Thesis & Dissertation Style
If you have begun or about to begin a thesis or dissertation, you need to familiarize
yourself with the Graduate School’s “Guidelines for Preparation and Submission of
Dissertations, Theses, and Research Papers” (effective March 1, 1998), available on the
web at http://www.siu.edu/gradschl/dtrguide.htm.
In regard to matters not covered by those guidelines, the Department requires students
to consult the American Political Science Association’s “Style Manual for Political
Science” as implemented in the American Political Science Review (APSR), and The Chicago Manual of Style.
In five specific areas the Graduate School leaves style to the discretion of the
departments. For Political Science, these are as follows:
1. Page numbers within the paper body should be placed in the center, between the
one and one-half inch margin on the left and the one inch margin on the right, two
spaces above the first line of type. Pagination should consist of numerals only,
without punctuation or embellishment. Paging should be continuous, including the
bibliography and appendices.
2. Major headings are upper/lower case and centered. See APSA Style Manual
for particulars.
3. References are single spaced, lines indented after the first in each entry,
and in alphabetical order by author’s last name. See APSA Style Manual for particulars.
4. Italics should be used for, and only for, unnaturalized foreign words.
5. Tables/figures are upper/lower case and centered. Title is table or
figure with arabic numeral.
If you have any questions about these guidelines, consult your thesis or dissertation
supervisor or see the Director of Graduate Studies.
Adopted: April 13, 1999 |
