phd thesis template uk

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PhD thesis formatting

There is no official pre-made departmental or University-wide style template for PhD theses. Some argue that learning (and advancing!) the art of beautifully typesetting a thesis is a crucial part of getting a PhD.

Here are some practical recommendations, examples, and useful starting points.

Most PhD authors in the Computer Laboratory prefer LaTeX as their typesetting system (under both Linux or Windows), mainly because of its

• excellent and yet unmatched support for mathematical formulae;
• good support for managing bibliographic references;
• good support for high-quality typography;
• easy integration with software-engineering tools (make, revision control, etc.);
• very safe and robust handling of large documents;
• long-term stability;
• comprehensive free tool support.

A common approach is to use the report style, with a suitable title page added, margins changed to make good use of the A4 format, and various other changes to suit submission requirements and individual tastes (e.g., other fonts).

For preparing publication-quality diagrams, some of the most powerful and popular tools used include:

• PGF/TikZ – the probably most sophisticated drawing package for LaTeX
• matplotlib – Matlab-style function plotting in Python

Official requirements

There used to be detailed Student Registry PhD format requirements , regarding font sizes and line spacing, but most Degree Committees have dropped these, recognizing that they were mainly motivated by past typewriter conventions. The rules left are now mainly about the word count .

In particular, it is no longer necessary for dissertations to be printed single sided or in “one-and-a-half spaced type”. If you still like to increase the line spacing, for easier proofreading, you can achieve this in LaTeX by placing into the preamble the line “ \usepackage{setspace}\onehalfspacing ”.

Recommendations

One Cambridge thesis-binding company, J.S. Wilson & Son , recommend on their web page to leave 30 mm margin on the spine and 20 mm on the other three sides of the A4 pages sent to them. About a centimetre of the left margin is lost when the binder stitches the pages together.

Write your thesis title and section headings in “sentence case”, that is use the same capitalization that you would have used in normal sentences (capitalize only the first word, proper nouns and abbreviations). Avoid the US-style “title case” that some conference-proceedings publishers require.

• Sentence case is normal typographic practice in the UK (see any UK-published newspaper, magazine, journals such as Nature , etc.).
• The catalogues of both the University Library thesis collection and our departmental Technical Report series record titles this way, and you don't want the cataloguers mess with your title capitalization when your thesis finally reaches them.
• It preserves useful information about the correct capitalization of any names or technical terms used.

Page numbers

Use a single page-number sequence for all pages in your thesis, i.e. do not use a separate sequence of Roman numerals for front-matter (title page, abstract, acknowledgements, table of contents, table of figure). In LaTeX that means using the report style, not the book style.

• PDF viewers number pages continuously starting from 1, and using anything else as printed page numbers causes confusion.
• This will save you some reformatting when submitting your thesis as a techreport .

Bibliographic references

If you use purely-numeric bibliographic references, do not forget to still mention authors’ surnames, as a courtesy to both the authors and your readers. Also, try to add the exact page number on which the quoted point is found in the reference; LaTeX supports this really well. (“suggested by Crowcroft and Kuhn [42,p107]”)

Technical Report submission

After a thesis has been approved by the examiners, the author normally submits it for publication as a Computer Laboratory Technical Report .

It is a good idea to read early on the submission guidelines for technical reports , as this may reduce the need to change the formatting later.

If you want to minimize any changes needed between your submitted thesis and the corresponding technical report version, then – in addition to applying all the above advice – you can

• make page 1 the title page,
• make page 2 the required declaration of originality,
• make page 3 the summary, and
• choose a layout suitable for double-sided printing (required for techreport, since 2010 also allowed for final PhD submission).

This way, there is a very high chance that turning your thesis into a techreport could be as simple as replacing pages 1 and 2 with the standard Technical Report title page (which the techreport editor can do for you).

More information

• The Computer Laboratory house style page explains where to find the University identifier that many put on the title page of their thesis.
• Markus Kuhn’s simple PhD thesis template ( snapshot ) is just one possible starting point.
• The cam-thesis LaTeX class is a collaborative effort to maintain a Cambridge PhD thesis template for Computer Laboratory research students, initiated by Jean Martina, Rok Strniša, and Matej Urbas.
• Effective scientific electronic publishing – Markus Kuhn’s notes on putting scientific publications onto the web, especially for LaTeX/LNCS users.
• International Standard ISO 7144 Presentation of theses and similar documents (1986) contains also some general guidelines for formatting dissertations that may be of use.
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Theses: Templates

• Finding theses @ Soton
• Deposit - Faculty Office
• Deposit - PGR Manager & Pure
• Thesis Data Deposit
• Restricting Access
• Info. for Faculty Admin
• Info. for Supervisors

Useful Links

Library Research Services  home page

Guidance from Quality Handbook :

• Producing your thesis
• Submitting your thesis
• Permission to Deposit Thesis Form
• Permission to Deposit Thesis - Guidance
• Declaration of authorship form
• Submission of a Research Paper PhD Thesis: Guidance
• Intention to submit research thesis form

There are also examples of the thesis title and abstract pages in submission and completion section of the Quality Handbook . 

Data Management Plan for your PhD

Data Management Plans for Doctoral Students (Blackboard Course)

Data Management Plan guidance

For open access and institutional repository enquiries [email protected]

For research data management queries please email [email protected]

Need further help? Use our L ibrary Research Skills support service   

Thesis Templates

The University provides templates in Word and LateX which meet the requirements set out in the Regulations.  

Training : iSolutions also offer sessions on using Word to work with text, graphics and page layout in your thesis and turning your thesis into a PDF/A. The full course schedule and booking links can be found in the PGR Development Hub

Word or LaTeX?

LaTeX is extensively used by engineers and scientists because it handles maths and equations brilliantly, and by linguists because it can cope with multiple (and obscure) languages.  The University now offers Professional Accounts via Overleaf. Sign up for an account via the University of Southampton portal .

Word is the most widely used word processing software in the university. Unless you will be including lots of special character sets or equations, we would recommend using Word.

Whole thesis template

Use this to produce the whole thesis in one long Word document. It contains all of the required sections from title page to bibliography, with refreshable Tables of Contents, Table of Figures and Table of Tables.

• Word template help
• Always  use in conjunction with the Quality Handbook Producing your thesis guidance

Separate Chapter, Front Matter & End Matter templates for Word & Mac

If you don’t wish use the whole document template then use these to create each chapter of the thesis and the front matter. It comes ready made with usable styles that meet the University’s thesis Guidance requirements

• Chapter template for Word 2007 /2010 /2013 /2016 (PC) or 2008 /2011 /2016 (Mac)
• Front matter template for Word 2007 /2010 /2013 /2016 (PC) or 2008 /2011 /2016 (Mac)
• End Matter for Word 2007 /2010 /2013 /2016 (PC) or 2008 /2011 /2016 (Mac)

Copyright Statement coversheet

All e-theses require the University thesis copyright statement  is included in front of the main title page in the final e-version submitted.  The wording of the statement should not be altered in any way. 

The Word template (PC or Mac) above has the statement included but earlier versions did not. Should the statement be missing from your file it should be:

• added before creating the final pdf version 
• located in front of the main title page using the document below 
• should not be included in the numbering of the thesis.

LaTeX templates currently do not include instruction on how to add the statement so it will need it to be added individually as a single double-sided page. Alternatively, add the pdf version into your final pdf file using Adobe Acrobat Pro.

The statement is not required in the print copies submitted for examination or as a final copy.

• Thesis Copyright Statement Thesis copyright statement cover sheet
• Thesis Copyright Statement PDF version of the thesis copyright statement to be included in every thesis

The following guides outline how this can be done in Word documents. 

• Adding copyright statement in Word (PC) Guide to adding the statement in Word on a PC
• Adding copyright statement in Word (Mac) Guide to adding the statement in Word on a Mac

Visual guides are also available on YouTube:

Using UoS Thesis Templates

iSolutions have created a training guide to introduce the Word template for theses and show you how to use a range of useful Word features to make creating and working with your thesis easier. These also direct you to relevant LinkedIn Learning.com videos on the use of features in Word.

• Thesis guidance 

iSolutions also offer sessions on using Word to work with text, graphics and page layout in your thesis. The full course schedule and booking links can be found in the PGR Development Hub

LaTeX Templates

Support for the use of LaTeX can be found on the Overleaf website . LaTeX is  also supported by a wide online community - see LaTeX Project .

How to make sure your thesis is an archival PDF/A

Your final University e-thesis must submitted in an accessible and archival format so that it will be readible in years to come, currently this format is PDF/A-3 .

• Mac users If you are using Word for Mac then start by using the Save As PDF facility. This produces a really good baseline file to continue working on in Adobe Acrobat Pro DC. If for any reason you are not happy with the output as this process, then try converting the file by using Adobe Acrobat Pro's own 'Create a PDF from'. If you are still not happy with the result then contact serviceline to discuss other options.
• PC users For PC users the Adobe Acrobat Pro DC facility will produce the best output. You'll find the steps below under the heading  Create the PDF for PC  below.
• LaTeX to PDF/A-3 If you are using Overleaf, the automatic pdf conversion will be create a PDF/A file. Overleaf have created instructions on how to make sure your LaTeX PDF conforms to the archival standards . Please note we would prefer that you chose a-3b (propritising display) or a-3u (prioritising searchability) rather than a-1b. You may find the following paper helpful: Moore, R. (2014). PDF/A-3u as an Archival Format for Accessible Mathematics . In: Watt, S.M., Davenport, J.H., Sexton, A.P., Sojka, P., Urban, J. (eds) Intelligent Computer Mathematics. CICM 2014. Lecture Notes in Computer Science(), vol 8543. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-08434-3_14 , also available as an ArXiv pre-print .

Checking you PDF/A accessibility: You can check how well your PDF meets the PDF/A accessibility standards using the Abode Acrobat Pro preflight checker and the accessibility checker .

How to download Abode Acrobat Pro: Details of how to access or download Adobe Acrobat Pro DC can be found at iSolutions' How to install Adobe Acrobat DC Advice page .

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• Last Updated: May 7, 2024 10:13 AM
• URL: https://library.soton.ac.uk/thesis

Format, bind and submit your thesis: general guidance

You no longer need to submit a physical copy of your thesis. Please refer directly to the “Submit Your Thesis” section below.

This information is for research students submitting a thesis for assessment. It tells you how to:

• format your thesis
• submit your thesis
• bind your thesis 
• submit the final copy of your thesis

There are different requirements for students of fine arts, design, architecture or town planning.

Find out more about these requirements

Format your thesis

UCL theses should be submitted in a specific format, this applies to both the viva and final copies of your thesis. 

View the thesis checklist

Presentation

In the electronic version of your thesis, hyperlinks (including DOIs) should be functional and resolve to the correct webpage.

We would recommend using Arial or Helvetica fonts, at a size of no less than 12.

Find out more about the accessibility guidelines

If printed, please present your thesis in a permanent and legible format.

Illustrations should be permanently mounted on A4 size paper and bound in with the thesis; you may not use sellotape or similar materials.

A4 size paper (210 x 297 mm) should be used. Plain white paper must be used, of good quality and of sufficient opacity for normal reading. Both sides of the paper may be used.

Both sides of the paper may be used.

Margins at the binding edge must not be less than 40 mm (1.5 inches) and other margins not less than 20 mm (.75 inches). Double or one-and-a-half spacing should be used in typescripts, except for indented quotations or footnotes where single spacing may be used.

All pages must be numbered in one continuous sequence, i.e. from the title page of the first volume to the last page of type, in Arabic numerals from 1 onwards. This sequence must include everything bound in the volume, including maps, diagrams, blank pages, etc. Any material which cannot be bound in with the text must be placed in a pocket inside or attached to the back cover or in a rigid container similar in format to the bound thesis (see Illustrative material ).

The title page must bear the following:

• the officially-approved title of the thesis
• the candidates full name as registered
• the institution name 'UCL'
• the degree for which the thesis is submitted

The title page should be followed by a signed declaration that the work presented in the thesis is the candidate’s own e.g.

‘I, [full name] confirm that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis.'

Please see the section below entitled ‘Inclusion of published works in doctoral theses’ for more information about how to indicate when you have re-used material that you have previously published.

The signed declaration should be followed by an abstract consisting of no more than 300 words.

Impact Statement

The abstract should be followed by an impact statement consisting of no more than 500 words. For further information on the content of the Impact Statement, please see the Impact Statement Guidance Notes for Research Students and Supervisors on the Doctoral School's website. 

Find out more about the Impact Statement

Inclusion of published works in doctoral theses

If you have included any work in your thesis that you have published (e.g. in a journal) previously, then you will need to insert a completed copy of the UCL Research Paper Declaration Form into your thesis after the Impact Statement. The form, and information about how to complete it is available on the Doctoral School’s website.

Find out more about the UCL Research Paper Declaration Form

Table of contents

In each copy of the thesis the abstract should be followed by a full table of contents (including any material not bound in) and a list of tables, photographs and any other materials. It is good practice to use bookmarking within the PDF of the thesis in electronic form to allow readers to jump to the relevant section, figure, table etc. from the table of contents.

Illustrative material

Illustrative material may be submitted on a CD-ROM. If you wish to submit material in any other form, your supervisor must contact Research Degrees well in advance of submission of the thesis.

Any material which cannot be bound in with the text must be placed either in a pocket inside or attached to the back cover or in a rigid container similar in format to the bound thesis. If it is separate from the bound volume it must be clearly labelled with the same information as on the title page. Each copy of the thesis submitted must be accompanied by a full set of this material.

Submit your thesis

Viva copies.

You must submit an electronic version of your thesis to via the UCL OneDrive . You no longer need to submit a printed copy unless your examiners ask for this. 

Find out more on how to submit via the UCL OneDrive

We will check your status and if your examiners have been appointed we will forward the thesis directly to them. They will then be able to download the copy of your thesis to prepare for your exam. 

If an external examiner requests a hard copy of the thesis you will need to arrange for this to be printed and submitted to the Student Enquiries Centre during their walk-in operational hours. We will collect your thesis and post it on to the examiners. 

If your examiners have not been appointed, your thesis will be held securely until your examiners have been formally appointed by UCL.

Covid-19 Impact Form

We have developed a form for you to submit with your thesis if you wish to declare an impact on your research.   The form is optional and your choice to complete it or not will have no bearing on the outcome of your examination. It is intended to set the context of examination and is not a plea for leniency. Your examiners will continue to apply the standard criteria as set out in UCL’s Academic Manual and the joint examiners’ form. Please see the publication from the QAA on Advice on Doctoral Standards for Research Students and Supervisors for further support.

You must submit this form as a separate Word document or PDF when you submit your thesis via the UCL Dropbox as detailed in our guidance above.   We will only accept the form if you submit it at the same time that you submit your thesis.  This will apply if you are making an initial submission or a resubmission.

Download the Covid-19 Impact Form

Find out more about the Student Enquiries Centre

Your examination entry form must be received and logged by Research Degrees before you submit your thesis.

Find out more about examination entry

Re-submission

If you need to re-submit you must:

• submit a new examination entry form to the Research Degrees office at least 4 weeks prior to the expected submission of the thesis
• you must submit an electronic version of your thesis to via the UCL OneDrive . You no longer need to submit a printed copy unless your examiners ask for this.  Find out more on how to submit via the UCL OneDrive

We will check your status and confirm that your examiners are willing to review your revised thesis. We will then forward the thesis directly to them. They will be able to download the copy of your thesis for assessment. 

If an external examiner requests a hard copy of the thesis you will need to arrange for this to be printed and submitted to the Student Enquiries Centre during their walk-in operational hours. We will collect your thesis and post it on to the examiners.

Submitting as a Non-Registered Student

If you do not submit your thesis by the end of your period of Completing Research Status, your registration as a student will end at that point. Your supervisor will then need to apply for permission for you to submit your thesis in writing to the Research Degrees section, at least 3 weeks before your expected submission date. You will be charged a submission extension fee at the point you submit your thesis.

Bind your thesis

If your examiners have request a printed copy of your thesis, please read the following guidance:

Theses have to be robust enough to withstand the examination process and be easily identified. They will need to have your name on the spine to distinguish them.

All theses (whether soft or hard-bound) must:

• be covered in medium blue cloth (e.g. water resistant material) 
• be lettered in gold up the spine with degree, year, name and initials in the same form as UCL records, with letters 16 or 18 point (.25 inch) - thesis submitted for examination in November and December should have the following year lettered on the spine
• have no lettering on front cover of thesis
• have the spine text inverted if the front cover is facing up

An example of how your thesis should be presented.

Hard-bound theses must have the pages sown in (not punched) and soft-bound theses should have the pages glued in. Theses submitted in any other form of binding, including ring binding, will not be accepted.

You are responsible for making sure that your thesis is correctly bound by the company you select.

Final copies

UCL no longer requires a printed copy of your final thesis and we will award your degree once you have met the academic conditions and the Library have confirmed receipt of your e-thesis, the Deposit Agreement form, and you have cleared any outstanding fees.

You will need to deposit an electronic copy of your final thesis (and a completed E-Thesis Deposit Agreement form) via UCL's Research Publications Service (RPS). Please ensure that you remove, or blank out, all personal identifiers such as signatures, addresses and telephone numbers from the e-thesis. Any photographs that you have taken should not show identifiable individuals without their permission and any you have taken of children should mask their faces.

If you do wish to deposit a hard copy you can do so by sending it directly to the Cataloguing & Metadata department of Library Services by post, or in person at the Main Library help desk.  You will find more information about the process on the existing webpage for e-thesis submission. 

Find out more about depositing an electronic and printed copy of your thesis

Related content

• Research degrees: examination entry
• Format, bind and submit your thesis: fine art, design, architecture and town planning
• Viva examinations: guidance

Important Information:

The UCL Student Centre has now moved.  Details of their new location can be found here.  

Format your thesis

When submitting thesis work for assessment, there are several sets of requirements that must be met.

All submissions must meet the specifications listed within the ‘ Nature of the thesis ’ section in the Policy on Research Degrees . These include the requirement to present your thesis for examination, and for deposit after examination.

In addition, your work must also meet the different University requirements set out below - those listed for ' all theses ' and any style specific requirements. Where relevant, you may also need to meet additional subject or programme-specific requirements - these will be set out in your departmental Postgraduate Researcher (PGR) handbook.

[email protected] +44 (0)1904 325962 Student Hub, Information Centre Basement, Market Square

Related links

Requirements for:

• Monograph (traditional) theses
• Journal-style theses
• Hardcopy versions

Types of thesis

There are two main types of thesis.

• A monograph or traditional thesis : a unified, single author document comprising a number of chapters with an introduction and conclusion.
• A journal-style thesis : a document that incorporates one or more chapters that are in a format suitable for publication in a peer-reviewed title alongside a supporting commentary.

Most postgraduate researchers (PGRs) will likely submit a monograph thesis, however journal-style theses are becoming increasingly common in certain disciplines. If you are interested in submitting a journal-style thesis you should check that your school/department/centre permits this and read the University guidance .

Practice-based PGR programmes

If you are doing a practice-based programme, you may be required (or permitted) to submit an alternative assessment format instead of, or in addition to, a thesis (eg a portfolio of work).

Requirements for all theses

All thesis types must adhere to the following requirements:

You must abide by the Policy on Transparency of Authorship in PGR Programmes, including generative AI, proofreading and translation .

Further guidance on the use, and potential misuse, of generative AI is available. 

To meet electronic thesis (e-thesis) guidelines, your main thesis text must be submitted as a PDF document.

If your thesis will include any other file formats in addition to PDF (eg audio files, data spreadsheets), you should refer to our e-thesis file format guidance .

Once deposited, your e-thesis will be publicly available via the White Rose eTheses Online (WREO) unless you have arranged an embargo.

Printing and e-theses

While theses are submitted and deposited electronically, they need to be presented in such a way that they can be easily read in electronic form and printed without issue (eg if this is required by the examiners or by your funder). For more information on preparing a printable copy of your thesis, see our hardcopy thesis guidance .

Your e-thesis needs to be an accessible document , meaning that it should be easy for anyone to read or reformat, and can be accessed by people using assistive technology (such as screen readers).

There are some simple steps you will need to take to ensure that your e-thesis meets accessibility standards.

• Use the headings function within your chosen software package to produce a structured document.
• Add alternative text to images/videos/graphs/tables etc.
• Always use the number/bullet point function within your software package when creating a list.
• Use meaningful hyperlinks.
• Use tables sparingly and format them with a header row and, where appropriate, a header column.

For further details, please see the section on legibility below, as well as guidance on making your e-thesis accessible .

The title page of every volume should only include the following information in the order listed, and on separate lines:

• the full title of the thesis and any subtitle
• the total number of volumes, if more than one, and the number of the particular volume
• the full name of the author, followed, if desired, by any qualifications and distinctions
• the qualification for which the thesis is being deposited (for example PhD or MA by Research)
• the name of the University
• the name of the School, Department or Centre in which the research was conducted. You must refer to the list of approved names on the submit your thesis web page
• the month and year the thesis was first submitted for examination.

If there is a cover page included in advance of, and in addition, to the title page, this may be a single colour with clearly visible text in a contrasting colour. The cover should have the same information as the title page, as listed above.

The abstract should follow the title page. It should provide a synopsis of the thesis, stating the nature and scope of work undertaken and the contribution made to knowledge in the subject area. It should appear on its own on a single page and should not exceed 300 words in length. The abstract of the thesis may, after the award of the degree, be published by the University in any manner approved by the Senate, and for this purpose, the copyright of the abstract shall be deemed to be vested in the University.

In this section you must confirm that your thesis meets the requirements of the 'Nature of the Thesis' section Policy on Research Degrees , and in particular that it:

• is your own original work (or if work has been done in collaboration with others, full disclosure of the names of your colleagues and the contribution they have made)
• has not been previously submitted for any degree or other qualification at this University or elsewhere (unless an internal resubmission).

You must also state whether any material in the thesis has been presented for publication (including if under review) with full references. The minimum required is as follows:

I declare that this thesis is a presentation of original work and I am the sole author. This work has not previously been presented for a degree or other qualification at this University or elsewhere. All sources are acknowledged as references. For further guidance on the inclusion of published material and authorship, see the University requirements on journal-style theses .

The text and, wherever possible, all the material of the thesis (including illustrations), should be based on A4 page size (297mm x 210mm).

Typographic design

Text and its setting (font, size, line spacing, margins) must be chosen to ensure legibility.

Text, in general, should be black, sans serif and should not be embellished (ie no general use of coloured text or fancy fonts, no section separators, etc).

For ease of reading, the size of character used in the main text should be no less than 11pt.

Text should normally be set with even or proportionate spacing between words. Word division at the ends of lines should be avoided, if possible.

It is recommended that 1.5 line spacing or equivalent is used, although lines that contain mathematical formulae, diacritical marks or strings of capital letters may need additional space.

It should be clear when a new paragraph is starting and where matter in the text is being quoted.

A bibliographical reference must be given for every work, published or unpublished, cited in your thesis.

Citations should be in a consistent and approved format as specified by your school, department or centre. References should be collated in a reference list or a combined reference list/bibliography. 

Please refer to referencing guidance issued by your school, department or centre and the University's guidelines for further information.

After the deposit of your examined thesis in WREO, and before you leave the University, you should ensure that your research data is retained and deposited in a suitable data repository or, more rarely, disposed of securely. Research data that supports the findings in your thesis should normally be retained, unless there are legal, ethical, funder or contractual requirements that would prohibit its retention.

For guidance see Sharing, preserving and depositing your data or contact the Library's Research Support Team for further information or advice.

Download a copy of these requirements (you will need to be logged into your University of York Google account) :

Format your thesis (Google doc)

Additional thesis-specific guidance

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• Knowledge Base
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• Dissertation & Thesis Outline | Example & Free Templates

Dissertation & Thesis Outline | Example & Free Templates

Published on 8 June 2022 by Tegan George .

A thesis or dissertation outline is one of the most critical early steps in your writing process . It helps you to lay out and organise your ideas and can provide you with a roadmap for deciding what kind of research you’d like to undertake.

Generally, an outline contains information on the different sections included in your thesis or dissertation, such as:

• Your anticipated title
• Your abstract
• Your chapters (sometimes subdivided into further topics like literature review, research methods, avenues for future research, etc.)

In the final product, you can also provide a chapter outline for your readers. This is a short paragraph at the end of your introduction to inform readers about the organisational structure of your thesis or dissertation . This chapter outline is also known as a reading guide or summary outline.

Table of contents

How to outline your thesis or dissertation, dissertation and thesis outline templates, chapter outline example, sample sentences for your chapter outline, sample verbs for variation in your chapter outline, frequently asked questions about outlines.

While there are some inter-institutional differences, many outlines proceed in a fairly similar fashion.

• Working Title
• ‘Elevator pitch’ of your work (often written last).
• Introduce your area of study, sharing details about your research question, problem statement , and hypotheses . Situate your research within an existing paradigm or conceptual or theoretical framework .
• Subdivide as you see fit into main topics and sub-topics.
• Describe your research methods (e.g., your scope, population , and data collection ).
• Present your research findings and share about your data analysis methods.
• Answer the research question in a concise way.
• Interpret your findings, discuss potential limitations of your own research and speculate about future implications or related opportunities.

To help you get started, we’ve created a full thesis or dissertation template in Word or Google Docs format. It’s easy adapt it to your own requirements.

 Download Word template    Download Google Docs template

It can be easy to fall into a pattern of overusing the same words or sentence constructions, which can make your work monotonous and repetitive for your readers. Consider utilising some of the alternative constructions presented below.

Example 1: Passive construction

The passive voice is a common choice for outlines and overviews because the context makes it clear who is carrying out the action (e.g., you are conducting the research ). However, overuse of the passive voice can make your text vague and imprecise.

Example 2: IS-AV construction

You can also present your information using the ‘IS-AV’ (inanimate subject with an active verb) construction.

A chapter is an inanimate object, so it is not capable of taking an action itself (e.g., presenting or discussing). However, the meaning of the sentence is still easily understandable, so the IS-AV construction can be a good way to add variety to your text.

Example 3: The I construction

Another option is to use the ‘I’ construction, which is often recommended by style manuals (e.g., APA Style and Chicago style ). However, depending on your field of study, this construction is not always considered professional or academic. Ask your supervisor if you’re not sure.

Example 4: Mix-and-match

To truly make the most of these options, consider mixing and matching the passive voice , IS-AV construction , and ‘I’ construction .This can help the flow of your argument and improve the readability of your text.

As you draft the chapter outline, you may also find yourself frequently repeating the same words, such as ‘discuss’, ‘present’, ‘prove’, or ‘show’. Consider branching out to add richness and nuance to your writing. Here are some examples of synonyms you can use.

A thesis or dissertation outline is one of the most critical first steps in your writing process. It helps you to lay out and organise your ideas and can provide you with a roadmap for deciding what kind of research you’d like to undertake.

When you mention different chapters within your text, it’s considered best to use Roman numerals for most citation styles. However, the most important thing here is to remain consistent whenever using numbers in your dissertation .

All level 1 and 2 headings should be included in your table of contents . That means the titles of your chapters and the main sections within them.

The contents should also include all appendices and the lists of tables and figures, if applicable, as well as your reference list .

Do not include the acknowledgements or abstract   in the table of contents.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

George, T. (2022, June 08). Dissertation & Thesis Outline | Example & Free Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved 6 May 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/thesis-dissertation/outline-thesis-dissertation/

Is this article helpful?

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Submitting your thesis for examination (PhD, EdD, MD, BusD, MLitt, MSc)

Format of the thesis, the thesis must:.

be written in British English, apart from quotations and recognised technical formulae

be in A4 portrait format

use one-and-a-half spaced type

include any photographs or other illustrations scanned into the text

be saved in the electronic format and naming style specified by your Degree Committee

Examiners are not expected to edit work. They will deal with errors of fact and typographical errors that affect the meaning of your work, as well as larger structural issues. The extent to which the text has or has not been properly prepared may influence their recommendation concerning the award of the degree. You are therefore advised to check your thesis thoroughly prior to submission to ensure clear, formal British English has been used throughout and that there are minimal typing and/or spelling mistakes.

How and when to present the thesis for examination

You must submit an electronic copy of your thesis for examination, and any required accompanying documents, to your Degree Committee by your submission deadline (which can be found under 'Thesis Submission details' on the Academic tile in your CamSIS self-service). You are required to submit your thesis for examination by your deadline even if the date falls over a weekend or holiday period.

Your Degree Committee should provide you with guidance for electronic submission; please contact them directly if you require any assistance.

The thesis you submit to your Degree Committee will be the thesis forwarded to the examiners for examination. It is not possible to 'retract submission' or to send a revised copy directly to your examiners. Therefore you should carefully check the file(s) you upload when submitting your thesis.

Postgraduate students must keep a minimum number of terms of research before they can submit (for example, 9 for the full-time PhD or 15 for the part-time PhD or EdD) unless they have been granted an allowance or exemption of terms . If you attempt to submit too early and have not had an allowance or exemption of terms approved, your thesis submission will not be accepted or will be kept on hold and not forwarded to your examiners until the first day of your 9th (full-time) or 15th (part-time) term.

Requirements

You must include the following bound inside your thesis:

Please ensure the pages are in the correct order. This is very important - if these preliminary pages are in a different order in your final hardbound thesis to your thesis submitted for examination, this could cause problems and delay approval for your degree.

1. A title page displaying:

the full title of the thesis

your full legal name (as it appears on your passport, marriage certificate or deed poll)

your college

the date of submission (month and year)

a declaration stating: "This thesis is submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy/Doctor of Education/Doctor of Business/Doctor of Medicine/Master of Science/Master of Letters (as appropriate)."

2. A declaration in the preface stating:

'This thesis is the result of my own work and includes nothing which is the outcome of work done in collaboration except as declared in the preface and specified in the text. It is not substantially the same as any work that has already been submitted, or, is being concurrently submitted, for any degree, diploma or other qualification at the University of Cambridge or any other University or similar institution except as declared in the preface and specified in the text. It does not exceed the prescribed word limit for the relevant Degree Committee.'

The declaration does not need to be signed . For more information on the word limits for the respective Degree Committees see Word Limits and Requirements of your Degree Committee )

3. An abstract/summary of your thesis

4. [if applicable] the list of additional materials that were approved for submission alongside the thesis

You must also submit the following documents (not included inside the thesis):

Required: One declaration form

Optional: Research Impact Statement If pandemic, war/conflict, or natural disaster have significantly impacted on your research, you are invited to submit a Research Impact Statement with your thesis using the template provided. The purpose of the statement is for you to describe any restrictions or difficulties experienced in undertaking your research as a result of pandemic, war/conflict, or natural disaster, and to provide details of any alternative arrangements made to complete the work for your thesis. Further details for students and supervisors can be found in the Research Impact Statement guidance  and the Research Impact Statement form can be downloaded here . 

Inclusion of additional materials

Students other than those in the Faculty of Music must seek permission through their  CamSIS Self Service page if they wish to submit additional materials for examination alongside their thesis. Additional materials are integral to the thesis but in a format that cannot be easily included in the main body of the thesis (for example, 3D graphics). You should refer to the ' Policy on the inclusion of additional materials with a thesis ' before making an application to include additional materials. This process should be initiated prior to the thesis submission. If a thesis is submitted with additional materials and without permission to include them, it will be held by the Degree Committee until approval is confirmed.

Please bear in mind that if you are granted permission to submit additional materials, you are required to upload the same materials to the University repository, Apollo , when you submit your approved thesis  post-examination (doctoral candidates only). Therefore, the inclusion of additional material that contains uncleared third-party copyright or sensitive material may affect the access level that is most appropriate for your thesis.

Submitting a revised thesis

If you are resubmitting your thesis following a viva outcome of being allowed to revise and resubmit the thesis for examination for a doctoral degree, you need to follow the same procedure as for the original thesis submission .

What happens following submission of the thesis for examination 

When you submit your thesis for examination the Degree Committee will check the submission, acknowledge receipt, and inform Student Registry you have submitted. The Student Registry will update your CamSIS record.

The Degree Committee will forward your thesis to your examiners. If you have not received confirmation of the date of your viva (oral examination) within six weeks of submitting your thesis, or if you have any questions with regard to your thesis at this stage, you should contact your Degree Committee. 

Your Examiners should not ask you for a printed copy of your thesis or other material in advance of your viva (oral examination). If they do, please seek advice from your Degree Committee.

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Skills Team Workshops: Formatting your thesis using the UoH templates

• Undergraduate workshops
• Postgraduate & researcher workshops
• Video workshops

Formatting your thesis using the UoH templates

There are conventions to follow when formatting a thesis and the UoH approved templates help to make your life easier. With automated page numbering, paragraph numbering and pre-set styles you will find they save you hours of work. When working on a long, multi-sectioned document like a doctoral thesis, there are features of MSWord that you may need to use for the first time and these are also introduced in these videos.

Workshop description

The University has produced a set of templates to help with formatting these documents. This workshop will show you how to use the Chapter Template to create each individual chapter of your thesis and then bring these into the Thesis Template to create the final document for submission. 

Learning outcomes

By the end of this workshop, you will be able to use these templates including:

Chapter template

• Using the in-built styles to format your text
• Using captioning to number your figures and tables
• Cross-referencing
• Inserting landscape pages within the document
• Editing page numbers if necessary

Thesis template

• Being aware of the pre-set actions and what needs to go in each one
• Inserting individual chapter templates into the appropriate places within the thesis
• Populating the tables of contents, list of figures and list of tables

Who this workshop is for

Doctoral students who need to format long documents and combine them into a single document for submission. This workshop would be particularly good for those just starting to write. If you are already well into the writing process, we would recommend that you make a personal appointment with a member of the Skills Team to discuss your formatting needs.

Facilitator

This workshop is run by an Academic & Library Specialist from the Brynmor Jones Library Skills Team.

Sample files

If you want to try following along with these videos, you can download the sample files used below:

• Chapter 1 sample
• Chapter 2 sample
• Chapter 3 sample
• Appendices sample

Formatting your dissertation using the UoH templates 

Downloading the templates for your thesis, taking a look around them and filling in the title page..

Using the in-built styles

This video uses the Chapter 1 sample document.

Labelling your figures and tables

This video continues to use the Chapter 1 sample document.

Using the cross-referencing tool to refer to figures and tables

Please note this video uses the sample dissertation file rather than the sample chapter 1 file used in the previous videos so the navigation pane may look a little different. However, you can continue to use the Chapter 1 sample document as everything else will be the same.

Adding a landscape page to your document

Please note this video uses the sample dissertation file rather than the sample chapter 1 file used in the first three videos so the navigation pane may look a little different. However, you can continue to use the Chapter 1 sample document as everything else will be the same.

Combining the individual chapter files into the main thesis template and updating your tables

This video uses the Numbered Thesis/Dissertation Template (instructions on how to download this are given in the first video above) with the Chapter 1, Chapter 2, Chapter 3 and Appendices samples files.

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• Thesis and Examination: The Code of Practice

Thesis formats

Guidance on the various formats permitted by the University.

The University permits theses to be submitted in a range of formats, depending on the nature of the research undertaken and to allow inclusion of material in a form suitable for submission for publication in a peer-reviewed journal.

The student and supervisory team should discuss at an early stage which thesis format would be most beneficial to their learning and career path.

Sponsored students are advised to check first with their sponsor whether there are any restrictions on the format of their thesis. Some sponsors may only allow the submission of a monograph format thesis.

The following formats are permitted:

• Thesis including published works (or works formatted with the intention or possibility of publication)

Practice-based thesis

Irrespective of the format, all doctoral students must be able to satisfy the examiners that the thesis

• is original work undertaken under the supervision of a Sheffield supervisor which forms an addition to knowledge; and
• shows evidence of systematic study and of the ability to relate the results of such study to the general body of knowledge in the subject; and
• is worthy of publication either in full or in an abridged form.

In addition, the format of the thesis should be such that it is demonstrably a coherent body of work, i.e. includes a summary, an introduction, a description of the aims of the research, an analytical discussion of the related findings to date, the main results and conclusions, and sets the total work in context.

A thesis submitted for examination must be substantially different from any material that has previously been submitted by the student for any degree or qualification at this or any other institution.

Monograph format thesis

A monograph-style thesis is a thesis comprising several chapters. The thesis typically includes the following: a summary, an introduction, chapters describing the aims of the research and a description of the methods used and the theoretical basis underpinning them, and an analysis of the results and conclusions that sets the work in context. The student is the sole author.

Publication format thesis

This format incorporates a collection of papers that are in a format suitable for publication in a peer-reviewed journal. This may include scientific papers, book chapters or other appropriate published formats. The papers may appear alongside traditional thesis chapters, or they may comprise the majority of the thesis as a collection of published works that forms a substantial and coherent whole, supported by a commentary that links the submitted works and outlines their coherence and significance.

Materials included in the publication format thesis may include those that are solely and/or partly authored by the student. The papers or chapters may have already been published, be accepted for publication, or be planned for submission for publication where a specific format is expected. Equally, there may be no intention of submitting the papers for publication because of the nature of the results, but the purpose is to familiarise the student with the conventions of academic publishing. The benefit to students in incorporating any such publications into their thesis is that there is no requirement for them to be re-written into a more traditional, monograph-style format thesis, thus saving students from undertaking unnecessary additional work.

The thesis must remain an original contribution to the field of research. Within the introductory section to the thesis, the student should clearly explain the nature and extent of their contribution to each of the publications presented, as well as the contribution of any co-authors and other collaborators. The materials contained within the thesis must normally be derived from original research undertaken by the student while supervised by a University of Sheffield supervisor. There may be exceptional cases where this is not the case, e.g. where a student has transferred to Sheffield, having already commenced their research at another university.

The intention to submit a publication-based thesis must be discussed and agreed upon with the supervisors at an early stage to ensure that there is a clear understanding of the expectations required for thesis submission.

Contributions and permissions

The normal expectation is that the student should be the primary contributor to the writing of each of the papers, including the design and conduct of the reported research. It is relatively commonplace in some disciplines for students to co-author publications with their supervisory team or wider research group. In many disciplines, ‘primary contributor’ would be denoted by the student being the first or last author.

This is not, however, the case in all disciplines. Where a student has made a substantial contribution to a paper that they wish to include, but is not the first or last author, they should include a statement clarifying the nature and extent of their contribution, and that of any collaborators, within the thesis, to justify its inclusion.

If there is any doubt as to the specific contribution of the student to material with multiple authors, the University retains the right to contact other authors to seek assurance about the student’s contribution.

If a thesis contains published material the length of which has been determined by a particular publisher’s requirements, students must ensure that additional explanatory text pertaining to methodology or detailed and critical analysis of the work or supplementary statistical data or other aspects are included to ensure the thesis is a coherent whole.

Confirmation that permission has been obtained where appropriate to include material that has been published or accepted for publication in the thesis must be obtained by the student.

The main function of the thesis is to allow the examiners to conduct an assessment of the student’s work; therefore, it is essential that the thesis contains a strong general introduction and that the pagination of the thesis makes sense and is easy for the examiners to navigate. Where possible, the pagination sequence should flow throughout the thesis. This might necessitate including separate versions of the papers, rather than inserting pre-prints.

To ease readability, figures, tables and accompanying legends should be included at the appropriate point in the text, and not at the end of the text as would often be typical for a paper submitted for publication. Should this not be possible, the thesis may include published material that already has its own pagination. However, in this instance, the pages of the publications themselves should not be included in the overall pagination sequence of the thesis to avoid confusion.

If the same information is repeated across multiple chapters/publications, students should consider ways to make the thesis more concise and readable. For example, if common experimental details are included in each publication, it might make more sense to include them once as a concise methods chapter.

It is recommended that a page should be included before each publication with the publication number, title and page number of the thesis. The pagination sequence of the thesis will then resume at the end of the publication.

Copyright considerations

A paper that has been published or accepted for publication may have involved the student signing a copyright transfer agreement, transferring the copyright to the publisher.

Some publishers allow the retention of certain rights, sometimes including reprinting a whole paper or parts of it in a thesis. Students must confirm this with the publisher at the time of publication. If not confirmed at the time of publication, retrospective permission must be sought before submitting a final electronic thesis.

Students should deposit the author accepted manuscript (post peer review) version of journal articles accepted for publication in the University repository, White Rose Research Online, via myPublications, at the point of its acceptance by a publisher. The University Library will then offer assistance in managing adherence with any embargo periods.

Publishers may permit the inclusion of the author-accepted manuscript in the ethesis under embargo for the relevant period.

Amendments to published work

The examiners may request corrections to a part of the thesis that is already a published paper following the viva examination. It is recommended that where corrections to published papers are requested this should be addressed in the final thesis by the insertion of a page immediately following the paper in question explaining the nature of the corrections required by the examiners.

Where these are substantive changes, the student and supervisor may need to consider whether a formal correction also needs to be submitted to the journal as well, although this will be a rare occurrence.

A practice-based thesis allows students to submit a shortened monograph-style thesis supplemented by additional material comprising a practical component, for example, a portfolio of original compositions, portfolio of creative work, a recital or performance. This format is only accepted in specified degree programmes.

The thesis must clearly present the additional material in its relevant context and describing the research methodology and process. A permanent record of the additional material will be bound and submitted with the thesis, where practicable.

Students should follow the regulations for the specific degree programmes where such a submission is allowed. Apart from the inclusion of practical materials, the thesis itself should conform to the same standards expected for a monograph format thesis.

A template statement for acknowledging collaborative work included within the thesis is available to download.

Acknowledgement of collaborative work in the thesis - example (PDF, 32KB)

Related information

Contact the Research Degree Support Team

Preparing a thesis

PhD Thesis Template for Cambridge University Engineering Department (CUED) - LaTeX, XeLaTeX and LuaLaTeX support v2.3.1

Open source (MIT-licensed) PhD thesis template for Cambridge University Engineering Department (CUED).

The source code is available on github . This is version 2.3.1, released 24 May 2017.

For more information please view the author's ReadMe file .

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Microsoft word thesis template for research students

Frances Ryan in the School of Computing has created a standardised Thesis template for research degree students.

The template is a good example of how to layout and structure a thesis, and can be downloaded below.

Please note that you should discuss the eventual structure and content of your thesis with your supervisor, and this template may not apply to all theses.

*** DOWNLOAD WORD THESIS TEMPLATE HERE *** (.docx file)

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What’s Included: The Dissertation Template

If you’re preparing to write your dissertation, thesis or research project, our free dissertation template is the perfect starting point. In the template, we cover every section step by step, with clear, straightforward explanations and examples .

The template’s structure is based on the tried and trusted best-practice format for formal academic research projects such as dissertations and theses. The template structure reflects the overall research process, ensuring your dissertation or thesis will have a smooth, logical flow from chapter to chapter.

The dissertation template covers the following core sections:

• The title page/cover page
• Abstract (sometimes also called the executive summary)
• Table of contents
• List of figures /list of tables
• Chapter 1: Introduction  (also available: in-depth introduction template )
• Chapter 2: Literature review  (also available: in-depth LR template )
• Chapter 3: Methodology (also available: in-depth methodology template )
• Chapter 4: Research findings /results (also available: results template )
• Chapter 5: Discussion /analysis of findings (also available: discussion template )
• Chapter 6: Conclusion (also available: in-depth conclusion template )
• Reference list

Each section is explained in plain, straightforward language , followed by an overview of the key elements that you need to cover within each section. We’ve also included practical examples to help you understand exactly what’s required in each section.

The cleanly-formatted Google Doc can be downloaded as a fully editable MS Word Document (DOCX format), so you can use it as-is or convert it to LaTeX.

FAQs: Dissertation Template

What format is the template (doc, pdf, ppt, etc.).

The dissertation template is provided as a Google Doc. You can download it in MS Word format or make a copy to your Google Drive. You’re also welcome to convert it to whatever format works best for you, such as LaTeX or PDF.

What types of dissertations/theses can this template be used for?

The template follows the standard best-practice structure for formal academic research projects such as dissertations or theses, so it is suitable for the vast majority of degrees, particularly those within the sciences.

Some universities may have some additional requirements, but these are typically minor, with the core structure remaining the same. Therefore, it’s always a good idea to double-check your university’s requirements before you finalise your structure.

Will this work for a research paper?

A research paper follows a similar format, but there are a few differences. You can find our research paper template here .

Is this template for an undergrad, Masters or PhD-level thesis?

This template can be used for a dissertation, thesis or research project at any level of study. It may be slight overkill for an undergraduate-level study, but it certainly won’t be missing anything.

How long should my dissertation/thesis be?

This depends entirely on your university’s specific requirements, so it’s best to check with them. As a general ballpark, Masters-level projects are usually 15,000 – 20,000 words in length, while Doctoral-level projects are often in excess of 60,000 words.

What about the research proposal?

If you’re still working on your research proposal, we’ve got a template for that here .

We’ve also got loads of proposal-related guides and videos over on the Grad Coach blog .

How do I write a literature review?

We have a wealth of free resources on the Grad Coach Blog that unpack how to write a literature review from scratch. You can check out the literature review section of the blog here.

How do I create a research methodology?

We have a wealth of free resources on the Grad Coach Blog that unpack research methodology, both qualitative and quantitative. You can check out the methodology section of the blog here.

Can I share this dissertation template with my friends/colleagues?

Yes, you’re welcome to share this template. If you want to post about it on your blog or social media, all we ask is that you reference this page as your source.

Can Grad Coach help me with my dissertation/thesis?

Within the template, you’ll find plain-language explanations of each section, which should give you a fair amount of guidance. However, you’re also welcome to consider our dissertation and thesis coaching services .

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Thesis submission

You are required to submit a thesis for examination after your period of registered study and before the conclusion of the thesis pending period.  

Your thesis should be submitted to the Nottingham ePrints service and must be the result of your own work, done mainly while you were registered as a researcher of this university. Student Services will work with your supervisors in preparing the thesis to be sent for examination. 

The information on this page will signpost you to the different processes, policies and detailed instructions on submission. More detailed information can be found in submission pack . 

The word limit for your thesis depends upon the qualification you are working towards: 

PhD theses should not exceed 100,000 words 

MPhil theses should not exceed 60,000 words 

Please note, the word limits for MRes theses vary according to the number of taught module credits taken. Please see our Quality Manual regulations for MRes and supplementary regulations. 

For PhD and MPhil, the word limits are inclusive of appendices, footnotes, tables, and bibliography. For Mres, bilbiography is not included in word count. In any case, the University may withhold a thesis that exceeds word limits from examination.

Proof readers

A proof-reader may only ensure that the meaning of the author is not misrepresented due to the quality and standard of the English used. This can include correcting spelling and basic grammar errors.

Inaccuracies in academic content should not be corrected nor should the structure of the piece of work be changed; doing so may result in a charge of plagiarism.

Format of thesis

You should submit your thesis in pdf format to the Nottingham ePrints system. Your thesis should be presented on A4 size, normally with a size 12 font. There should be a margin of at least 4cm on the left side of the page, both for typescript and diagrams, to allow for binding (if required).                         

Other margins should be of at least 2.5 cm.

Alternative formats

Alternative formats for submission may apply. For certain doctorates (Music, Creative Writing, Drama and Performance Practice as Research, Translation Studies) an appendix detailing submission requirements is available.

For more information, please visit the university's Quality Manual for further guidance.

You are also allowed to submit by published works, please consult your supervisor and also refer to the university guidance in the Quality Manual . 

Quality Manual alternative formats guidance

Submission deadline

You are required to submit your thesis for examination by the submission deadline notified to you during your course of studies. In exceptional circumstances, you can apply for an extension to your submission deadline, in line with the extension to thesis pending policy in the Quality Manual . 

If your submission deadline falls on a non-working day then you are permitted to submit on a first working day after this deadline.

Please also see here for key dates for graduation guidance .

Please note, even when they have been correctly observed, no guarantee can be given that the necessary examination procedures will have been completed in time for a candidate to graduate at the next degree congregation.

Extension to thesis pending form

Quality Manual thesis pending policy

Notification of submission

You are required to submit a thesis for examination before the conclusion of the thesis pending period. You must formally notify your school at least three months prior to your intended submission date. 

The school should ensure that Student Services are informed so that the procedure for appointing examiners can be initiated. Any delay in submitting your Notification of Submission form can lead to a delay in your examination. Visit the Examination webpage for more information on the examination process.

Your supervisor’s signature on the Notification of Submission form acts as confirmation that: 

the thesis is the result of work done mainly while you have been registered as a researcher of The University of Nottingham 

you have been given appropriate plagiarism guidance 

you have been advised on thesis embargo and/or restriction 

if appropriate to your discipline, you are aware of the requirement to submit all data collected during the period of study as a researcher of this university, to your School prior to arrangement of the viva voce examination. 

Upon receipt of your completed form, Student Services will ask your school to nominate examiners. When approved, we will email you with the names of your examiners, asking you to declare any possible conflict of interest.

Notification of submission form

Late submission

You are required to submit your thesis for examination by the submission deadline notified to you during your course of studies. Full time doctoral researchers submitting a thesis after this deadline, without receiving formal approval from the university for an extension of time, will be permitted to submit up to 12 months after their latest submission date as long as the maximum period from initial registration has not been reached.  

Once the work has been submitted the late submission fee for each month or part month (as per the university fee schedule, please see under Postgraduate Research – Exceptional Fees – Current Academic Year) that passes between your expected submission date and the date that your thesis is actually submitted will be raised and is payable immediately.

For researchers who are not on doctoral programmes, or who are not full time, or for whom this is not the first submission, there is no recourse to submit a thesis late and an extension to thesis pending must be requested.

Quality Manual: policy on extension to thesis pending

Quality Manual maximum period from initial registration

How to submit

Your thesis should be submitted to the Nottingham ePrints service in pdf format and must be the result of your own work, done mainly while you were registered as a researcher of this university. Student Services will work with your supervisors in preparing the thesis to be sent for examination. 

Notitngham ePrints is the used to store your first submission, as well as corrections and/or re-submission. Once the degree has been conferred, your final version will be retained for publication in the repository, all previous drafts will be removed. 

For detailed instructions, please visit the uploading your thesis webpage .

What happens with my submission

 Your submission will be checked by the Student Services team. Once initial processing is complete, the Student Services team will write to confirm receipt of your thesis. Your thesis will then be stored securely in a local drive so that it can be shared with your examiners. It will then be removed from Nottingham ePrints . Doing so generates an automatic ‘Item Destroyed’ message, please do not be alarmed. 

First submissions, corrections and re-submission will be forwarded to examiner(s) for examination and/or final approvals. 

The final version will be retained for publication in the repository, unless you indicate a different preference.  For detailed instructions, please visit the uploading your thesis webpage .

Publishing your thesis: open access, embargo or restriction

In most cases, your thesis will be published in the University’s online library when you have graduated. Exceptions apply, such as embargo and thesis restriction, the distinction and process for application is explained below. You should discuss these options with your supervisor. 

Embargo: 

You may wish to delay online publication of the full text by requesting an embargo period, of up to two years* to allow publication through alternative channels. Please note: If you wish extend the embargo beyond the initial period, please enquire by emailing [email protected] . 

For embargoed theses, the full text is not publicly available but the bibliographic details (author, title and abstract) are discoverable and available to read. You must request embargoes when submitting the final draft of your thesis to Nottingham ePrints . 

Creative writing researchers may apply for an extended embargo of up to seven years. 

Thesis Restriction: 

The University Senate may fully restrict theses in special cases- where a thesis includes work which is politically, commercially or industrially sensitive.Theses may be restricted for a period of two years from conferral of the degree, if requested to do so. 

Thesis restrictions may be applied for by completing application for restriction form . Where the restriction is contractually obliged, the documentation should be appended to the application form. For more information visit the Quality Manual . 

Application for restriction form

Quality Manual application for restriction policy

Theses: Home

Find full text theses from  the University of Exeter, the UK and around the world.

What is a thesis?

They consist of substantial primary research in specialised topics and provide very detailed data and analysis. They may be so specialised that they provide information that is unavailable elsewhere and their bibliographies can be a useful source of wider reading on a topic. They are extremely valuable sources of information.

Before you begin your research, it is important to discover what else has been written on your topic.

When starting doctoral research, it is crucial to establish that the specific research that you intend to do has not already been carried out. You will therefore need to look at previous theses in your field of study, both at the University of Exeter and elsewhere.

Finding University of Exeter Doctoral theses

• University of Exeter theses
• Theses awarded before 2010
• Theses awarded after 2010
• Search for all University of Exeter theses

You can access theses produced by University of Exeter students.

Access routes depend upon whether the item is a print copy (deposited before 2010) or a digital copy (deposited after 2010).

Please note: The library and ORE holds doctoral/PHD theses only. We do not hold Masters or undergraduate dissertations.

No scanning until eThOs service returns

We are currently unable to scan pre 2010 theses.  Once the British Library eThOs service resumes requests to have pre-2010 theses scanned will be possible.  Until then pre-2010 theses will have to be consulted in the library.

Theses awarded before 2010

Print theses are kept in secure storage rather than open shelves and need to be requested in advance.  All theses are library use only and may not be removed from the library.

Search for theses using Library Search

fully qualified domain name such as "encore.mylibrary.com" --> Search by  Author ,  Title  or  Author /Title .

• To browse theses on a particular subject, carry out a  keyword search  for your subject, and include the words  'University '  and  'Exeter'  as keywords.   ( Please note however, that although this is likely to retrieve mainly theses, it will also find other University of Exeter publications on your subject). 
• Request theses in advance using the  Request It  button and choose  Forum Library  as the pickup location. 
• You will receive an email when the thesis is ready to use. 

Theses awarded since 2010

All theses submitted since 2010 are in  Open Research Exeter (ORE) , the online institutional repository. A small collection of theses have been deposited in ORE before this date.

Searching for all University of Exeter theses (using ETHOS)

University of Exeter theses can be found by searching online in  EThOS  , which is the UK’s national thesis service.   You need to create an account. 

Choose Advanced search and change the search option to Awarding body. Type University of Exeter in the search box.  Tip: You may want to limit the search to items available for immediate download.

Finding theses in the UK and worldwide

• Find UK theses
• Find international theses
• Additional sources for International theses
• Ethos This link opens in a new window EThOS provides details of doctoral theses from over 120 UK institutions. Some theses are available as full text downloads. Others can be requested as scanned documents via the digitisation-on-demand service, which requires registration. 

NB  Unfortunately the eThOs service is currently suspended due to the British Library being hacked.

• ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global This link opens in a new window Index and full text access to dissertations and theses from the UK and around the world, spanning from 1743 to the present day.

• ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global This link opens in a new window

This collection holds dissertations and theses from 1861 to the present, from over 700 worldwide academic institutions.

Some full-text dissertations are available for download, especially those added since 1997. Others are available for purchase as print copies.

More than 70,000 new full-text dissertations and theses are added to the database each year.

Comprehensive details on how to search this database can be found here.

• EBSCO Open Dissertations Search thousands of open-access dissertations.
• OpenDOAR This link opens in a new window A directory of academic open access repositories including access to a wide range of international theses.

The following websites will help you locate international theses:

• Dart-Europe E-Theses The DART-Europe E-theses Portal provides access to over 690,500 open access research theses from 594 universities in 28 European countries, including France, Germany, Spain and Sweden.
• Trove Australian theses are searchable via the National Library of Australia’s Trove service (a repository of resources relating to Australia).

Click here for guidance on how to search for  theses within this collection.

• WorldCat This link opens in a new window This database provides access to the records of dissertations and theses available in OCLC member libraries, most of which are North American. Many of the records link directly to the full-text theses.

• Last Updated: Apr 25, 2024 11:39 AM
• URL: https://libguides.exeter.ac.uk/theses

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A thesis is a published piece of written work embodying the results of original research for the award of a higher degree from an academic institution. 

Reasons for consulting a thesis include:

• For use as an information resource relevant to your research topic, i.e. you may like to refer to and cite a thesis;
• To ensure that your proposed topic of research has not already been substantially covered by somebody else;
• To become acquainted with recent trends, methodologies and approaches in your subject;
• To gain understanding about what is expected of you if you are undertaking a research degree, and to gain ideas for structure, tone, language, layout etc.

Aston University research theses have been deposited in electronic format in the University repository called Aston Publications Explorer .

Finding Thesis at Aston University

Aston University theses are indexed and discoverable on  S martSearch . Carry out a search on SmartSearch using your topic, or search for your school or department directly. Once you have generated some results, use the "Refine Results" filters in the left-hand side of the page and scroll down to "Material Type".  Select "Dissertations/Thesis" (you may need to click "Show more" to get this option).

SmartSearch will link you to British Library's  EThOS  service

Please note the following:

• Occasionally an author may place an embargo on a thesis if any of its content is commercially valuable or confidential.

Finding UK Thesis

To search for research theses across the UK, the British Library's  EThOS  service is highly recommended.  EThOS  is the British Library’s e-theses service and provides access to over 500,000 doctoral theses.  Many are available for immediate download (registration is required, but this is free and straightforward to do), and for others you can request that the printed version be digitised. If you are requesting digitisation of a thesis, a scan fee may apply depending on whether the institution is a participating Higher Education Institution (HEI) – see the list of  Participating Institutions  for details of members.

Finding International Thesis

The business journal database, Proquest , provides access to dissertations that have been published as open access sources.  You can search by topic, author or University.  Once you have results, you can use the "Refine Results" option on the left-hand side to filter by "Source Type".  Then choose "Dissertations/Thesis" you may need to select the "Show More" option.  The database includes millions of searchable citations to theses from 1861 to the present day.  Each thesis published since July 1980 includes a 350-word abstract. Simple bibliographic citations are available for dissertations dating from 1637. 24-page previews of theses are provided where possible.

Another option when searching for theses globally is to consult e-theses repositories available from other countries. The  Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations  contains a breakdown of e-theses repositories by country.

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OU theses and dissertations

Online theses.

Are available via Open Research Online .

Print theses

Search for OU theses in the Library Search . To see only print theses click 'In the Walton Hall library' and refine your results to resource type 'Thesis'.

OU staff and research students can  borrow a consultation copy of a thesis (if available). Please contact the Library helpdesk giving the author and title of the thesis.

UK theses and dissertations from EThOS

The Electronic Theses Online System (EThOS) offers free access to the full text of UK theses.

• EThOS offers a one stop online shop providing free access to UK theses
• EThOS digitizes theses on request into PDF format, this may require payment
• EThOS is managed by the British Library in partnership with a number of UK universities
• EThOS is open to all categories of library user

What does this mean to you as a library user?

When you need to access a PhD thesis from another UK based HE institution you should check EThOS to either download a thesis which has already been digitised or to request that a UK thesis be supplied to you.

• For all UK theses EThOS will be the first point of delivery. You can use the online ordering and tracking system direct from EThOS to manage your requests for UK PhD theses, including checking the status of your requests
• As readers you will deal directly with EThOS so will not need to fill in a document delivery request
• OU staff and research students will still be entitled to access non-UK based PhD theses by filling in a document delivery request
• In some cases where EThOS is unable to supply a UK thesis OU staff and research students will be able to access it by filling in a conventional document delivery request. The thesis will be supplied through direct loan
• The EThOS system is both faster and cheaper than the previous British Theses service which was based on microfilm
• The British Library no longer arranges interlibrary loans for UK PhD theses
• Interlibrary Loan procedures for other types of request from the British Library (articles and books for example) will remain the same

If you have any queries about using EThOS contact the Document Delivery Team ( [email protected] or the Library Helpdesk ).

Note 13/03/2024: The British Library is continuing to experience a major technology outage affecting its websites and other online systems, due to a Cyber attack. as a result access to ETHOS might not be possible until the issue is fixed. 

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Finding UK theses

The Bodleian Libraries hold copies of some UK theses. These are listed on SOLO  and may be ordered for delivery to a reading room. 

These theses are not all catalogued in a uniform way. Adding the word 'thesis' as a keyword in SOLO may help, but this is unlikely to find all theses, and may find published works based upon theses as well as unpublished theses.

Card catalogue  

Some early theses accepted for higher degrees and published before 1973 are held in the Bodleian Libraries but are not yet catalogued on SOLO. These holdings can be found in the Foreign Dissertations Catalogue card index.

To request access to material in the catalogue, speak to library staff at the Main Enquiry Desk in the Lower Reading Room of the Old Bodleian Library, or contact us via  [email protected]  or phone (01865 277162). 

Other finding aids

Proquest dissertations & theses.

You can use ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global  to locate theses accepted for higher degrees at universities in the UK and Ireland since 1716. The service also provides abstracts of these theses.

Library Hub Discover

You can use Library Hub Discover to search the online catalogues of some of the UK’s largest university research libraries to see if a thesis is held by another UK library.

EThOS is the UK’s national thesis service, managed by the British Library. It aims to provide a national aggregated record of all doctoral theses awarded by UK higher education institutions, with free access to the full text of many theses. It has around 500,000 records for theses awarded by over 120 institutions.

UTREES - University Theses in Russian, Soviet, and East European Studies 1907–

UTREES is a bibliographical database of research in the British Isles. The database has been continuously extended from the printed volume, most recently with 202 recent theses added in 2021. The database lists details of over 6,000 doctoral and selected masters’ theses from British and Irish universities. It covers research relating to Eastern and Central Europe, Russia and the area of the former USSR, including Central Asia, the Caucasus and Siberia.

Individual universities

You can also go to individual UK universities' sites for their online theses repositories.

You can purchase copies of Cambridge University theses through the Cambridge University Library's online order form . There is a standard charge of £75 (plus VAT and postage). White Rose ETheses Online is an online repository of doctoral theses from the Universities of Leeds, Sheffield and York. It is part of a national and international network of open access online databases which promote access to research outputs. Many theses have been digitised by the British Library as part of the EThOS. However, there have been instances where theses are available via WhiteRose eTheses Online before they reach EThOS.  

Ordering UK theses

Many theses from other UK universities are available from the British Library's EThOS service.  Unfortunately, this service is currently unavailable due to a cyber attack on the British Library.  

You can also request theses from other UK universities as an inter-library request .

Please note that it may not be possible to obtain some theses due to restrictions on lending placed by the author of the thesis or the institution at which it is held.