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Thesis checklist

Work through this list before you hand in your thesis. It is not part of the PDF, so there is nothing to remove afterwards. For much more advice on organizing, conducting, writing, and presenting a thesis, read Student Thesis Projects by Lichter, Ludewig, Deininger, and Schneider (open access).

Readable from beginning to end

  • Every term, concept, and abbreviation is introduced before it is used.
  • References to earlier parts are fine; references to later parts are rare in the running text.
  • Each chapter ends in a way that leads to the next one.

Readable in ten minutes

A reader who opens the thesis anywhere and has ten minutes must find their way.

  • No heading is directly followed by another heading: there is always text after a heading.
  • After a chapter heading, this text is an introductory paragraph that outlines the chapter's sections.
  • This paragraph refers back to what the chapter builds on and forward to where its results are used.
  • The introduction alone summarizes the whole argument: problem, method, results, and their interpretation.

Scientific argument

  • The research question is stated precisely.
  • The method is described so that someone else could reproduce your steps.
  • Results are reported first and interpreted separately.
  • The conclusion answers the research question and names limitations and future work.
  • The abstract was written last and matches the thesis.

Sources

  • Every statement that is not your own has a citation; direct quotes are marked as such.
  • Bibliography entries are complete (authors, title, venue, year, DOI where available).
  • Every cited web page states when you last accessed it (urldate field, printed as "visited on …").
  • The library is cleaned up with JabRef's cleanup entries (consistent formatting, e.g., of dates, page ranges, and DOIs).
  • The use of AI tools is declared as your examination regulations require.

Figures, tables, and listings

  • Each one is referenced and discussed in the text.
  • Each caption is understandable on its own.
  • Text in figures is legible, also when printed.

Form

  • The PDF shows no ?? (undefined references or citations).
  • All TODO notes are resolved.
  • All hints and examples of this template are removed.
  • The text is spell-checked and grammar-checked (see the README for tools).
  • The title page is correct: title, your name, supervisors, dates.
  • The formal requirements of your examination office are met (page limit, signed declaration, number of copies, file format).