The Two Dissertation Moms

27 April 2026

How to Format a Dissertation Title Page: A Step-by-Step Guide

Learn how to format a dissertation title page correctly the first time and avoid one of the most common reasons doctoral dissertations are returned before defense.

 

The dissertation title page is the first page your committee sees. Before they read a single word of your argument, your literature review, or your methodology, they see your title page. A poorly formatted title page signals carelessness before your work even gets a chance to speak for itself.

The good news is that formatting a dissertation title page correctly is entirely achievable when you know exactly what your institution requires. This step-by-step guide will walk you through everything you need to know.

 

Step 1 — Find Your Institution's Official Title Page Requirements

 

This is the most important step and the one most doctoral students skip. Before you format a single line of your title page, go to your university's graduate school website and download the official dissertation formatting guidelines.

Every university has its own title page requirements. The content, spacing, order of elements, and even the font size can vary from one institution to another. A Turabian or Chicago style template you find online may not match what your graduate school requires. Your institution's guidelines always take priority over any style manual.

Look specifically for:

  • Required elements and their order
  • Margin requirements
  • Font and font size requirements
  • Spacing requirements
  • Whether the title page is counted in the page numbering or not

 

Step 2 — Use the Correct Font and Size

 

Most universities require Times New Roman 12pt throughout the dissertation including the title page. Some institutions allow Arial or Calibri but Times New Roman remains the most widely accepted academic font.

Do not use decorative fonts, bold text for the title unless specifically required, or font sizes larger than 12pt on the title page. The title page should look clean, simple, and professional — not designed.

 

Step 3 — Position the Title Correctly

 

The dissertation title should not begin at the very top of the page. Standard dissertation formatting places the title approximately two inches from the top margin — roughly one third of the way down the page. This gives the page visual balance and a professional appearance.

In Microsoft Word you can achieve this by:

  1. Clicking before the first word of your title
  2. Opening Paragraph settings
  3. Setting Space Before to 144pt — which equals exactly two inches
  4. Clicking OK

This is more precise and reliable than pressing Enter multiple times to create blank lines.

 

 

Step 4 — Format the Title in ALL CAPS

 

Most universities including Southern Illinois University Carbondale require the dissertation title to appear in ALL CAPS on the title page. This is an institutional requirement that overrides general Turabian and Chicago style preferences for headline capitalization.

Check your graduate school guidelines to confirm whether your institution requires ALL CAPS or headline style capitalization for the title. Never assume — always verify.

The title should be centered on the page. If the title runs to two lines both lines should be centered individually and the break should fall at a natural phrase boundary — not in the middle of a word or phrase.

 

Step 5 — Include All Required Elements in the Correct Order

 

A standard dissertation title page typically includes the following elements in this order:

  1. Dissertation title in ALL CAPS centered
  2. The word "by" centered in lowercase
  3. Author's full legal name centered
  4. The dissertation statement — for example "A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree" — centered
  5. Department or school name centered
  6. University name centered
  7. Month and year of submission centered

Each element should be separated by consistent spacing. Do not crowd the elements together and do not spread them so far apart that content spills onto a second page. Everything must fit on one single page.

 

Step 6 — Check Page Numbering

 

The title page is typically counted as page one of the preliminary pages but the page number does not appear on it. In Microsoft Word this means:

  1. Your title page should be in its own section
  2. The footer should be formatted to suppress the page number on the first page of that section
  3. The next page — typically the dissertation approval page — begins the visible Roman numeral page numbering

If you are unsure how to set this up in Word go to Insert, then Page Number, then Format Page Numbers, and set the numbering to start at the correct Roman numeral for your preliminary pages.

 

Step 7 — Use Single Spacing on the Title Page

 

The body of your dissertation is double spaced but the title page should be single spaced with controlled spacing between each element. Applying double spacing to the title page is one of the most common dissertation formatting mistakes — it causes the content to spill onto a second page which is a formatting violation.

Select all content on your title page, change the line spacing to single, and then adjust the spacing between elements manually until the page looks balanced and professional.

 

Step 8 — Compare Against Your Institution's Sample

 

Many graduate schools provide a sample title page in their formatting guidelines. If yours does, place it side by side with your own title page and compare every element — spacing, capitalization, order, and font. If your institution does not provide a sample, contact the graduate school office directly and ask for one before submitting.

 

Common Dissertation Title Page Mistakes to Avoid:

 

  • Title beginning too close to the top margin with no space above it
  • Content spilling onto a second page due to double spacing
  • Wrong degree title — confirm the exact wording your institution requires
  • Missing committee chair or department information if required
  • Incorrect submission date — use the month and year of your actual submission not your defense date
  • Using a style manual template instead of your institution's official requirements

 

Getting Your Dissertation Title Page Right

 

The dissertation title page sets the tone for everything that follows. A clean, correctly formatted title page tells your committee that you are detail-oriented and take the submission process seriously. A poorly formatted one raises doubts before they have read a single sentence of your work.

At Two Dissertation Moms we review and format dissertation title pages and approval pages as part of our comprehensive dissertation editing and formatting service. We know the requirements of graduate schools across the United States and we make sure your front matter is submission-ready before your deadline.

 

 

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