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UQ

University of Queensland

Ph.D. Thesis & M.Phil. Thesis Formatting Guidelines

Official layout specifications, binding margins, and document formatting requirements.

Governing Body: UQ Graduate School (QLD, AU)

Degree Scope:🎓 Ph.D. / Doctoralℹī¸ Master's / M.Tech. format requires departmental / DPGC confirmation unless a central handbook is cited
Official Handbook:
University of Queensland Thesis Preparation and Format Guidelines (PPL 4.60.08)
View Official Handbook ↗
Paper Dimensions
A4 (210 mm × 297 mm)
Binding Margins
20 mm Left / 20 mm Right
Standard Typography
Times New Roman (12pt)
Line Spacing
1.5x

1. Page Setup & Geometry

Page dimensions, binding margins, and print/digital alignments

A4
Top: 20 mm
Binding: 20 mm
[Header]Page 1
[Front matter]
Right: 20 mm
Bottom: 20 mm
Left (Binding Gutter)
20mm
Right Margin
20mm
Top Margin
20mm
Bottom Margin
20mm
Margin Specification: All margins must be 20 mm per official UQ Graduate School thesis template.

2. Typography & Spacing Hierarchy

Font selections, heading styles, line spacing, and paragraph indentation

Times New Roman
Body Font
Times New Roman
Font Size
12pt
Line Spacing
1.5x
Paragraph Indent
0.5 in
Approved Typefaces:Times New RomanArialCalibri
Spacing Exceptions: Single spacing for quotes, footnotes, tables, and bibliography.

3. Technical & Archival Compliance

ETD ProQuest repository requirements, table spanning, and vector DPI rules

Institute ETD / library deposit
Tables Layout

Table captions: above.

Figures & Graphics

Figure captions: below. Colour photography minimum 300 DPI.

Math & Formulae

Right-aligned equation numbers (chapter.seq). Preserves native MathML and Word equation blocks.

Archival Preservation

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

Mandatory Sequence
  1. 1
    Title PageMandatory
    Pagination: suppressed counted
  2. 2
    AbstractMandatory
    Pagination: roman visible
  3. 3
    Declaration by AuthorMandatory
    Pagination: roman visible
  4. 4
    Publications during candidatureOptional / If Applicable
    Pagination: roman visible
  5. 5
    AcknowledgementsOptional / If Applicable
    Pagination: roman visible
  6. 6
    Table of ContentsMandatory
    Pagination: roman visible
  7. 7
    List of FiguresOptional / If Applicable
    Pagination: roman visible
  8. 8
    List of TablesOptional / If Applicable
    Pagination: roman visible

6. Academic Integrity, Similarity & AI Policy

Plagiarism threshold, similarity checking software, and Generative AI disclosure rules

Policy & Disclosure
Generative AI Policy
Disclosure Statement Required

Mandatory verbatim 'Declaration by Author' in preliminary pages explicitly declaring that the thesis contains no uncredited material generated by artificial intelligence (AI).

Chapter Opening & Print Setup

Chapter start placement, top margin drops, single vs double-sided print, and paper weight

Layout
Printing Format
Single or Double-Sided

8. Institutional & Departmental Policies

Preliminaries:

Mandatory verbatim 'Declaration by Author' including explicit disclosure of Generative AI tool usage. Abstract must normally be between 300 and 800 words.

Word Count Limits:

Strict maximum word limits: 80,000 words for Ph.D., 40,000 words for M.Phil., 50,000 words for Professional Doctorates (inclusive of footnotes and appendices, excluding references).

Repository Deposit:

Mandatory deposit in UQ eSpace repository.

Institutional Policy: UQ Graduate School presentation guidelines govern Ph.D. and M.Phil. theses. Official UQ Graduate School template mandates equidistant 20 mm margins on all sides.

Notice a discrepancy in this 2025 handbook?

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  • Verified 2026-10-13 against primary sources: University of Queensland Thesis Preparation and Format Guidelines (PPL 4.60.08) and official template; A4 paper, 20 mm margins on all sides, GenAI declaration in Declaration by Author.
  • A4 format. All four margins must be strictly 20 mm per official UQ Graduate School thesis template.
  • Mandatory verbatim 'Declaration by Author' explicitly declaring that no uncredited material generated by artificial intelligence (AI) is included.
  • Abstract length: 300 to 800 words.