Widener University

Dissertation Requirements

If you have any questions regarding the binding process, please contact Molly Wolf at 610-499-4075.

All other questions regarding your dissertation should be referred to the Chair of your dissertation committee.

Before your dissertation can be processed and bound by the bindery, it MUST conform to the following criteria:

Margins:

• 1 1/2 inches top and left
• 1 inch bottom and right

• Text must be double spaced.
• References must be double spaced.
• References must conform to the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 6th edition and the dissertation guide from your school.

• Courier, Times Roman, or similar font, 12 point font size

Pagination:

• Running headers are not permitted.
• All pages of the dissertation must be counted and assigned a number, including prefatory material, graphs, figures, tables, illustrations, references list, and appendixes. Page numbers are located in the upper right-hand corner of the page 3/4 of an inch from the top of the page.
• Pages preliminary to the text are paginated with lower case Roman numerals, except the title page, sign-off page, and copyright page. The location is in the middle of the page, 3/4 of an inch from the bottom.

• Title Page (View a Sample Title page)
• Sign-off Page (This page is obtained from the secretary of the Dean for your School or Division after your defense. It is signed by the committee members. The library does not have this sheet. If you have any questions be sure to check with your advisor.)
• Copyright Page (View a Sample Copyright page)
• Dedication Page (Begin with Roman Numeral iv)
• Acknowledgments
• Abstract
• Table of Contents (View a Sample Table of Contents)
• List of Tables
• List of Figures
• List of Appendixes
• Body of Text (Begin Chapter 1 with Page Number 1)
• References
• Appendixes

• Printed on laser or letter quality printer. No Ink Jet Printers!
• Black and White printing only. No color printing in the required copies.

When you bring your dissertation to the library, please make sure you have the following:

Required Copies:

The university requires students to submit 3 copies on white 100% cotton paper, 20 pound weight or better. The paper must have a watermark on each page. These three copies are kept permanently by the university and will not be returned to the student.

Personal Copies (Optional):

Personal copies may be bound for $25.00 per volume (approximately 250 pages).
Payment is made at the Business Office, Lipka Hall. Payments are not accepted at the library.
Personal copies may be submitted on any kind of paper and will be bound exactly as submitted by the student. It is the responsibility of the student to comply with the proper format.

Receipt from Business Office:

You will receive a receipt from the business office, when you pay for the personal copies of you dissertation. Please bring this receipt with you to the library

Updated 7/20/2010