Thesis and Dissertation Formatting Guidelines & Deep Blue Archiving

The purpose of these Formatting Guidelines is to make all dissertations and theses legible, accessible, preservable, and uniform in presentation. The steps you take now to format your dissertation and thesis will improve the file for future readers.

See The Mardigian Library’s Formatting Your Thesis or Dissertation with Microsoft Word for video tutorials designed to help you get most of the formatting of your thesis correct the first time. It is recommended that you use the dissertation/thesis template available in this guide which has most of the guidelines already incorporated.

For questions about formatting beyond what is covered in these resources, please check with your dissertation or thesis advisor.

File Format

• Submit the dissertation or thesis as a PDF file

Structure/Accessibility

Techniques for creating accessible documents, including adding alternative text for images, can be found on this website.

Set Document Title: Set the document title (note: this is a document property, not the filename) as your dissertation or thesis title.

Set Document Language

Set the Language of Parts (Quotations, Sections) That Are Different from the Main Language (required if applicable)

Use Correct Headings: Use appropriate heading levels for section and subsection titles. Use “Heading 1” for main section titles (e.g. a Chapter), “Heading 2” for subsection titles (e.g. a Chapter section), and so on.

Create Lists, Columns, and Other Structures by Using the Appropriate Structural Element. Do not use space bar, tab, or enter to arrange text in apparent tables, lists, or columns.

Images, Figures, Tables, Media

• Include descriptive alt text for all images and figures to convey the meaning and context of a visual item in a digital setting (do not use images of tables.)

Styling

Margins

• Use at least 2-inch top margin on the Title Page.
• Use 2-inch top margin on the first page of every chapter and major section (Acknowledgements, List of Figures, Bibliography, etc.…)
• Use at least 1-inch margins (top, bottom, left, right) on all pages. 

Text, Fonts, Color, Spacing

• Use a legible font, size 12 point, black color for all body text. Recommended fonts include Times or Times New Roman (serif fonts) or Arial (sans-serif font). Images and text within images may be in color.
• Make text of the same kind (all Heading 1’s, all Heading 2’s, all captions, all footnotes) visually equivalent (same font, size, and styling).
  • Headings may be visually different than body text (bigger, bold) and no bigger than size 16 point.
  • Font size for footnotes, endnotes, captions, tables, figures, and equations may be smaller than the body text and no less than 9 point.
• Make hyperlink text (text that links to a Web URL) blue and underlined.
  • Text in the Front Matter that links to a location within the dissertation or thesis (from the Table of Contents, for example) should not be underlined or outlined as hyperlinks.
• Use embedded fonts to ensure all font information in your document is secured in your PDF.
• Use either 1.5-line or double-line spacing throughout for all body text. 
• Use single-line spacing for text in tables, lists, footnotes/endnotes, figure/table legends/captions, and bibliographic entries (with a blank line between each citation or entry). 

Numbering and Page Numbering

• Number chapters consecutively and name them as follows: Chapter [#] [Title of Chapter]. For example, Chapter 1 Introduction. 
• Include the chapter number and name as a heading on the first page of chapter and in the Table of Contents.
• Number all tables, figures, appendices, etc. consecutively and name them as follows: Table [#] [Caption/Title/Legend]. 
• Tables, Figures, etc. may be numbered simply using whole numbers throughout the document (Figure 1, Figure 2, Figure 3) or by combining the chapter number and table, figure, etc. number per chapter (Figure 2.1, Figure 2.2, Figure 3.1). Choose one system from an appropriate style guide and use it consistently.
• Include a List of Figures, List of Tables, etc. in the front matter if the dissertation or thesis includes more than one figure, table, illustration, appendix, etc. (required if applicable)
• List of Figures (or List of Tables, List of Illustrations, List of Appendices, etc.) includes the title of each, its caption/title/legend, and page number on which it begins.
• Include page numbers in the front matter, centered in the footer, using lowercase Roman numerals, beginning on page ii (the first page after the Identifier/Copyright page).
• Include page numbers in the dissertation text and following sections, centered in the footer, using Arabic numerals, beginning on page 1.

Components of the Dissertation and Thesis

Include the following components, in the following order. All required components must be included.

Use the page numbering conventions given below. Every section below starts on a new page with 2-inch top margin.

Title Page (required)

• No page number. No page count.
• See the section below for details of component requirements.

Frontispiece (Illustration or Epigraph) (optional)

No page number. No page count.

Identifier/Copyright Page (required)

• No page number. Start page count here.
• See section below for details of component requirements.

Dedication (optional)

• Page numbers required. Start lowercase Roman numerals (starting with ii) here.
• Acknowledgments (optional)
• Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

Preface (optional)

Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

Table of Contents (required)

Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

List of Tables, List of Figures, etc. (required if applicable)

• List of Tables required if there is more than one table, etc.
• Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

List of Illustrations/Photos (required if applicable)

Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

List of Appendices (required if applicable)

Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

List of Abbreviations, List of Acronyms, List of Symbols (optional)

Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

Abstract (required)

Page numbers required. Lowercase Roman numerals.

Dissertation or Thesis Text (required)

• Page numbers required. Start Arabic numerals here.
• Appendices (optional)

Bibliography or Reference section(s). (required)

Page numbers required. Arabic numerals. Insert at the end of each chapter, or the end of the dissertation/thesis, in the format preferred by the discipline.

Title Page Components

Include the following components on the title page, in the following order. Begin each item on a new line.

• At least 2 inch top margin on Title Page. 
• Complete dissertation or master’s thesis title, centered, and capitalized in title case. 
• The word “by,” centered, followed on a new line by author name, centered. 
  • Your author name should match your legal name or preferred name in Wolverine Access
  • You may use initial(s) for middle name(s).
• The following text, including line breaks, centered and single line-spaced. 

A dissertation (thesis) submitted in partial fulfillment
of the requirements for the degree of
Name of Degree
(Name of Program)
in The University of Michigan-Dearborn
YEAR

• The text, “Doctoral Committee or Master’s Thesis Committee:” left justified. 
• Names of committee members with correct titles, left justified and indented. 
  • List chair or co-chairs first (in alphabetical order by surname if more than one) with “Chair” or “Co-Chair” after their titles and names.
  • List other committee members in alphabetical order, by last name.
  • Include for each committee member:
    • Professor rank (e.g., Professor, Associate Professor, Assistant Professor, Emeritus Professor) or title (e.g., Dr.)
    • Complete full name
    • Affiliation, if not affiliated with University of Michigan (e.g., name of university, college, corporation, or organization)

Identifier/Copyright Page Components

Include the following components on the identifier/copyright page, in the following order. Begin each item on a new line, centered.

• Your full legal name (Required)
• Your @umich.edu email address (Required)
• Your ORCID iD (required only for PhD candidates)

ORCID iD is a unique digital identifier that you control and that distinguishes you from other researchers.

• ORCID iD profile URL (Recommended)
• Copyright notice. (Recommended)

Copyright notice notifies readers that you hold the copyright to this work and when it was established.

Use the following format: © Full Name YEAR

Final Formatting Checks

Before submission, double-check the following:

• All numbered series (pages, chapters, tables, figures, etc.) are consistently formatted and consecutive throughout the document.
• All entries in the table of contents and lists match contents as titled/ordered in the dissertation text.
• References/Bibliography entries are complete and match the formatting preference of your discipline.

Thesis or Dissertation Embargo

The thesis or dissertation is submitted as public evidence of your scholarly research and accomplishment. A thesis or dissertation and abstract is normally made publicly available upon degree conferral when it is deposited electronically in Deep Blue. If a student wishes to postpone public release of the final product, also called an embargo, the student should discuss this option with his or her faculty advisor. It has always been the university's expectation that every dissertation and abstract will be released upon conferral of the degree. Only in specific circumstances may release of a thesis or dissertation be deferred, and then only for a limited period of time. The student is responsible for requesting an embargo.

Embargo forms can be found at: "Thesis and Dissertation Release and Embargo Options”

Deep Blue Archiving 

Required for doctoral dissertations and highly recommended for Master’s Thesis. The final pdf document of your dissertation or thesis must be submitted electronically to the Mardigian Library. This digital PDF will be the copy of record and will be archived in Deep Blue. Deep Blue is a digital repository that is part of the University of Michigan Library. 

To submit your document, you need to provide:

• Your ORCID iD 
• Keywords that describe the subject, concepts, theories, and methods used in your document, to help others find and retrieve your document
• A copy of your thesis or dissertation in PDF format
• Optional – up to two supplementary files (no larger than 50 MB each), such as an audio file, spreadsheet, or a software program

To maintain the usability and appearance of your document, please review the Best Practices for Producing High Quality PDF Files, available on Deep Blue.

If you have supplemental materials (such as data) that should also be made publicly available and associated with your dissertation or thesis, consider reaching out to [email protected] for help determining whether these should be deposited into one of the Deep Blue repositories.

Once your document is submitted to Deep Blue by the library, you will receive an email containing the DOI and a URL to access the document. It will also be added to the Mardigian Library catalog and made available on Google Scholar. If no embargo is requested, it may take three to four weeks for your document to become available.

More Support

• Library Guide to Formatting Your Thesis or Dissertation with Microsoft Word and Video Tutorials.
• UM IT accessibility guide for creating accessible documents.
• Guide for embedding all fonts in PDFs generated with LaTeX or PDFLaTeX.

Contact your subject librarian for assistance on a wide range of topics including literature searching, citation management, and much more.