University of Melbourne
Ph.D. Thesis & Master's by Research Thesis Formatting Guidelines
Official layout specifications, binding margins, and document formatting requirements.
Governing Body: Melbourne School of Graduate Research & Graduate Research Hub (Victoria, AU)
1. Page Setup & Geometry
Page dimensions, binding margins, and print/digital alignments
2. Typography & Spacing Hierarchy
Font selections, heading styles, line spacing, and paragraph indentation
3. Technical & Archival Compliance
ETD ProQuest repository requirements, table spanning, and vector DPI rules
Table captions: above.
Figure captions: below. Colour photography minimum 300 DPI.
Right-aligned equation numbers (chapter.seq). Preserves native MathML and Word equation blocks.
Library ETD guideline: PDF/A-1b (Note: ScholarSpec formats submission-ready Word .docx documents; export to PDF/A upon final committee approval).
4. Preliminary Pages Checklist & Order
Strict graduate school ordering, title page numbering suppression, and Roman pagination
- 1Title PageMandatoryPagination:
suppressed counted - 2AbstractMandatoryPagination:
roman visible - 3Declaration of AuthorshipMandatoryPagination:
roman visible - 4PrefaceMandatoryPagination:
roman visible - 5AcknowledgementsOptional / If ApplicablePagination:
roman visible - 6Table of ContentsMandatoryPagination:
roman visible - 7List of FiguresOptional / If ApplicablePagination:
roman visible - 8List of TablesOptional / If ApplicablePagination:
roman visible
6. Academic Integrity, Similarity & AI Policy
Plagiarism threshold, similarity checking software, and Generative AI disclosure rules
Mandatory disclosure in the thesis Preface under MPF1321 §3.11 detailing whether digital editorial assistance or generative AI tools were used and the specific extent of use, with logs available on request.
Chapter Opening & Print Setup
Chapter start placement, top margin drops, single vs double-sided print, and paper weight
8. Institutional & Departmental Policies
University crest and logo are strictly forbidden anywhere in the thesis (Clause 3.6).
Personal signatures strictly prohibited anywhere in the thesis PDF for candidate and examiner privacy (Clause 3.7).
Mandatory disclosure in the Preface of any digital editorial assistance or generative AI tools used (Clause 3.11).
Sequence of preliminary pages must strictly follow Melbourne guidelines: Title Page, Abstract, Declaration, Preface, Acknowledgements, Table of Contents, Lists.
Mandatory deposit in Minerva Access upon final examination approval.
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- Verified 2026-10-13 against primary sources: University of Melbourne MPF1321 (Graduate Research Training Policy Clause 3.4c) and Preparation of Graduate Research Theses Process; A4 paper, left/right margins at least 30 mm; GenAI disclosure in Preface.
- A4 page setup. Left and right margins must be at least 30 mm (Clause 3.4c); top and bottom 30 mm.
- MPF1321 §3.11 mandates explicit disclosure of any digital editorial assistance or generative AI tools in the thesis Preface.
- University crest and personal signatures strictly prohibited in thesis PDF.