College of Graduate Studies

Theses & Dissertations: Abstract

The abstract must be a single page. The 7th edition of the APA Manual recommends that the abstract be limited to 250 words. 

The entire page is single-spaced including the titles; since your entire document is set for double spacing, just highlight the text on this page and choose single spacing.

1. At the top is the page title (bold and centered): 
   For theses: AN ABSTRACT OF A THESIS (all caps option) or An Abstract of a Thesis (title case option)
   For dissertations: AN ABSTRACT OF A DISSERTATION (all caps option) or An Abstract of a Dissertation (title case option)
2. Leave the next line blank.
3. Enter the TITLE OF YOUR THESIS/DISSERTATION (all caps option) or Title of Your Thesis/Dissertation (title case option). This title is centered and bold. Your title must also form an upside down triangle if it is more than one line. This means the first line is the longest and each consecutive line is shorter than the previous line.
4. Leave the next line blank.
5. Type your name as registered with the university, centered.
6. Leave the next line blank.
7. Type your degree title and the program, for example, Master of Arts in English.
8. Leave the next line blank.
9. Add your abstract content. Paragraphs should be indented. Use a blank line between paragraphs.
10. Add keywords (optional) after the last paragraph in the abstract. Keywords need to be descriptive and capture the most important aspects of your paper. They are used for indexing in databases and as search terms for readers. APA style suggests using three to five words, phrases, or acronyms as keywords, but ProQuest allows up to six keywords during the submission process. Add a comma after each keyword except the last one. Formatting should be as follows:
    1. After the body of your abstract, leave the next line blank.
    2. Indent and type the label: “Keywords: ” in italics.
    3. Using plain text (no italics), add your keywords; each keyword is separated by a comma and a space. There is no punctuation after the final keyword.
    4. Keywords can be listed in any order, such as order of importance or alphabetical order.
    5. If the keywords run onto a second line, do not indent the second line.
11. The Abstract page will have the first printed page number — "ii"; the title page is considered to be the first page, but it should not have a visible page number.

Example of Abstract with optional keywords: