Formatting Hell: 19 University Templates and Why LaTeX Wins (Part 2 of 6)

The Thesis Series

This is Part 2 of a 6-part series on learning LaTeX and writing my Masters thesis at Oakland University.

1. Starting a Thesis: Why I Chose LaTeX Over Word
2. Formatting Hell: 19 University Templates and Why LaTeX Wins (you are here)
3. IEEE Citations and BibTeX: Academic References Done Right
4. LyX: The WYSIWYG Path to LaTeX
5. Writing IsoMob: A Cross-Platform Game Engine Thesis
6. LaTeX Templates, Final Formatting, and Lessons Learned
7. The Finished Thesis: 150 Pages Later

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19 Files in 43 Minutes

This morning I sat down and downloaded every formatting template and guideline document Oakland University provides for thesis writers. Between 10:27am and 11:10am, I pulled down 19 separate .docx files covering every conceivable formatting edge case.

Here’s what the university considers essential reading before you write a single word of your thesis:

File	What It Covers
FormatChecklist_(6-7-06).doc.docx	Master checklist of all formatting requirements
manual.doc.docx	The complete thesis formatting manual
chapter headings-7.doc.docx	How to format chapter headings
chapter equivalent heading-9.doc.docx	Alternative heading styles
block quotations-8.doc.docx	Block quote formatting rules
bulleted-numbered-lists-16.doc.docx	List formatting requirements
large figures-24.doc.docx	How to handle full-page figures
medium-sized figures-22.doc.docx	How to handle smaller figures
lengthy table-10.doc.docx	Multi-page table formatting
OU table format-32.doc.docx	Standard table style guide
multiline table of contents headings-12.doc.docx	ToC with long titles
references-11.doc.docx	Reference list formatting
single space before heading-13.doc.docx	Spacing rules before headings
widows and orphans-14.doc.docx	Page break rules
copyright permission letter-thesis-1.doc.docx	Copyright permission template
sources.doc.docx	Source attribution requirements

Each file demonstrates one specific formatting rule with a Word-based example. Nineteen files. For formatting.

The Problem with Format-by-Example

The university’s approach assumes you’re using Microsoft Word. Every template is a .docx file showing you “make it look like this.” The implicit workflow is:

1. Open the example document
2. Look at how they formatted the heading / table / figure / list
3. Manually reproduce that formatting in your own document
4. Repeat for every formatting element in your thesis
5. Pray nothing breaks when you edit later

This is format-by-example, and it’s fragile. You’re essentially hand-painting every element to match a visual reference. There’s no enforcement, no automation, no guarantee of consistency. Move a section, paste from another document, or let Word “helpfully” auto-format something, and your carefully matched formatting can silently break.

What the University Actually Requires

Distilling those 19 files down to the actual requirements:

Page Layout:

• 1.5-inch left margin (for binding)
• 1-inch margins on top, right, and bottom
• 0.5-inch footer space
• Portrait orientation, single-column

Typography:

• Double-spaced body text (or one-and-a-half spacing with approval)
• Consistent font throughout
• Chapter headings centered, bold, uppercase
• Subsection headings left-aligned, bold

Structure:

• Title page with specific layout
• Abstract
• Table of contents (auto-generated)
• List of figures, list of tables
• Chapters with numbered sections
• Bibliography in approved format (IEEE for engineering)
• Appendices

Page Breaks:

• No widows (single line of a paragraph at the top of a page)
• No orphans (single line at the bottom)
• Each chapter starts on a new page

Figures and Tables:

• Captioned and numbered
• Referenced in text before they appear
• Centered on page

How LaTeX Handles All of This

Here’s the thing: every single one of those requirements maps directly to a LaTeX configuration. And once configured, they’re enforced automatically across the entire document.

\documentclass[12pt,oneside]{report}

% Page layout -- set once, enforced everywhere
\usepackage[left=1.5in, top=1in, right=1in, bottom=1.5in,
            footskip=0.5in]{geometry}

% Spacing
\usepackage{setspace}
\onehalfspacing

% No widows or orphans
\widowpenalty=10000
\clubpenalty=10000

% Chapter headings -- centered, bold, uppercase
\usepackage{titlesec}
\titleformat{\chapter}[display]
  {\normalfont\bfseries\centering\MakeUppercase}
  {\chaptertitlename\ \thechapter}{0pt}{\large}

That’s it. Those 30 lines replace 19 template documents. Every chapter heading will be centered, bold, and uppercase. Every page will have the right margins. Every paragraph will be one-and-a-half spaced. You don’t have to check. You don’t have to visually compare against a template. The compiler guarantees it.

Cross-References That Actually Work

The university requires figures and tables to be referenced in text before they appear. In Word, that’s a manual discipline – you have to remember to mention “Figure 3” and then make sure Figure 3 is actually numbered 3. In LaTeX:

The isometric projection is shown in Figure~\ref{fig:iso-projection}.

\begin{figure}[h]
  \centering
  \includegraphics[width=0.8\textwidth]{figures/thesisIsometricPicture.png}
  \caption{Isometric vs Dimetric Projection}
  \label{fig:iso-projection}
\end{figure}

If I add a new figure before this one, the numbering updates automatically. If I move this figure to a different chapter, the numbering updates. The reference in text always matches. Zero maintenance.

Table of Contents for Free

\tableofcontents
\listoffigures
\listoftables

Three lines. The ToC, list of figures, and list of tables generate themselves from the document structure. Add a section? It appears in the ToC. Add a figure with a caption? It appears in the list of figures. Even the page numbers update. In Word, you’d right-click and “Update Field” and hope for the best.

Consistent Lists

\begin{itemize}
  \item Mobile Development
  \begin{itemize}
    \item Android
    \item Growth Rate
    \item Resources needed
  \end{itemize}
  \item Why Cross-Platform?
  \begin{itemize}
    \item Facebook
    \item Kongregate
  \end{itemize}
\end{itemize}

Every list in the document follows the same style. No formatting drift, no accidentally changing the bullet character or indentation level.

The Real Win: Separation of Concerns

The fundamental advantage of LaTeX over Word for thesis writing is separation of concerns. The university’s 19 template files try to communicate formatting rules, but they mix the rules with the content. Every example is a complete document that happens to demonstrate one rule.

In LaTeX, the rules live in the preamble (or a style file), and the content lives in the body. Change a rule in one place, and it applies everywhere. Write content without worrying about formatting – the compiler handles it.

This isn’t just theoretical. When I eventually had to adjust my margin by a quarter inch, it was a one-line change. In Word, that would have meant reflowing the entire document and manually checking every page break, figure placement, and heading position.

Up Next

The formatting requirements are understood. Next: diving into IEEE citation format and discovering why BibTeX makes bibliography management almost enjoyable.

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This post is part of a series documenting my Masters thesis journey at Oakland University. The thesis describes IsoMob, an open-source cross-platform isometric game engine written in HaXe.