Documentation:Research Commons/Thesis Formatting Support
Need help with formatting your thesis? The Research Commons, located on floor 2 of Koerner Library, provides a thesis template and guides plus support via appointment or in our weekly workshops to help make this process easier for you.
Want to make an appointment? To book a one-on-one consultation appointment, please fill out the following request form: Research Commons Consultation Form. Please note: In-person thesis formatting help is only available at certain times during the week (i.e., the times indicated in our consultations calendar). You can also contact us by email at research.commons@ubc.ca.
Visit our Template and Guides sections (see tabs above) for:
- a Microsoft Word .docx thesis template which meets the basic Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies requirements
- User's Guides (PDF) for the thesis template for Word 2010 for PCs and Word 2011 for Macs
- Additional guides for older versions of Word that give you step-by-step formatting/technical instructions for setting up aspects of your thesis document like page numbers, tables of contents/lists of figures, page margins, etc. Guides are currently available for Word 2003 and 2007 for PC, and for Word 2008 for Mac.
We also have new thesis formatting checklists: one for the basic thesis formatting requirements, and one for formatting requirements for figures, tables and other objects. These are available through the Other Resources tab above.
Did you attend one of our Thesis Formatting workshops? We'd love to get your feedback - just fill out the Research Commons Student Feedback Form.
Other Thesis Formatting Service Providers
A number of thesis-related services are provided by various units across the UBC campus or, in some instances, by off-campus service providers:
- For answers to specific questions about your individual thesis - for example, unusual formatting requests, inclusion of particular material, or incorporating sound or video - or to get a pre-review done of your thesis, please contact the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies.
- For help in editing your thesis, see the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies' information on how to find an editor for your thesis. For ongoing help with your writing on a drop-in or appointment basis, contact the UBC Continuing Studies Writing Centre.
- For help in determining how to use copyrighted material in your thesis - for example, clarifying what material you need to get permission to use, and providing advice on asking for permission - please contact UBC's Copyright office.
- For help with LaTeX, visit the LaTeX website or UBC Library's guide to using LaTeX.