6. Required Format of Masters’ Theses at AUS

Each master’s thesis at AUS will have three main sections:

• Preliminary pages or front matter
• The body or main text of the thesis
• Back matter

Some parts of each section are general university requirements for all AUS theses, some parts may be required by specific graduate programs and some parts are optional. Requirements for each section are discussed below.

The thesis should be written in English following the APA style for citations, references and notes, which can be found in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.). Samples of references formatted in the APA style are included as Appendix B8 in this publication.

Important: Graduate students are encouraged to contact the academic unit they are graduating from for a consultation on formatting the thesis and university guidelines and requirements before they begin preparing their manuscripts.

6.1 Preliminary Pages or Front Matter

AUS requires that preliminary pages or front matter of all masters’ theses be organized as follows, regardless of the graduate program. Sections marked with an asterisk (*) are required while others are optional or required at the discretion of the specific graduate program:

• Title page*
• Blank page or copyright notice*
• Approval page*
• Abstract*
• Table of contents*
• List of illustrations, tables and/or figures
• List of abbreviations
• Glossary
• Acknowledgements
• Preface
• Dedication

6.1.1 Title Page: This is the required first page of your thesis. It is a single page exactly formatted according to specific guidelines. It is not numbered, but it is counted in the page numbering of your thesis document. A sample page is included as Appendix B1.

6.1.2 Blank Page or Copyright Notice: The second page of each thesis is either a blank page or a page with the copyright notice. You will secure a copyright by inserting the proper notice of copyright in your work. (You may also wish to consider registering the copyright with the US Copyright Office at the time of publication. (See http://www.copyright.gov for information on registering your thesis with the US Copyright Office.)

The copyright notice should be centered in the lower third of the page and the circled “c” must be in lower case. If your word-processing program allows it, please insert the copyright symbol. The year of the copyright is the year in which the thesis is deposited with the AUS Archives.

The blank page or copyright page is neither numbered nor counted in the page numbering. A sample page is included as Appendix B2.

6.1.3 Approval Page(s): This page(s) is required and is placed immediately after the blank page or copyright page. An unsigned copy of this page is included in the copy of the thesis submitted to the Office of Graduate and Undergraduate Programs for certification. Count the approval(s) page in the page numbering but do not include a page number on this page(s).

Type the approval page according to the sample in Appendix B3.

Five sets of the approval page on the required paper should be signed at the time of the final oral defense. All signatures on this sheet must be in blue ink. Date the approval page with the year in which the oral defense takes place. Each copy of your thesis submitted to the AUS Archives for binding will include an original signed approval page. Also include a scanned copy of the signed approval page with the PDF copy submitted to the AUS Archives.

The approval page(s) will be signed by all thesis committee members, the graduate program director, the dean of the appropriate college/school and the Dean of Graduate Programs and Research.

6.1.4 Abstract: The abstract is required. It immediately follows the approval page and is numbered with the small Roman numeral “iii.” AUS’s required format of the abstract must be followed exactly. A sample of an abstract is included as Appendix B4.

The abstract should be no longer than two pages or approximately 500 words. Its purpose is to:

• Summarize problems dealt with by the research
• Describe methods used in the research
• Summarize the major findings of the research

Therefore, it should have three main sections in this order: (1) Research Problem, (2) Research Methodology and (3) Significant Findings.

The abstract must not include footnotes or references and must be written in English. Diagrams, photographs or abbreviations are not allowed in the abstract.

The abstract is made up of two sections: the abstract heading and the abstract text.

Abstract Heading: The heading of the abstract begins two inches from the top of the page. Each line of the abstract is centered. The abstract heading includes the following in this order:

• Thesis title (This title must match exactly the title listed on the title page.)
• Author’s name and the degree to be conferred
• American University of Sharjah
• The word “ABSTRACT” typed in all capital letters

Abstract Text: Start the text of the abstract on the same page as the heading, on the third line below the heading “ABSTRACT.” The text portion of the abstract should not exceed 500 words. The abstract itself—including heading and text—cannot exceed two pages.

6.1.5 Table of Contents: The table of contents is required. You must list all major parts of the thesis in the table of contents—except the title page, the blank or copyright page, the table of contents and the dedication.

Capitalize all letters of the titles of all major divisions—this includes the abstract, the acknowledgments, the preface, the list of illustrations, the list of tables, the list of abbreviations, the glossary, chapter titles, the reference list, appendices titles and the vita.

The chapter titles and all other titles on the table of contents must be worded exactly as they appear in the text.

Subheadings within chapters may be included or they may be omitted from the table of contents. If they are included for one chapter, they must be included for all chapters. It is unnecessary to include more than one level of sub-heading.

You must include correct page numbers for each heading or sub-heading listed on your table of contents.

Do not bold headings or subheadings in your table of contents.

A sample table of contents is included as Appendix B5.

6.1.6 List of Illustrations, Tables and/or Figures: These lists are required if your thesis includes illustrations, tables and/or figures. These lists directly follow the table of contents and should not be combined. Each list should begin on a new page. Be sure to include the correct page number for where the illustration, table or figure appears in the text. The titles must be worded exactly as the captions in your text. An example list of tables is included as Appendix B6.

6.1.7 List of Abbreviations: Only include a list of abbreviations if you have created abbreviations that are not standard and commonly accepted abbreviations. If you include a list of abbreviations, the heading “ABBREVIATIONS” in all capital letters must be centered on the first page of this list. Arrange the abbreviations alphabetically and position each word flush left and follow it with a dash and the definition.

6.1.8 Glossary: A glossary is an alphabetized list of specialized terms with their definitions. If you include a glossary, the heading “GLOSSARY” in all capital letters must be centered on the first page of this list. Arrange the words alphabetically and position each word flush left and follow it with a dash and the definition.

6.1.9 Acknowledgements: If an acknowledgement section is included, the heading “ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS,” in all capital letters, must be centered on the first page of this section. The text of the section begins on the third line following the heading.

In the acknowledgements section, you will thank mentors, colleagues, persons, institutions or organizations that supported your research.

6.1.10 Preface: This is optional. In the preface, you will describe your motivation for the study, give a background for the research, and explain the scope of the research and its purpose.

6.1.11 Dedication: This is optional. If included, it is the last page of the preliminary matter. The dedication page is not numbered or counted in the page numbering.

6.2 Body of Thesis

The body or text of your thesis will have three required parts, as follows:

• Introduction*
• Main body of thesis divided into various chapters and sections (This is the analysis section.) *
• Summary or conclusion [as the last section or chapter(s)]*

Your thesis supervisor and thesis committee may give you specific requirements for content and headings and sub-headings of these sections. The following provides general guidelines.

6.2.1 Introduction Section: The first section or chapter(s) of your thesis will be its introduction. It will generally have the following subsections or sub-chapters:

Background of and Need for the Research: This section generally describes why the thesis was undertaken, expected outcomes and accomplishments and any background information pertinent to the thesis work.

Literature Review: This section generally discusses recent theories, ideas, methods, publications, similar applications, etc., that pertain to your work or that you consulted or used during researching and writing the thesis.

The literature review must be directly related to your research question. It generally summarizes the state of the art of your topic (the known and the unknown), identifies areas of controversy, evaluates and critiques each paper reviewed and cites and formulates the questions that need further research. It also explains where your research and conclusions fit within its field.

Research Methods and Materials: This section describes the structure of the thesis, how research was conducted and how data was selected, gathered and analyzed.

Research Results and Summary of Key Findings: This section summarizes the last chapter of your thesis, which is the summary chapter or conclusion.

6.2.2 Main Body of Thesis: The body or text of your thesis will be divided into chapters, which are then sub-divided into sections. This is the core reporting of your research and will generally describe how experiments were formulated, how data were analyzed and how techniques were used and adapted.

This discussion is followed by a synthesis of what this work demonstrates and/or what has been learned. Analysis can include techniques, graphs, photographs, charts and tables to illustrate how information has been translated into new knowledge and findings.

Chapters and subsections should have informative titles that will be listed in your table of contents.

6.2.3 Summary or Conclusion: The last section or chapter(s) of the main body of your thesis will be a summary or conclusion chapter(s).

In this section, you will present the major findings of your research and key recommendations based on this research. In this section, you will also discuss what can be concluded from your research, including recommendations that can be made based on your work. Conclusions may include technique improvements, new directions or specific findings resulting from analyses performed.

Along with the analysis in the main body of your thesis, this section represents a critical part of your work, and should describe and explain in detail the intellectual contributions made by your research. (Please note that a summary of existing work done by others does not typically contribute significant intellectual value to the field.)

Page Length: The length of your thesis and exact number of chapters will be determined by the nature of your research and in consultation with your thesis supervisor and committee.

6.3 Back Matter

Back matter will include three sections: (1) the required reference section; (2) appendices, which are optional; and (3) a required vita section.

6.3.1 Reference Section: This section is required. It lists all citations referenced in the text following the APA style. A sample list of references using the APA style is included as Appendix B8.

6.3.2 Appendix or Appendices: Appendices are optional sections that could include copies of surveys, experimental results, software programs, data and other supporting information.

If your thesis contains only one appendix, center the heading APPENDIX and the title, and then start the text on the same page.

If you have more than one appendix, separate the appendices with a title page for each appendix. Also number or give a letter designation for each appendix (i.e., Appendix 1,2,3,4 or Appendix A, B, C, D, etc.). Appendices should be presented sequentially in your thesis.

On each title page, center the word APPENDIX and the appropriate capital letter or number. Double space after the appendix letter or number, and center the title of the appendix beneath it. The appendix designation and the title should be centered both horizontally and vertically on the title page.

6.3.3 Vita of Author: This is a required section. It is a short, one-page biographical sketch about the author of the thesis. Write the vita in paragraph form and in the third person. Include the date and place of birth, schools attended, degrees awarded, scholastic and professional honors, professional positions held and professional publications. See Appendix B9 for an example.