required for each thesis (this is known as the "Original Copy"). Check with Graduate School to determine who is officially designated to sign the Approval page. The Dean signs after the thesis is taken to the Graduate School. No extra signatures are allowed. You will need to provide a line for each core committee member (usually each thesis has 3 core committee members, plus the Dean of the Graduate School). No white-out is allowed on the Approval Page. The three other copies may be photocopied from the "Original Copy," although Copy 1 must be on acid-free paper. |
| NOTE: | Date on your Title Page and Approval Page must be the year of your official graduation. (Graduation year is the year in which your diploma is conferred.) |
| Abstract | Immediately following the approval sheet, each copy of the thesis must contain an abstract which will contain: a) a definite statement of the problem involved in the thesis, b) a description of the methods used in the development of the thesis, c) a summary of the results of the findings reported in the thesis. |
| Table of Contents | Wording in the Table of Contents must be exactly the same as the chapter or text headings. Page numbers must be accurate. All items following the Approval Page (see ORDER OF ELEMENTS, above ) must be included in the Table of Contents |
| Illustrative
Material
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All graphs, figures, charts, diagrams, computer printouts, photographs, and illustrations must be clear and legible. Clear permanent color or black and white reproductions are acceptable. Photographs should be permanently attached to acid-free paper. Computer-generated illustrations are acceptable if they are clear. The illustrative pages must meet all margin requirements. All illustrations must be located on the right-hand side page of the thesis. | |
| Captions | Captions for illustrative
materials (figures, tables, charts, graphs, photographs, drawings, etc.), may be placed on
the illustration page. Captions may also be placed on the page facing the illustration. If the caption for an illustration is placed on the page facing the illustration, the caption must be on the left-hand side page (the other side of the page will be blank). The page must be numbered consecutively following the format used throughout the text, centered (on the bottom) or in the upper right hand corner, according to the rules for the location of page numbers . The blank side is not numbered. |
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| Oversize material | Oversize pages must be folded smaller than the regular 8 ½ X 11 sheet to avoid possible loss of data when bound. Fold in a minimum of ¾" from all outside margins. | |
| Lists of Tables and/or Figures | Lists of Table and/or Figures (if used) follow the Table of Contents page. Page numbers (as they appear in the text) should be given for each table or figure. | |
| List of References | Are not required by all disciplines, but if used appear at the end of each chapter. This "List," confined to those works mentioned in the chapter or manuscript in order of their appearance and are located at the end of each chapter or manuscript. Even if you use a "List of References" at the end of chapters or manuscripts, you MUST provide a complete Bibliography at the end of the thesis. | |
| Appendices | Are not required by all disciplines, but if used appear at the end of the thesis text, before the Bibliography. Appendices are numbered consecutively as part of the text and are listed in the Table of Contents. | |
| Bibliography | Every thesis must contain a bibliography which lists all the sources used or consulted in writing the entire thesis and is placed at the very end of the work. The complete citations are arranged alphabetically by last name of the author. Individual citations are not numbered. No abbreviations in titles of published works will be accepted. The full title of a book, journal, website, proceedings, or any other published work must be italicized or underlined. Citations must follow standards set by the Style Manual that the candidate is using. The bibliography for URI theses is not broken into categories. | |
| Web Page Citation | If a thesis contains citations to a web site, following the author and title attribution, the entry must also include the complete URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the web site and the date the web site was accessed. | |