Tempers run high during the making of the thesis. After the hard labor of thinking and writing, the thesis is done, packaged and submitted. On graduation day, all the months and days of painful intellectual grappling become distant memory. Success is achieved. How was this made tolerable and possible? One of the tools provided to help students early on with their thesis is the thesis template.

The template for this matter is mostly provided by the schools; but other sites are created to serve as tutorials to direct the writing of the thesis. Normally there are two types of thesis format, LaTEX and LyX templates in Microsoft Word. Whatever difference there is between the two types, their use is dependent on individual requirements. It is supplied to help students get on with their writing. As always, results are not expected to be flawless. An individual has to do some customizing to some degree, make adjustments, and re-circulate these files in accordance to terms indicated. However, students must be guided that an umi dissertation does not make use of any template.

Thesis and dissertation have similar meanings and can be used interchangeably, independently and/or in combination with each other. Taken in a more technical perspective, thesis dissertation, used as such, could mean an in-depth exploration of one or the other.

Thesis, taken in the context of/or hypothetically used as a verb, may mean an investigation or a research founded on critical evaluation of another academic paper, e.g. a psychology dissertation, as a springboard, putting a new light on arguments in defense of or contrary to theories and principles put forth in the original paper.

Thesis is Greek to most students who are about to or have just entered college. The word becomes more familiar as students advance in their college courses, as some collegiate degrees such as those falling under arts and sciences – require writing a thesis paper, aside from passing written and oral (viva voce) examinations before they qualify for graduation.

For those who have not yet experienced writing such assignment, it would seem like any other academic assignment or task that requires just a little reading in order to be prepared when quiz time comes. Unknown to most, especially those who have not, and may never see a chance to write a formal dissertation, the project requires not only long hours of research and interviews but also a lot of determination and imagination. Almost all, if not all of one’s previous academic and non-academic experiences and exposures, are applied in writing the paper. He has to consistently and persistently consult with his professors and tutors in order to be guided on the methods, styles and what-nots of developing the dissertation paper.