Formatting Guide

Formatting requirements are set by your university and override any general guidance, including this template. Obtain the official thesis-format regulations early and read them properly — margins, font, line spacing, page-number placement, preliminary-page order and binding specification are all typically prescribed, and a thesis can be returned for getting them wrong.

Set the document up correctly before writing rather than fixing it afterwards. Use built-in heading styles so the table of contents generates and updates itself, insert figure and table captions through the caption tool so numbering renumbers automatically when you add one, and use section breaks to switch from roman numerals in the preliminaries to arabic numerals in the body.

Leave real time for the final formatting pass. Cross-references need updating, the table of contents and lists of figures and tables need regenerating, orphaned headings at page ends need fixing, and the plagiarism check needs running with time to respond to what it shows. Convert to PDF and check the result page by page, since layout can shift in conversion.