THESIS FORMAT GUIDELINES

The University of Faisalabad

Faisalabad (Pakistan)
General Guidelines
The thesis must represent a coherent body of original work by the student. It must display a
scholarly approach and thorough knowledge of the subject.

The following guidelines apply to thesis formats.

a. Language: Thesis may be written in English, Urdu or Arabic. Thesis written in a

language other than English must have two abstracts, one in the language of the thesis
and one in English.

b. Style: A style appropriate to the subject matter should be followed consistently. The form
and location of notes and bibliographic references must be consistent throughout the
thesis. One form of spelling must be used consistently throughout the thesis.

c. Paper: The thesis must be printed on good quality white paper (A4 Size, 80 to 90 gms)
on one side of the paper only. Photographs and other special figures or tables may be
printed on photographic quality paper.

d. Margins: Left-hand margin should be 38 mm (1.5") wide, to facilitate binding. right, top
and bottom margins should be well defined at approximately 25 mm (1"). Right-
justification is mandatory.

e. Font: For the main body of the text 12 point font should be used with the following
standards,

▪ English Times New Roman 12 points

Sample (For the main body of the text 12 point font should be used)
▪ Urdu Noori Nastaliq 14 points

Sample ( )
▪ Arabic Aasaar/Batool 14 points

Sample Aasaar ( )

Sample Batool ( )

Chapter titles and Section subheadings may be in a different style and in 14-20 point
font. They should stand out clearly from the text. Footnotes can be 8-10-point font. The
thesis must be printed in black ink; printing should be laser printer or letter quality. The
title of your thesis must be in ALL CAPS.
 f. Page Numbers: All pages must be numbered in sequence. There must be no missing,
blank, or duplicate pages. Minimum font size is 10-point and must be consistent
throughout the text. Chapter-1 must start on page-1.

g. Line Spacing: 1.5

h. Length of Thesis: The work presented for the degree of Ph D should normally be
B.Sc
between 80,000
about 100 pages - 90,000 words of text and for M Phil 40,000 to 50,000 words of text.

i. Binding: The binding of the thesis shall be on black hard paper. Where the title of
thesis, insignia of the University, name and registration no of the student, name of the
school and name of the university are to be superimposed in golden color. Author’s
name, year of submission and degree are to be superimposed on the spine of the thesis
as per sample page 1 and 2.

j. Order of Items in Entire Thesis: The following order of items is common to both
Standard and Publication thesis formats. Please note which items are optional.

i. Preliminary Pages (numbered with lower case Roman numerals):

▪ Title Page (Sample page 3)
▪ Signature Page (Sample page 4)
▪ Dedication Page (optional)
▪ Acknowledgements (optional)
▪ Table of Contents
▪ List of Tables (optional) (First Entry in Table of Contents)
▪ List of Figures (optional)
▪ Abstract
▪ List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used (optional)
▪ Glossary (optional)

ii. Main Pages (numbered with Arabic numerals):

▪ Body of Text – divided into chapters

iii. Final Pages (continuation of Arabic numerals):

▪ Endnotes (optional)
▪ Bibliography
▪ Appendices (optional) (Final Entry in Table of Contents)
Preliminary Pages
a. Page Numbers: The page numbers in the preliminary material are to be in lower case
Roman numerals, centered at the bottom of the page, except for the title page, which is
not numbered.

b. Title Page: This must be in standard format. There is no page number written on this
page, but it is considered to be page “i”.
 c. Signature Page: This must be in standard format. The original copy must bear original
signatures, preferably in black ink.

d. Dedication Page (if applicable): The content and format of this page are up to the
student.

e. Acknowledgements (if applicable): The content and format of this page are up to the
student.

f. Table of Contents: For clarity, use 12 points font. All chapters’ titles, headings and
subheadings should appear in the Table of Contents. Insert the word “Chapter” in front of
chapter numbers in the table of contents and in the main body of text. Chapter 1 should
be entitled Introduction, for example, ‘Chapter 1: Introduction’ and the last chapter
entitled Conclusion (or Discussion). Titles that extend onto more than one line should be
single-spaced; but the spacing of 1.5 should be maintained between entries. Right align
page numbers.

g. List of Tables and List of Figures (if applicable): Table/Figure titles that extend onto
more than one line should be single-spaced, but line spacing of 1.5 should be maintained
between entries.

h. Abstract: The thesis must contain an abstract. This should occupy a single page, and
may be single-spaced, if necessary. There should be no illustrations or footnotes. Abstract
text may be 150 words for M Phil thesis and 350 words for PhD thesis.

i. List of Abbreviations and Symbols Used (if applicable).

j. Glossary (if applicable).

Main Pages (Body of Text) – Standard format

a. General: The thesis should be organized as chapters, and should follow the general
guidelines and order of items listed in section 1 (General Guidelines). Chapter-1 must
start on page-1.

b. Page Numbers: All pages must be numbered in sequence. Minimum font size is 10-
point. It is normal practice for the page numbers in the main body of the text to appear in
bottom centre, Page numbers must be at least 0.5 inches (1.3 cm) from the top or bottom
of the page.

c. Line Spacing: 1.5.

d. Chapter Titles, Headings, and Sub-headings: All chapter titles, headings, and sub-
headings must appear in the table of contents. For each level of title or heading,
consistent format in font size and style, numbering or lettering, and placement should be
maintained throughout the thesis text. Each chapter should begin on a new page. Title
Case should be used when listing each title or heading.

e. Tables and Figures:

▪ General: Sources of any figures or tables not original to the thesis must be cited;
in some cases copyright permission may be necessary. Lettering in tables and
figures should be legible at the scale of reproduction in the thesis. Figures may be
in colour or grey-scale.

▪ Captions: Captions may be single-spaced and may appear directly above or

below the figure or table or alone on the immediately preceding page. Captions
can be in sentence form, without capitalizing all major words.

▪ Page Setup: Figures, tables, and captions may be embedded in the text or appear
on separate pages as appropriate. Landscape or portrait orientation is acceptable,
although the page itself must appear in portrait (vertical) orientation. Margin
width and page number placement should be consistent with the rest of text.

▪ Numbering: All figures and tables are to be listed at the beginning of the thesis
except those appearing in the appendices. Numbering or lettering style (if any)
should be consistent throughout the thesis.

▪ Other: Figures (including photographs) and tables are normally printed directly
on the page. Students are encouraged to use photographic or glossy paper where
this will improve reproduction quality.

f. Footnotes: In order to ensure that the thesis will be legible the font size used for both the
superscripts and the corresponding text should be the same as that used in the main body
of the text (10-point font minimum; see section 2.1). Footnotes may be placed at the
bottom of the page, at the end of each chapter, or at the end of the thesis (endnotes), as
long as placement and formatting are consistent throughout the thesis.
Final Pages (Endnotes/References/Appendices)
a. Endnotes: If used, must be placed before the Bibliography and Appendix.

b. Bibliography/References/Reference List: All cited references must be listed at the end

of the thesis. This applies whether or not the thesis has been submitted as a series of
related manuscripts with individual reference lists. The thesis must contain a complete
reference list or bibliography, citing all the literature and other sources referred to in the
thesis and appendices, including websites. Individual reference entries must not be split
over two pages. Style of bibliographic shall be as specified by the Dean. Format and
placement of reference citations should be consistent throughout the thesis.

c. Appendices: Each appendix should be listed separately in the Table of Contents.

▪ General: Appendices may include data tables, survey forms, or any other
supplementary material approved by the supervisory committee.

▪ Copyright Permission: Where a thesis includes copyrighted material (e.g.,

publications), copyright permission letters should be included as a separate
appendix. Reprints may be included in the appendices, provided copyright
permission is obtained.

d. Pagination: Pages should be numbered in sequence with the rest of the thesis.

e. Line Spacing: Individual entries may be single-spaced; spacing between entries should
be 1.5. Individual reference entries must not be split over two pages.

f. Font Size: Font size for both endnotes and cited references should be consistent with the
rest of the thesis text.

Certificate by the candidates to be Countersigned by Supervisor: A certificate “that

this research work was neither submitted earlier nor will be submitted elsewhere as a
requirement of the PhD / M Phil degree” will have to be submitted on one of the starting pages
of thesis.

Plagiarism: It is completely unacceptable. A candidate whose thesis is proved to be

plagiarized, his admission will be cancelled. The candidate will not be readmitted in the
university.

Research Work-Property of the University: The research work documented in the thesis
will be the property of the University but the author can publish the work elsewhere with the
permission of the University.
 SIGNATURES

Title:_________________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________________

Name of Student: _______________________________

Registration No: _______________________________

Supervisory Committee (Name & Signatures)

1. _____________________ (Supervisor) ________________________

2. _____________________ (Member) ________________________

3. _____________________ (Member) ________________________

4. _____________________ Special member if any) ________________________