Thesis Rejected for Formatting? How to Fix It Before Resubmission

Use your institution’s current instructions

There is no universal UAE thesis template. The American University of Sharjah graduate catalogue directs candidates to its own current dissertation, thesis and project formatting guide on iLearn. UAE University’s College of Graduate Studies describes university-specific templates and a formatting workshop. These examples show why a generic online margin or font rule should not override your programme’s handbook, template or written feedback.

Before editing, collect the rejection email or checklist, the current template, your programme’s submission instructions and the latest approved draft. Ask the graduate office or supervisor to clarify an ambiguous comment; do not guess a requirement from another university.

Fix the document from structure to export

1. Classify the feedback: separate template, headings, front matter, figures, tables, references, pagination and file-submission issues from academic-content revisions.
2. Preserve a version: save the rejected file and a new working copy. Record which comments are addressed in each pass.
3. Set document styles: use heading levels and paragraph styles consistently so spacing, numbering and the table of contents can update together.
4. Repair front matter: check title page, approvals, declarations, abstract and lists against the institution’s actual sequence and wording.
5. Review objects: update figure/table captions, cross-references, page breaks and any landscape pages. Avoid manual spaces that shift when exported.
6. Check citations: compare the required style with each in-text citation and reference entry, then update the bibliography from verified sources.
7. Export and inspect: open the final PDF, check page numbers, fonts, links, table width and every page around section breaks. Submit in the required file type and route.

A Word document that looks correct while editing can change on PDF export. Inspect the submitted artifact, not only the source file.

Turn a vague rejection note into a checkable fix

Comment: “The contents pages do not match the thesis headings.”

Repair: confirm the required heading hierarchy, apply the correct document styles, update the automatic table of contents, compare its entries and page numbers with the exported PDF, then record the correction for resubmission. Manually changing one page number in the contents list may hide the cause while leaving other entries wrong.

If the supervisor also asked for a stronger methodology justification, that is a separate academic task. Formatting the heading will not resolve the underlying comment.

Resubmission questions

Can an editor guarantee that the thesis will be accepted?

No. An editor can check the document against the instructions supplied and flag remaining issues. The university controls its review and may raise new or academic comments.

Can a formatting service rewrite the analysis?

Formatting and language feedback have different boundaries from assessable research. The student remains the author of the argument, data and interpretation; agree the permitted scope with the institution.

What should I send for a formatting quotation?

Provide the current template or handbook, reviewer comments, document length, file format and deadline. Discuss confidential or unpublished research through an appropriate private channel.