Salt Lake Bible College

• Size and reference requirements:
  - Bachelor's thesis, 15,000 words minimum utilizing at least 15 reference works.
  - Master's thesis, 20,000 words minimum utilizing at least 20 reference works.
  - Doctoral thesis, 25,000 words minimum utilizing at least 25 reference works.
  
  

• Formatting, Binding, and Grading:
  -  Thesis needs to be properly formatted and bound (glued binding, comb binding, etc.) or, as a minimum acceptable alternative that will not count against your grade, it can be in a 3-ring binder.
  
  -  Minimum formatting requirement includes: Title Page (guidelines, sample), Table of Contents, Introduction, Body (including proofs, comparisons, etc.), Conclusion/Summary (you may include Epilogue if you so desire but it is not required), and a Bibliography & References with formal formatting.  Click on any of these links to go to a guideline/sample.
  
  -  You will be graded on formatting, spelling, punctuation, grammar, etc.
  
  

• Pagination and numbering.
  -  Each page in a thesis must be assigned a number. (Note: The thesis title page does not have a number placed on it even though it is considered as page i.)
  
  -  The pages in the preliminary material must be numbered consecutively with lower case roman numerals (e.g., ii, iii, iv, etc.).
  
  -  Page numbers are placed in the upper right-hand corner, 1/2 to 3/4 inch from the top edge of the paper and even with the right margin. The manuscript title page counts as page i, although the number does NOT appear on the page.
  
  -  All preliminary pages such as Acknowledgments, Dedication, Table of Contents, List of Tables, and List of Figures are numbered with the lower case Roman numerals in consecutive order.
  
  -  All text pages must be numbered in the upper right-hand corner, ¾ to 1 inch from the top edge of the paper and even with the right margin starting with the first page of the text and using Arabic numbers. The Arabic numbers begin with the first page of Chapter 1 or the first page of the Introduction if the Introduction is part of the main body of the thesis, and continue throughout the study, references, and appendices. On pages printed in landscape, the page number should be placed in the same position as on the other pages. All page numbers must be of the same typeface and type size as the text of the paper.  Do not place periods, parentheses, hyphens, or dashes before or after the page numbers.
  
  

• Fonts and Page setup:
  -  Font size and placement instructions are given on Title Page guidelines for the Title Page.
  
  -  For all other pages use Times new Roman size 12 font for text and the same font and size for CHAPTER HEADINGS.  CHAPTER HEADINGS are centered and in bold type.
  
  -  Page Size and Formatting-  Standard 8 1/2 inch by 11 inch paper.  All margins=1 inch.
  
  -  Use bold type and quotation marks for all quotes.  Quotes of 4 lines or more are to be in a block by themselves, indented an additional 5 character spaces past the regular indent on the left side and the right side should reach to the regular right margin.  Use bold type but do NOT use quotation marks.
  
  -  Use bold type for all references, whether they are as numbers and/or text, and encase them in parentheses' and place them in superscript; or, if not in superscript, such as when reference is to a scripture, whether it is quoted or not quoted in the text, then they are to be in parentheses and spaced at least one character past the end of the text for which they are given.
  
  -  All Scriptures quoted of any size over 1 line in length need to be in their own block with one blank space above and one blank space below them.  The block needs to be indented 5 extra spaces past the regular indent on the left, put in bold type, with the book, chapter, and verse preceding them on its own line and positioned at the left edge of the block directly above the first line of quoted scripture text.  Quotation marks are to be used at the beginning and at the end of the scripture quote.
  
  
  

• Content:
  -  Thesis subject must be approved by SLBC.
  
  -  Choose from any Bible related subject such as a character, doctrine, teaching, passage, book, etc., or even the Bible as a whole; or, alternatively, it can be on any secular subject as it relates to the Bible, God (Father, Son, and/or Holy Ghost), or Christian living.
  
  - You must fill out and submit a Thesis Approval Form giving tentative information about your thesis.  This information can be changed later at your own discretion and without prior approval. However, for a change of subject you must have prior approval.

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