Thesis and Dissertation

A vita is the equivalent of a resume, and is used to list your educational and professional qualifications.  There are two items of note that should NOT be included in a thesis or dissertation vita:

• Personal contact information
• Professional references

These documents are posted on the web and the university cannot control who can view them, so it is highly discouraged to provide personal contact information for your personal safety.  Also, personal references will change as you progress in your career, and so it does not make sense to provide them in this document.  These types of information are fine for resumes sent out while job hunting, but not in a bound manuscript. 

Your vita may follow one of two formats:

• Narrative
• Traditional CV (resume) style

The narrative contains personal, academic, and professional information about the author written in biographical form.  It is similar to the biographical narratives found in books by your favorite authors. 

The traditional CV (resume) style is the most common format used.  It is a methodical listing of your professional and educational experiences, including any research projects and publications you've contributed to.  There is no required format for this style.  Instead, you may arrange the contents in the manner that best suits your academic field as long as the general format for theses and dissertations is followed.

Consult with your thesis director about which of the two forms should be used in your manuscript.

CHECKLIST FOR VITA

• Does not contain any personal contact info such as home address, phone number, or email address.  This is for your personal safety since these documents are accessible by anyone.
• Is neatly formatted according to the style used within your field.  Alternatively, you can use the narrative format.

GENERAL INSTRUCTIONS

• Page numbers: 

  • Arabic numbers (1, 2, 3, 4, etc.), right side, top of page. 

• Margins:  Left margin 1.5 inch.Top, Right, Bottom 1 inch.

• Font: 

  • Use same font style throughout document.

TITLE

Type VITA in ALL CAPS, bold, centered on first line beneath top margin.  (Use CHPT_Title)

BODY TEXT

1. Use RegText to type the body of your text.