Policy and Style Manual for Theses and Dissertations

**Please Note -- This style manual is currently being revised.  New style guidelines and thesis/dissertation submission processes will be available beginning October 5, 2009.  You may continue to use this manual as a guideline to format your thesis/dissertation until the new one is released.**  - 7/27/09

To the Graduate Student

A thesis or a dissertation is the outcome of a substantial effort.  Its content and style will reflect on you, faculty members who have guided your work, and on the University of Washington.  By adhering to the standards set forth in the following pages you will be presenting your work in a professional manner, to the credit of all who have contributed to it.

Before you submit your document, be sure to check out our page with reminders, tips, and quarterly deadlines for submitting your Thesis/Dissertation.

The Graduate School is no longer offering the Policy and Style Manual for Theses and Dissertations on HTML.  Please download the Adobe Acrobat file below. 

Now Available: Download the Policy and Style Manual for Theses and Dissertations Version (.pdf file)

As of 24 October 2008, please refer to our current Thesis and Dissertation Checklist website for more detailed information.

The document above is an Adobe Acrobat document that requires an Acrobat file viewer to view and print, such as Acrobat Reader from Adobe Systems, Incorporated.   If you do not already have the Adobe Acrobat Reader installed,  you can download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader (available at no charge) from the link below.  

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Frequently Asked Questions about Theses and Dissertations