Academic Guides: Academic Skills: Capstone Formatting

Your APA Capstone Document Formatting Support Resource

"Receiving a doctoral degree means you have demonstrated your ability to do independent, original scholarly work at the doctoral level. At Walden, this means completing a doctoral capstone document—dissertation, doctoral study, project study, or doctoral project—to be published in the ProQuest database." -Walden University

Front Matter
Document Formatting

The capstone template contains a table of contents. To learn more about the capstone templates, visit the Writing Skills: Capstone Document Templates.

Also, to learn more about correcting common bookmark errors in the template Table of Contents view this resource:

Correcting Bookmark Errors in the Table of Contents for ProQuest Upload (PDF)

Changing Page Number Styles in Certain Sections

As a Capstone student, you will need to know how to change page numbers in one section without affecting the pagination in other, separate sections.

Insert Page Numbers (PDF)
Allows you to add page numbers to your document
Change Page Numbers (without affecting pagination in other sections) (PDF)
In this tutorial, you will learn how to change page numbers in a specific section of your paper without changing the pagination of the other sections. Capstone students: In your Capstone document, you will need to know how to change page numbers in one section without affecting the pagination in other, separate sections.

Add different page numbers or number formats to different sections (PDF)

Dot Leaders

Dot leaders are used between tab stops in tables of contents to help make this portion of your paper easier for the reader to follow. Essentially, dot leaders are the ellipses placed between the title of a section and the page number where the section begins. When auto-generating a table of contents, MS Word will insert these for you.

Insert or add tab stops (to insert dot leaders)

Page Breaks

Page breaks and section breaks are used to separate sections of a paper automatically. You can then adjust the content of a paper without ruining the formatting of the sections.

Insert or remove a page break

Hanging Indents

APA asks that writers use hanging indents in reference list entries to make this information easier to read.

Hanging Indents (PDF)

Header/Footer

APA formatting requires students to use page numbers and headers in their papers, including what is called running heads.

Insert a Running Head (PDF)
A Running Head is a short title that is printed in uppercase letters at the top of the page in a document. As indicated by Walden’s Chief Academic Officer in April 2016, a running head is not required for Walden papers. Page numbers in the upper right corner are the only material needed in the header.

Paragraph Indentations

APA asks that writers indent each paragraph .5 inches. Writers should let Word adjust this formatting automatically.

Fixing Indentation Errors in the Doctoral Study Template

Left and Right Indent for Paragraph Formatting (PDF)
Use indent buttons or the ruler to adjust paragraph formatting from the left or right side

Paper Margins

Part of correctly formatting a paper is ensuring that writers use proper margins throughout the paper.

Change margins

Using Spell Check

Learn how to use the spell check feature in MS Word to find and correct spelling errors in your document.

Check spelling and grammar in Office

Paper Spacing

In APA, the entire paper (including the reference page) is double spaced. Automatically letting Word apply this formatting allows writers to format papers easily without having to readjust the spacing.

Using the Double Space Feature in the Doctoral Study Template

Changing Numbering in Landscape Orientation

To publish your manuscript, you must insert page numbers correctly on all pages. Sometimes, a table is too wide to fit on one page formatted in the portrait orientation typical in doctoral manuscripts, but it could fit on one page formatted in landscape orientation. Changing the orientation of your paper might affect your page numbers, so you need to use a different method to format your page numbers.

Double-space the lines in a document

Tables and Figures

Using the Insert Caption Method for Creating Tables and Figures (PDF)

Walden support staff created this 8-part video series to help you ensure proper capstone formatting. Each video is less than 5 minutes.

Writing Center APA Templates

The Writing Center provides templates for Walden University course papers and doctoral capstone studies. These templates are Microsoft Word or PowerPoint files with APA style and Walden-specified formatting.
Go To Templates Page

MS Word

Which version are you using?

Students should check with their committee members for the preferred version of Word they should use. Issues can arise when faculty and students are working in different versions.

Visit About Office Website

APA

Reference List

Walden has an extensive collection of reference list entries, including common examples, multiple authors, and electronic source references.

Visit Walden's APA Reference Support

Viewing Instructor Feedback

Fixing Formatting Errors

YouTube Playlist

Doctoral Template Help

Your Academic Skills Center has a total of 12 on-demand videos to help you format your Doctoral or Dissertation Template and view instructor feedback.
Go to Doctoral Template Videos

Go to Instructor Feedback Videos

YouTube Playlist

Course Template Help

Your Academic Skills Center has a total of 12 on-demand videos to help you format your Course Template and view instructor feedback.

Go to Course Template Videos

Go to Instructor Feedback Videos

APA Capstone Formatting FAQs

Where can I find Walden-specific templates?

The Writing Center provides doctoral capstone templates (dissertation, project study, doctoral study) on their website for different course and capstone papers.

Where can I find APA style information for my capstone?

You can find APA capstone writing information on the Walden Writing Center's Form and Style website, including citations, references, tables and figures, abstracts, and more.

What is Walden University's form and style review?

The Form and Style Review is conducted by Walden University’s dissertation editors and is one of the official steps in the capstone approval process. Each dissertation, doctoral study, and project study (capstone) at Walden University will go through this process. The Form and Style Review is conducted by the Walden editors once the committee has approved the final document and the URR has released it for the review.

More information is available on the Doctoral Capstone Form and Style website.

ProQuest Formatting Checklist

Items below represent the most frequent errors seen by the Office of Student Research and Administration when ProQuest returns a document to a student for correction.

Note: These errors are related to formatting in the document. Please ensure that the pilcrow ¶ (found in the paragraph area on the Home tab) is turned on so that all formatting in the document is visible, which will simplify correcting many of the items below to ensure proper formatting in the document and successful submission to ProQuest.

Download ProQuest Checklist PDF

1. Add University Endorsement Page

Remember to add the university endorsement approval page to the beginning of the capstone study Word document. Here are the instructions how:
- Turn on the pilcrow ¶.
- Place the cursor in front of the word Abstract on the Abstract Title page.
- Add a return (hit Enter) twice.
- Place the cursor next to the second pilcrow (blank line you just created).
- Go to the Layout tab, click the drop down next to Breaks in the Page Setup group and select Page.
  - This will move the abstract title page to the next page.
  - For additional information, see the Microsoft Word Page Breaks page.
- Place the cursor next to the first pilcrow created above which is now on the first page.
- Copy/paste all the text on the University Endorsement page above this page break.
- Check to make sure that there is not an extra page below this page.
- If there is an extra page, delete it by highlighting the page break and hitting the backspace button (to delete) or use the cut button on the Home tab.

2. Ensure Table of Contents (TOC) is Updated

Update your TOC, double check that page numbers are updated, and the TOC is double-spaced.
- To ensure that the TOC is properly formatted, check for the following:
  - Page numbers are updated
    - Right click on the TOC and choose Update Field; choose Update entire field when prompted.
- See the Microsoft Word Insert a Table of Contents page for additional help.
Check for errors with heading tagging. For instance, Error! Bookmark not defined may be an error that shows up on the TOC.
- This typically occurs when a heading was tagged, then the TOC was updated for page numbers only or when a heading was not tagged with the correct style so does not appear in the TOC.
  - Be sure to choose Update entire table when updating the TOC.
  - Also check to make sure that a heading was not accidentally deleted in the document or that the correct heading style was not applied.
Make sure that dot leaders appear correctly in the TOC.
- The space between a heading and page number in the TOC is filled by a dot leader, not a series of periods.
- For headings that are short words where the dot leader is missing, place the cursor between the word and page number, then click the TAB key once to insert all your dot leaders.
- See the Academic Skills Center YouTube Channel for a Word Quick Tip: Inserting Dot Leaders video on how to set or insert dot leaders in the TOC. The Walden doctoral capstone templates have dot leaders preformatted in the TOC.

3. Confirm All Page Numbers Appear

Check to make sure that all page numbers appear and appear per specification on the pages where they are required. The Walden doctoral capstone templates have all pagination preformatted.
- Visit the Form and Style Document Expectations page for information regarding what the margins and pagination should be set to in the capstone.
If page breaks or section breaks are accidentally deleted, the correct pagination may be impacted.
- Review Microsoft Word Section Breaks page that covers section breaks and page breaks and how to use them.
- See the Microsoft Word Changing Page Numbers and Formats page for help with how to set the pagination.

4. Delete Extra Blank Pages

Extra pages may appear in the document when there are extra page breaks or paragraph returns in the document.
- Review the Microsoft Word Page Breaks page.
- Delete any extra page breaks that may be adding a blank page.
- Delete any extra paragraph returns (indicated by a pilcrow ¶) that are adding an additional page.

5. Review Abstract One Page Formatting

Check to ensure that the abstract does not exceed one page.
- This is a Walden requirement.
- If the abstract is longer than a page, revise for clarity and concision to ensure that all information fits on one page and within the specified margins.
- For additional assistance with the abstract, see the Doctoral Capstone Resources on Abstracts page.
The abstract must be on its own page.
- Review the Microsoft Word Page Breakspage
- Ensure that there are page breaks above and below the abstract that place it on its own page.
Verify that the word Abstract appears at the top of the page.

6. Confirm the Two Title Pages are Correct

There should be two title pages in the document.
- The first title page is the second page in the document (after inserting the University Endorsement page); it should have the word Abstract at the top
- The second title page appears after the abstract and has the same information, but does not contain the word Abstract at the top

7. Ensure Document is Free of Track Changes and Comments

Ensure the document is free of Track Changes and Comments before being converted to a PDF.
- Make sure to accept or reject all changes from committee members, the Form and Style Editors, and the CAO final review, and delete any in-text comments or comment balloons.
- See the Academic Skills Center's YouTube Channel Playlist on Incorporating and Viewing Instructor Feedback in the Doctoral Study or Dissertation Template page for help with how to use Track Changes.

8. Confirm the Pages are in Correct Order

Confirm all pages are in correct order. Review the Form and Style Margin and Pagination Requirements page for the order of the pages in the document to ensure that all front matter elements (University Endorsement page, title pages, abstract, dedication, TOC, List of Tables/List of figured [if necessary]) are included and in the correct order.

9. Save Document as a PDF

Complete the steps below to save the capstone document as a PDF

Open the capstone MS Word document.
Click on File tab then select Save As to save a new file type (note the file destination of where it is going to be saved on the computer).
Save the capstone document as a PDF by changing the file type selection on the drop-down menu that appears underneath the dialog box for the file name.
Upload the PDF file version to ProQuest.

Academic Skills:
Capstone Formatting

Table of Contents