10 Things You Need To Know About The Chicago Dissertation Format

The Chicago format is very popular among students and it is used mostly for dissertations and important projects. Even if it’s not difficult to write your dissertation in this style, you still have to pay attention to some particularities. Here are 10 things you have to know about this format:

  1. Remember that this is an academic format. Yes, you might be tempted to make the page pink or to change the font into a fancy one, but this is not a good idea. Your professor wants you to be professional, therefore you have to forget about everything that seems inappropriate for a college project.
  2. The margins are really important. For many other styles you can choose the size of the margins, but not in this case. They have to be between 1” and 1.5”. Anything under or above these measurements will be considered incorrect and your professor will notice this.
  3. The font needs to be classic and big enough. In general it’s recommended to use a font not smaller than 10 pt, but not bigger than 14. Times New Roman is the perfect font, and don’t use italic or bold letters unless it is necessary. You have to keep it simple.
  4. Each page needs to have a number. No, you can’t forget this. Your teacher needs to know exactly how many pages your dissertation has. Also, this will help the readers find the information that they are looking for in only a few seconds by using the outline.
  5. The title page is necessary. It will take a few minutes to complete it, so you have no excuse not to make it. You have to mention the title, your name and your professor’s name and the date of submission. Other details can be added depending on the requirements. Get online help to create the perfect title page.
  6. The titles of books should be written with italic letters.
  7. You will need to create a references page. There you will have to mention all the references that you used in your text, as well as the author and where it was published.
  8. Footnotes are acceptable, but within limits. If you have to introduce footnotes for every page, your project will look chaotic. If you feel like you don’t have enough space to explain a certain concept, it’s better to create an appendix instead of footnotes.
  9. Pay attention at the space that you leave between the paragraphs.
  10. Use subheadings when the title is too long.
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