USM is the only one of the five that tells you which abstract comes first — and it is not the one you would guess. The Bahasa Malaysia version goes before the English one, even in a thesis written entirely in English.
This page sets out the USM thesis format requirements in force at Universiti Sains Malaysia as of September 2026, read from the university’s own guideline rather than from a template passed down between students. Margins are drawn to scale, and the Word settings are given so you can set them up before you write another paragraph.
Your USM page, drawn to scale
Most formatting errors are margin errors, and most margin errors come from setting all four sides the same. Here is what a Universiti Sains Malaysia thesis page actually looks like:
Your USM page, drawn to scale. The 4 cm left margin is the binding edge — wider than the other three so the text is not swallowed when the thesis is bound. Setting all four margins the same is the commonest formatting error we see.
Set your USM thesis up in Word first
Retrofitting margins and spacing into a finished 200-page document is miserable. Setting them correctly at the start costs ten minutes. Copy these values straight across:
| Top | 2.5 cm |
| Bottom | 2.5 cm |
| Left | 4 cm |
| Right | 2.5 cm |
| Paper size | A4, 80 gsm |
| Typeface | Times New Roman 12 or Arial 11 — pick one, do not mix |
| Body text | Double |
Do this before you write another paragraph. If you are already deep into the thesis, fix it now anyway — the longer you leave it, the more your tables, figures and page breaks will shift when the margins finally change.
USM thesis length limits
Abstract requirements
Length: 400 words maximum, double spaced.
Languages: Bahasa Malaysia first, then English — even in an entirely English thesis.
Every Malaysian university on this list requires both a Bahasa Malaysia and an English abstract, regardless of which language the thesis itself is written in. Where they differ is the order and the word count, and both are checked.
Referencing style
No style mandated — pick one recognised style and follow it strictly.
Turnitin and similarity
Binding and cover colour
For examination: Turnitin screening before format verification.
Final submission: 2 hardbound + 2 CDs.
Check the cover specification before you pay the binder. Binders print exactly what you hand them, and a wrong-coloured cover is an expensive reprint rather than a quick fix.
What trips people up at USM
1. The Bahasa Malaysia abstract comes first
Before the English abstract, in an entirely English thesis. Every one of the five universities requires both languages; USM is specific about the order, and it is trivially easy to get backwards.
2. The font is a binary choice
Times New Roman 12 or Arial 11, applied to the whole thesis. Mixing them is a common error — and Arial 11 is not the same visual size as Times 12, so decide before you write, not after.
3. The lowest PhD word ceiling of the five
80,000 words, against 100,000 at UM and UKM. If you moved to USM from another university, your target is 20,000 words lower than you think.
4. No central Turnitin number
Screening is mandatory before format verification, but the pass threshold is set by your own School, Centre or Institute. Ask — do not assume 25% because that is what a friend at UPM was told.
5. Copy counts vary by school
The central IPS default is two hardbound copies; some institutes require three. Confirm before you pay the binder.
6. A 2019 guide is still the current guide
The 2025 postgraduate handbook does not restate the formatting numbers — it points back to this 2019 PDF. Candidates who read only the newest handbook miss the actual specification.
The rule that overrides everything on this page. Your faculty can be stricter than your university, and frequently is. Confirm three things in writing with your own faculty before you submit: the word limit, the similarity cap, and the referencing style. Those three are where faculty-level overrides almost always live. Margins, paper and binding colour are set centrally and rarely vary.
USM’s rules are the tidiest of the five on paper, and the ones most often undone by a detail: the abstract order, the font choice, and a similarity threshold nobody publishes centrally. All three are settled with one email to your School.
USM thesis format compared with the other Malaysian universities
If you are moving between universities — a Master’s at one and a PhD at another, which is extremely common in Malaysia — the assumptions you carry across are usually wrong. Our
side-by-side comparison of all five universities puts every number in one table.
- UiTM thesis format requirements
- IIUM thesis format requirements
- UTAR thesis format requirements
- MMU thesis format requirements
- UNIMAS thesis format requirements
- UM thesis format — Universiti Malaya
- UPM thesis format — Universiti Putra Malaysia
- UKM thesis format — Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia
- UTM thesis format — Universiti Teknologi Malaysia
Want your USM thesis to pass format checking the first time?
We work with postgraduate researchers at Universiti Sains Malaysia on structure, formatting compliance and getting a manuscript through format checking without a return — on your own work, to your own faculty’s specification.
Source: Universiti Sains Malaysia, Format Thesis Guidelines (21 February 2019 — still the governing specification), Institute of Postgraduate Studies —
ips.usm.my.
Read as published in September 2026. Guidelines are revised without notice and faculties may impose stricter requirements — always confirm against your own faculty before submission. If you spot something that has changed, tell us and we will update this page.