Alagappa University PhD thesis format

What does Alagappa University prescribe for PhD thesis format?

Less than you might expect. The layout rules sit in one clause (12.11); the rest is in the appendices, the submission form and a few circulars.

The font rule contradicts itself

Clause 12.11 first says the thesis “shall be in computer type-written form, double spaced, with 12 font size of New Times Roman Letter Style”. The next sentence says thesis writing must follow “a book format with double side printing, Times New Roman, Font size 11, 1.15 line spacing with flexible binding”. Both are in the August 2026 text.

Our reading is that the second sentence is the newer one. The Registrar’s circular of 14 July 2025 moved theses to both-side book format “to reduce the postal charges and storage constraints”, and 11 pt at 1.15 spacing is what you would pair with that. But the circular itself says nothing about font size, so this is an inference, not a rule. Ask your supervisor which one the Dean-Research office is checking against, and get the answer before you format 250 pages.

What the documents leave to you

Paper size, margins, heading styles, page numbering and the citation style are not stated anywhere we looked. Most Indian theses use A4 with a wider binding margin; with both-side printing, that margin alternates between left and right pages. Agree these with your supervisor.

Format does get marked. Clause 13.1 asks every examiner to look at “adherence to standard rules with regard to mechanics of thesis writing and format of the thesis” alongside your methodology and findings.

What goes on the Alagappa thesis cover and title page?

The regulations give three models for the wrapper and the inside title page of both the synopsis and the thesis (clauses 12.8 to 12.10). Pick the one that matches how you are registered:

• Appendix I for scholars in a University Department or Constituent College.
• Appendix II for interdisciplinary work. The degree line reads “(Interdisciplinary)”, with the model’s own example “Education-Interdisciplinary (Education and Mathematics)”, and the supervisor and co-supervisor appear side by side.
• Appendix III for scholars at an Approved Research Centre, adding the name of the PG Research Centre and the name and place of the affiliated college or collaborating institution.

All three carry the same core text: the title; “Synopsis / Thesis submitted to Alagappa University in partial fulfilment for the award of the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in” your discipline; your name and register number; “Under the supervision of” your supervisor; your department; then Alagappa University with its accreditation line, Karaikudi 630 003, India, and the month and year. The note under each model says the items shown in italics are placeholders, not text to type.

Copy the accreditation line from the current regulations, not from a senior’s thesis. It has changed (older circulars still say A+, Third Cycle).

The only rule on the order of the front pages is from the circular of 16 April 2025: the iThenticate similarity report and the Tamil Virtual Academy certificate go after the Research Supervisor Certificate page. Nothing we found sets the order of the declaration, acknowledgement, contents and lists. Follow the sequence your department normally uses; our thesis structure guide shows the common one.

What similarity limit does Alagappa University accept?

10%, on iThenticate. Clause 12.5(d) makes your supervisor responsible for checking the thesis with iThenticate and certifying it at submission, and says similarity with published literature “shall not exceed 10% (revised from existing 20% to 10%)”. References are excluded, and matches with your own publications are not counted. The change came in with the Registrar’s circular of 14 July 2025, so scholars who remember a 20% limit are working from the old rule.

That matches the no-penalty band in the UGC’s 2018 plagiarism regulations, and anything above it fails at Alagappa. Our plagiarism limits guide compares Alagappa with other universities.

The check itself goes through the Central Library. The Form for Checking Similarity (Appendix to the regulations) sets the procedure:

1. Your supervisor emails the form to the Co-ordinator, Plagiarism Detection Software, “well in advance”. The form asks for your register number, title, the date of your pre-thesis submission presentation and your ORCID iD.
2. The complete thesis goes in as a PDF, without the references and preliminary pages, with a copy of your registration letter.
3. The report comes back within one week.
4. If you are over the limit and resubmit, you must explain the change when you ask for a recheck.

A Dean-Research circular of 31 August 2026 gives the current contact as similarityreport@alagappauniversity.ac.in. The ORCID iD is not optional: the July 2025 circular requires it on the plagiarism report certificate, and the form says it is needed for Shodhganga. If you don’t have one yet, our ORCID and researcher ID guide shows how to set it up.

If examiners send the thesis back for revision, a fresh iThenticate report goes into the revised thesis (April 2025 circular). How iThenticate differs from Turnitin is in our iThenticate vs Turnitin guide.

What Tamil documents does Alagappa need with the thesis?

Clause 12.4(a) asks for a set of documents for the Tamil Virtual Academy portal, lodged with both the Central Library and the Dean-Research section when you submit. You get a certificate back, and that certificate is bound into the thesis.

• Minutes of the Doctoral Committee approving your Tamil abstract, synopsis and glossary (Annexure I of the university’s guidelines is the format, signed by your supervisor, the internal expert and the external expert).
• The abstract, synopsis and glossary in Tamil, with a profile table in Tamil and English.
• The same in English, with the details of papers published from the thesis.
• Both versions on CD as .doc and .pdf files, named with your name.

The guidelines fix the sizes: a one-page abstract, a synopsis of no more than four to five pages, and 30 glossary terms. Tamil text is in TAU-Marutham 11 pt and English in Times New Roman 12 pt, both at 1.5 line spacing.

The Doctoral Committee has to approve the Tamil version, so get it ready by your pre-thesis presentation. Coining Tamil words for technical terms takes longer than scholars expect.

What are the steps to submit a PhD synopsis and thesis at Alagappa?

Before the synopsis

Publications come first. For scholars registered after 1 May 2025, clause 12.5(c) asks for two papers in Scopus or Web of Science journals: SCI or SCIE for the Faculty of Science, SSCI or ESCI for Arts, Management and Education. Earlier registrants follow 12.5(a) or (b), depending on the date. A circular of 23 July 2026 adds that only papers where you are first or corresponding author count, that co-authored papers don’t, and that the university’s and your supervisor’s names must appear on them. There is one catch: if two research scholars are first and corresponding author on the same paper, with the supervisor as co-author, only the first author may claim it for thesis submission. You also need two conference or seminar presentations.

Then the pre-thesis submission presentation before your Doctoral Committee (clause 12.4), which cannot happen until at least a year after the committee met for the viva that follows your coursework. For preparing the talk and handling committee feedback, see our pre-submission seminar guide.

The synopsis

You can submit two copies of the synopsis within the six months before your minimum research period ends (clause 12.3), through your supervisor and head of department or principal. Your supervisor’s panel of twelve examiners goes with it (clause 13.2). The regulations set no length or format for the synopsis beyond the wrapper; our synopsis format guide covers what is usual.

The thesis

Within six months of the synopsis, and only after the minimum period is over, you submit four copies of the thesis (clause 12.6). The June 2025 submission form lists what goes with them: two copies of the synopsis, one CD for the synopsis and one for the thesis and full similarity report, a one or two page abstract, attested qualifying-degree certificates, and a demand draft for ₹15,000 (₹12,000 evaluation fee and ₹3,000 postage) in favour of “The Registrar, Alagappa University”, payable at Karaikudi. A 16-item check slip at the end of the form lists the rest.

One practical point: an October 2023 circular says only scholars, not supervisors, may hand in the thesis, at the office of the Dean-Research between 10 am and 5 pm outside the lunch break. Plan to go in person.

After evaluation

If examiners ask only for minor corrections, you submit two copies of the corrected thesis within 15 days, and your supervisor certifies each change by chapter, page and line (clause 14.7). Clause 20 commits the university to passing a soft copy to the UGC, for INFLIBNET, within 30 days of announcing your degree. Our Shodhganga guide explains what happens to it there.

Checklist for submitting an Alagappa PhD thesis

Drawn from the regulations, the submission form and the circulars. Anything not on the list, such as margins or heading styles, is for you and your supervisor to settle.

• Two papers from your doctoral work, as first or corresponding author (if another scholar is first author on a paper where you are corresponding author, it counts for them, not you), in the journal categories that apply to your date of registration (Scopus or Web of Science for scholars registered after 1 May 2025), each carrying the university’s name and your supervisor’s name.
• Two conference or seminar presentations, with certificates.
• Pre-thesis submission presentation done before the Doctoral Committee, at least one year after your post-coursework viva.
• The thesis is 250 pages or fewer without appendices, tables and figures, printed on both sides in book format with flexible binding and a plain cover.
• The wrapper and title page carry the details shown in Appendix I, II or III, with your register number.
• iThenticate similarity is 10% or less (references and your own publications excluded), and the report with your ORCID iD sits after the Research Supervisor Certificate page, next to the Tamil Virtual Academy certificate.
• Tamil and English abstract, synopsis and glossary are approved by the Doctoral Committee and lodged with the Central Library and the Dean-Research section.
• Four copies of the thesis, two of the synopsis, the CDs, a one or two page abstract and the ₹15,000 demand draft.
• The submission form, the supervisor’s publication certificate and all 16 items on the check slip are ready, and you are taking them in yourself.

If you want the numbering, tables and references made consistent across 250 pages of double-sided layout, our thesis formatting service handles that. We touch layout and consistency, never your content or argument.