Thesis formatting

In order for the thesis to meet the standards of the University of Waterloo, it must be organized as follows.

Table of what to include in the front matter of a thesis
Front matter	Page number	Note
Title page	i	Required The page number should not be displayed, however, the title page counts as page one in the overall numbering of pages.
Examining committee membership (.docx)	ii	PhD theses only
Author's declaration	iii	Required
Statement of contributions (.docx) (*example used with author's permission)	iv	If applicable For a thesis that is not a sole-authored document, the University requires that the student has made the major contribution to the work, to the satisfaction of the examination committee. The student will include a Statement of contributions in the thesis.
Abstract	v	Required The thesis should have only one abstract , located within the Front matter in the order indicated here.
Acknowledgements	vi	Required
Dedication	vii	Optional
Table of contents	viii	Required
List of figures	ix	If applicable Each figure in the text must be numbered; if the title/caption of the figure cannot fit on the same page as the figure, the title/caption may appear on the previous page facing the figure.
List of tables	x	If applicable Each table in the text must be numbered; if the title/caption of the table cannot fit on the same page as the table, the title/caption may appear on the previous page facing the table.
List of illustrations	xi	If applicable Each illustration in the text must be numbered; if the title/caption of the illustration cannot fit on the same page as the illustration, the title/caption may appear on the previous page facing the illustration.
List of abbreviations	xii	If applicable
List of symbols	xiii	If applicable
Statement of positionality	xiv	Optional Students may include a positionality statement that declares their personal identities and therefore the lenses and intersectionality that has shaped their research.
Graphic or quote	xv	If applicable Students may wish to enhance their thesis with either a graphic or meaningful quote. These pages, if applicable, must appear as the last page of the front matter, immediately before the main body of the thesis.

Table of what to include in the back matter of a thesis
Back matter	Note
Letter of copyright permission	If applicable It is the student's responsibility to determine if letters of copyright permission are required.
References (or Bibliography)	Required. References must be presented in one of the following two styles: All references listed together as Reference (or Bibliography section) and located within the Back matter. Manuscript-Based (Article-Based) theses may have references included after each article. Any reference introduced in the thesis, outside of the articles (e.g. in the general introduction), will be included in a list of references in the Back matter. The reference list in the Back matter can repeat the references from the articles (i.e. be comprehensive), but it is not required. Note: As articles from more than one journal may be included, it is acceptable to have different referencing styles between reference lists, but the reference style must be consistent within a given list.
Appendices	If applicable
Glossary	If applicable
Index	If applicable

Page numbering

All pages, must have visible page numbers, centred at the bottom of the page. Note: omit page numbers on all blank pages but ensure that the page is accounted for in the page count.

Front matter

The page number is omitted from the Title page, although it is considered page i.
Front matter pages are numbered with lower case Roman numerals (e.g. i, ii, iii), beginning with the Author's Declaration (page ii) following the title page.

Text (main body) and back matter

Arabic numerals (e.g. 1, 2, 3) are used for all pages in these sections.
Each chapter/section must begin on a separate page.
The Text (main body) of the thesis begins with page number "1," placed in the center at the bottom.
All pages in Text (main body) and back matter must be numbered consecutively.

Note: Numerals must begin on the first page of Text (main body) and continue through to the last page of the back matter.

Title page

The format of the title page must be the same as the below sample (additional samples included for programs with specific title pages):
The author's name used on the author line and on the subject line must be consistent.
The name of the degree must appear in full (e.g. Master of Applied Science, Master of Arts, Doctor of Philosophy).
The name of the discipline is the degree program in which the student is registered (e.g. Computer Science, Electrical and Computer Engineering, Recreation and Leisure Studies), not an option, department or school. Note: In certain cases, the discipline is within the degree name (e.g. Master of Architecture, Master of Quantitative Finance). In these cases, only one line for degree is required.
The universal copyright notice © must appear on the title page of the thesis. The copyright date is the year the thesis is accepted and submitted to UWSpace.

Author's declaration

The thesis must contain one of the two following statements on the Author’s Declaration page:

EITHER: “I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners.

I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public.”

OR: “This thesis consists of material all of which I authored or co-authored: see Statement of Contributions included in the thesis. This is a true copy of the thesis, including any required final revisions, as accepted by my examiners.

I understand that my thesis may be made electronically available to the public.”

Spelling, font sizing, and spacing

The thesis should either be written in British or American spelling; however, one or the other should be used consistently throughout, including the title page.
Line spacing, or leading, and font size should permit ease of reading. Due to the number of possible combinations of these factors, it is difficult to give precise guidelines so the focus should be on readability.
Footnotes/endnotes may be included in the text.
Maintain consistency in the use of different typefaces for headings, footings, and titles.

Supplementary files

Please refer to the Library's guidelines on research data, code, and other supplementary materials.

Resources and templates

The Writing and Communications Centre provides writing support and a healthy space to keep you on track with your writing.

The Library provides further resources, such as their online reference shelf page.

Information Systems & Technology provides LaTeX and Word thesis templates for use in formatting your thesis.

Next Steps

Review the Library's thesis submission guide before submitting your thesis to UWSpace, the University’s open access repository.