UD Dissertation / Thesis Training Resources

IT Operations and Engagement (UDit) and Graduate Academic Affairs (GAA) created this online training resource page to assist University master's and doctoral degree students working on a dissertation or thesis.

UD Guidelines, Accessibility Policies and Research

Writing Your Document

Accessibility Resources

Common MS Word Formatting Topics
 

Contact Information

For all questions regarding your dissertation or thesis contact:

Linda Wallace
Graduate Academic Affairs
St. Mary's Hall - Room 200
937-229-2345
lwallace1@udayton.edu
 

UD Guidelines, Accessibility Policies and Research

Before you begin composing your document, familiarize yourself with UD's guidelines, electronic theses/dissertations (ETD) accessibility requirements and Libguides (Library Research Guides).

• Libguides (Library Research Guides) - Everything you need to know about submitting a thesis or dissertation at the University of Dayton.
   
• Document Accessibility Requirements - Accessibility requirements from the OhioLINK ETD Center.
   
• Web Accessibility Policy - University of Dayton's electronic document and web accessibility policies.
   
• Research Home Page - University Libraries support page for faculty and student research.
   

Writing Your Document

Before you begin writing, review your word processing technology and familiarize yourself with the document accessibility functions:

1. Review the Sample Pages for a UD Dissertation and Thesis.
    
2. Watch the Microsoft Word Formatting Sequence for a UD Dissertation or Thesis training video for best practices and recommendations or review the Microsoft Word Formatting Sequence for a UD Dissertation or Thesis (PDF).
    
3. Review the Microsoft Word Style Formats for Dissertation / Thesis (PDF).
    
4. Watch the Adding the Dedication Title to a Table of Contents (Video).
    
5. Make your Word documents accessible to people with disabilities.
    
6. Learn how to Create accessible PDFs (in Microsoft Word).
    
7. Foxit users - learn how to make accessible documents in Foxit PDF Editor.
    
8. LaTeX users - review Creating Accessible LaTeX Documents.
    

Accessibility Resources

These resources are designed to meet the OhioLINK document accessibility recommendations established in January 2023.  Students are encouraged to make their dissertation and thesis documents accessible - to the fullest extent possible.
 

Word processing resources for creating accessible documents:

Make your Word documents accessible to people with disabilities

Create accessible PDFs (in Microsoft Word)

Make accessible documents in Foxit PDF Editor

Create Accessible LaTeX Documents

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University of Dayton resources for creating accessible documents:

Sensus Access (Software that transforms a document into an accessible format)

Accessibility Tip: The Essentials of Document Accessibility

Accessibility Tip: Writing Good Alt Text

LEARN: Accessible Documents (Center for Online Learning)

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Additional resources for creating accessible documents:

Digital Accessibility Resources for the OhioLINK ETD Center

WebAIM: Microsoft Word - Creating Accessible Documents

NCDAE (National Center on Disability and Access to Education) Word Cheatsheets

WebAIM: PDF Accessibility Defining PDF Accessibility

WebAIM: Alternative Text

Section508.gov - How to Make an Accessible Document in Microsoft Word (video library)

Section508.gov - How to Test and Remediate PDFs for Accessibility Using Adobe Acrobat DC (video library)
 

Common MS Word Formatting Topics

Collection of step-by-step Microsoft Word formatting procedures and videos covering topics such as creating a table of contents, margin settings, line spacing, page breaks and section breaks.

Word for Windows Training Center (Microsoft)

Word tutorials (GCFGlobal)

Applying and modifying styles

How to create a table of contents in Word

Update a table of contents

Delete a table of contents

Page numbers

Mac users: Changing Page Numbering in Word

Page layout (page size, margins and orientation)

Line and paragraph spacing

Page breaks and section breaks

Insert footnotes and endnotes

Add citations to a Word document