Table of Contents

The Table of Contents is a required section that lists the headings that appear in the disquisition and the page number for finding them. We recommend using an automatically generated table of contents in Word, which can be inserted from the References tab -> Table of Contents -> Custom Table of Contents menu.

Guidelines: Table of Contents

Formatting Fun Fact: students who review their Table of Contents before submission for incorrect or erroneous page numbers require one fewer review (0.86) on average than students who do not.

  • Location – The Table of Contents appears after the Abstract (and Acknowledgments, Dedication, and Preface, if used), and before the List of Tables, List of Figures, etc. It must use the same font type, size, and margins as the rest of the disquisition. The Table of Contents is part of the prefatory material and must have lower-case Roman numeral page numbers.
  • Bold and italics – In general, bold and italic fonts should not be used in the Table of Contents as a reflection of the style used in the main document headings and subheadings (in other words if your headings are set to use bold you should not also use bold in the Table of Contents entries). However, if a particular word in a heading is in italics (such as a scientific term) then you may set this word to also be in italics in the corresponding entry.
  • Font – The font of the entries must be the same size and type as the text used in the body paragraphs, even if you used a larger font size for major headings.
  • Entries – All major headings that appear in the disquisition must be included in the Table of Contents, except for the major heading “TABLE OF CONTENTS.” Do not include an entry for the Title page or the Disquisition Approval page, which do not have major headings.
    • Subheadings – You are not required to list subheadings in the Table of Contents; however, if you include a subheading of a particular level, then you must include all subheadings of that level and those superior to it. For example, if your Table of Contents includes any second-level subheadings, then it must include all the first-level subheadings and second-level subheadings in the entire disquisition.
    • Entries must match contents – The headings that are included in the Table of Contents must be identical to the headings that appear in the text. This includes wording, punctuation, and capitalization. If you use numbered headings in the text, the headings must also be numbered in the Table of Contents.
  • Alignment and indentation – Entries for major headings must be aligned flush against the left margin and in ALL CAPS. Entries for subheadings must be indented according to their outline level; we recommend a 0.25" indentation per outline level.
  • Consistency – Alignment and indentation must be consistent for all headings of the same level.
  • Justification – To avoid gaps (kerning) between words, entries should be left-aligned. Do not fully-justify the text.
  • Long entries – Headings should not extend into the page number column, which is 0.5" from the right 1" page margin.
  • Spacing – Set entries to be single spaced, with one line of space (roughly 12 pts) between each entry.
  • Dot leaders – Use dot leaders to connect the last word of each heading with the page number where that heading appears.
  • Automated Table of Contents – Microsoft Word can create an automated Table of Contents, and they are used within the NDSU disquisition templates. If you use an automated Table of Contents, you must still follow the guidelines that are listed here.

Requirements:

  1. When viewing the Tags Pane, tags are visible.
  2. Content is tagged correctly.
  3. The document is bookmarked in a logical reading order.

The Table of Contents major heading should be tagged H1, like other major headings. The entries in the Table of Contents should be tagged TOC.

Quick Answers

When an automatically generated table of contents cannot find text that was it was previously linked to, it will generate an error. This might mean the corresponding heading was deleted or that the formatting of the heading was changed. Check the heading in question and apply the appropriate style, or format it manually, then update your Table of Contents.

If this does not resolve the error, you can recreate your Table of Contents from scratch. See the section below on creating a new Table of Contents, or download a template Table of Contents to replace in your document.

Alternatively, you can delete the error text and manually enter the page number for the entry. However, if you ever update your Table of Contents, you will need to re-edit the page number manually.

If your Table of Contents (TOC) breaks, you can replace it with a new one. See our instructions below for creating a new TOC, or download a template TOC to replace in your document.

Issue: Broken Table of Contents

Requirements:

  1. Entries should be identical to their respective headings in the chapters, except for the use of bold, italics, or underlining. Do not bold or underline any text in the Table of Contents, and use italics only when it is part of a name or phrase, such as italicizing a binomen.
  2. Page numbers should accurately identify where entries are located in the document.

If your Table of Contents (TOC) breaks, you can replace it with a new one using the custom TOC menu. Delete your old TOC, and insert a custom TOC in its place the from the Reference tab -> Table of Contents button -> Custom Table of Contents. In the custom TOC dialog box that appears, enable the option for hyperlinks, then click the Options button to open a super crusty dialog box.

In the Options dialog box, ensure numbers only appear alongside the heading styles you want showing up in your TOC. The numbers correspond to level of heading--for example, major headings should have a "1" next to them, first-level subheadings should have a "2", and so on. Your TOC is only required to have entries for major headings; you may elect to have entries for other subheadings at your discretion, though we do not recommend listing subheadings beyond second-level. Your document likely has more than one major headings style. If your document has a style called "NDSU X: UNLISTED MAJOR HEADING", remove the number next to this entry, if present. (This type of style is necessary to make sure the title of your document and the major heading for the TOC get bookmarked and tagged correctly.) Scroll through the list of styles and remove numbers with any other styles you do not want included in the TOC.

Once you have set numbers for the headings you want, click OK to save and close the Options dialog box, then click OK in the TOC creation dialog box to create the TOC. You may be asked if you want to replace your TOC--click "Yes" if you haven't deleted your old one yet, and the new one will replace it. After the new list appears, it should be pre-formatted. If not, download a fresh template and try again.

You can also use a pre-formatted template TOC, found on our Templates and Forms page. Copy it into your document, then update it from its context menu. If it is not formatted correctly, you may be using altered or custom styles and need to use the method above.

Need a new Table of Contents?

Issue: Errors in Page Numbers

Requirements:

  • Page numbers should accurately identify where an item is located in the document.

  • Update the Table of Contents by right-clicking it and selecting Update -> Update entire table.

When errors appear in the page numbers for TOC entries, it is likely due to two common causes:

  • The heading no longer exists
  • The heading was changed in a way that breaks the link to the TOC, such as by changing the style applied to the heading.

Before converting your document to PDF, right-click your TOC and select Update -> Update entire table to rebuild the links within your document. If any errors appear, try recreating your TOC from scratch (see above). If no errors appear, export your document to PDF and then review the TOC in the PDF for additional errors.

Center for Writers

Email: ndsu.cfw@ndsu.edu Phone: (701) 231-7927 Campus location: Library 16 Contact Page Manager