thesis number synonym

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noun as in belief, assumption to be tested

Strongest matches

• proposition
• supposition

Strong matches

• contestation
• postulation
• presumption
• presupposition

noun as in written dissertation

• argumentation
• composition
• disquisition

Weak matches

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Related words.

Words related to thesis are not direct synonyms, but are associated with the word thesis . Browse related words to learn more about word associations.

noun as in putting regard in as true

• expectation
• understanding

noun as in main part of written work

• dissertation

noun as in written or musical creation

• arrangement
• literary work
• short story

noun as in argument for idea

• advancement
• affirmation
• asseveration
• declaration
• explanation
• maintaining
• predication

Viewing 5 / 43 related words

Example Sentences

In “Back Home,” Gil also revisits the nostalgia for the South explored in his Johns Hopkins thesis, “Circle of Stone.”

At least father and son were in alignment on this central thesis: acting “gay”—bad; being thought of as gay—bad.

Her doctoral thesis, says Ramin Takloo at the University of Illinois, was simply outstanding.

Marshall McLuhan long ago argued the now accepted thesis that different mediums have different influences on thinking.

He wrote his Master's thesis on the underrepresentation of young people in Congress.

And indeed for most young men a college thesis is but an exercise for sharpening the wits, rarely dangerous in its later effects.

It will be for the reader to determine whether the main thesis of the book has gained or lost by the new evidence.

But the word thesis, when applied to Systems, does not mean the 'position' of single notes, but of groups of notes.

This conclusion, it need hardly be said, is in entire agreement with the main thesis of the preceding pages.

Sundry outlying Indians, with ammunition to waste, took belly and knee rests and strengthened the thesis to the contrary.

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On this page you'll find 90 synonyms, antonyms, and words related to thesis, such as: contention, hypothesis, opinion, premise, proposition, and supposition.

From Roget's 21st Century Thesaurus, Third Edition Copyright © 2013 by the Philip Lief Group.

Synonyms of thesis

• as in argument
• as in hypothesis
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Thesaurus Definition of thesis

Synonyms & Similar Words

• proposition
• speculation
• explanation
• presupposition
• supposition
• generalization
• presumption
• abstraction

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

Thesaurus Entries Near thesis

Cite this entry.

“Thesis.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus , Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/thesis. Accessed 31 Mar. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on thesis

Nglish: Translation of thesis for Spanish Speakers

Britannica English: Translation of thesis for Arabic Speakers

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about thesis

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Synonyms and antonyms of thesis in English

Word of the Day

a bitter pill (to swallow)

something that is very unpleasant but must be accepted

Sitting on the fence (Newspaper idioms)

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Definition of thesis noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

• Students must submit a thesis on an agreed subject within four years.
• He presented this thesis for his PhD.
• a thesis for a master's degree
• He's doing a doctoral thesis on the early works of Shostakovich.
• Many departments require their students to do a thesis defense.
• She completed an MSc by thesis.
• her thesis adviser at MIT
• in a/​the thesis
• thesis about

Want to learn more?

Find out which words work together and produce more natural-sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app. Try it for free as part of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.

  Vocabulary      

What is another word for Thesis ?

Synonyms for thesis ˈθi sɪs the·sis, this thesaurus page includes all potential synonyms, words with the same meaning and similar terms for the word thesis ., princeton's wordnet rate these synonyms: 0.0 / 0 votes.

thesis noun

an unproved statement put forward as a premise in an argument

Synonyms: dissertation

dissertation, thesis noun

a treatise advancing a new point of view resulting from research; usually a requirement for an advanced academic degree

Synonyms: dissertation , thesis

Matched Categories

Dictionary of english synonymes rate these synonyms: 4.0 / 1 vote.

Synonyms: proposition , position , dictum , doctrine

Synonyms: theme , subject , topic , text

Synonyms: essay , dissertation , composition

PPDB, the paraphrase database Rate these paraphrases: 5.0 / 1 vote

List of paraphrases for "thesis":

dissertation , theses , theory , argument , proposition , contention , memory

Suggested Resources

Song lyrics by thesis -- Explore a large variety of song lyrics performed by thesis on the Lyrics.com website.

How to pronounce Thesis?

How to say thesis in sign language, words popularity by usage frequency, how to use thesis in a sentence.

Maxim Behar :

My global PR revolution thesis will certainly not go down without criticism. The most severe criticism should be expected from the people who don`t know the PR industry. They might say, Revolution? What revolution? Facebook is just out there anyway!

Ralph Waldo Emerson :

Sometimes a scream is better than a thesis.

George F. Kennan :

It is an undeniable privilege of every man to prove himself right in the thesis that the world is his enemy; for if he reiterates it frequently enough and makes it the background of his conduct he is bound eventually to be right.

Madeline Peltz :

The Republican Party was sort of testing this thesis about, do we continue down this path of Trumpism, of extreme election denial, and that was being reflected in the right wing media’s commentary on Brazil as well — they were testing that thesis both in the American elections and in the Brazilian elections.

Andy Palmer :

Taking this debt on - short-term debt - is we think the correct tool to completely remove that thesis that we don't have sufficient liquidity, in every substantial and material way, this ensures that we can get through to DBX in spite of what all of those global uncertainties might throw at us.

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Guidelines for Chapter Numbering in a Thesis: How to Structure and Order Your Research

Writing a thesis requires meticulous planning and organization. one crucial aspect of presenting your research in a coherent manner is chapter numbering. properly structuring and ordering your thesis chapters will not only enhance the readability of your work but also demonstrate your research skills. in this blog post, we will provide you with a comprehensive guide on how to effectively number your thesis chapters..

Why is Chapter Numbering Important in a Thesis?

Chapter numbering serves several purposes in a thesis:

• It facilitates easy navigation for readers and reviewers.
• It creates a logical flow and structure for your research.
• It allows readers to locate specific information or sections within your thesis quickly.
• It showcases your organizational skills and attention to detail.

General Guidelines for Numbering Thesis Chapters

Follow these guidelines to ensure clarity and consistency:

• Start with numbering from Chapter 1: Begin your chapter numbering with Chapter 1 instead of Chapter 0. This signifies the start of your thesis.
• Use Arabic numerals: Number your chapters using Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, etc.) and avoid using Roman numerals (I, II, III) or alphabetical numbering.
• Avoid duplicate numbering: Ensure that each chapter has a unique number. Do not assign the same number to multiple chapters.
• Number your chapters in consecutive order: Follow a sequential order for chapter numbering. This helps readers understand the logical progression of your research.
• Consider using decimal numbering: If your research requires a more nuanced breakdown, you can use decimal numbering (e.g., Chapter 2.1, Chapter 2.2). However, use this approach sparingly and only when necessary to avoid excessive complexity.

Special Cases: Preliminary and Appendices Chapters

While most thesis chapters follow a conventional numbering structure, there are a few exceptions to consider:

• Preliminary chapters: The preliminary sections, such as the abstract, acknowledgments, and table of contents, should not be numbered. However, you can assign them lowercase Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, etc.) or use a separate style (e.g., Roman number format).
• Appendices: Appendices are additional sections that provide supplementary information but are not an integral part of the main thesis. You can choose to number appendices as A, B, C or use alphanumeric combinations (e.g., Appendix A, Appendix B.1).

Final Thoughts

Proper chapter numbering in your thesis is essential for maintaining clarity and ensuring a smooth reading experience for your audience. By following the guidelines provided in this blog post, you can structure and order your research effectively, leaving a positive impression on your readers and evaluators.

Remember, maintaining consistency and logical progression in your chapter numbering reinforces the professionalism and academic integrity of your thesis. So, take the time to plan and organize your chapters meticulously, and you will have a well-structured, cohesive thesis that effectively communicates your research findings.

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Formatting Your Thesis or Dissertation with Microsoft Word

• Page Numbers
• Introduction
• Copyright Page
• Dedication, Acknowledgements, & Preface
• Headings and Subheadings
• Citations and Bibliography
• Tables and Figures
• Rotated (Landscape) Pages
• Table of Contents
• Lists of Tables and Figures
• List of Abbreviations
• Some Things to Watch For
• PDF with Embedded Fonts

Page numbers

Microsoft Word will keep track of page numbers for you, so you can add and delete pages, move tables and figures from one page to another, etc. Then, you can create a Table of Contents, a List of Tables, a List of Figures, etc. and Word will automatically create those lists (or, you can update the lists by clicking an update button). This will save you much time compared to manually adding page numbers to your pages and manually creating your Table of Contents, List of Tables, etc. However, in order for Word to do all this automatically, page numbering needs to be set up appropriately. The video tutorial below demonstrates how to set up the page numbering.

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• How Long Is a PhD Thesis?
• Doing a PhD

It’s no secret that one of the most challenging aspects of a PhD degree is the volume of work that goes into writing your thesis . So this raises the question, exactly how long is a thesis?

Unfortunately, there’s no one size fits all answer to this question. However, from the analysis of over 100 PhD theses, the average thesis length is between 80,000 and 100,000 words. A further analysis of 1000 PhD thesis shows the average number of pages to be 204 . In reality, the actual word count for each PhD thesis will depend on the specific subject and the university it is being hosted by. This is because universities set their own word length requirements, with most found to be opting for around 100,000.

To find out more about how these word limits differ between universities, how the average word count from STEM thesis differ from non-STEM thesis and a more detailed breakdown from the analysis of over 1000 PhDs, carry on reading the below.

Word Count Differences Between Universities

For any PhD student writing a thesis, they will find that their document will be subject to a word limit set by their university. In nearly all cases, the limit only concerns the maximum number of words and doesn’t place any restrictions on the minimum word limit. The reason for this is that the student will be expected to write their thesis with the aim of clearly explaining their research, and so it is up to the student to determine what he deems appropriate.

Saying this, it is well accepted amongst PhD students and supervisors that the absence of a lower limit doesn’t suggest that a thesis can be ‘light’. Your thesis will focus on several years worth of original research and explore new ideas, theories or concepts. Besides this, your thesis will need to cover a wide range of topics such as your literature review, research methodology, results and conclusion. Therefore, your examiners will expect the length of your thesis to be proportional to convey all this information to a sufficient level.

Selecting a handful of universities at random, they state the following thesis word limits on their website:

• University of Edinburgh: 100,000
• University of Exeter: 100,000
• University of Leister: 80,000
• University of Bath: 80,000
• University of Warwick: 70,000

The above universities set upper word limits that apply across the board, however, some universities, such as the University of Birmingham and the University of Sheffield, set different word limits for different departments. For example, the University of Sheffield adopts these limits:

• Arts & Humanities: 75,000
• Medicine, Dentistry & Health: 75,000
• Science: 80,000
• Social Sciences: 75,000-100,000

Although there’s a range of limit, it’s safe to say that the majority fall within the 80,000 to 100,000 bracket.

Word Count Based on Data from past Theses

A poll of 149 postdocs.

In mid-2019, Dr Eva Lantsoght, a published author, academic blogger and Structural Engineering Professor, conducted a poll which asked postgraduate doctoral students to share the length of their final thesis. 149 PostDoc students responded to the survey, with the majority reporting a length falling within the ‘80,000 – 120,000 words’ bracket as seen below.

Analysis of 1000 PhD Theses

Over a three-year time period, Dr Ian Brailsford, a then Postgraduate Learning Adviser at the University of Auckland, analysed 1000 doctoral thesis submitted to his university’s library. The PhD theses which formed the basis of his analysis were produced between 2008 to 2017 and showed:

• Average number of pages = 204
• Median number of pages = 198
• Average number of chapters = 7.6

We should note that the above metrics only cover the content falling within the main body of the thesis. This includes the introduction, literature review, methods section, results chapter, discussions and conclusions. All other sections, such as the title page, abstract, table of contents, acknowledgements, bibliography and appendices were omitted from the count.

Although it’s impossible to draw the exact word count from the number of pages alone, by using the universities recommended format of 12pt Times New Roman and 1.5 lines spacing, and assuming 10% of the main body are figures and footnotes, this equates to an average main body of 52,000 words.

STEM vs Non-STEM

As part of Dr Ian Brailsford’s analysis, he also compared the length of STEM doctorate theses to non-STEM theses. He found that STEM theses tended to be shorter. In fact, he found STEM theses to have a medium page length of 159 whilst non-STEM theses had a medium of around 223 pages. This is a 40% increase in average length!

Can You Exceed the Word Count?

Whilst most universities will allow you to go over the word count if you need to, it comes with the caveat that you must have a very strong reason for needing to do so. Besides this, your supervisor will also need to support your request. This is to acknowledge that they have reviewed your situation and agree that exceeding the word limit will be absolutely necessary to avoid detriment unnecessary detriment to your work.

This means that whilst it is possible to submit a thesis over 100,000 words or more, it’s unlikely that your research project will need to.

How Does This Compare to a Masters Dissertation?

The average Masters dissertation length is approximately 20,000 words whilst a thesis is 4 to 5 times this length at approximately 80,000 – 100,000.

The key reason for this difference is because of the level of knowledge they convey. A Master’s dissertation focuses on concluding from existing knowledge whilst a PhD thesis focuses on drawing a conclusion from new knowledge. As a result, the thesis is significantly longer as the new knowledge needs to be well documented so it can be verified, disseminated and used to shape future research.

Finding a PhD has never been this easy – search for a PhD by keyword, location or academic area of interest.

Related Reading

Unfortunately, the completion of your thesis doesn’t mark the end of your degree just yet. Once you submit your thesis, it’s time to start preparing for your viva – the all-to-fun thesis defence interview! To help you prepare for this, we’ve produced a helpful guide which you can read here: The Complete Guide to PhD Vivas.

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Microsoft Word for Dissertations

• Chapter and Section Numbering
• Introduction, Template, & Resources
• Formatting for All Readers
• Applying a Style
• Modifying a Style
• Setting up a Heading 1 Example
• Images, Charts, Other Objects
• Footnotes, Endnotes, & Citations
• Cross-References
• Appendix Figures & Tables
• Table of Contents
• List of Figures/Tables
• Page Numbers
• Landscape Pages
• Combining Chapter Files
• Commenting and Reviewing
• The Two-inch Top Margin
• Troubleshooting
• Finalizing Without Styles
• Preparing Your Final Document

Page Contents

Microsoft Word can automatically keep track of your chapter, section, and sub-section numbering for you. Using these numbering schemes will also allow your figure/diagram/table/equations to be automatically numbered, as well.

In this part of the Guide, you'll learn:

• How to set Word to automatically number your Chapters and Sections
• How to customize your number style ( Section 1.1 vs. Section 1.a or Section 01.01 )
• How to automatically number Appendices

Automatic Chapter and Subsection Numbering

Important Note: Not everyone needs this type of numbering; if your discipline doesn’t require it, skip this section!

Word can automatically number sections (Chapter 1, 1.1, 1.2, etc.) of your document and include the chapter number in the captions (Figure 1.2, 2.2, etc.).

• Make sure each of your chapter titles are in the Heading 1 style, and then click on one of your chapter titles.
• Click OK when you are finished.
• If you typed in the text “Chapter #”, and now it is duplicating your efforts, delete the text you typed and leave the automatically generated chapter number.
• To follow the automatically generated chapter number with the title of your chapter on a new line, click just before the text of your title, hold down the Shift key on the keyboard, and then press the Enter key.

Note: If you have any problems with word automatically adding outline numbering to parts of your front matter, simply delete it.  Your chapter numbers will reset to show the correct number of chapters.

Removing the section numbering from our template

• Place your cursor in the title of your Chapter 1 (which is styled with the Heading 1 style)

In some cases, you may find that Word has added "Chapter X" before some of your Heading 1 sections that aren't chapters (like Acknowledgements or Bibliography). All you need to do is go to each of those sections, place your cursor after "Chapter X", and press Backspace to delete it.

Customizing Your Numbers

If you want to change anything about the numbers – for example, you are using the 1.1, 1.2 , etc... style but would like it to be 1.a, 1.b , etc..., or you want to change Arabic numbers (Chapter 1) to Ordinal (Chapter One), or you want to put a colon or a tab after the numbers, you can.

• Use the Number style for this level: pulldown menu (A) to choose from various numeral or letter styles.
• Under "Click level to modify" (B), in this screenshot we've selected level 1 (the Chapter level) and added the word “Chapter” and a space afterwards to the "Enter formatting for number" (C) field. 
• Then you can modify the other levels (Level 2 would be for a section in a chapter and Level 3 for a sub-section, and of course Level 4 for a sub-sub-section). You can, for example, change the period in between the level and sub-level numbers to a dash or anything you want by making the change in the "Enter formatting for number" (C) field.
• In the "Follow number with:" field (D), you may also see that a tab follows the number. We suggest you change that to a space. 

Formatting Theses & Dissertations using Word 2010: Numbering

• Footnotes and Endnotes
• Images, Charts, Other Objects
• Cross-References
• Applying a Style
• Modifying a Style
• Setting up a Heading 1 Example
• Setting Margins
• Creating and Using Templates
• Combining Chapters
• Finalizing Without Styles
• Adding Page Numbers
• Landscape Pages
• Automatic Table of Contents and Lists
• Commenting and Reviewing
• Quick Links

Page Contents

Learn about making subsections and appendices easier to number

• Customizing Your Numbers (different numbers in different places on the page on different pages)

Automatic Chapter and Subsection Numbering

Outline numbering in appendices, customizing your numbering, add different page numbers or number formats to different sections.

Let's say you want to use different page numbers or number formats and styles in different parts of your document. You could use page numbers such as i, ii, iii… for the introduction and table of contents and 1, 2, 3… for everything after. The trick is to divide the document into sections and to make sure those sections aren’t linked. Then, set the page numbering for  each  of those sections by following these steps.

Notes:  

If you're using Word Online, you can add page breaks but not section breaks. If you have the Word desktop application, use the  Open in Word  command to open the document. When you’re done and you save the document, it will continue to be stored where you opened it in Word Online. If you don’t have Word, you can  try  or  buy  it in the latest version of Office now.

Click at the very beginning of the first page where you want to start, stop, or change page numbering.

Choose  Layout  (or  Page Layout ) >  Breaks  >  Next Page .

Tip:  You might find it helpful to see section breaks and other formatting marks as you type. On the  Home tab, in the  Paragraph  group, choose  Show/Hide  (¶) to turn on the display of formatting marks. Choose the button again to turn off the display.

On the page after the section break, double-click in the header (top of page) or footer (bottom of page) area where you want to display page numbers. This will open the  Design  tab under  Header & Footer Tools .

Click  Link to Previous  to deselect the button and disconnect your header or footer from the header or footer in the previous section.

Note:  If  Link to Previous  is dimmed, it means there is no section break between the page you're on and the previous page. Make sure you've successfully added a section break (see step 2) and that you've opened the header for the appropriate section.

In the  Header & Footer  group, click  Page Number , pick a location, and then choose a style in the gallery.

Note:  If your change only affects the first page of your section, make sure  Different First Page  is not selected. Double-click the header or footer area of the first page of the section, and look in the  Options group on the  Design  tab.

To choose a format or to control the starting number, in the  Header & Footer  group, choose  Page Number  >  Format Page Numbers  to open the  Page Number Format  dialog box.

Do either or both of the following:

Click  Number format  to select the format for the numbering, such as a, b, c or i, ii, iii.

Under  Page numbering , choose  Start at  and type a number that you want to start the section with.

Tips:  

If you just want to change or delete the first page number of a section, double-click to open the header or footer on that page, and in the  Options  group on the  Design  tab, click  Different First Page . Then delete or format the first page number as you like.

You also can change the appearance of the page numbers. On the  Home  tab, choose  Font , and change, for example, the font style and family, and font size and color.

When you’re done, choose the  Close Header and Footer , or double-click anywhere outside the header or footer area to close it.

Format Page Number in Word 2010 and 2007 .

To Format the page numbering for different sections, follow these steps.  

• Click between two parts of your document that you want to number differently.
• on the  Page Layout Tab , Click  Breaks .
• Click  Next Page ,  Even Page , or  Odd Page , and then click  OK .
• Click in the first section of your document.
• On the  Insert  Tab Click  Header  and then Click Ed it Header
• Click in the header or footer where you want the page number
• On the  Header & Footer Tools tab  Click  Page Number
• Click The option that puts the page number where you would like
• On the  Header & Footer Tolls tab  Click  Page Number
• Click  Format Page numbers
• In the  Number Format  box, click the format that you want for the numbers in this section.
• Do one of the following:
• If you want the page numbering for the first page in this section to start at a particular number other than the first number in the format series, click  Start at  under  Page numbering , and then enter the first number that you want to appear on the first page of the section.
• If you want the page numbering to continue from the previous section, click Continue from previous section.
• Click  OK
• On the  Header and Footer  tools tab, click  Next  in the Navigation Group
• Repeat steps 1 through 3 and 9 through 11 to change the page numbering for another section
• On the  Header and Footer  tools tab, click  Close

Important Note: Not everyone needs this type of numbering; if your discipline doesn’t require it, skip this section!

Word can automatically number sections (Chapter 1, 1.1, 1.2, etc.) of your document and include the chapter number in the captions (Figure 1.2, 2.2, etc.).

• Make sure each of your chapter titles are in the Heading 1 style, and then click on one of your chapter titles.
• Click OK when you are finished.
• If you typed in the text “Chapter #”, and now it is duplicating your efforts, delete the text you typed and leave the automatically generated chapter number.
• To follow the automatically generated chapter number with the title of your chapter on a new line, click just before the text of your title, hold down the Shift key on the keyboard, and then press the Enter key.

Note: If you have any problems with word automatically adding outline numbering to parts of your front matter, simply delete it.  Your chapter numbers will reset to show the correct number of chapters.

Start Numbering on Page 2

How do i start page numbers on the second page of my word 2010 document.

Word 2010, by default, starts page numbers on the first page of a document. If the first page is a cover page, or a title page, then the second page of the document should be page 1.

• Insert page numbers by clicking on the Insert tab and choosing Page Number in the Header & Footer tab. Then select the position of the numbering.
• Because the new page numbers will be selected, the Design tab for Header & Footer Tools will appear. Under Options , select Different First Page . ( This will start page numbering page 2, but the second page will be labeled "2". This isn't what we wanted. There is an extra step to making this page say "1". )
• While the Design tab for Header & Footer is still up, select Page Number in the Header & Footer group. Then choose Format Page Number .
• The resulting window is shown to the right. Change the radial button at the bottom to Start at and type in 0 . Then click ok .

Follow the instructions at this link for roman numerals .

This was taken from the Just Tips webpage from the website for Mission Critical Training in Denver.

Customizing Your Numbers

If you want to change anything about the numbers – for example, you are using the 1.1, 1.2, etc. style but would like the word “Chapter” to display automatically in front of the Heading 1 number, you want to change Arabic numbers to Ordinal, or you want to change the spacing after the numbers, you can.

Click one of your headings, then go back to the Home Ribbon, and in the Paragraph Group click the Multilevel List icon (see screen shot above) and select Define New Multilevel List….   Click the More>> button, then select the relevant list level.

• You can use the Number style for this level: pulldown menu to choose from a various styles, as seen in the screenshot (below the Enter formatting for number: box).
• In the screenshot, with the Level on the left set at 1, we added the word “Chapter”. Moving to the second level, you can change the period in between the level and sublevel to a dash or anything you want in the Number format box.

You may also restart number for captions in your appendices or other separate areas of your dissertation.  You will need to change your outline numbering settings before inserting your captions.

We are going to do a variant of the steps above, but instead of defining new levels for your list, you will be editing the first level from this point forward. This should work, but sometimes Word acts up, and even though you’ve followed all the steps, it doesn’t take. If that happens, set up an appointment with the KNC and we’ll help you out.

• Apply the Heading 1 style to the title of your Appendix.
• On the Home Ribbon, go to the Paragraph Group , click the Multilevel List icon and select Define New Multilevel List….   Make sure the whole dialog box is showing by clicking on the More>> button (if it says <<Less instead, you are all set).
• Under Enter formatting for new number :, replace “Chapter” with “Appendix.”
• Choose the appropriate style, (such as A,B,C,… ) from the Number style for this level: pulldown menu.
• Set the correct letter or number in the Start at: pulldown.
• In the Apply changes to: pulldown, choose This point forward .
• Click OK to close the dialog box.
• << Previous: Setting Margins
• Next: Creating and Using Templates >>
• Last Updated: Dec 16, 2021 3:21 PM
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Thesis word count and format

Three months ago you considered whether you required a restriction to the access of your thesis, and you submitted your ‘Approval of Research Degree Thesis Title’ form. You’ve now finished writing up your thesis and it’s time to submit. We require your thesis to be presented and formatted in a certain way, so it’s important you read through the requirements below, before submitting your thesis. Find out more about thesis submission policy  (.pdf)

The completed thesis should be saved in PDF format. Once saved, please review the file to ensure all pages are displayed correctly.

Page layout

• Double line spacing should be used for everything except quotations, footnotes, captions to plates etc.
• It is desirable to leave 2.5cm margins at the top and bottom of the page.
• The best position for the page number is at the top right 1.3cm below the top edge.
• The fonts of Arial or Times New Roman should be used throughout the main body of the thesis, in the size of no less than 12 and no greater than 14

Illustrations (Graphs, diagrams, plates, computer printout etc.)

Illustrations embedded within the thesis should be formatted, numbered and titled accordingly:

a) Illustration upright - Caption at the bottom, Illustration number immediately above the

Illustration.

b) Illustration sideways - Caption at right-hand side with Illustration number above it.

Numbers for graphs, diagrams and maps are best located in the bottom right hand corner.

For further advice, please consult your supervisor.

Word counts

The following word counts are the maximum permitted for each level of award*:

What's excluded from the word count

*In all cases above, the word count includes quotations but excludes appendices, tables (including tables of contents), figures, abstract, references, acknowledgements, bibliography and footnotes (as long as the latter do not contain substantive argument). Please note these are word limits, not targets.

Specific requirements

For degrees which involve Practice as Research (PaR), no less than 50% of the research output should be the written thesis. The written thesis for PaR degrees may be comprised of a range of written elements including, but not limited to, a critical review, a portfolio, and/or a statement on theoretical discourse or methodology.

**In cases of practice-based PhD’s or MPhil’s these suggested word counts may be different. It is normally expected that the written component would comprise no less than 50% of the overall output.

Each copy of the thesis should contain a summary or abstract not exceeding 300 words.

As an example, see how the  layout of your title page (.pdf) should be.

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Words or Numerals – Using and Formatting Numbers

Posted by Rene Tetzner | Nov 9, 2021 | PhD Success | 0 |

6.4 Using and Formatting Numbers Appropriately

Every academic or scientific author who must include many numbers while reporting his or her research is faced with the challenge of using and formatting those numbers in an accurate, consistent and appropriate manner. Your department and/or discipline may very well have specific conventions and guidelines regarding the use of numbers that must be observed, and these may be quite specific, or you may have been provided with no guidelines at all for using numbers in a scholarly manner. Unfortunately, there is considerable inconsistency in the advice style guides offer regarding numbers, and even the way in which numbers are referred to while talking about their formatting can be contentious, with some guidance insisting that numbers as numerals rather than words should be called ‘figures,’ while others use ‘numerals’ instead (in this book I use ‘numerals’ to avoid confusion with ‘figures,’ which I use when referring to graphs, illustrations and the like). Style guides tend to assign a number of the variant practices associated with numbers to the conventions of either British or American English, and in some cases the link to one style or the other is clear, but there seems little consensus on some of these matters, and different style guides based in one country can vary in their advice as much as guides claiming to present the two different forms of English. Fortunately, there are also several patterns of usage that are maintained across guidelines, and a healthy share of common sense in using these as you aim for accuracy, consistency and clear communication across all parts of your thesis that include numbers will produce an effective result.

6.4.1 Words or Numerals?

One of the main concerns when using numbers in scholarly writing is whether they should be expressed as words or numerals. In most cases, a threshold value is set: below this value, words are used to express numbers, whereas above it, numerals are used. Unfortunately, there is no single threshold value that applies to every discipline and every thesis, and for very practical reasons. In the humanities and other nontechnical contexts, for instance, the value is often set at 100, whereas in more technical or scientific contexts where numbers tend to be used more extensively, the value is usually 10; for books on music, the value is often 12, and for online writing, numerals are used much more frequently than words, so all numbers may appear as numerals. In addition, such threshold values are only general rules and there are exceptions that apply regardless of the precise value used, as the following points make clear:

• Large round numbers are usually expressed as words (‘four hundred’ and ‘three million’) or as a combination of words (or abbreviations) and numerals (‘3 million’ or ‘3m.’) even if they are over the threshold value, although this is rarer in the sciences.
• Approximations as opposed to exact numbers are generally written as words even if they are over the threshold value: ‘I saw about fifty of them.’
• For a series of quantities, numerals are usually used regardless of whether the numbers are above or below the set value: ‘4, 6, 8, 28, 42, 53, 79, 98, 109 and 127.’
• When a sentence or, in some cases, a paragraph contains one or more numbers that are over the threshold value as well as numbers that are under it, it is best for both consistency and legibility to use numerals for all the numbers: ‘from 83 to 137’ instead of ‘from eighty-three to 137,’ and ‘between 6 and 13’ instead of ‘between six and 13.’
• If two sets or categories of numbers are used together in a sentence, clarity and legibility are often improved by using words for one set or category and numerals for the other: ‘the Oxford manuscript consists of forty-four folios with 31 lines on each page, the Worcester manuscript of forty-one folios with 34 lines to a page and the York manuscript of only thirty-nine folios with 36 lines on each page.’
• All numbers that appear at the beginning of a sentence should be written out as words: ‘Fourteen is the age of consent,’ not ‘14 is the age of consent.’ Alternatively, the sentence can be rephrased or rearranged to avoid placing the number at the beginning (The age of consent is 14), and if the number opening a sentence would be particularly cumbersome when spelled out (e.g., ‘412,724’), this should definitely be done.

• Numbers used for certain purposes tend to be expressed as numerals regardless of whether they are over the threshold value or not, including page numbers, section and chapter numbers, volume numbers of books and journals, issue numbers of journals, numbers of items in a list, Bible chapter and verse numbers (Genesis 2:4), appendix, table and figure numbers, numbers within tables and figures, numbers in an abstract (though this is not always the case by any means), act and scene numbers, line and column numbers, reference and cross-reference numbers, legal document numbers, numbers that are exact measures, numbers that appear before abbreviations (17 cm), numbers indicating percentages (‘50%,’ but if not exact they occasionally appear as words with ‘per cent’ or ‘percent,’ never with %), numbers recording the scores of tests and games, the numbers of points in scales (a 5-point scale), house, hotel, apartment and building numbers, road and highway numbers, numbers indicating years (‘1960,’ ‘2014’ etc., although they can be written out if necessary – at the beginning of a sentence, for instance) and days of the month, and union and lodge numbers.
• When a number is part of an already hyphenated compound, a numeral should be used to avoid excessive hyphenation: ‘a 35-year-old man,’ not ‘a thirty-five-year-old man.’
• While fractions, like whole numbers, can be written as either words or numerals, when whole numbers and fractions are combined, it is better to use numerals: ‘she walked 5¾ miles,’ not ‘she walked five and three-quarters miles.’

Ordinal numbers generally follow the same pattern as cardinal numbers, appearing as words when they are below the threshold value (‘second,’ ‘fifth,’ ‘eighth’ etc.) and as numerals with the appropriate suffix when they are above it (‘74th,’ ‘82nd’ and ‘143rd’). However, some styles will recommend that ordinal numbers be written out in situations where cardinal numbers would not be, or that they be written out on all occasions except in notes, references and quotations (in the last, the format used in the source should be observed). When compound numbers are written as words, they are hyphenated (‘thirty-two,’ ‘eighty-seventh’ etc.) and the same is true of fractions (‘one-quarter’ and ‘two-thirds’), although fractions are often left open and sometimes this is done to indicate a focus on the number or individual parts of a quantity (he gave one third of his inheritance to his sister and another third to his brother) rather than on the proportion or single quantity (he gave two-thirds of his inheritance away). When written out as words, numbers are pluralised in the same way as other words (‘eights and nines,’ ‘seventies’ etc.), although ‘dozen,’ ‘hundred,’ ‘thousand,’ ‘million,’ ‘billion’ and ‘trillion’ tend to remain singular (‘two thousand,’ ‘seven million’ etc.) unless they express indefinite quantities (‘dozens of rabbits’ and ‘thousands of black flies’). Numbers above one can take plural or singular verbs depending on the precise meaning: ‘there were only fourteen participants,’ but ‘fourteen participants is a small sample,’ though the latter could also be worded to reflect both the plural and the singular nature of the concept (fourteen participants result in a small sample).

6.4.2 Arabic Numerals

When numbers are expressed as Arabic numerals, the plurals are formed simply by adding an ‘s’ – no apostrophe is needed (‘1970s’ and ‘low temperatures in the 20s,’ not ‘1970’s’ and ‘low temperatures in the 20’s’); only if the numbers are discussed as entities in themselves might apostrophes be appropriate for clarity (we chose 8’s and 10’s). When numerals appear with abbreviated measures (‘94 mm,’ ‘7 kg’ and ‘30 °C’) there should usually be a space between the numeral and the abbreviation, and the abbreviation should not be pluralised (see Sections 6.3.5 and 6.3.6). When numerals appear with other letters, however, there is generally no space between the numerals and the letters: ‘pp.47ff’ and ‘Item 7a.’ In nontechnical writing, numerals of four (5,698) or five (89,703) digits generally contain a comma after the third digit counting from the right, but in some instances the comma is not used in four-digit numerals (5698); if this is the case, the comma should nonetheless be used in four-digit numerals that appear in any figures or tables (and especially in any columns of tables) that also contain numerals with five or more digits so that alignment is preserved. Often in technical and scientific writing, the commas are not used, but spaces are used instead (‘5 698’ and ‘89 703’), though the four-digit numeral can appear without the space; if so and four-digit numerals appear in figures or tables (again, especially in the columns of tables) along with numerals of five digits or more, the space will need to be added to preserve alignment (for more information on tables and figures, see Section 4.4.1).

The same principle applies to digits after the decimal point: after three digits counted from the left, a space is often used (‘1.479 6’ and ‘7.798 99’), but not always if there are only four digits after the decimal point (1.4796), and alignment should be preserved in tables and figures by adding the space to such four-digit numerals if numerals of five or more digits also appear. In some styles and/or disciplines, the number of digits that appear after the decimal point should be consistent across all numerals used in a particular context or table: if four digits is the maximum number of post-decimal digits in any numeral, all numerals should bear four digits after the decimal, and zeroes can be added to achieve this when necessary. This is by no means a uniform practice, however, so you may only want to apply it in your thesis if it is required by the guidelines you are following or conventional in your discipline. Finally, the decimal point, not the European decimal comma, is used in Arabic numerals in scholarly English prose (‘4.75’ for ‘four point seven five,’ not ‘4,75’). Generally speaking, decimal fractions should feature a zero before the decimal (0.683), especially if they are discussed in relation to quantities of 1.00 and more; if, however, the quantity never reaches 1.00 (as in probabilities and correlation coefficients), the initial zero can be omitted, and the same is the case in ballistics (a .22-calibre rifle).

Technical writing in a number of the sciences can present other formatting challenges and issues which I do not have time or space to cover here, but detailed advice can be found in a number of places. Chapter 13 of Butcher’s Copy-Editing (Butcher et al., 2006) deals with ‘Science and Mathematics Books,’ for instance, and features several sections focussing on numbers (Section 13.1.4 on equations, Section 13.2.5 on miscellaneous items and Section 13.3 on units), as well as separate discussions of astronomy, biology, chemistry, computing, geology and medicine; the chapter also includes an excellent list of references (pp.347–349) for further help while working in these disciplines. Chapter 14 of New Hart’s Rules (Ritter, 2005) focuses on ‘Science, Mathematics, and Computing’ with Section 14.1.3, for example, covering numerals and Section 14.1.4 dealing with units, while other sections provide advice on degrees, temperatures and so on; here, too, there are separate discussions of certain disciplines, including biology, medicine, chemistry, computing, mathematics and astronomy with helpful discussions of the complex formats and punctuation of numerals in these disciplines. Punctuation in the form of commas or spaces is not required at all, however, for numerals used for certain purposes, such as page, column and line numbers, house and hotel room numbers, and reference and library call or shelf numbers. The numerals used for years and eras generally do not feature punctuation either, except BP (Before Present) and long BC dates (for more information on the formats of dates, see Section 6.4.4).

Why PhD Success?

To Graduate Successfully

This article is part of a book called "PhD Success" which focuses on the writing process of a phd thesis, with its aim being to provide sound practices and principles for reporting and formatting in text the methods, results and discussion of even the most innovative and unique research in ways that are clear, correct, professional and persuasive.

The assumption of the book is that the doctoral candidate reading it is both eager to write and more than capable of doing so, but nonetheless requires information and guidance on exactly what he or she should be writing and how best to approach the task. The basic components of a doctoral thesis are outlined and described, as are the elements of complete and accurate scholarly references, and detailed descriptions of writing practices are clarified through the use of numerous examples.

The basic components of a doctoral thesis are outlined and described, as are the elements of complete and accurate scholarly references, and detailed descriptions of writing practices are clarified through the use of numerous examples. PhD Success provides guidance for students familiar with English and the procedures of English universities, but it also acknowledges that many theses in the English language are now written by candidates whose first language is not English, so it carefully explains the scholarly styles, conventions and standards expected of a successful doctoral thesis in the English language.

Individual chapters of this book address reflective and critical writing early in the thesis process; working successfully with thesis supervisors and benefiting from commentary and criticism; drafting and revising effective thesis chapters and developing an academic or scientific argument; writing and formatting a thesis in clear and correct scholarly English; citing, quoting and documenting sources thoroughly and accurately; and preparing for and excelling in thesis meetings and examinations. 

Completing a doctoral thesis successfully requires long and penetrating thought, intellectual rigour and creativity, original research and sound methods (whether established or innovative), precision in recording detail and a wide-ranging thoroughness, as much perseverance and mental toughness as insight and brilliance, and, no matter how many helpful writing guides are consulted, a great deal of hard work over a significant period of time. Writing a thesis can be an enjoyable as well as a challenging experience, however, and even if it is not always so, the personal and professional rewards of achieving such an enormous goal are considerable, as all doctoral candidates no doubt realise, and will last a great deal longer than any problems that may be encountered during the process.

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Rene Tetzner

Rene Tetzner's blog posts dedicated to academic writing. Although the focus is on How To Write a Doctoral Thesis, many other important aspects of research-based writing, editing and publishing are addressed in helpful detail.

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APA Style Guidelines for Numbers | Words or Numerals?

Published on August 7, 2015 by Sarah Vinz . Revised on July 23, 2023.

Numbers can be written either as words (e.g., one hundred) or numerals (e.g., 100). In this article we follow the guidelines of APA Style , one of the most common style guides used in academic writing .

In general, words should be used for numbers from zero through nine, and numerals should be used from 10 onwards. This is true for both cardinal numbers (e.g., two, 11) and ordinal numbers (e.g., second, 11 th ). However, there are some important exceptions to this rule.

Note that other style guides, such as Chicago Style,  address numbers differently (for example, in Chicago, you use words for numbers up to 100). Regardless of what style guide you follow, the most important thing is to be consistent in how you treat numbers throughout your document.

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Table of contents

Writing percentages, reporting statistical results that include numbers, writing numbers that are accompanied by measurements, writing long numbers, consistency may not be obvious, other interesting articles.

Use numerals for numbers from zero to nine that are followed by a precise unit of measurement.

The samples measured 7 cm in diameter. (“cm” is a unit of measurement)

But: These three samples were subjected to further testing.

Use words for any number that is used to start a sentence, with the exception of years.

Seventy-two thousand ink cartridges are sold every day.

Nineteenth-century novels often feature complicated plot lines.

But: 2008 saw record olive crops throughout the Mediterranean.

Use words for common fractions and set expressions.

According to the survey, two thirds of the employees are dissatisfied.

Understanding the Five Pillars of Islam is a critical first step.

The Fourth of July is traditionally marked by a firework display.

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With percentages, the standard is to use numerals and “%” (not “percent”).

According to the report, 45% of the workforce is employed in the service sector. Only 6% currently work in agriculture.

The main exception is if you are using a percentage to begin a sentence. In this case, use words to express the entire percentage.

Thirteen percent of the patients reported that their symptoms improved after taking the experimental drug.

If your paper includes quantitative research, you probably have data to report. Statistics, mathematical functions, ratios, and percentages are all written using numerals. This is true regardless of whether they are included within a table or as part of the actual text. Keep the following guidelines in mind:

• Report most statistics to two decimal places (such as M = 5.44).
• Report statistics that could never exceed 1.0 to three decimal places (such as p < .001).
• If a value has the potential to exceed 1.0, use the leading zero. If a value can never exceed 1.0, do not use the leading zero.
• Italicize values that are not Greek letters (such as M , SD , p , and F ).
• Include spaces before and after =, >, and <.

The average IQ of the participants was relatively high ( M = 137.33, SD = 4.54).

The results of the second test were statistically significant, t (12) = 4.11, p < .05.

There are further detailed guidelines about reporting statistics in APA .

If a number comes immediately before a unit of measurement, use numerals.

Each patient received  5 mg  of the experimental drug.

The tallest participant was 2.03 m .

Also use numerals for precise ages, times, dates, scores, points on a scale, and amounts of money.

The final score of Ghana 2, Brazil 1 did not represent a decisive victory.

Children under 8 years receive a $50 discount.

But: Most girls start reading when they are about five years old. (“about” makes the number imprecise)

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Longer numbers follow specific rules:

• Use a period to indicate a decimal point.
• Starting with 1,000, use commas to separate every three digits.

The region has an average of 43.75 doctors for every 10,000 people.

Some predict that the number of users will reach 2 billion by 2020.

One of the main reasons why writing numbers is complicated is that consistently applying the rules may lead to a text that actually seems very in consistent. Consider the following paragraphs:

At about the age of seven , the girl’s height was 1.47 m. This placed her in the fifth percentile, although her weight placed her in the top 7% of her class. By the time she was 9 years old, she was taller than half of the boys in her year. Five years later, she was still ranked 15 th .

Thirteen thousand viewers watched the performance of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night from the park, while another 2,000 watched from the surrounding buildings and 1.2 million watched it on television. As one  out of every 11 residents saw at least part of the play, this one event can definitely be considered a success.

These texts may look awkward because so many different number formats have been used, but don’t be deceived – the above guidelines have all been followed.

If you are not required to strictly follow a particular style (such as APA format ), you may have some flexibility to modify the guidelines presented in this article. Just be sure to apply any modifications you make throughout your entire document.

If you want to know more about AI for academic writing, AI tools, or fallacies make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples or go directly to our tools!

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Sarah's academic background includes a Master of Arts in English, a Master of International Affairs degree, and a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science. She loves the challenge of finding the perfect formulation or wording and derives much satisfaction from helping students take their academic writing up a notch.

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