GRAD (2013) Scope of a Doctoral Dissertation
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Scope of a Doctoral Dissertation
A student's doctoral dissertation is a substantial piece of scholarly writing that contains a significant contribution of new knowledge to the field of study. It presents the results and an analysis of the student's original research, and should be significant enough to be published in the refereed literature. The dissertation must be a coherent document that provides a complete and systematic account of the student's research. It may incorporate work from submitted, accepted or published journal articles, which may or may not have co-authors. The dissertation should reflect the student's ability to do the following:
Critically analyze the relevant literature Use and describe in detail the appropriate methodology for the research undertaken Conduct research and present findings that result in a significant and original contribution to knowledge Verify knowledge claims and sources meticulously Locate the work of the dissertation and its findings within the broader field or discipline Communicate the research and analysis effectively In most fields, a doctoral dissertation will range from 60,000 to 80,000 words in length, exclusive of footnotes, bibliography, and appendices. As a courtesy to examiners, if the dissertation will be over 100,000 words long the student must notify the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies when the Appointment of External Examiner for Doctoral Dissertation form is submitted. See also The Instructions for the Preparation of the External Examiner's Report.
Structure of Theses and Dissertations
This document describes UBC's structural and formatting requirements for both master's theses and doctoral dissertations. For brevity, the term “thesis” is used here to include both types of document. 1. Title page (required) 2. Abstract (required - maximum 350 words) The abstract is a concise and accurate summary of the research described in the document. It states the problem, the methods of investigation, and the general conclusions, and should not contain tables, graphs, complex equations, or illustrations. There is a single abstract for the entire work, and it must not exceed 350 words in length. 3. Preface (required)
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Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST Effective May 2013, all theses and dissertations must include a Preface. Sample Prefaces The Preface must include a statement indicating the student's contribution to the following:
Identification and design of the research program, Performance of the various parts of the research, and Analysis of the research data. Certain additional elements may also be required, as specified below.
If any of the work presented in the thesis has led to any publications or submissions, all of these must be listed in the Preface. Bibliographic details should include the title of the article and the name of the publisher (if the article has been accepted or published), and the chapter(s) of the thesis in which the associated work is located. If the work includes publications or material submitted for publication, the statement described above must detail the relative contributions of all collaborators and co-authors (including supervisors and members of the supervisory committee) and state the proportion of research and writing conducted by the student. For further details, see “Including Published Material in a Thesis or Dissertation”. If ethics approval was required for the research, the Preface must name the responsible UBC Research Ethics Board, and report the project title(s) and the Certificate Number(s) of the Ethics Certificate(s) applicable to the project. In a thesis where the research was not subject to ethics review, produced no publications, and was designed, carried out, and analyzed by the student alone, the text of the Preface may be very brief. Samples are available on this website and in the University Library's online repository of accepted theses. The content of the Preface must be verified by the student's supervisor, whose endorsement must appear on the final Thesis/Dissertation Approval form and, for doctoral students, on the Approval of Dissertation for External Examination form. The Preface may be updated at the time of final submission of the thesis. Acknowledgements and introductory material do not belong in the Preface. 4. Table of contents (required) 5. List of tables (required if document has tables) 6. List of figures (required if document has figures) 7. List of illustrations (required if document has illustrations) 8. Lists of symbols, abbreviations or other (advisable if applicable) 9. Glossary (optional) 10. Acknowledgements (optional) Students may include a brief statement acknowledging the contribution to their research and studies from various sources, including (but not limited to)
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am
Page 2 of 5
Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST Their research supervisor and committee, Funding agencies, Fellow students, and Family. 11. Dedication (optional) 12. Document Body The text of the thesis must contain the following elements, presented to conform with the standards and expectations of the relevant academic discipline. In some cases, the ordering of these ingredients may differ from the one shown here. A. Introduction. The thesis must clearly state its theme, hypotheses and/or goals (sometimes called “the research question(s)”), and provide sufficient background information to enable a non-specialist researcher to understand them. It must contain a thorough review of relevant literature, perhaps in a separate chapter. B. Research Chapters. The account of the research should be presented in a manner suitable for the field. It should be complete, systematic, and sufficiently detailed to enable a reader to understand how the data were gathered and how to apply similar methods in another study. Notation and formatting must be consistent throughout the thesis, including units of measure, abbreviations, and the numbering scheme for tables, figures, footnotes, and citations. One or more chapters may consist of material published (or submitted for publication) elsewhere. See “Including Published Material in a Thesis or Dissertation” for details. C. Conclusion. In this section the student must demonstrate his/her mastery of the field and describe the work's overall contribution to the broader discipline in context. A strong conclusion includes the following:
Conclusions regarding the goals or hypotheses presented in the Introduction, Reflective analysis of the research and its conclusions in light of current knowledge in the field, Comments on the significance and contribution of the research reported, Comments on strengths and limitations of the research, Discussion of any potential applications of the research findings, and A description of possible future research directions, drawing on the work reported. A submission's success in addressing the expectations above is appropriately judged by an expert in the relevant discipline. Students should rely on their research supervisors and committee members for guidance. Doctoral students should also take into account the expectations articulated in the University's “Instructions for Preparing the External Examiner's Report”. 13. Bibliography (mandatory) There must be only one Bibliography or References section for the whole thesis. 14. Appendices Appendices must be limited to supporting material genuinely subsidiary to the main argument of the work. They must only include material that is referred to in the document. Material suitable for inclusion in appendices includes the following:
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am
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Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST Additional details of methodology and/or data Diagrams of specialized equipment developed Copies of questionnaires or surveys used in the research Do not include copies of the Ethics Certificates in the Appendices.
Including Published Material in a Thesis or Dissertation
Students are encouraged to publish work from their research during the course of their degrees. However, the preparation of publications should not significantly impede progress on the thesis, which must remain the student’s and the supervisor’s priority. Articles that have been published may be included as separate chapters of the thesis or may be incorporated within the thesis, subject to the considerations below. Attribution: Material published elsewhere (or in press) must be identified and suitably acknowledged in both the text and the Preface. Collaborative publications, in which the student is one of several authors, are permitted. In every case, the Preface must clearly describe the student's contribution to the research and writing—including, where applicable, the student's role in publications with several authors. Presentation: Formatting must be consistent throughout the thesis, including units of measure, abbreviations, and the numbering scheme for tables, figures, footnotes, and citations. The thesis must contain a single bibliography, typically after the main body of the text but before any appendices. These requirements may entail minor changes to the original manuscript. Students may also augment the published work with additional material. Coherence: Taken as a whole, the thesis must provide a unified and appropriately-sequenced investigation. This consideration should guide the placement of manuscripts in the main body of the work. More deeply, it means that the dissertation's introduction, literature review, and conclusion must address the significance of each manuscript in the broad context of the overall research program described by the entire body of work. Rigor: All contents of the thesis are subject to rigorous scrutiny during the examination process. Prior publication does not guarantee that a submission meets the University's standards of excellence. Copyright: Use of copyrighted material must be supported by permission from the copyright holder, and this must be acknowledged in the Preface. Tables and figures from copyrighted sources must have "Reprinted with permission of …" in their captions, unless they appear as part of a block of material covered by a copyright acknowledgement in the Preface. More information: Copyright and publishing Avoiding copyright violations UBC Copyright website
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UBC cIRcle FAQ section 5
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Scope of a Doctoral Dissertation
A student's doctoral dissertation is a substantial piece of scholarly writing that contains a significant contribution of new knowledge to the field of study. It presents the results and an analysis of the student's original research, and should be significant enough to be published in the refereed literature. The dissertation must be a coherent document that provides a complete and systematic account of the student's research. It may incorporate work from submitted, accepted or published journal articles, which may or may not have co-authors. The dissertation should reflect the student's ability to do the following:
Critically analyze the relevant literature Use and describe in detail the appropriate methodology for the research undertaken Conduct research and present findings that result in a significant and original contribution to knowledge Verify knowledge claims and sources meticulously Locate the work of the dissertation and its findings within the broader field or discipline Communicate the research and analysis effectively In most fields, a doctoral dissertation will range from 60,000 to 80,000 words in length, exclusive of footnotes, bibliography, and appendices. As a courtesy to examiners, if the dissertation will be over 100,000 words long the student must notify the Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies when the Appointment of External Examiner for Doctoral Dissertation form is submitted. See also The Instructions for the Preparation of the External Examiner's Report.
Structure of Theses and Dissertations
This document describes UBC's structural and formatting requirements for both master's theses and doctoral dissertations. For brevity, the term “thesis” is used here to include both types of document. 1. Title page (required) 2. Abstract (required - maximum 350 words) The abstract is a concise and accurate summary of the research described in the document. It states the problem, the methods of investigation, and the general conclusions, and should not contain tables, graphs, complex equations, or illustrations. There is a single abstract for the entire work, and it must not exceed 350 words in length. 3. Preface (required)
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am Page 1 of 5
Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST Effective May 2013, all theses and dissertations must include a Preface. Sample Prefaces The Preface must include a statement indicating the student's contribution to the following:
Identification and design of the research program, Performance of the various parts of the research, and Analysis of the research data. Certain additional elements may also be required, as specified below.
If any of the work presented in the thesis has led to any publications or submissions, all of these must be listed in the Preface. Bibliographic details should include the title of the article and the name of the publisher (if the article has been accepted or published), and the chapter(s) of the thesis in which the associated work is located. If the work includes publications or material submitted for publication, the statement described above must detail the relative contributions of all collaborators and co-authors (including supervisors and members of the supervisory committee) and state the proportion of research and writing conducted by the student. For further details, see “Including Published Material in a Thesis or Dissertation”. If ethics approval was required for the research, the Preface must name the responsible UBC Research Ethics Board, and report the project title(s) and the Certificate Number(s) of the Ethics Certificate(s) applicable to the project. In a thesis where the research was not subject to ethics review, produced no publications, and was designed, carried out, and analyzed by the student alone, the text of the Preface may be very brief. Samples are available on this website and in the University Library's online repository of accepted theses. The content of the Preface must be verified by the student's supervisor, whose endorsement must appear on the final Thesis/Dissertation Approval form and, for doctoral students, on the Approval of Dissertation for External Examination form. The Preface may be updated at the time of final submission of the thesis. Acknowledgements and introductory material do not belong in the Preface. 4. Table of contents (required) 5. List of tables (required if document has tables) 6. List of figures (required if document has figures) 7. List of illustrations (required if document has illustrations) 8. Lists of symbols, abbreviations or other (advisable if applicable) 9. Glossary (optional) 10. Acknowledgements (optional) Students may include a brief statement acknowledging the contribution to their research and studies from various sources, including (but not limited to)
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am
Page 2 of 5
Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST Their research supervisor and committee, Funding agencies, Fellow students, and Family. 11. Dedication (optional) 12. Document Body The text of the thesis must contain the following elements, presented to conform with the standards and expectations of the relevant academic discipline. In some cases, the ordering of these ingredients may differ from the one shown here. A. Introduction. The thesis must clearly state its theme, hypotheses and/or goals (sometimes called “the research question(s)”), and provide sufficient background information to enable a non-specialist researcher to understand them. It must contain a thorough review of relevant literature, perhaps in a separate chapter. B. Research Chapters. The account of the research should be presented in a manner suitable for the field. It should be complete, systematic, and sufficiently detailed to enable a reader to understand how the data were gathered and how to apply similar methods in another study. Notation and formatting must be consistent throughout the thesis, including units of measure, abbreviations, and the numbering scheme for tables, figures, footnotes, and citations. One or more chapters may consist of material published (or submitted for publication) elsewhere. See “Including Published Material in a Thesis or Dissertation” for details. C. Conclusion. In this section the student must demonstrate his/her mastery of the field and describe the work's overall contribution to the broader discipline in context. A strong conclusion includes the following:
Conclusions regarding the goals or hypotheses presented in the Introduction, Reflective analysis of the research and its conclusions in light of current knowledge in the field, Comments on the significance and contribution of the research reported, Comments on strengths and limitations of the research, Discussion of any potential applications of the research findings, and A description of possible future research directions, drawing on the work reported. A submission's success in addressing the expectations above is appropriately judged by an expert in the relevant discipline. Students should rely on their research supervisors and committee members for guidance. Doctoral students should also take into account the expectations articulated in the University's “Instructions for Preparing the External Examiner's Report”. 13. Bibliography (mandatory) There must be only one Bibliography or References section for the whole thesis. 14. Appendices Appendices must be limited to supporting material genuinely subsidiary to the main argument of the work. They must only include material that is referred to in the document. Material suitable for inclusion in appendices includes the following:
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am
Page 3 of 5
Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST Additional details of methodology and/or data Diagrams of specialized equipment developed Copies of questionnaires or surveys used in the research Do not include copies of the Ethics Certificates in the Appendices.
Including Published Material in a Thesis or Dissertation
Students are encouraged to publish work from their research during the course of their degrees. However, the preparation of publications should not significantly impede progress on the thesis, which must remain the student’s and the supervisor’s priority. Articles that have been published may be included as separate chapters of the thesis or may be incorporated within the thesis, subject to the considerations below. Attribution: Material published elsewhere (or in press) must be identified and suitably acknowledged in both the text and the Preface. Collaborative publications, in which the student is one of several authors, are permitted. In every case, the Preface must clearly describe the student's contribution to the research and writing—including, where applicable, the student's role in publications with several authors. Presentation: Formatting must be consistent throughout the thesis, including units of measure, abbreviations, and the numbering scheme for tables, figures, footnotes, and citations. The thesis must contain a single bibliography, typically after the main body of the text but before any appendices. These requirements may entail minor changes to the original manuscript. Students may also augment the published work with additional material. Coherence: Taken as a whole, the thesis must provide a unified and appropriately-sequenced investigation. This consideration should guide the placement of manuscripts in the main body of the work. More deeply, it means that the dissertation's introduction, literature review, and conclusion must address the significance of each manuscript in the broad context of the overall research program described by the entire body of work. Rigor: All contents of the thesis are subject to rigorous scrutiny during the examination process. Prior publication does not guarantee that a submission meets the University's standards of excellence. Copyright: Use of copyrighted material must be supported by permission from the copyright holder, and this must be acknowledged in the Preface. Tables and figures from copyrighted sources must have "Reprinted with permission of …" in their captions, unless they appear as part of a block of material covered by a copyright acknowledgement in the Preface. More information: Copyright and publishing Avoiding copyright violations UBC Copyright website
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am Page 4 of 5
Printed from Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (www.grad.ubc.ca) on 11 December 2013 - 04:50 PST
UBC cIRcle FAQ section 5
Wed, 12/11/2013 - 4:50am
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