Annamalai University PhD thesis format

Which documents set the Annamalai University thesis format?

You will find everything in one PDF only, the Ph.D. Prospectus 2026-27, on the admissions pages of annamalaiuniversity.ac.in. Many scholars ignore it because of the word “prospectus”. But Chapter II of this document is the complete set of PhD regulations, and the thesis guidelines are added as appendices at the end.

• Chapter II, the regulations. The synopsis is in clause 17, and the thesis is in clause 18 (copies, binding, page limit, certificates, language). Evaluation and viva come under clauses 19 and 20. Clause 26 deals with plagiarism and clause 27 with the Shodhganga deposit. As per the preamble, these rules are based on the UGC’s 2016 regulations and its 2018 and 2022 amendments.
• Appendix I, which has the guidelines for the synopsis.
• Appendix II, which has the guidelines for the thesis. Specimens of the cover page, certificate, declaration, table of contents and lists are also given there.

University departments and affiliated colleges get separate prospectuses. The thesis clauses and Appendix II are same in both. Only some agriculture scholars are different. The Faculty of Agriculture has two PhD streams, one under ICAR guidelines and one under UGC guidelines (clause 4.8). For the ICAR stream there are separate regulations in Chapter III of the same prospectus. That stream has its own page limit of 250 pages, and it asks for three copies. UGC-stream scholars follow the general regulations given here.

Appendix II opens with a warning that you should take seriously. It says “Non-compliance with any of these instructions may lead to the rejection of the thesis submitted.”

What order do the pages of an Annamalai thesis go in?

Section 3 of Appendix II gives thirteen items, in the order in which they are bound. Look carefully at where the references go. They come after the appendices, and many scholars expect it the other way round.

Cite this data: PhD Desk, “Annamalai University PhD thesis format”, last reviewed 1 November 2026, https://phddesk.in/guides/thesis-format-annamalai

Some more points from the rest of Appendix II.

• Place a table or figure on the page just after the text first mentions it, and keep it inside the margins. Two small ones may share one page.
• No chapter list is fixed. Appendix II gives only a broad shape (introduction, main theme, results and conclusion), and every chapter must carry its own title.
• As per clause 18.4, your research papers are attached to the thesis. Appendix II is silent on where they go. Mostly scholars keep the copies after the List of Publications. Check this point with your supervisor.

Your abstract can go up to four pages. In the 2014 specifications the limit was 350 words, which is much shorter. That is why taking the length from a senior’s thesis can mislead you.

What font, margins and spacing does Annamalai require?

Almost every layout setting is fixed in Appendix II itself.

Cite this data: PhD Desk, “Annamalai University PhD thesis format”, last reviewed 1 November 2026, https://phddesk.in/guides/thesis-format-annamalai

Most scholars miss the 13 pt body font. Word gives 11 or 12 by default. If you typed the thesis for two years in 12 pt, it will grow by several pages when you change to 13. Make the change early itself, and after that check your page count against the limit.

The heading styles are mixed. “1.1 OUTLINE OF THESIS” is in capitals, but “1.1.1 Literature Review” is in title case. Also, the 20 mm paragraph indent is much deeper than what Word gives by default.

References and citation style

No citation style is named in Appendix II. It only asks for citations “following the international standard”. Where possible, put them at the end of the sentence, in the same font as the text. The reference list is in 13 pt and single-spaced. The older 2014 List of Style Manuals (Annexure-16) asked scholars to follow the style manual of their own discipline, and it listed MLA, APA, Chicago, CSE, IEEE and others. That advice still works. See what journals in your field use, decide it with your guide early itself, and then keep that one style only. Our citation styles comparison puts the main ones side by side.

Small errors inside Appendix II

In section 5, Appendix II still numbers the front matter as though the list had twelve items (Roman for items 1 to 8, Arabic for 9 to 12). The annexure cross-references are also one number off. Go by section 7.1 here, it is clear. Preliminary pages get Roman numerals, and from Chapter 1 till the end the numbering is Arabic.

What goes on the Annamalai title page, certificate and declaration?

The specimen for the cover page and title page (Annexure I of Appendix II) is in Times New Roman, and it gives a font size for every line. The title is 18 pt at 1.5 spacing. Your name with roll number and your supervisor’s name are in 16 pt. The degree line (“DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN [subject]”) is also 16 pt, and so is the address block with department, faculty, Annamalai University, Annamalainagar - 608 002, Tamil Nadu, India. Most of the remaining lines are 14 pt. “A THESIS” is 14 pt, and the month and year too. Same for the italic “Submitted by” and “Under the supervision of”. The cover wrapper carries the same text as the title page.

The certificate is typed in 12 pt with double spacing, under the supervisor’s name and address block. In it the guide certifies that the thesis is a bonafide record of your work, done under their guidance during a stated period. It also says that no degree, diploma, associateship or fellowship was awarded on the basis of it, and that the thesis is your independent work. Clause 18.9 of the regulations wants one more thing. The supervisor’s statement should also cover freedom from plagiarism, and that sentence is missing in the specimen. Better your guide adds one line on plagiarism. Or ask DARE if the specimen wording alone will do.

You sign the declaration with your roll number. Here you declare that the work is your own and was not submitted for any degree elsewhere. You also state that other people’s work is acknowledged, and that you have not wilfully copied data, work or results from any source. Clause 18.10 asks this, plus a line from you that no part is plagiarised.

How do you submit a PhD thesis at Annamalai University?

The synopsis comes first

Clause 17.1 allows you to submit the synopsis three months before your minimum duration is over. The minimum is three years for full-time and four for part-time, and it is less if you have an M.Phil. But before that you have to complete two conditions. You need two research articles, published or accepted in SCI, SCI-E, SSCI or Scopus-indexed Q1–Q4 journals, or in double-blind peer-reviewed journals. You also need the RAC’s recommendation. Both articles must show the Annamalai University affiliation (clause 17.3).

First you give a pre-synopsis presentation. Then the RAC meets just before submission. It checks the synopsis and the two papers, and it approves the examiner panel. This panel has ten names, five from India and five from abroad. In Tamil, Hindi, Linguistics and Fine Arts the split changes to five within Tamil Nadu and five outside.

Under Appendix I the synopsis can be 25 pages at most. This count includes the references (12 or fewer) and your list of publications. Set it in Times New Roman 13 pt with 1.5 spacing. One copy approved by the RAC goes to the Director, DARE, along with a soft copy. For how to write the synopsis itself, see our synopsis format guide.

The thesis

• Timing. In clause 22, “submission of thesis beyond three months from the date of approval of synopsis by the RAC without prior permission” is one of the grounds for cancelling your registration. So by synopsis time the thesis should be nearly ready.
• Copies. Four hard copies, soft-bound and printed on both sides. Every copy has a CD with the PDF (clause 18, Submission of Thesis).
• Binding. Appendix II section 8 asks for side pinning or stitching with adhesive binding. The wrapper is 300 GSM white art card, gloss laminated on the outside, and the lettering is in black.
• Length. Maximum 300 pages without bibliography and appendices (clause 18.8). To go beyond that, your supervisor must write to the Director, DARE and get approval in advance.
• Fees. Till all fees are paid, the synopsis and thesis are not processed. A no-dues certificate goes along with the thesis (clause 18.6).
• Language. The thesis is in English. Linguistics, History and Fine Arts theses may be in Tamil, if the Department Research Committee recommended this at registration. Theses in language subjects are written in that language itself (clause 18.11).

Once you submit, two examiners, one Indian and one from abroad, get 45 days to send their reports (clause 19). After that, a copy of the thesis is kept in the department library for at least 15 days before the public viva (clause 20.6). The general steps are in our thesis submission guide.

Where the documents disagree on copies and length

• Clause 18 asks for four hard copies. But Appendix II section 4 talks about “the final bound thesis (5 copies)”. Ask DARE how many you should bind. One more bound copy costs little, and saves going back to the binder.
• As per clause 18.8 the thesis can be 300 pages at most, leaving out the bibliography and appendices. Appendix II section 2 is saying “normally between 100 and 300 pages”. And there they count from the title page till the last page, with references. Here the regulation is the binding rule. The appendix only gives the usual range.

What similarity limit does Annamalai apply, and who uploads to Shodhganga?

The regulations for university departments and affiliated colleges give no similarity percentage, and no software is named in them. What clause 26 gives is only the action taken once plagiarism is caught. If it turns up in your synopsis, thesis or a paper, DARE will call you and ask you to correct it and resubmit with a penalty. Suppose you don’t do the corrections, then they cancel your registration. For the supervisor, the recognition can be taken away for five years. For self-plagiarism in publications the fine can go up to Rs. 50,000, and that paper cannot be used in the thesis. Even after the award, if somebody finds plagiarism later, the degree can be withdrawn.

In the whole prospectus a tool is named at only one place, the chapter for the ICAR stream in agriculture. In that stream the soft copy of the thesis is checked on Turnitin. If the thesis crosses “the percentage of reproduction prescribed by UGC”, it is not accepted for valuation. Here they mean the UGC’s 2018 plagiarism regulations, where up to 10% similarity has no penalty. The different levels are given in our plagiarism limits guide. Every other scholar, UGC-stream agriculture scholars also, should ask DARE which software and which limit they use. Ask this before your final draft, and keep the report with you.

You don’t have to upload to Shodhganga yourself. The university does it. Clause 27 says the university uploads the electronic thesis to Shodhganga (INFLIBNET) once the evaluation is successfully over and before the award is announced. One copy also goes to the department library and one to the University General Library. Your only work is to keep the clean final PDF with you. What the upload involves is covered in our Shodhganga guide.

Annamalai University thesis checklist before submission

Sit with your supervisor and discuss about this list before the file reaches the binder. After RAC approval of the synopsis you have three months only, so don’t keep this for the last week.

• Your two research articles (SCI, SCI-E, SSCI or Scopus Q1–Q4, or double-blind peer-reviewed) show the Annamalai University affiliation. In each one you are first or corresponding author, and your supervisor is also named.
• The RAC has approved your synopsis (25 pages at most, Times New Roman 13 pt, 12 references or fewer), and the panel of ten examiners went in along with it.
• Not more than three months have passed since the RAC approved the synopsis, or you have written permission for extra time.
• Pages follow the Appendix II order from cover page to List of Publications, and the references come after the appendices.
• Body text is in Times New Roman 13 pt at 1.5 spacing on A4, 80 GSM paper. Margins are 35–40 mm on the left, 20–25 mm on the right, 30–35 mm at the top and 25–30 mm at the bottom.
• Page numbers are placed 20 mm down in the upper right corner, with Roman for the preliminary pages and Arabic from Chapter 1.
• The thesis has 300 pages or fewer without bibliography and appendices. If it is longer, your supervisor has already taken the Director, DARE’s approval.
• Your published research papers are attached with the thesis.
• Certificate and declaration follow the Appendix II specimens. Clause 18.9 wants plagiarism mentioned in the supervisor’s statement on independent work also.
• You have four soft-bound copies printed on both sides. Each copy has a CD with the PDF and a white 300 GSM gloss-laminated wrapper.
• Every fee is paid and the no-dues certificate is with you.

Want the 13 pt text, 20 mm indents, heading scheme and page numbering set up for you? Our thesis formatting service works to Appendix II for that. Only the layout is changed by us. Your content we leave as it is.