Thesis writing

Guidelines

Disclaimer: This page contains a compilation of information that might be useful for my Ph.D. students and is by no means an official DPNC page. Information should be cross-checked with the secretariat, administration and one's supervisors.

Timeline

Please keep the following timeline in mind:

  • The thesis should be sent to the secrétariat des étudiants following instructions outlined in this page at least 20 days before the defence. At that point the thesis should be of final structure. Editorial changes can happen between that point and when the thesis is ready for printing.

  • To satisfy the above deadline, the thesis should be ready for iterations with the jury at least a month before it is ready to be sent to the secretariat. The jury typically gets about 3 weeks to read and give feedback to the Ph.D. student. For planning purposes it is safe to account for a thesis ready for the jury about two months before the planned defence day.

  • About a month should be allowed for iterations on the full thesis between the Ph.D. student and the supervisor, before the thesis is sent to the jury. Ideally the thesis will be reviewed in stages during the writting period.

  • The first 3 chapters should be ready for internal review about five months before the expected defense date. Before you start writing please run the thesis skeleton by your supervisor.

  • Attentance of doctoral courses and/or schools is expected in the course of the Ph.D. duration, as agreed between the student and their supervisor. Typically at least an oral exam is required by the secretariat. At the DPNC the exam is typically certified using this form.

  • Participation in workshops and conferences is also mandatory. You will need to provide a list detailing the workshops and conferences you attended, along with any talks you delivered or posters you presented. This information will be included in the letter that accompanies the submission of your thesis to the secretariat.


    • ☆ Thesis defence ⟽
    (20 days)     		Thesis to secretariat ⟸
    (1 month)     		Thesis to jury ⟸
    (1 month)     		Full thesis ready for internal review ⟸
    (about 2 months)     		First 3 chapters ready for internal review

    Further suggestions


  • For ATLAS theses, please see the ATLAS thesis writing instructions. For FASER theses there are no rules, except any plot that is not approved should have no logo.

  • Please make sure to make clear statements about your own contributions, either in a separate introductory chapter, or as a brief introduction at the beginning of each chapter.

  • Generally please keep the descriptions concise and accurate. Please add references.

  • For the theory chapter: No need to derive theoretical equations from first principles.

  • Style: You can consult the ATLAS Style Guide for conventions to follow.

  • Please be consistent with your usage of English, e.g. if you start with British English, use British English through out the text.

  • Use present tense for descriptions. You can use the active voice to emphasize the action, the agent (the person performing the action) and for clarity and engagement. I.e. explaining what you chose to do, why, or when providing a rationale for an approach. Use the passive voice to emphasize the result, and for objectivity. I.e. describing standard procedures, results, or situations where the performer is irrelevant.

  • Important: Before ANY review, please spell-check and grammar-check! Universal tips include: Use of automated spell-check and grammar-check tools; Read aloud; Check for common errors, e.g. there vs their vs they're; Ensure consistency in terminology, capitalisation, abbreviations, formatting.

  • Latex overleaf (optional) template, including cover page, here.

  • Latex and other editorial suggestions:
       - Quantity and unit should be written with "~" in between, so that they are not split between two lines.
       - The units should not be in math mode / italics.
       - Secondary clauses that start with 'which' should be set off by commas, while those that begin with 'that' should not have a comma before 'that'.