Thesis Template & Format Requirements

Your thesis must include a title page. Use the template provided as a pattern for creating your title page. You must include your thesis title, name, semester and year of graduation (For example, Spring 2026, not May 2026), and area of honors.

You’ll also list the name and professional title of your thesis supervisor and thesis honors adviser. If your thesis honors adviser and thesis supervisor are the same person, a faculty reader's name and title from the department granting honors will also be included. All faculty members must be identified by their correct professional titles. If a committee member has dual roles (thesis supervisor and thesis honors adviser), list both roles under their professional title. Do not list the same person twice.

This is a one-paragraph summary of the content of your thesis that summarizes the content and important results of your project. The abstract follows the title page, has the heading ABSTRACT at the top, and is always page Roman number i. Typically, the abstract is no longer than one page.

The table of contents is compiled by listing the headings in the thesis. You may choose to include first-level headings, first- and second-level headings, or all levels. The table of contents appears immediately after the abstract and should not list the abstract, the table of contents itself, or the academic vita (if included). In listing appendices, indicate the title of each appendix. If using display pages, the number of the display page should appear in the table of contents.

If your thesis contains tables or figures, you must include a listing of each. This is formatted similarly to a table of contents. Please reference the template for correct formatting. If you do not have tables or figures, these should be excluded.

Include a disclosure page in your final thesis that explains if/how generative AI was used in your thesis. This disclosure should be no longer than one page.

Acknowledgements can be included in the thesis if you want to thank colleagues, faculty, librarians, archivists, interviewees, or advisers. You should include an acknowledgements page if you received a grant from the University or an outside agency that supported your research.

Each table and each figure in the text must have a number and caption. Number your tables and figures consecutively, beginning with 1, or by chapter using a decimal system. Place a table or figure immediately after the first mention of it in the text — on the same page if there is room, or on the following page. Alternatively, tables and/or figures may be grouped together at the end of each chapter. Tables or figures of peripheral importance to the text may be placed in an appendix. Tables and figures must be referred to in the text by number, not by a phrase such as "the following table."

Material that is pertinent but somewhat tangential or very detailed (raw data, procedural explanations, etc.) may be placed in an appendix. Appendices should be designated as A, B, C (not 1, 2, 3 or I, II, III). If there is only one appendix, call it simply Appendix, not Appendix A. Titles of appendices must be listed in the table of contents. Appendix pages must be numbered consecutively with the text of the thesis (do not number the page A-1, A-2, etc.).

This section lists all works that are referred to in the text and, in some cases, other works consulted during research and writing. This section may precede or follow the appendices or may appear at the end of each chapter.

While the academic vita is optional, if used, do not include your GPA. The academic vita must be the last page of the document, is not given a page number, and is not listed in the table of contents. We also recommend that you do not include personal information, such as your address and phone number.