Preparing to submit your research thesis
Submitting your thesis is a big step in your PGR journey, learn more about the steps you need to take before submitting.
Thesis submission check list
Use this checklist to help you keep track of the submission process, ensuring you have completed all the necessary steps before submission.
- Check that you have made all the edits agreed with your supervisors and proofread for any grammatical errors or typos
- Write your 300 word thesis abstract
- Double check that your references are complete and align with your academic school’s preferred referencing format
- Create your cover page, which should include your full name, thesis title, the date, the award you are submitting for and the University
- Make sure you have a table of contents, copyright statement, abstract and bibliography
- Format your thesis with the correct line spacing, an appropriate font and page numbering
- Ensure that any diagrams or images are correctly labelled and positioned
- Use the practice submission on NOW to check there are no issues submitting your thesis to Turnitin
- Once you are happy and have completed all your final checks, complete the candidate declaration on the PGR dashboard and upload the PDF of your thesis, along with your final Turnitin report.
See more submission tips from the PhD Proofreaders.
If you have any concerns, get in touch with the PGR examinations team.
FAQs
When is my thesis due?
As with your previous monitoring points, your timeline on the NTU PGR Dashboard will show when your final submission deadline is.
Your thesis deadline is calculated based on your registration date and course type (e.g. full or part-time), with any suspensions of studies taken into account.
You can submit your thesis anytime in your final 12 months of study (24 months if you’re part-time), but you should discuss this with your supervisory team first to make sure this is manageable. We advise you to allow time to proofread, submit a draft to your supervisory team, make edits and prepare for submission.
Remember that your Viva will generally take place three months after your submission date.
What do I need to do before I submit my thesis?
When you start your thesis pending period, establish a timeline with your supervisory team. Three to six months before your intended submission date, your Director of Studies or Lead Supervisor is required to submit your examination arrangements on the PGR Dashboard, along with the associated documentation.
This form will include the details of your thesis and your proposed External Examiner so that the Doctoral School can make the necessary arrangements for your viva voce. When you're discussing plans for your submission, check with your supervisors that they have completed the examination arrangements: once they're submitted, the Doctoral School can begin onboarding your External Examiner and prevent any delays to your Viva arrangements once you've submitted your thesis.
The team will also read your full thesis draft and feedback any recommended amendments before your final submission date.
How should I format my thesis?
The full details for thesis submission requirements can be found in the Submission Requirements. Make sure you read this carefully and make any changes required to your thesis.
Your thesis should be properly referenced in accordance with the system preferred by your academic School.
If you are unsure which referencing style you should follow or if you are unsure of any of your references, check with the Library Research team for guidance.
The word count for a thesis at NTU is 80,000 words. This doesn't include your abstract, table of contents, acknowledgements, references, bibliography and any appendices.
How do I use Turnitin?
Turnitin is an online system that checks submissions of documents for text matches against its database of papers, articles and web pages.
You need to complete a Turnitin report with your thesis so that the examiners can check that your work is original and properly referenced.
You can more about why we use Turnitin from the NTU Library, who also have a guide on how to use Turnitin for thesis submission. There are also session recordings from previous DETD workshops on the DETD Teams Channel.