D. Language, Style and Format

1. Language

   Theses should be written in English.

   Students in the School of Humanities and Social Science who are pursuing research work in the areas of Chinese Studies, and who can demonstrate a need to use Chinese to write their theses should seek prior approval from the School via their thesis supervisor and the divisional head. If approval is granted, students are also required to produce a translation of the title page, authorization page, signature page, table of contents and the abstract in English.

2. Pagination
   1. All pages, starting with the Title page should be numbered.
   2. All page numbers should be centered, at the bottom of each page.
   3. Page numbers of materials preceding the body of the text should be in small Roman numerals.
   4. Page numbers of the text, beginning with the first page of the first chapter and continuing through the bibliography, including any pages with tables, maps, figures, photographs, etc., and any subsequent appendices, should be in Arabic numerals.
   5. Start a new page after each chapter or section but not after a sub-section.
   Note: That means the Title page will be page i; the first page of the first chapter will be page 1.
3. Format
   1. A conventional font, size 12-point, 10 to 12 characters per inch must be used.
   2. One-and-a-half line spacing should be used throughout the thesis, except for abstracts, indented quotations or footnotes where single line spacing may be used.
   3. All margins—top, bottom, sides—should be consistently 25mm (or no more than 30mm) in width. The same margin should be used throughout a thesis. Exceptionally, margins of a different size may be used when the nature of the thesis requires it.
4. Footnotes
   1. Footnotes may be placed at the bottom of the page, at the end of each chapter or after the end of the thesis body.
   2. Like references, footnotes should be presented in a standard format appropriate to the discipline.
   3. Both the position and format of footnotes should be consistent throughout the thesis.
5. Appendices

   The format of each appended item should be consistent with the nature of that item, whether text, diagram, figure, etc., and should follow the guidelines for that item as listed here.

6. Figures, Tables and Illustrations
   (For students who are in the final stages of thesis writing, a transitional period will be implemented from 3 February to 15 June 2025.  After this period, all students will be required to adhere to the revised guidelines.)

   Figures, tables, graphs, etc., should be positioned according to the scientific publication conventions of the discipline, e.g., interspersed in text or collected at the end of chapters. Charts, graphs, maps, and tables that are larger than a standard page should be provided as appendices.

7. Photographs/Images
   1. High contrast photos should be used because they reproduce well. Photographs with a glossy finish and those with dark backgrounds should be avoided.
   2. Images should be dense enough to provide 300 ppi for printing and 72 dpi for viewing.
8. Additional Materials

   Raw files, datasets, media files, and high-resolution photographs/images of any format can be included.
   Note: Students should get approval from their Department Head before deviating from any of the above requirements concerning paper size, font, margins, etc.