Title Page

• Although the Title page is counted as Roman numeral i, the page number should not appear on the page.
• The body of the text should be centered on the page both vertically and horizontally.
• The title must be in all caps.
• The author’s name must be in all caps.
• Your date of graduation must be in all caps.
  • Note: Use the month and year of your graduation, not the month and year you defend.

Download the example thesis Title page (rich text format)

Download the example dissertation Title page (rich text format)

Copyright Page (optional)

• Copyrighting is optional. To have your material copyrighted, you must pay an additional fee.
• The Copyright Page will appear after your Title Page and before your Approval Page.
• This page is not counted, numbered or listed in the Table of Contents.
• If you are using a Microsoft product, you can create the copyright symbol by typing ( c ). This will give you the copyright character: ©.

Download the example Copyright page (rich text format)

A Note About Third-Party Copyright

If your work contains material that has been copyrighted by another party, you may need to seek permission to use the material in your thesis or dissertation.

Examples of materials for which you would need to seek copyright permission include, but are not limited to: third-party software, images, graphics, large portions of text and maps.

If copyright permission is needed, you must submit written approval for the use of the copyrighted material along with your thesis or dissertation.

Substituting Materials When Copyright Permission is Unobtainable

If you are unable to obtain copyright permission for some of the materials in your research, then you may substitute the copyrighted material in the manner described below, provided that you are able to show evidence that you tried in good faith to obtain the copyright in a paper document submitted with the rest of your thesis/dissertation materials.

(Note: “I have too many copyrighted materials to get permission for all of them” and “I don’t have enough time to obtain permission” are not acceptable reasons for being unable to obtain permission.)

Acceptable substitutions include:

• Redraw or trace maps, images, graphics, etc.
• Reference a URL or printed document where the material can be found

Policy Regarding Theses and Dissertation Content

Students are prohibited from using in their thesis or dissertation, research (data, results, methods or other content) that could restrict subsequent publication or public disclosure of these documents. Examples of restricted information include materials that are classified or proprietary. It is important to note that these restrictions do not apply to non-thesis or dissertation research that is approved by the student's adviser and allowed by MU policies. Questions regarding the applicability of this policy to thesis or dissertation content should be referred to the Graduate School.

This policy was approved by the Graduate Faculty Senate in October, 2006

More Information

For more information regarding copyright and your thesis or dissertation, please visit:

• Copyright Law & Graduate Research by Kenneth Crews
• University of Missouri: Use of Copyrighted Materials in Teaching and Research

Approval Page

• Not counted, numbered or listed in the Table of Contents
• Comes after your Title page, unless you have included the optional Copyright page; in this case it will follow the Copyright page
• The title must be centered and in all caps.
• Each person on your committee must be listed.
• Approval page on your cd should not have committee signatures
• Must also be printed, signed by each committee member and presented to the Graduate School along with your CD

Download the example Approval page (rich text format)

Dedication Page (optional)

• Optional and would come after the Approval page
• Not counted, numbered or listed in the Table of Contents
• Used to acknowledge those who have supported you during your graduate studies. This is not typically the place to recognize those who assisted you in your academic research. That is done on the required Acknowledgements page.
• No restrictions to the style and format.

Download the example Dedication page (rich text format)

Acknowledgements Page

• Required for all theses and dissertations. It follows the Approval page, unless you have included the optional Dedication page; in this case it would follow the Dedication page.
• Center and capitalize the term “ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.”
• The page number should be Roman numeral ii, aligned center, 1 inch from the bottom.
• Indent the body of the text.
• Double-space the body of the text.
• There is no length restriction.

Download the example Acknowledgements page (rich text format)

Table of Contents

• Center and capitalize the term “TABLE OF CONTENTS.”
• Most pages before and after the body of the research should be included in the Table of Contents. Ex. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS, VITA, etc.
  • The only exceptions include: the TABLE OF CONTENTS, which would be redundant; the Approval page; and the optional Copyright and Dedication pages. These pages should not be listed in the Table of Contents.
• Do not use the heading “Page” above the page numbers on the Table of Contents.
• Single-space lines within entries, and indent any lines that follow the first line of an entry with three character spaces.
• Double-space between entries.
• Item numbers should align on periods.
• Item page numbers should align at the right margin.
• The Table of Contents page number should be a Roman numeral, aligned center, 1 inch from the bottom.
• For every heading and subheading in the body of the research, there must be a corresponding entry in the Table of Contents.

Download the example Table of Contents page (rich text format)

List of Illustrations (Tables/ Figures/ Maps/ Nomenclature)

• The title should be in all caps and centered, 2 inches from the top of the page.
• Single-space lines within entries, and indent any lines that follow the first line with three character spaces.
• Double-space between entries.
• Item numbers should align on periods.
• Item page numbers should align at the right margin.
• The List of Illustrations/Tables/etc. page number should be a Roman numeral, aligned center, 1 inch from the bottom.
• The term “Figure” (or “Table,” etc.) should appear above the item numbers only on the first page.
• The term “Page” should appear above the item page numbers only on the first page.

Download the example List of Illustrations page (rich text format)

Vita Page

• Required for doctoral students
• Optional for master’s students
• The Vita page follows the main content of your research.
• This is not a curriculum vita. Its purpose is to give a bit of background about the author.
• The title “VITA” should be 7 single-spaced lines from the top and centered in all caps.
• Leave 3 single-spaced lines after the title; then begin the body of the text.
• Indent the body of the text.
• Double-space the body of the text.
• Include a page number.
• There is no restriction on the length.

Download the example Vita page (rich text format)