So, you have completed the most demanding tasks of your PhD dissertation – extensive research, writing, editing, and proofreading. Now comes the easiest yet most tricky part: dissertation printing and binding, which is also the final step of this degree. Although it gets completed by professionals and machines, you need to provide clear instructions to ensure everything goes smoothly.
What you need to consider here includes the following essential components of the printing and binding process:
- Paper Quality
- Colour vs. Black and White
- Dissertation Printing and Binding cost
- Binding Style
Avoid going directly for its printing and binding, instead, you should first make sure that your written data and its placement are correct. You can also seek help from professional dissertation helpers to review it and give your work a more polished look. Then, go through your university guidelines and the basics of the printing and binding process to make a wise decision at every step.
Here, we will help you to go through all these essentials including the dos and don’ts of dissertation printing and binding to streamline this last phase of your doctoral journey.
What Do You Mean by Dissertation Printing and Binding?
The last steps of your doctoral dissertation work before the final submission includes its printing and binding. Throughout your academic journey, you may have written a lot of essays and assignments but have yet to go through this printing phase due to the digital submission of your assigned tasks. That’s why most of the students get confused during this step. If this is your first-time making printing and binding such a crucial thing, you must get help from experts or go through the guidelines provided here.
Printing
This process involves making a hard copy of your dissertation. You must select premium paper and print settings that comply with the policies of your university.
Binding
The procedure of binding involves the securing of printed pages. Perfect binding, which has a glued spine and a flexible cover, and case binding, which is more rigid and has a hardcover, are common binding choices for dissertations.
How to Get a Dissertation Printed and Bound? Top 9 Dos and Don’ts
It is important to develop a presentable and effective document for the best representation of your whole dissertation work. You can only do this when you have a fully completed dissertation in hand and you are ready to go for its printing and binding.
The following are some dos and don’ts of dissertation printing and binding that you must consider:
1. How to Select the Right Binding Type?
Dos:
Well, we understand that it is difficult to select the right type of binding among a variety of options, but you should choose according to your choice and the university guidelines. Always go for a durable binding like leather one for your PhD dissertation so that it doesn’t get ruined even after years.
For example, the most common types of binding are:
- Thermal binding
- Leather binding
- Spiral binding
- Softcover binding
- Hardcover binding
Don’t:
If you do this step under any pressure or hurry, it will not be fruitful so always plan everything before selecting your dissertation printing and binding type. Every shop or service provider has a lot of reference samples, you should go over them and choose the best one for yourself. Don’t go for the low-cost or very high price options; try to stay in between.
2. Follow Formatting Guidelines
Dos:
Even for dissertation printing and binding, you should follow your university’s instructions from start to end. Also, make sure your dissertation meets all the formatting requirements that go consistent throughout the work. If your university has provided you with some samples to get an idea from them use those templates for your easiness.
Don’t:
Even minor formatting mistakes might make your dissertation seem less professional, so don’t miss any detail that you might think is not worthy. Don’t assume that all departments and universities will use the same formatting requirements. Always make sure these things are from your own department and instructors and work accordingly.
3. Take Time to Carefully Proofread Your Work
Dos:
When you plan your dissertation printing and binding, you need to make sure that your dissertation is all set to convert into paper. You should proofread your work again and again to leave no stone unturned because there is no recovery after printing. So, remove all the grammar, writing and formatting mistakes before the final submission.
At this point, you can also seek dissertation help online from experts, as their new set of eyes often offer insightful suggestions that further improve your work. Students also make use of software and tools for editing and proofreading to ease their burden.
Don’t:
Although it is good to get help from online editing tools, you should not fully depend on them. They may overlook some mistakes that a human eye may not. Furthermore, you should avoid proofreading your work at the last minute because it creates a rush and hinders your abilities. Also, complete everything before planning your dissertation printing and binding.
4. Select a Quality Paper
Dos:
We always suggest students use the right paper type; neither very thick nor thin. Always make sure you choose sturdy, high-quality paper that will enhance the appearance of your work. Generally, experts advise using paper with a gramme count of 80–100. After selecting the paper type, you should also decide the colour of printing like black and white or coloured. Always try to use colour copies where you need to show some images for improved visuals and better understanding overall.
Don’t:
For dissertation printing and binding, don’t use very thin paper, as it may tear, and printing ink may be shown on the other side of the page. You should also avoid selecting paper with vibrant colours that could detract from your dissertation’s substance.
5. Make a Printing Schedule in Advance
Dos:
Make a plan first, like when you will go for printing. Give your dissertation printing and binding adequate time, particularly if you’re utilising an outside service. To make sure there are no formatting, margin, or general appearance problems, print a test copy of a few pages. After ensuring that everything is alright, you can now make several copies of your dissertation in case something technically goes wrong with it.
Don’t:
It can take longer than anticipated to print and bind, so get started at the last minute. It will only cause trouble and leave you under excessive pressure. You should not go for untrustworthy and low-quality printing service providers, as they may ruin your work and money.
6. Check Binding Specifications
Dos:
To do your dissertation printing and binding, you should find specific specifications from the university and then go for this final step. It mostly includes the width of the spine, the colour of copies and the type of cover material. Always choose a reputable binding company with dissertation handling knowledge.
Don’t:
Avoid guessing the binding standards by yourself; instead, you should prefer to seek help from the mentors. To ensure there are no errors, always double-check your work and printed material before binding. If you don’t have the right tools or experience, don’t try to bind your PhD dissertation yourself.
7. Add Any Required Appendices and Indexes
Dos:
You may have something to add to your dissertation after the written chapters, like appendices, at the end. Try to add everything timely before going for dissertation printing and binding because after that there will be no option to add anything further. If you miss something, your whole money and time get wasted and you have to go for a new binding again.
Don’t:
Double-check your dissertation work so that you don’t miss any crucial documents or pages of it. When it comes to the index and appendices, students often neglect them considering unnecessary parts, don’t do that. You should make sure that everything is on point and covered in it.
8. Verify Your Title Page Again
Dos:
Your title page is the first impression of your years of hard work so it needs to be attractive, well-structured and perfectly written. There is no room for mistakes here so check all its essential elements like name, title, degree, university etc before printing and binding the dissertation because you cannot add anything after that.
Don’t:
Avoid making mistakes in the first title page as it leaves a very bad impression on the reader. As we all know it is the first place where everyone looks first, so, remove all the mistakes early and follow the specifications of your university here.
9. Confirm that Your Dissertation is Safely Bound
Dos:
Students should make sure that the quality of their dissertation printing and binding stays up to the mark. After this process, you should verify through proper manual testing that your binding is tight and all the pages are firmly placed. Also, go through each copy for uniformity and quality if you are printing more than one.
Don’t:
To prevent submitting a dissertation that has been compromised, address any binding concerns right away and don’t ignore them. Any mistake in printing and binding leaves a negative impression on the committee members. After binding, avoid attempting to make last-minute changes as this may affect the finished product.
How Long Does It Take to Print and Bind a Dissertation?
The time period for dissertation printing and binding depends upon the service provider and the selection of your binding techniques. Generally, printing doesn’t take much time, as it gets completed within a few minutes. After that, the real-time task of taking is binding, which also varies for different types.
For example, 100-page printing of a PhD dissertation takes 2 minutes to complete while it takes 3 minutes to recheck the quality of printing. Moreover, if you need leather binding, it will take almost 10 minutes. So, the whole time to print and bind this dissertation is approximately 15 minutes for one copy and 45 minutes for all three copies.
Is Printed and Bound the Same as Published?
No, dissertation printing and binding are not the same as publishing; there is a huge difference between them:
- Printed and Bound
During this process, students create copies of their written dissertations in hard form. First of all, the material goes through a printing machine and produces all the pages prints and then the binding of these pages happens to secure them into a book shape. Students need to do this step for the final submission of their thesis or dissertation to the institute to present it to the committee.
- Published
Publishing your approved work is totally different from dissertation printing and binding. During this process, students publish their work to make it known worldwide through different platforms like journal sites, books, university libraries etc. It makes your research work publicly available and gives it more reach than usual.
Is Dissertation Printed on Both Sides?
You have these two options: one-sided printing or double-sided printing of your dissertation. This decision is solely based on your institute’s guidelines and somewhat on your dissertation work as well. Single-sided printing will be a costly option, but it ensures that the painting ink doesn’t come to the next page and gives your dissertation a bulkier look. On the other hand, double-sided saves you money and allows you to make a thin dissertation copy by saving papers.
Czech University also states that if you need double-sided dissertation printing and binding, you should choose the thicker pages option 100g/m2. By doing so, the ink will not shine through the other side of the paper.
Conclusion
After spending years and years on dissertation writing, don’t put everything into a pile of waste by not focusing on the last stages – dissertation printing and binding. Students should carefully attempt this step to give their work a more professional and presentable look. Only a well-sorted and good-looking dissertation can win the hearts of your committee members. Before going to print and bind your dissertation, follow this complete guide to know what you should do and what not during this journey.
If you need further assistance with the research, writing, editing or completion of your dissertation, seek dissertation writing services from a reliable platform that provides 24/7 support to ensure that your work meets the highest standards.