Format and Appearance
The format guidelines given here comply with publication requirements of University Microfilms International, where all dissertation and thesis documents are sent. Close attention to the specifications below will result in a final draft that is both professional in appearance and acceptable to the Office of Graduate Studies.
Recommended Style
Acceptable styles are selected by the candidate's degree-granting unit, with the approval of the Office of Graduate Studies. Each candidate must consult with his or her advisor or graduate coordinator on matters of style before beginning work. Regardless of the style used, all documents must comply with the format and content guidelines given in this publication. It is the responsibility of the degree-granting unit to ensure that theses and dissertations are consistent throughout with the chosen style.
Paper Quality
Paper used for the final two copies of the thesis or dissertation to be presented to the Tech Services Office in Mitchell Memorial Library should be at least 20 pound, 25% rag (cotton-content), acid-free bond and comply with the standards adopted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI), Standard Z39.48-1984. Paper meeting these standards comes in forms suitable for use in typewriters, photocopy machines, and printers, and is available in the MSU Printing Department. The best reproductions, however, are made by commercial copying firms and candidates are advised to use their services whenever possible.
Type Fonts and Print Quality
The master copy of the graduate degree document must be printed on one side of the page only.
Type size may vary between ten and twelve points. Standard type fonts as defined by the Office of Graduate Studies are required. Examples of acceptable type fonts are Times, New Century Schoolbook, Palatino, or Bookman. Non-standard fonts such as script or shadowed fonts are unacceptable. Once selected, the type font and size must be consistent throughout the document. Exceptions may be made for:
extensive tables, which may use a smaller point size that is still easily readable.
formulas, which may use special fonts as required for such elements as mathematical italics or Greek symbols.
chapter headings and subheadings, which may be as much as four points larger than the size used for the text.
subscripts and superscripts, which may be smaller than the text font.
footnotes, which may be of a smaller font if used consistently throughout the document.
Either italics or underlining may be used for non-English words and in the citation of titles. Such usage must be consistent throughout the document.
Boldface may not be used for chapter numbers and chapter titles, but may be used for subheadings. It should not be used for other purposed in the text, but may be used in tables and figures.
Special symbols or names such as mathematical symbols, variable names, scientific names or organisms, data names, and the names of computer program procedures may be printed using italics, boldface, or underlining. The use must be consistent throughout the text.
Strikeovers, interlineations, crossing-out of letters, and liquid correction fluid are not acceptable means of correction. In most cased, the reprinting of incorrect pages is the only acceptable form of correction.
If a computer printer is used it must be a letter-quality or laser printer. A laser printer is preferred. Dot matrix printers are unacceptable.
Cartridges and ribbons should be changed as often as necessary to produce a sharp image. The Tech Services Office in Mitchell Memorial Library will make the final decision on the legibility of print used in graduate degree documents.
Line Spacing
Standard double-line spacing is required for the document text both within and between paragraphs with the exception of items noted below:
Most style manuals require single-line spacing to be used within long quotations, long tables, footnotes, multi-line captions, and bibliographic entries. Double-spacing should be used between footnotes and bibliographic entries.
Lists may be single-line spaced with double spacing between items. Bullets may be used in lists as long as they are not oversized.
Margins
The left-margin must be a minimum of one and one-half inches wide to allow for binding; all other margins must be a minimum of one inch wide. Such margins will leave a 6 x 9 inch area on each sheet for the text or illustrative material, including page numbers.
Text may be left-justified or full-justified. The justification chosen must be consistent throughout the document.
All paragraphs must be indented and this spacing must be consistent throughout the document.
The only other exceptions to the margin requirements are:
the first page of each chapter of the document must leave two inches of white space between the top of the page and the title.
tables and figures may be smaller and centered, thus leaving larger margins.
With the exceptions noted above, all tables and figures, including their titles, must conform to margin requirements. Tables and figures may be photographically reduced to meet margin requirements.
It is not permissible to leave a single line of a paragraph or other subdivision (widow or orphan) at either the bottom or the top of a page.
Photocopies should be made only from the original copy and must be made with care to ensure that margins on all copies are accurate and consistent.
Pagination
Every page of the graduate degree document must have a page number except the title page, copyright page, approval page, and abstract pages.
Small roman numeral (ii, iii, iv, etc.) are used for the preliminary pages: dedication, acknowledgements, table of contents, and the lists of tables, figures, plates, symbols, abbreviations, and/or nomenclature. The title page is assigned the first small roman numeral but that number does not actually appear on the title page. The page numbers begin with ii, assigned to the dedication (if one is used). Page numbers for other preliminary pages are placed in the center, bottom positions so as to allow one inch of white space between the page numbers and the bottom of the page. The Copyright, Approval, and Abstract pages are neither counted nor numbered.
Arabic numbers are used for the remainder of the document, including the text and the reference material. The pages are numbered consecutively beginning with 1 and continuing through to the end of the document. No other numbering scheme is acceptable; that standard scheme may not be interrupted with insertions numbered 10a, 10b, 10c, etc.
All page numbers must be even with the right margin and positioned so that one inch of white space remains at the top. On pages with a major heading, such as those beginning a "CHAPTER," "BIBLIOGRAPHY," or "APPENDIX," the page number is placed in the center bottom position so as to allow one inch of white space between it and the page bottom.
For documents of sufficient length to be bound in two volumes (usually, those exceeding 400 page; see Section I below), each volume has its own title page. Both title pages are identical except for the notation "Volume I" and "Volume II" just below the title to differentiate the two volumes. Both the roman and Arabic numbering systems begun in Volume I continue through Volume II. As with the title page of Volume I, that of Volume II is counted among the preliminary pages but does not bear a number. If "iv" is the last roman numeral used in Volume I, for example, the title page of the second volume will count as page "v" and will be followed by preliminary page "vi," "vii," etc. Each volume contains a complete table of contents for the entire document.
Tables and Figures
For the purposes of this publication, two kinds of illustrative material are defined. A table consists of columns of information, often in the form of numbers. A figure is any kind of graphic illustration other than a table; figures include graphs, charts, drawings, diagrams, maps, photographs, and the like.
Tables and figures must be numbered with Arabic numerals. Identifying numbers must run consecutively throughout the entire document, including the appendices. Tables and figures may be numbered consecutively throughout the document (1, 2, 3, etc.) or consecutively within chapters (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, etc.).
Table titles are placed two lines above the top line of the table. Depending on the style chosen, the table number may be placed to the left of the table title, or centered two lines above the table title. Figure numbers and titles are placed two lines below the last line or bottom of the illustration. Table and figure titles must be single line spaced. The style chosen for title placement and capitalization conventions for tables and figures should be used consistently throughout the document.
A table that will not fit on one page may be continued onto subsequent pages with the appropriate notation placed two lines above the continuation of the table (e.g., Table 1 (continued)).
The bottom of a table of figure usually appears at the bottom of the page on which it is printed. When size or format require horizontal placement, the bottom appears at the outer (or right) edge of the page, with the table or figure facing away from the left margin.
As a general rule, a table or figure is to be located as close as possible to the text describing them. Tables or figures of one-half page or less in length may appear on the same page with the text, separated from the text above and below by triple spacing. A table or figure longer than one-half page should be placed on a separate sheet following the page where it is first referenced.
Text must not be "wrapped around" tables and figures; i.e., if a table or figure appears on the same page as text, then that table or figure may have text both before and after it only if the text appearing after it represents the beginning of a new paragraph.
Figures that cannot be reduced to fit within the 6 x 9 inch frame, or which cannot be continued on the next page, may be expanded to the right by means of a fold-out sheet. The material to be folded should be mounted on a sheet of standard 81/2 x 11 inch paper, with the required 11/2 inch margin on the left side and the fold placed 11/4 inches from the right side of the page. The page number is placed in the upper right-hand corner of the mounting sheet.
Two or more small tables or figures may be grouped together on a single page.
Color should be used only when absolutely necessary. The use of color presents problems when photocopying and microfilming the document.
Photographs may be either photocopied by an excellent quality copier or permanently mounted on a standard 8 1/2 x 11 inch page, preferably through the use of dry-mount tissue. Color photographs may be reproduced by a high quality color copier. Photo corners, tape, staples, and rubber cement are not acceptable mounts.
Original questionnaires, letters, maps, data sheets, and similar materials to be included in appendices must conform to margin and page number specifications.
Important equations (typically those referred to in the text) should have numerical identification and should be numbered consecutively (e.g., 1, 2, 3, etc., or within chapters, e.g., 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, 2.1, 2.2, 2.3, etc.).
Overlays may be used in the document by they must be placed within a clear, plastic, acid-free page protector.
Footnotes, Endnotes, and References
Citation practices differ widely. Candidates should confer with their advisors regarding accepted practices in their individual disciplines. That advice coupled with frequent and careful reference to general style manuals will offer the most reliable guidance.
References may be numbered in one of two ways: either consecutively throughout the entire manuscript or consecutively within each chapter.
References may be at the bottom of the page, the end of a chapter or at the end of the document. Once chosen, the style must be consistent throughout the document.
A reference to information within tables should be placed directly below the table to which it pertains, not at the bottom of the page.
Regardless of style used, references must be single-line spaced, with double-line spaces separating each item.
Multi-Volume Documents
For very long documents, binding in two volumes is necessary. As a general rule, if the document is less than 400 pages and contains few photographs and mountings, binding in two volumes is not required. Expressed another way, if the entire unbound document pressed down slightly measures no more than two and one-half inches, it will fit into one volume.
When binding in more than one volume is necessary, careful consideration should be given to logical dividing points in the text. Generally, the division into volumes should come at the end of the last chapter than falls within the 400-page limit; individual chapters are never divided between two volumes. See the section titled Pagination, number five, for multi-volume page numbering.
