The table of contents (ToC) is part of the series on how to write your dissertation. It is crucial for academic manuscripts like dissertations, theses, and research papers. It serves as a detailed roadmap and structured framework for your work, aiding in research presentations. While essays or reports may not require a TOC due to their brevity, it is indispensable for research papers, theses, dissertations, and Master’s projects. Typically, it spans about 2-3 pages and is positioned between the abstract and introduction chapter.
The question is, how to choose what kind of table of contents you need for your dissertation. This mainly depends on your university’s guidelines and the length of your manuscript. There are some academic writing styles, such as APA paper format and MLA style. However, here we go over the most common versions:
- Single-level ToC
In this format, we utilize the main headers of your dissertation, encompassing all the chapters from the introduction to the appendices. This approach is commonly employed for shorter documents, but it may lack the necessary level of detail for larger works that require a more comprehensive exploration.
- Subdivided ToC
This is the most used format, as it includes both the main headers, but also the first sub-header (level 2). The reader will be able to see what to expect in more detail.
- Multi-level ToC
This format includes the headers (level 1), sub-headers (level 2), and all level 3 sub-headers. This might be ideal when creating a skeleton manuscript, when you are planning to see what you will include in the chapters. Most often, the level 3 header will be deleted, as the length of the ToC increases beyond what is acceptable.
In the next part, I will share some examples on what this could look like.
Single-level ToC
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Literature review…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5
Literature Review………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….6
Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….7
Results………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..8
Discussion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..9
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..10
Reference list…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..11
Appendix A:……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….12
Appendix B:……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….13
Subdivided ToC
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Literature review…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5
Scope of the research…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..6
Problem statement………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..7
Aim…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..8
Research questions……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….9
Hypothesis………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10
Outline……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………11
Literature Review………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….12
Experiments………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..13
Case studies………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..14
Longitudinal studies………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………15
Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….16
Sampling method…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….17
Data analysis………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………18
Results………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..19
Survey data………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….19
Interview data…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….20
Discussion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..21
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..22
Reference list…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..23
Appendix A:……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….24
Multi-level ToC
2
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Introduction…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….3
Literature review…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..4
Introduction……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………5
Scope of the research…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..6
Problem statement………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..7
Problem 1:………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..7
Problem 2:……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….7
Aim…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..8
Research questions……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….9
Hypothesis………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….10
Outline……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………10
Literature Review………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….11
Experiments………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..11
Case studies………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..12
Longitudinal studies………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………13
Methodology…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….14
Sampling method…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….15
Setup……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………16
Procedure………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….16
Data analysis………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………17
Results………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..18
Survey data………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….19
Interview data…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….20
Discussion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..21
Conclusion………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..22
Reference list…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..23
Appendix A:……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….24
What to include?
Depending on the format you choose, the table of contents should have all the chapters and the sub-headers. The chapters that should be included are:
- Chapters
- Reference list
Where you write down all the sources you’ve used.
- Appendices
Any data set, additional figures, or tables that may not be included in the result section should be placed here. Each appendix should be sequentially numbered using letters, starting with “A” and continuing in alphabetical order.
Appendix A: t-test data……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….89
Appendix B: SPSS data………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………..95
How to create TOC in Word
- Place your cursor at the top of the page where you want the table of content.
- Click on References > Table of Contents > Automatic Table 1 (or 2).
- Edit the blue “Table of Content/Content” words to make them black, Times New Roman, size 12, centered, bold and all caps. Enter a black line after these words.
- With your cursor, go back to the tab References > Table of Contents > Custom Table of Content.
- Change the Show Levels number to whatever your preference is and click OK.
- When it asks if you want to replace the ToC, click YES and your ToC will display the right amount of levels.
- When adding new chapters and sections, you’ll have to update the ToC. This can be done by hovering your mouse over the ToC and click on Update Table at the top of the page.
- Select Update entire table and click OK.
