The University of Sheffield
Research & Innovation Services

Preparation of theses

Students are advised to familiarise themselves with the following sections before commencing work on the preparation of their thesis. They are also advised to consult their supervisor regarding any subject-specific aspects of the thesis, for example the inclusion of photographs or diagrams or the presentation of supplementary information such as CDs or DVDs. Permission to submit non-standard material should be gained by the student´s supervisor from Faculty prior to the thesis being submitted to Research & Innovation Services.

A PhD candidate must satisfy the examiners that the thesis forms an addition to knowledge, shows evidence of systematic study and of the ability to relate the results of such study to the general body of knowledge in the subject, and is worthy of publication either in full or in an abridged form.  The format of the thesis must also demonstrate that it is a coherent body of work.  There is currently no provision for students to submit a thesis which consists of a series of self-contained published or unpublished papers or articles, and theses prepared in this format will not be accepted for submission.

Writing the thesis

The main source of advice and information for students beginning to write their thesis is the supervisor. It is important that students discuss the structure of the thesis with their supervisor, together with the schedule for its production, and the role of the supervisor in checking drafts, at an early stage in their research programme. The supervisor will also advise on such matters as undertaking a literature review, referencing and formatting the thesis, and generally on what should or should not be included in the thesis.

A number of University courses are available that might prove helpful to students, e.g. academic writing courses run by the English Language Teaching Centre (ELTC). There are also units in the DDP on thesis production and various other resources available on request from Research & Innovation Services.

There are a number of excellent books available that offer advice on how to start, write and complete a thesis. These are available on loan from the University Library and to buy. Many students have found it helpful to meet with people who have recently submitted their thesis and can therefore pass on their experience firsthand. Academic departments may be able to facilitate this. It is normally also possible to consult recently submitted theses in the University Library or online.

Preparation for including in the thesis material owned by another person should not wait until writing-up but start at the beginning of your research. The correct use of third-party copyright material and the avoidance of unfair means are considered very seriously by the University and compulsory training sessions are available (see section 'Use of copyright material').

Early familiarity with the software packages a student will use to produce the thesis will prove helpful. The University´s Managed computing network hosts a whole range of software that may be of help to research students, over and above the Microsoft Office suite.

Acceptable support in writing the thesis

It is acceptable for a student to receive the following support in writing the thesis from the supervisory team (that is additional to the advice and/or information outlined above, if the supervisory team has considered that this support is necessary:

i. Where the meaning of text is not clear the student should be asked to re-write the text in question in order to clarify the meaning;

ii. English language: If the meaning of text is or remains unclear, the supervisory team can provide support in correcting grammar and sentence construction in order to ensure that the meaning of text is clear (if a student requires significant support with written English above what is considered to be correcting grammar and sentence construction, the supervisory team will, at the earliest opportunity, require the student to obtain remedial tuition support from the University’s English Language Teaching Centre);

iii. The supervisory team cannot re-write text that changes the meaning of the text (ghost writing/ghost authorship in a thesis is unacceptable);

iv. The supervisory team can provide guidance on the structure, content and expression of writing;

v. The supervisory team can proof-read the text.

The Confirmation Review and the viva are the key progression milestones for testing whether a thesis is a student's own work.

A request for an extension of time limit, beyond the time limit for the research degree programme, should not be made if the request is only to allow the student more time to improve the standard of written English in the thesis.

Word limits

No University regulation exists governing the length of theses, although a number of Faculties and departments have established guidelines. Where these are not available, the student should consult the supervisor as to the length of thesis appropriate to his/her particular topic of research. It should, however, be noted that brevity achieved without sacrifice of clarity is a virtue much appreciated by examiners. The following Faculties have published guidelines on thesis length:

The above word limits exclude footnotes, bibliography and appendices.

Referencing

Accurate and consistent referencing is an essential part of your thesis. In the first instance, students are advised to consult with their supervisor regarding acceptable methods of referencing in their discipline (i.e. the presentation of footnotes, bibliography, appendices, etc). The University Library provides online Information Skills tutorials, which outline the various styles. Look for your department in the list on the Library website.

Please contact the librarian for your subject for further help. Full contact details are available on the Library website