Few pages carry as much weight as the title page of a doctoral dissertation. It is the formal front door to years of research, and it is read by your committee, your graduate school’s format reviewers, the library, and, through repositories such as ProQuest, researchers all over the world. This template gives that page the ceremony it deserves: a burgundy frame with gold corners, a crest at the top, a title set in classical capitals, and a neat table naming every member of your committee.
A Frame Fit for a Doctoral Defence
The page is warm ivory. A heavy burgundy border runs around all four sides, with a thin gold rule set just inside it. In each corner, a gold L-shaped bracket with a small gold dot frames the angle, like the corner pieces on an old leather-bound book. At the top centre sits a round crest slot ringed in gold. Beneath it, Eastmoor University is set in spaced burgundy Cinzel capitals, followed by Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in italic EB Garamond. The title, Coastal Urban Resilience: Community Adaptation to Sea-Level Rise in Three Atlantic Cities, is set in Cinzel, whose letters are based on Roman inscriptions. A short gold rule leads into the degree statement, the author’s name, a Dissertation Committee table, and the month and year of the degree.
The Degree Statement, Word by Word
The sample statement reads: A dissertation presented to the faculty of the Graduate School in candidacy for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Environmental Planning. This wording is common in the United States, but graduate schools differ. Other forms you may be asked to use include: A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and presented to the Faculty of the Graduate School of [University] in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Education. Copy your school’s wording exactly, including capital letters; format reviewers check it line by line.
Editing the Committee Table
The committee is listed in a real table with two columns, Role and Name and Department, and four rows: Chair (Prof. Elena Vasquez, Urban Planning), Member (Prof. Samuel Ortiz, Civil Engineering), Member (Dr. Ruth Abernathy, Geography), and External (Dr. James Holloway, Coastal Policy Institute). Select the table and choose Edit Table Data to type your own committee. Use Add Row if you have a co-chair or a fifth member. If your graduate school puts the committee on a separate approval or signature page instead, delete the table and move the date up.
From Defence to Deposit: When You Need This Page
| Milestone | Version of the title page | What to change |
|---|---|---|
| Committee draft | Review copy | Add Draft to the date line |
| Defence | Presentation copy for the committee | Use the defence month and year |
| Format review | Official layout | Match the graduate school sample exactly |
| Library deposit | Final electronic copy | Remove any decoration the school does not allow |
| Bound copies | Gift copies for family and the department | Keep the full burgundy design |
Keeping a decorated version for bound copies and a plainer version for the deposit is common. Duplicate the design once you finish it so you have both.
Placing Your University Seal
The round slot at the top is a photo slot. Click it and choose Replace Image to upload your university seal or crest. It keeps its gold ring and circular crop. A seal on a white or transparent background looks best on the ivory page. If your graduate school does not permit logos on the title page, delete the slot; the university name will still lead the page.
Typesetting a Long Dissertation Title
Dissertation titles are often long and contain a colon. Cinzel has no lowercase letters, so the title reads as capitals, which suits the ceremonial frame. The title box fits about four lines. If your title is longer, reduce the size slightly, keeping it larger than every other line on the page. Break the title at the colon if you can, so the main idea sits on the first lines and the subtitle below. Make sure the title matches your abstract, your approval form and the repository record exactly, letter for letter.
Colours for Different Universities
Burgundy and gold suggest tradition and ceremony, but you can change both. The burgundy frame is a single shape; select it and change its outline colour. The gold inner rule and the corner ornaments are separate; select the corner group to recolour all four at once. Navy with gold, dark green with gold, and black with silver all suit the same layout. Change the title and university name to the new frame colour to keep the page unified.
Printing the Dissertation Front Page
The page is US Letter, 8.5 x 11 inches. Most US graduate schools require one-inch margins on all pages, and some require a wider left margin for binding. The burgundy frame sits close to the edge for visual effect, so check your graduate school’s margin rules before using it on the deposit copy; you can scale the frame down if needed. Use Download As PDF for your files. For bound copies, print on 28 to 32 lb bright white paper, or on cotton-content thesis paper if your library still requires archival paper.
Adding a Dedication Feel Without Clutter
Some candidates want the title page to feel personal. Resist adding photographs, quotes, or dedications here; they belong on separate front-matter pages after the title and copyright pages. The title page is a record. Its beauty comes from proportion and restraint, which this design already provides through the frame and type.
Doctoral Title Page FAQ
Should I write “Ph.D.” or “Doctor of Philosophy”?
Write the degree in full on the title page. Abbreviations belong in your CV, not here.
Is the month on the page the defence date or the graduation date?
Usually the month and year the degree is conferred. Many schools use May, August, or December; check your graduate school’s calendar.
Can this be used for an EdD, DNP, or DBA?
Yes. Change the degree statement to Doctor of Education, Doctor of Nursing Practice, or Doctor of Business Administration.
Do I list my previous degrees?
Some schools ask for them under your name, for example, M.A., University of Toronto, 2021. Add a line if yours does.
