EPFL PhD Thesis Template

An unofficial LaTeX template for EPFL PhD theses.

🚀 Quick Start

Using Overleaf (Recommended)

Option 1: Direct Upload

1. Download this repository as a ZIP file
2. Upload to Overleaf
3. Set compiler to pdfLaTeX and TeX Live version to 2025
4. Set my_thesis.tex as the main document
5. Start writing your thesis!

Option 2: GitHub Integration (Recommended for version control)

1. Fork this repository or create a new repository using this template
2. In Overleaf, create a new project and select "Import from GitHub"
3. Connect your GitHub account and select your thesis repository
4. Set compiler to pdfLaTeX and TeX Live version to 2025
5. Set my_thesis.tex as the main document
6. Enable sync to keep your GitHub repo and Overleaf project synchronized

💡 Tip: Using GitHub integration allows you to maintain version control, collaborate with supervisors, and have a backup of your work outside Overleaf.

Local Installation

1. Clone this repository: git clone https://github.com/glederrey/EPFL_thesis_template.git
2. Ensure you have a recent LaTeX distribution (TeX Live 2020+ recommended)
3. Compile with: pdflatex my_thesis.tex

📁 Repository Structure

EPFL_thesis_template/
├── my_thesis.tex                      # Main document file
├── my_thesis.pdf                      # Example output
├── settings/
│   ├── settings_epfl_template.tex     # Core template settings
│   └── settings_custom.tex            # Your custom packages/settings
├── content/
│   ├── head/                          # Front matter
│   │   ├── titlepage.tex              # Title page (auto-generated)
│   │   ├── dedication.tex             # Dedication page
│   │   ├── acknowledgements.tex
│   │   ├── preface.tex
│   │   └── abstracts.tex              # English & French abstracts
│   ├── ch1/                           # Chapter 1
│   │   └── introduction.tex
│   ├── ch2/                           # Chapter 2 (example with figures/tables)
│   │   └── figures_tables.tex
│   ├── ch3/                           # Chapter 3 (example with math)
│   │   └── math.tex
│   ├── ch4/                           # Chapter 4
│   │   └── more_text.tex
│   └── tail/                          # Back matter
│       ├── appendix.tex
│       ├── biblio.tex                 # Bibliography
│       └── cv.tex                     # Curriculum Vitae
├── assets/                            # Images and figures
├── utopia_font/                       # Custom font files
└── .gitignore

📝 Getting Started with Your Thesis

1. Essential Information

Before starting, review the official EPFL thesis guidelines for mandatory requirements.

2. Customization

• Personal Info: Edit content/head/titlepage.tex for your thesis details
• Custom Packages: Add your packages to settings/settings_custom.tex
• Content: Replace example chapters in content/ch*/ with your own
• Bibliography: Update content/tail/biblio.tex with your references

3. Writing Tips

• Each chapter should be in its own folder under content/
• Use \input{} commands to include your chapter files
• Place figures in a separate folder inside each chapter folder, as shown in content/ch2
• The template automatically handles page numbering and formatting

🔧 Troubleshooting

Common Issues

❌ "LaTeX Error: Unknown option explicit for package titlesec"

• Solution: Update your LaTeX distribution or the titlesec package to version 2007 or later

❌ "pdfTeX error (font expansion): auto expansion is only possible with scalable fonts"

• Solution 1: Comment out line 4 in content/head/titlepage.tex by adding % before \sffamily
• Solution 2 (Windows): Update MiKTeX fonts:
  1. Open "MiKTeX Settings (Admin)"
  2. Press "Refresh FNDB" → "Update Formats" → "OK"
  3. Clean auxiliary files and recompile

❌ Special characters causing compilation errors

• Solution: Ensure all files are saved with UTF-8 encoding
• TeX-Shop (Mac): Preferences → Source-Code → Encoding → "UTF-8"

❌ Chemistry formulas with mhchem package

• Solution: Update mhchem to version 3.11+ from CTAN

Overleaf Specific

• Always set my_thesis.tex as the main document
• Use pdfLaTeX compiler with TeX Live 2025
• If compilation fails unexpectedly, check that Overleaf isn't trying to compile a different file

🤝 Contributing

We welcome contributions! If you've improved the template or have suggestions:

• Email: [email protected]
• PolyDoc: [email protected] | Website
• Issues: Open an issue on this repository
• Pull Requests: Submit improvements via PR

🏆 Contributors

• ??? - Original creator
• Diogo Rodrigues - Fixed LaTeX → dvips → ps2pdf version + minor fixes
• Mahdi Khoramshahhi - Font expansion bug fix
• Léo Belzile - Logo update, code cleanup, bug fixes
• Nicolas Tappy - Fixed a bug in the headers
• Gael Lederrey - Structure rework based on feedback, README upgraded [current maintainer]

📚 Alternative Templates

• Mathias Payer's template - Alternative EPFL thesis template

📄 License

This template is released under the MIT License. Feel free to use, modify, and distribute.

🆘 Support

• General Questions: Contact PolyDoc
• Template Issues: Open an issue or email the maintainer
• EPFL Thesis Requirements: Check the official EPFL guidelines

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Note: This is an unofficial template. While it follows EPFL guidelines, always verify compliance with current requirements before submission.

Last updated: September 2025