dedication of thesis

Dedication in Dissertation: Examples and Guidance

The dedication section of your dissertation is where you can express your appreciation and gratitude to those who have been instrumental in your academic journey. It’s a heartfelt acknowledgment of the support, encouragement, and inspiration provided by individuals or groups that have played a significant role in your life. Below are some examples and guidance for writing a meaningful dedication in your dissertation.

“To my beloved parents,

Your unwavering love, endless support, and sacrifices have been the cornerstone of my academic journey. Your encouragement and belief in my abilities have been my guiding light through the highs and lows of this doctoral pursuit. This dissertation is dedicated to you, with deepest gratitude and love.”

“I dedicate this dissertation to my mentor and friend, Professor [Name],

Your mentorship, wisdom, and encouragement have been instrumental in shaping my academic and professional growth. Your dedication to excellence and passion for research have inspired me to pursue this scholarly endeavor with diligence and determination. This dissertation is a tribute to your guidance and belief in my potential.”

“This dissertation is dedicated to the memory of my dear grandmother, [Name],

Your love, wisdom, and strength continue to inspire me every day. Though you are no longer with us, your spirit lives on in my heart and my work. This dissertation is a testament to your enduring influence and the values you instilled in me.”

Guidance for Writing a Dedication

Identify the recipient..

When deciding who or what to dedicate your dissertation to, it’s crucial to reflect on the individuals or entities that have profoundly impacted your academic journey. Consider those who have provided unwavering support, guidance, and inspiration throughout your pursuit of knowledge.

This could include family members whose sacrifices have enabled your education, mentors who have offered invaluable wisdom and encouragement, friends who have stood by you during challenging times, or even influential figures who have shaped your academic interests.

Additionally, it’s essential to recognize entities,, such as organizations or causes, that align with your academic goals and values. By identifying the recipient(s) thoughtfully, you ensure that your dedication carries genuine significance and reflects the essence of your academic journey.

Express Gratitude

The dedication section of your dissertation provides an opportunity to express profound gratitude to those who have contributed to your academic achievements.

Use heartfelt language to convey your appreciation for their support, encouragement, and belief in your abilities. Share specific examples or anecdotes that illustrate their influence on your academic trajectory, highlighting moments where their guidance or presence was particularly impactful.

Whether it’s the sacrifices made by your parents, the mentorship provided by a respected professor, or the enduring legacy of a departed loved one, expressing gratitude allows you to acknowledge the profound influence of these individuals or entities on your academic journey.

Furthermore, by expressing gratitude sincerely and authentically, you honor their invaluable contributions to your personal and intellectual growth, reinforcing the importance of community and support in the pursuit of scholarly endeavors.

In crafting your dedication, brevity is key to maintaining the sincerity and impact of your message. While it’s natural to want to express your gratitude elaborately, it’s important to resist the temptation to include extraneous details that may dilute the essence of your dedication.

Instead, focus on distilling your sentiments into a concise and impactful statement that captures the essence of your appreciation. By keeping your dedication short and to the point, you ensure that the message remains clear and resonates deeply with the intended recipients.

This concise approach not only respects the time and attention of your readers but also allows the sincerity of your gratitude to shine through without being overshadowed by unnecessary embellishments.

In essence, brevity enhances the effectiveness of your dedication, allowing it to leave a lasting impression on your audience.

Consider Relevance

While the dedication section of your dissertation is a personal expression of gratitude, it’s essential to ensure that it remains relevant to the overarching theme or subject matter of your academic work.

Your dedication should align with the context of your research, reflecting the connections between your academic pursuits and the individuals or entities you choose to honor.

Consider how the dedication contributes to the overall narrative of your dissertation, reinforcing themes of support, inspiration, or mentorship that may have influenced your scholarly journey.

By maintaining relevance, you underscore the symbiotic relationship between your academic endeavors and the supportive network that has facilitated your growth and development.

In doing so, your dedication serves not only as a token of appreciation but also as a reflection of the intrinsic ties between personal gratitude and academic excellence.

Personalize Your Message

Infusing your dedication with personal anecdotes, memories, or meaningful experiences can elevate the emotional resonance of your message, making it more heartfelt and impactful.

By sharing specific instances where the recipient(s) played a pivotal role in your academic journey, you not only convey your gratitude but also create a deeper connection between your dedication and the individuals or entities being honored.

Consider recounting memorable interactions, pivotal moments of encouragement, or instances where the recipient(s) provided unwavering support during challenging times.

These personal touches serve to underscore the genuine appreciation you feel towards them and highlight the profound impact of their influence on your academic growth.

Moreover, by weaving personal narratives into your dedication, you create a narrative thread that honors the past and celebrates the enduring bonds forged through shared experiences and mutual support.

Proofread Carefully

Before finalizing your dedication, it’s essential to meticulously proofread it to ensure accuracy, clarity, and appropriateness. Grammatical errors, typos, or inconsistencies can detract from the professionalism of your dissertation and undermine the sincerity of your message.

Take the time to review your dedication carefully, paying close attention to spelling, grammar, punctuation, and overall coherence. Consider seeking feedback from trusted peers, mentors, or advisors to gain fresh perspectives and identify any areas that may require refinement.

Additionally, ensure that the tone and language of your dedication align with the overall style and tone of your dissertation.

By conducting thorough proofreading, you demonstrate attention to detail and a commitment to presenting your work with the utmost professionalism and precision.

Ultimately, a carefully crafted dedication, free from errors and ambiguities, not only enhances the overall quality of your dissertation but also ensures that your message of gratitude is conveyed with clarity and sincerity.

Dedication in Dissertation: Final Remarks

In conclusion, the dedication section of your dissertation serves as a poignant tribute to those who have played a significant role in shaping your academic journey.

By following the guidance provided, you can craft a dedication that honors the individuals or entities that have provided unwavering support, guidance, and inspiration along the way.

From expressing heartfelt gratitude to ensuring conciseness and relevance, each dedication aspect contributes to its overall impact and resonance.

Personalizing your message with anecdotes and memories adds depth and sincerity and strengthens the emotional connection between you and the recipients of your dedication. Furthermore, careful proofreading ensures that your message is communicated with clarity, accuracy, and professionalism, leaving a lasting impression on your readers.

Ultimately, the dedication section is more than just a formality—it’s a meaningful opportunity to express appreciation for the invaluable contributions of others to your academic and personal growth.

Through thoughtful reflection and expression, your dedication becomes a testament to the supportive network that has accompanied you on your scholarly journey, enriching the narrative of your dissertation and reinforcing the importance of gratitude and community in academic endeavors.

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Useful Resources

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Formatting Your Thesis or Dissertation with Microsoft Word

Dedication, Acknowledgements, & Preface
Introduction
Copyright Page
Headings and Subheadings
Citations and Bibliography
Page Numbers
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

Dedication, acknowledgements, & preface

Dedication, Acknowledgements, and Preface sections are all optional pages. But, what is the difference between these three?

Dedication — A personal tribute to someone or a group of people. Example: "To my parents."

Acknowledgements — A professional tribute to a person or people who helped you with the thesis. Example: "I wish to thank my thesis advisor for the hours of help in the lab making sure the experiments were set up properly and guiding me through the thesis process."

Preface ( sometimes confused with Foreward or Prologue ) — A very rarely included section that details why you are qualified to write about your topic of your thesis or why you became interested in the topic (for example, an anecdote about a childhood incident that led you to become interested in the topic). Do not confuse this with the literature review; this is more of a personal story.

The video below gives more examples of what can be included in these sections. Note: If your dedication is short (like "To my parents"), you may choose not to include the "Dedication" heading at the top of the page. A demonstration of how to format the dedication page this way is shown below.

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Thesis / dissertation formatting manual (2024).

Filing Fees and Student Status
Submission Process Overview
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Dedication Page

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The Dedication Page is optional. If you choose to include a Dedication Page, please ensure that:

You are using the same font as in the rest of your manuscript.
No images are included.
Page number ii appears centered at the bottom of the page.

Please note that the Dedication Page is different from the Acknowledgements Page.

Dedication Page Example

Here is an example of a dedication page from the template:

Screenshot of Dedication Page from Template

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Experiences of a London PhD student and beyond

Thesis acknowledgements: Samples and how to write your own thesis or dissertation acknowledgements

Writing a thesis can be tricky. That’s why I’m starting a new series covering each section of the thesis, from thesis acknowledgements all the way to conclusions. I’ll be guiding you through the whole process, from what to include in your thesis to how to write it, along with examples from defended theses to help you to write your own.

We’ll begin by covering thesis acknowledgments. The acknowledgements section appears at the start of the thesis so it is often one of the first parts that everyone tries to tackle. As this will likely be your first taste of your thesis it can often feel quite intimidating to write!

Thankfully it’s also one of the easiest parts of the thesis to complete, which may help to give you a boost for the rest.

In this post we’ll cover everything to do with thesis acknowledgements: samples, what to include and how to write them. At the end I’ll also outline a 60 minute exercise which will get you preparing a first draft of your own! I’ve also got a similar post to craft your thesis title, which you can check out here .

I’m writing this post with a PhD thesis in mind but it could work just as well if you’re looking for help including acknowledgements in your Master’s or undergraduate thesis/ dissertation.

What is the purpose of the acknowledgements section in a thesis?

The acknowledgements section of your thesis is an opportunity to reflect on the people who have supported and shaped your PhD experience.

Don’t worry, although your examiners will be interested to read your acknowledgements section, you won’t really get judged on it in your PhD viva. This section is for you to share as little, or as much, as you want about everyone involved in your PhD journey.

The acknowledgements are a very personal section of your thesis and each PhD student will have different things they want to include. For example, many people wonder: How do I thank my family in a thesis? And the acknowledgements section is the answer!

Note – You can also use a thesis dedication to thank your family. This is a separate section to your thesis acknowledgements and is entirely optional. It’s usually just a single line, just like you might find at the front of some books. Most people don’t include a separate dedication section but you can if you want to go that extra step.

What to include in your thesis acknowledgements

There are usually no formal requirements dictating what to include in your acknowledgements. However, do double check for any potential rules at your specific institution.

In general the acknowledgements are the section of your thesis where you have some creative liberty and are not bound by rigid research protocols or guidelines.

Many students choose to use the acknowledgements section to thank people (or organisations) who:

Introduced them to the topic
Helped with their PhD application
Funded the project
Supervisors
Technicians
Partners, friends or family
Or anyone else who made an impression along the way!

But remember, you can include whatever you want! For example in my own PhD acknowledgements, which you’ll read further down this post, I thanked the university for providing a green outdoor space for us.

Acknowledge whoever and whatever influenced your own PhD experience.

You may find it helpful to start by writing a list of everyone you wish to thank.

How do you write an acknowledgements section?

Since there are no guidelines to worry about, it is really up to you how you write your own thesis acknowledgements. You have a lot of freedom for what to include and how to write it.

However you may find the following suggested phases helpful as a starting point.

Who you want to thank…

“First and foremost, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to…”
“I must thank…”
“A special thanks to…”
“I would like to highlight two truly exceptional people from…”
“I want to thank…”
“In addition, I would like to mention”
“I would also like to extend my thanks to…”
“I want to give my deepest appreciation to…”
“Finally, but the most importantly, I would like to thank…”

…then, why you want to thank them

It can be nice to also include why you’re thanking these people, using phrases such as:

“…for the opportunity to be a part of this project”
“…for always being there when I needed his support, reviewing my progress constantly, and guiding me through my PhD studies”
“….for being a great bunch of people in and out of the lab”
…”for all the guidance, support and outstanding feedback”
“… who took their time to help teach me…”
“…for her unlimited support and unconditional guidance during my PhD journey”
“…were always there for discussions about anything that I was unsure on”
“…whom has offered invaluable advice that will benefit me throughout my life”
“…for supporting me since my undergraduate, and for the valuable discussions we had along the road”
“…for making the past 4 years much more enjoyable and keeping me sane throughout the whole process”

Here is a whole example from an accepted PhD thesis:

Firstly, I want to thank [supervisor’s name(s)] for giving me the opportunity to work on this project, providing valuable guidance and feedback, and challenging me to grow as a scientist. Excerpt from Dr Wane’s thesis acknowledgements, available via this page or use this direct download link .

Some people will choose to use full names and titles for any professional acknowledgements and first names for any personal ones. Again, this is up to you.

To help illustrate the variety of thesis acknowledgement formats, we’ll shortly be coming on to some examples of acknowledgment sections from successfully defended theses.

Before then I want to cover some of the main questions relating to how to write your own thesis acknowledgements section:

How long should you spend writing your thesis acknowledgements?

My suggestion is to spend only an hour or two making a first draft. I suggest doing this well ahead of your final deadline so that you have time to come back to it. Even so, I’d certainly look to spend far less than one day’s work on it in total.

It is a “nice to have” and means a lot to a lot of people, but remember you’re really only writing this section for yourself. I probably spent about two hours writing mine in total, simply because it wasn’t a priority for me.

What order should you write your acknowledgements in?

A typical way to write your acknowledgements is to go from the most formal/academic relationships to the least.

It is normal to start with any funding bodies, then formal people like your PhD supervisors, then move through labmates, friends and family. But again, there are generally no rules!

How long should the acknowledgements section be?

You can include as much or as little as you want. My own PhD acknowledgements section was just under a page long and it consisted of 386 words or 1892 characters (without spaces).

Here is how it was formatted:

A screenshot of the acknowledgements section from my PhD thesis

But let’s not just look at my thesis. Using Imperial’s publicly accessible database I went through 25 published PhD theses for you.

The average (mean) length of these 25 theses was 365 words and 1793 characters without spaces. Writing an acknowledgements section of length 350-450 words was the most common:

Histogram of thesis acknowledgements length. Most theses were between 350-450 words long

The shortest acknowledgements sections was 122 words(653 characters) long. The longest one consisted of 1022 words and 5082 characters. Hopefully this illustrates that you’re not really bound by any limits. Write as much or as little as you want for this section.

Sample thesis acknowledgements

My own phd thesis acknowledgement.

My own PhD thesis is available here *, the acknowledgements section is on page 5. Here is the complete version of my acknowledgements section:

I would like to acknowledge both EPSRC and the Class of 1964 Scholarship for their financial support. It has been an honour to be the inaugural recipient of the Class of 1964 Scholarship and I am indebted to the donors in providing me complete academic freedom in this research. An immense thank you to my PhD supervisors: Jonathan Jeffers, Ulrich Hansen and Julian Jones. Support and guidance throughout the project from you all has been invaluable. JJ in particular you’ve been a fantastic primary supervisor. Thank you to all the academics who helped me get to this stage. The late Dr Kajal Mallick and his Biomedical Materials course at the University of Warwick was a huge influence and without which I would have never followed this path. My “pre-doc” supervisors in Dr Helen Lee of University of Cambridge and in particular the remarkable Prof Judith Hall OBE of Cardiff University from whom I learned so much. Thanks to Alison Paul and Michael Lim for being so supportive when I was considering applying for PhDs. It has been an amazing experience working between two research groups across different departments, thanks to everyone from the Biomechanics and JRJ groups I’ve worked with and from whom I’ve learned so much. Thank you of course to the Hybrids team I’ve worked so closely on this project with: Fra, Gloria, Agathe, Maria, Silvia, it’s been great fun working with you all! Gloria in particular thanks for you all your help, support and friendship: your inclusivity is appreciated by many. Saman, I’ve been so pleased to have you working on DVC with me and being able to discuss ideas with you really has been invaluable. I am grateful to everyone I’ve collaborated with externally: Farah, Amin and Brett (Natural History Museum) plus Andy and Behzad (Royal Veterinary College), thank you all for your support and input. Thanks also to everyone I’ve met through the Environmental Society at Imperial in particular Chelcie: your friendship and support have added a lot to my life. Thanks to Imperial for providing space for the ESoc garden, taking a break and enjoy nature in this space has certainly improved my work. Thanks of course to my family for their support. Finally, thank you Jo for always being so supportive and helping me every step of the way. My PhD thesis, available here . Acknowledgements are on page 5.

*For me the thesis was a means to an end. I wanted my PhD and didn’t want to spend too long agonising over each page. Therefore, it is possible there are typos in there, if you read any of it: firstly well done, I haven’t looked at it much since submitting the final copy, secondly, please don’t tell me about any typos you find!

Other PhD thesis acknowledgement examples

Below are the other 24 published and openly accessible STEM PhD theses I found for this article.

For each person’s thesis, either follow the first link to be taken to the landing page or follow the second link to directly download their thesis: I gave you a choice in case you don’t want stuff to start downloading automatically from a random text link!

PhD thesis acknowledgements example access tutorial

The list is formatted as follows:

[Link to thesis page on repository], [which page the acknowledgements appear on], [direct link to download the thesis]
Dr Shipman’s thesis , for the acknowledgements go to page 3. Direct download here .
Longest acknowledgements section of the list at 1022 words.
Dr Li’s thesis , page 11. Direct download here .
Dr Podgurschi’s thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Medjeral-Thomas’ thesis page 3. Direct download here .
Dr Sztuc’s thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Yap’s thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Sukkar’s thesis , page 9. Direct download here .
Dr Lo’s thesis , page 11. Direct download here .
Dr Sullivan’s thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Tawy’s thesis , page 3. Direct download here .
Dr Wane’s thesis , page 2. Direct download here .
Dr Addison’s thesis , page 4. Direct download here .
Dr Wang’s thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Sebest’s thesis , page 3. Direct download here .
Dr Hopkins’ thesis , page 7. Direct download here .
Dr Bates’s thesis , page 4. Direct download here .
Dr Somuyiwa’s thesis , page 6. Direct download here .
Dr Reynolds’ thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
My labmate’s thesis, who wrote the acknowledgements in a different style to the rest by using bullet points.
Shortest acknowledgements section of the list at 122 words.
Dr Manca’s thesis , acknowledgements on page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Liu’s thesis , page 5. Direct download here .
Dr Hotinli’s thesis , page 7. Direct download here .

My top tips for writing your own thesis acknowledgements

Don’t spend too long on them. The acknowledgements section is really not worth spending too much time on. Even worse, since they appear at the start of your thesis, it is tempting to write your acknowledgements first. This can be fine, or, it can be an opportunity for lots of unnecessary procrastination. Which I why I instead suggest that you…
Write your acknowledgements at the end of your first draft of the thesis. There is no need to write your thesis in the order it is presented. If you write your acknowledgements at the end you’ll be less likely to spend precious time on a section which really doesn’t warrant too much brain power.
Don’t stress about it. The acknowledgements are merely for yourself and for anyone close to you that you want to thank. There are far more important sections for you to be particular about!
Remember: You can make changes after you submit the copy for your viva. As with everything in your thesis, you can make changes after you submit the thesis for your viva. The real “final” copy is when you submit your thesis to the university for archiving. Which is even more reason to not spend too much time writing it the first time around.

Draft your own thesis or dissertation acknowledgements in 60 minutes

Hopefully you now feel inspired to start writing your own thesis acknowledgments!

For the exercise below I’d suggest setting a stop-watch on your phone and move on to the next section when the alarm goes, even if you’ve not fully finished. The aim is to have a rough draft at the end which you can polish off at a later point in time.

Read a few of the example thesis acknowledgements above to get a feel for the structure ( 15 mins )
List everyone (or everything!) you wish to thank – including any personal and professional acknowledgements in addition to funding bodies if relevant ( 10 mins )
Decide on a rough order in which to thank them ( 5 mins )
Craft some sentences using the phrases mentioned above ( 30 mins )

Congratulations you’re now well on your way to having one section of your PhD thesis completed!

I hope this post has been useful for constructing your own thesis or dissertation acknowledgements. It is the first in a series of posts aiming to help your thesis writing by delving into each section in depth. Be sure to let me know if you have any questions or suggestions for other content which you would find useful.

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How to Write a Dedication

#scribendiinc

And the dedication goes to…

When you have finally completed the gruelling yet wonderful process of writing a book, short story , dissertation, etc., you are then faced with the difficult decision of dedicating this source of all your hard work to someone special. Here are some helpful tips to ease your anxiety and assist you in writing a dedication page.

Picking a person

The most difficult part of writing this piece of front matter is choosing who you would like to dedicate your work to. Some writers may find it to be the most difficult part of the whole process. When choosing who to write your dedication for, think about the process you just went through and who helped you get through it. This could include a variety of people, including a parent, sibling, or other family member, a spouse or partner, a friend, a supervisor, a colleague, or even a pet. This is a very personal choice and there is no wrong decision.

Naming names

After you have decided who you will write your dedication for, you must decide how you are going to identify them. This will be based on your own personal preference and what is appropriate, according to your relationship with that person. The identification could vary from formal to informal.

On the formal end of the spectrum, your dedication could be addressed to Dr. So and So, Mr. X, or even Mother and Father. In between formal and informal, there are options like Mom, Dad, My sister, My friend, a person’s first and last name (no title), etc. On the informal side, you could use the first name or nickname of someone you know.

Reason for the dedication

The next component in writing your dedication is explaining why you chose this person. Many authors provide a reason for their dedication selections. As with the whole dedication process, this is an extremely personal and subjective decision. The dedication could simply be: "For my mom"; others may choose to explain their decision: "For my mom; without her I would not be here." You may want to write a funny anecdote about the person, an experience you shared, or even a private joke shared only by the two of you. As seen in our example dedication page, there are many types of dedications, each with it's own style. Your reason is completely dependent on your personality and your relationship with the person to whom you are dedicating your work.

Addressing the dedication

There are many ways you can address your dedication. You could write, "I dedicate this book to …", "This is dedicated to …", "To: …", "For: …", or simply just start writing your dedication without any formal address. It should be on its own page so everyone will get the hint that it is a dedication page, even if there isn't any formal address. Take into consideration the person you have chosen to dedicate your work to, your personality, and the formality of your relationship and the address will follow suit.

Alternative dedications

It has been extremely popular over the years to write a dedication page using alternative formats. Authors have used poems or funny anecdotes to express their gratitude. In the past, many dedications were often written in the style of a formal letter.

The most important things to remember when writing a dedication are to keep it simple, concise, and ensure that it truly reflects your personality and your relationship with the person the dedication is for. Remember to get your finished dedication edited by one of our book editors . You don't want to overlook calling your spouse the pettiest person in the world when you really meant the prettiest person in the world!

Image source: Mike Giles/Unsplash.com

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Examples of Dedications

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Writing Your Dedication and Acknowledgements

When it comes to writing a thesis, the chapters get most of our attention – and so they should! They are the bulk of the thesis, and they contain the actual research. But there are other sections to think about as well, and two of them can be particularly fun to write.

The dedication and acknowledgements pages are where you can show your love and gratitude to the people who have helped you to achieve your goals. They tend to be less prescribed than other sections, so you have a little freedom to get creative in the way you express yourself!

While they might seem similar, there is a difference between the dedications and the acknowledgements. The dedication, as the name suggests, allows you to dedicate your thesis to someone (or multiple people). This is quite a personal matter, and dedications are often made to family members, spouses, friends, or community groups.

The acknowledgements page, by contrast, allows you to express thanks for specific contributions, and often features people that the author knows professionally as well as personally. If a person or group helped you by giving advice, funding, mentorship, editorial assistance, or practical support, it’s a good idea to give them a shout-out in the acknowledgements. This is more than just a courtesy – it’s an important part of maintaining your relationships by formally recognising the people and organisations who have made a contribution to your work.

As an example – I dedicated my PhD thesis to several members of my family, and wrote short personal notes about their contributions. In my acknowledgements section, I thanked my supervisor, a mentor, a friend who provided technical advice during my research, and my scholarship provider.

My dedication and acknowledgements sections were fairly conventional, but that doesn’t mean yours have to be! I’ve heard of writers dedicating their thesis to their pets, their computers, and even their local barista. There have even been rumours of one acknowledgements page which included a coupon for a free beer for anyone whose name was listed!

Other scholars have been known to thank:

Public transport providers “for making the task of writing in buses and trains such an enjoyable exercise” ( source )
The “spell-check function of Microsoft Word, without whom ‘institution’ would be misspelled differently 197 times” ( source )
“The U.S. Immigration Service under the Bush administration, whose visa background security check forced [the author] to spend two months (following an international conference) in a third country, free of routine obligations” ( source )

One enterprising paleontologist even proposed to his girlfriend via the acknowledgements section of his journal article. (She said yes, apparently.)

So if you haven’t already, have a go at drafting your dedication and acknowledgements pages. After all, it’s not often you can gush about your favourite people while still technically being productive!

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Acknowledgements for PhD Thesis and Dissertations – Explained
Doing a PhD

The Purpose of Acknowledgements

The acknowledgement section of a thesis or dissertation is where you recognise and thank those who supported you during your PhD. This can be but is not limited to individuals, institutions or organisations.

Although your acknowledgements will not be used to evaluate your work, it is still an important section of your thesis. This is because it can have a positive (or negative for that matter) influence the perception of your reader before they even reach the main body of your work.

Who Should I Acknowledge?

Acknowledgements for a PhD thesis will typically fall into one of two categories – professional or personal.

Within these categories, who you thank will ultimately be your decision. However, it’s imperative that you pay special attention to the ‘professional’ group. This is because not thanking someone who has played an important role in your studies, whether it be intentional or accidental, will more often than not be seen as a dismissal of their efforts. Not only would this be unfair if they genuinely helped you, but from a certain political aspect, it could also jeopardise any opportunities for future collaborations .

Professional Acknowledgements

This may include, but is not limited to:

Funding bodies/sponsorship providers
Supervisors
Research group and lab assistants
Research participants
Proofreaders

Personal Acknowledgements

Key family members and friends
Individuals who inspired you or directly influenced your academic journey
Anyone else who has provided personal support that you would like to mention

It should be noted that certain universities have policies which state only those who have directly supported your work, such as supervisors and professors, should be included in your acknowledgements. Therefore, we strongly recommend that you read your university guidelines before writing this section of your thesis.

How to Write Acknowledgements for PhD Thesis

When producing this section, your writing style can be more informal compared to the rest of your thesis. This includes writing in first person and using more emotive language. Although in most cases you will have complete freedom in how you write this section of your thesis, it is still highly advisable to keep it professional. As mentioned earlier, this is largely because it will be one of the first things your assessors will read, and so it will help set the tone for the rest of your work.

In terms of its structure, acknowledgements are expected to be ordered in a manner that first recognises the most formal support before moving onto the less formal support. In most cases, this follows the same order that we have outlined in the ‘Who Should I Thank’ section.

When thanking professionals, always write out their full name and provide their title. This is because although you may be on a first-name basis with them, those who read your thesis will not. By providing full names and titles, not only do you help ensure clarity, but it could also indirectly contribute to the credibility of your thesis should the individual you’re thanking be well known within your field.

If you intend to include a list of people from one institution or organisation, it is best to list their names in alphabetical order. The exception to this is when a particular individual has been of significant assistance; here, it would be advisable to list them.

How Long Should My Acknowledgements Be?

Acknowledgements vary considerably in length. Some are a single paragraph whilst some continue for up to three pages. The length of your acknowledgement page will mostly depend on the number of individuals you want to recognise.

As a general rule, try to keep your acknowledgements section to a single page. Although there are no word limits, creating a lengthy acknowledgements section dilutes the gratitude you’re trying to express, especially to those who have supported you the most.

Where Should My Acknowledgements Go?

In the vast majority of cases, your acknowledgements should appear directly after your abstract and before your table of contents.

However, we highly advise you to check your university guidelines as a few universities set out their own specific order which they will expect you to follow.

Phrases to Help You Get Started

Dissertation acknowledgements example for researchers and PhD students

We appreciate how difficult it can be to truly show how grateful you are to those who have supported you over the years, especially in words.

To help you get started, we’ve provided you with a few examples of sentences that you can complete or draw ideas from.

I am deeply grateful to XXX…
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to XXX…
I would like to offer my special thanks to XXX…
I would like to extend my sincere thanks to XXX…
…for their assistance at every stage of the research project.
…for their insightful comments and suggestions.
…for their contribution to XXX.
…for their unwavering support and belief in me.

Thesis Acknowledgement Examples

Below are three PhD thesis acknowledgment samples from which you can draw inspiration. It should be noted that the following have been extracted from theses which are freely available in the public domain. Irrespective of this, references to any individual, department or university have been removed for the sake of privacy.

First and foremost I am extremely grateful to my supervisors, Prof. XXX and Dr. XXX for their invaluable advice, continuous support, and patience during my PhD study. Their immense knowledge and plentiful experience have encouraged me in all the time of my academic research and daily life. I would also like to thank Dr. XXX and Dr. XXX for their technical support on my study. I would like to thank all the members in the XXX. It is their kind help and support that have made my study and life in the UK a wonderful time. Finally, I would like to express my gratitude to my parents, my wife and my children. Without their tremendous understanding and encouragement in the past few years, it would be impossible for me to complete my study.

I would like to thank my supervisors Dr. XXX and Dr. XXX for all their help and advice with this PhD. I would also like to thank my sisters, whom without this would have not been possible. I also appreciate all the support I received from the rest of my family. Lastly, I would like to thank the XXX for the studentship that allowed me to conduct this thesis.

I would like to thank my esteemed supervisor – Dr. XXX for his invaluable supervision, support and tutelage during the course of my PhD degree. My gratitude extends to the Faculty of XXX for the funding opportunity to undertake my studies at the Department of XXX, University of XXX. Additionally, I would like to express gratitude to Dr. XXX for her treasured support which was really influential in shaping my experiment methods and critiquing my results. I also thank Dr. XXX, Dr. XXX, Dr. XXX for their mentorship. I would like to thank my friends, lab mates, colleagues and research team – XXX, XXX, XXX, XXX for a cherished time spent together in the lab, and in social settings. My appreciation also goes out to my family and friends for their encouragement and support all through my studies.

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Thesis and Dissertation Guide

« Thesis & Dissertation Resources
The Graduate School Home

Introduction

Copyright Page

Dedication, acknowledgements, preface (optional), table of contents.

List of Tables, Figures, and Illustrations

List of Abbreviations

List of symbols.

Non-Traditional Formats
Font Type and Size
Spacing and Indentation
Tables, Figures, and Illustrations
Formatting Previously Published Work
Internet Distribution
Open Access
Registering Copyright
Using Copyrighted Materials
Use of Your Own Previously Published Materials
Submission Steps
Submission Checklist
Sample Pages

I. Order and Components

Please see the sample thesis or dissertation pages throughout and at the end of this document for illustrations. The following order is required for components of your thesis or dissertation:

Dedication, Acknowledgements, and Preface (each optional)
Table of Contents, with page numbers
List of Tables, List of Figures, or List of Illustrations, with titles and page numbers (if applicable)
List of Abbreviations (if applicable)
List of Symbols (if applicable)
Introduction, if any
Main body, with consistent subheadings as appropriate
Appendices (if applicable)
Endnotes (if applicable)
References (see section on References for options)

Many of the components following the title and copyright pages have required headings and formatting guidelines, which are described in the following sections.

Please consult the Sample Pages to compare your document to the requirements. A Checklist is provided to assist you in ensuring your thesis or dissertation meets all formatting guidelines.

The title page of a thesis or dissertation must include the following information:

Title Page with mesaurements described in surrounding text

The title of the thesis or dissertation in all capital letters and centered 2″ below the top of the page.
Your name, centered 1″ below the title. Do not include titles, degrees, or identifiers. The name you use here does not need to exactly match the name on your university records, but we recommend considering how you will want your name to appear in professional publications in the future.

Notes on this statement:

When indicating your degree in the second bracketed space, use the full degree name (i.e., Doctor of Philosophy, not Ph.D. or PHD; Master of Public Health, not M.P.H. or MPH; Master of Social Work, not M.S.W. or MSW).
List your department, school, or curriculum rather than your subject area or specialty discipline in the third bracketed space. You may include your subject area or specialty discipline in parentheses (i.e., Department of Romance Languages (French); School of Pharmacy (Molecular Pharmaceutics); School of Education (School Psychology); or similar official area).
If you wish to include both your department and school names, list the school at the end of the statement (i.e., Department of Pharmacology in the School of Medicine).
A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Department of Public Policy.
A thesis submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in the School of Dentistry (Endodontics).
A thesis submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in the Department of Nutrition in the Gillings School of Global Public Health.
A dissertation submitted to the faculty at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the School of Education (Cultural Studies and Literacies).
The words “Chapel Hill” must be centered 1″ below the statement.
One single-spaced line below that, center the year in which your committee approves the completed thesis or dissertation. This need not be the year you graduate.
Approximately 2/3 of the way across the page on the right-hand side of the page, 1″ below the year, include the phrase “Approved by:” (with colon) followed by each faculty member's name on subsequent double-spaced lines. Do not include titles such as Professor, Doctor, Dr., PhD, or any identifiers such as “chair” or “advisor” before or after any names. Line up the first letter of each name on the left under the “A” in the “Approved by:” line. If a name is too long to fit on one line, move this entire section of text slightly to the left so that formatting can be maintained.
No signatures, signature lines, or page numbers should be included on the title page.

Include a copyright page with the following information single-spaced and centered 2″ above the bottom of the page:

Copyright Page with mesaurements described in surrounding text

This page immediately follows the title page. It should be numbered with the lower case Roman numeral ii centered with a 1/2″ margin from the bottom edge.

Inclusion of this page offers you, as the author, additional protection against copyright infringement as it eliminates any question of authorship and copyright ownership. You do not need to file for copyright in order to include this statement in your thesis or dissertation. However, filing for copyright can offer other protections.

See Section IV for more information on copyrighting your thesis or dissertation.

Include an abstract page following these guidelines:

Abstract page with mesaurements described in surrounding text

Include the heading “ABSTRACT” in all capital letters, and center it 2″ below the top of the page.
One double-spaced line below “ABSTRACT”, center your name, followed by a colon and the title of the thesis or dissertation. Use as many lines as necessary. Be sure that your name and the title exactly match the name and title used on the Title page.
One single-spaced line below the title, center the phrase “(Under the direction of [advisor's name])”. Include the phrase in parentheses. Include the first and last name(s) of your advisor or formal co-advisors. Do not include the name of other committee members. Use the advisor's name only; do not include any professional titles such as PhD, Professor, or Dr. or any identifiers such as “chair” or “advisor”.
Skip one double-spaced line and begin the abstract. The text of your abstract must be double-spaced and aligned with the document's left margin with the exception of indenting new paragraphs. Do not center or right-justify the abstract.
Abstracts cannot exceed 150 words for a thesis or 350 words for a dissertation.
Number the abstract page with the lower case Roman numeral iii (and iv, if more than one page) centered with a 1/2″ margin from the bottom edge.

Please write and proofread your abstract carefully. When possible, avoid including symbols or foreign words in your abstract, as they cannot be indexed or searched. Avoid mathematical formulas, diagrams, and other illustrative materials in the abstract. Offer a brief description of your thesis or dissertation and a concise summary of its conclusions. Be sure to describe the subject and focus of your work with clear details and avoid including lengthy explanations or opinions.

Your title and abstract will be used by search engines to help potential audiences locate your work, so clarity will help to draw the attention of your targeted readers.

You have an option to include a dedication, acknowledgements, or preface. If you choose to include any or all of these elements, give each its own page(s).

Dedication page with mesaurements described in surrounding text

A dedication is a message from the author prefixed to a work in tribute to a person, group, or cause. Most dedications are short statements of tribute beginning with “To…” such as “To my family”.

Acknowledgements are the author's statement of gratitude to and recognition of the people and institutions that helped the author's research and writing.

A preface is a statement of the author's reasons for undertaking the work and other personal comments that are not directly germane to the materials presented in other sections of the thesis or dissertation. These reasons tend to be of a personal nature.

Any of the pages must be prepared following these guidelines:

Do not place a heading on the dedication page.
The text of short dedications must be centered and begin 2″ from the top of the page.
Headings are required for the “ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS” and “PREFACE” pages. Headings must be in all capital letters and centered 2″ below the top of the page.
The text of the acknowledgements and preface pages must begin one double-spaced line below the heading, be double-spaced, and be aligned with the document's left margin with the exception of indenting new paragraphs.
Subsequent pages of text return to the 1″ top margin.
The page(s) must be numbered with consecutive lower case Roman numerals (starting with the page number after the abstract) centered with a 1/2″ margin from the bottom edge.

Include a table of contents following these guidelines:

Table of Contents page with mesaurements described in surrounding text

Include the heading “TABLE OF CONTENTS” in all capital letters, and center it 2″ below the top of the page.
Include one double-spaced line between the heading and the first entry.
The table of contents should not contain listings for the pages that precede it, but it must list all parts of the thesis or dissertation that follow it.
If relevant, be sure to list all appendices and a references section in your table of contents. Include page numbers for these items but do not assign separate chapter numbers.
Entries must align with the document's left margin or be indented to the right of the left page margin using consistent tabs.
Major subheadings within chapters must be included in the table of contents. The subheading(s) should be indented to the right of the left page margin using consistent tabs.
If an entry takes up more than one line, break up the entry about three-fourths of the way across the page and place the rest of the text on a second line, single-spacing the two lines.
Include one double-spaced line between each entry.
Page numbers listed in the table of contents must be located just inside the right page margin with leaders (lines of periods) filling out the space between the end of the entry and the page number. The last digit of each number must line up on the right margin.
Information included in the table of contents must match the headings, major subheadings, and numbering used in the body of the thesis or dissertation.
The Table of Contents page(s) must be numbered with consecutive lower case Roman numerals centered with a 1/2″ margin from the bottom edge.

Lists of Tables, Figures, and Illustrations

If applicable, include a list of tables, list of figures, and/or list of illustrations following these guidelines:

Lists of Figures page with mesaurements described in surrounding text

Include the heading(s) in all capital letters, centered 1″ below the top of the page.
Each entry must include a number, title, and page number.
Assign each table, figure, or illustration in your thesis or dissertation an Arabic numeral. You may number consecutively throughout the entire work (e.g., Figure 1, Figure 2, etc.), or you may assign a two-part Arabic numeral with the first number designating the chapter in which it appears, separated by a period, followed by a second number to indicate its consecutive placement in the chapter (e.g., Table 3.2 is the second table in Chapter Three).
Numerals and titles must align with the document's left margin or be indented to the right of the left page margin using consistent tabs.
Page numbers must be located just inside the right page margin with leaders (lines of periods) filling out the space between the end of the entry and the page number. The last digit of each number must line up on the right margin.
Numbers, titles, and page numbers must each match the corresponding numbers, titles, and page numbers appearing in the thesis or dissertation.
All Lists of Tables, Figures, and Illustrations page(s) must be numbered with consecutive lower case Roman numerals centered with a 1/2″ margin from the bottom edge.

If you use abbreviations extensively in your thesis or dissertation, you must include a list of abbreviations and their corresponding definitions following these guidelines:

List of Abbreviations with mesaurements described in surrounding text

Include the heading “LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS” in all capital letters, and center it 1″ below the top of the page.
Arrange your abbreviations alphabetically.
Abbreviations must align with the document's left margin or be indented to the right of the left page margin using consistent tabs.
If an entry takes up more than one line, single-space between the two lines.
The List of Abbreviations page(s) must be numbered with consecutive lower case Roman numerals centered with a 1/2″ margin from the bottom edge.

If you use symbols in your thesis or dissertation, you may combine them with your abbreviations, titling the section “LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS AND SYMBOLS”, or you may set up a separate list of symbols and their definitions by following the formatting instructions above for abbreviations. The heading you choose must be in all capital letters and centered 1″ below the top of the page.

Previous: Introduction

Next: Format

The Graduate School

University information technology (uit), main navigation, formatting requirements: preliminary pages.

Submission Procedure
Policies for Theses and Dissertations
Coauthored Theses and Dissertations
Approval Requirements
Publication Requirements

Copyright Page

Statement of thesis/dissertation approval, dedication, frontispiece, and epigraph, table of contents and list of figures/tables, acknowledgements.

General Formatting Requirements
Parts Composed of Related Chapters
Headings and Subheadings
Tables and Figures
Footnote and Reference Citations
Appendix or Appendices
References or Selected Bibliography
Documentation Styles
Writing Styles
Print Quality
Accessibility in the PDF
Electronic Version Submitted for Thesis Release
Distribution of Theses and Dissertations
Alternate Text
Color Contrast
Accessibility Issues in Table Construction
Heading Space
Double Space
Single Space
Previously Published, Accepted, and Submitted Articles as Chapters of a Dissertation
Alternate Figure/Table Placement

Preliminary pages are, in order, the title page; copyright page; statement of thesis/dissertation approval; abstract; dedication (optional); frontispiece (optional); epigraph (optional); table of contents; lists of tables, figures, symbols, and abbreviations (necessary only in certain situations); and acknowledgments (optional). Table 2.1 lists all the possible preliminary sections in order and if they are required or not.

The preliminary pages are counted in sequence (except the copyright page, which is neither counted nor numbered). Any page with a main heading on it (title page, abstract, table of contents, etc.) is counted, but no page number is typed on the page. Second pages to the abstract, table of contents, lists, and acknowledgments are numbered with lower case Roman numerals centered within the thesis margins and .5” from the bottom of the page. See the preliminary pages in this handbook for an example.

Order of preliminary pages, indicating which are mandatory and where page numbers should be included.

Note : Page numbers in the preliminary pages appear centered on the bottom of the page in lower case Roman numerals. This differs from page numbers in the text, which appear on the top right of the page and use Arabic numerals.

SEE Sample Preliminary Pages

The title page is page i (Roman numeral) of the manuscript (page number not shown).

The title of the thesis or dissertation is typed in all capital letters. The title should be placed in the same size and style of font as that used for major headings throughout the manuscript. If longer than 4 1/2 inches, the title should be double spaced and arranged so that it appears balanced on the page. The title should be a concise yet comprehensive description of the contents for cataloging and data retrieval purposes. Initials, abbreviations, acronyms, numerals, formulas, super/subscripts, and symbols should be used in the title with careful consideration of clarity and maximizing search results for future readers. Consult the manuscript editors if in doubt.

The word “by” follows the title. The full legal name of the author as it appears in CIS follows after a double space. The name is not typed in all capital letters. These two lines of text are centered between the title and the statement described in the following paragraph.

The statement “A thesis submitted to the faculty of The University of Utah in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of” appears single spaced in the middle of the title page (see Figure 2.1). For doctoral candidates, the phrasing reads “A dissertation submitted. . . ”

The appropriate degree follows the statement. The space between the statement and the degree should be the same size that is between the author’s name and the statement. In the event the name of the degree differs from the name of the department, e.g., Master of Science in Environmental Humanities, the words “Master of Science” are placed below the statement, followed by “in” and then the degree program; the lines of the degree name and program are double spaced (see Figure 2.2). Thus, a student receiving a doctorate in history need use only the words “Doctor of Philosophy.” A student receiving a doctorate in Geophysics must put “Doctor of Philosophy in Geophysics.”

Below the degree field, the full name of the department is listed on the title page. “The University of Utah,” is listed a double space below the department name.

The date appears on the title page a double space below “The University of Utah.” Only the month and year appear, with no punctuation separating them. The month indicates the last month in the semester the degree is granted: fall semester, December; spring semester, May; summer semester, August.

Again, the spaces below the title, the full legal name, the statement, and the degree should be of equal size.

The second page is the copyright page, which is uncounted and unnumbered. A copyright notice appears in every copy of the thesis or dissertation. The notice, as illustrated in Figure 2.3, is centered within the side margins and the top and bottom margins of the page.

There is a double space between the two lines.

The statement of thesis/dissertation approval is page ii (Roman numeral) of the manuscript (page number not shown). This statement is prepared as shown in Figures 2.4 (for master’s students) and 2.5 (for doctoral students).

The statement of thesis/dissertation approval signifies that the thesis or dissertation has been approved by the committee chair and a majority of the members of the committee and by the department chair and the dean of The Graduate School. The names of any committee members who did not approve or digitally sign the forms for the thesis or dissertation are not dated. The dates entered should match the date when you received notification that the committee member electronically signed the form.

The full name of the student, as it appears on the title page and copyright page, must be used.

As with the digital signature forms, full legal names of committee members must be listed. The full legal names of committee members and department chair or dean can be found on your CIS page under the Committee tab. Neither degrees nor titles should be listed with the names of faculty members. No signatures are required.

Abstract Page

The abstract is page iii, unnumbered; if there is a second page, it is page iv, and a number appears on the page. The abstract is a concise, carefully composed summary of the contents of the thesis or dissertation. In the abstract, the author defines the problem, describes the research method or design, and reports the results and conclusions. No diagrams, illustrations, subheadings, or citations appear in the abstract. The abstract is limited to 350 words (approximately 1.5 double-spaced pages). A copy of the abstract of all doctoral candidates is published in Dissertation Abstracts International. The word ABSTRACT is placed 2 inches from the top of the page in all capital letters. Following a heading space, the abstract text begins, with the first line indented the same size space as for the paragraphs in the remainder of the manuscript. The text of the abstract must be double spaced.

If a manuscript is written in a foreign language, the abstract is in the same language, but an English version (or translation) of the abstract must precede the foreign language abstract. The two abstracts are listed as one in the table of contents. The first page of each version is unnumbered but counted. If there is a second page to each version of the abstract, the page number (lower-case Roman numeral) is centered between the left and right margins and between the bottom of the page and the top of the bottom margin.

The dedication is an optional entry; enumeration continues in sequence, but no page number appears on the page. It follows the abstract and precedes the table of contents. Often only one or two lines, it is centered within the top and bottom margins of the page and within the thesis margins. It is not labeled “Dedication” and is not listed in the table of contents.

Frontispiece and Epigraph

These are infrequently used entries. The frontispiece is an illustration that alerts the reader to the major theme of the thesis or dissertation. An epigraph is a quotation of unusual aptness and relevance.

Contents or Table of Contents

The table of contents follows the abstract (or dedication if one is used). The word CONTENTS (or TABLE OF CONTENTS) is placed 2 inches from the top of the page in all capital letters. Following a heading space, the table of contents begins. The table of contents, essentially an outline of the manuscript, lists the preliminary pages beginning with the abstract (page iii). It does not list a frontispiece, dedication, or epigraph if these are used, nor is the table of contents listed in the table of contents; these pages are, however, counted. The list of figures and list of tables, if used, are included (see the Table of Contents in this handbook for a sample using numbered chapters; see Figures 2.6, 2.7, and 2.8 for additional options).

All chapters or main sections and all first-level subheadings of the manuscript are listed in the table of contents. No lower subheadings levels are to appear in the table of contents. Beginning page numbers of each chapter or section listed are lined up with each listing by a row of evenly spaced, aligned period leaders. The numbers, titles, and subheadings of chapters or sections used in the table of contents must agree exactly in wording and capitalization with the way they appear on the actual page.

The table of contents reflects the relationship of the chapters and subheadings. Chapter titles appear in all capital letters, as do titles of appendices. First-level subheadings can be headline style or sentence style in capitalization. Subheadings are neither underlined nor italicized in the table of contents. If the table of contents continues to a second page, it begins 1 inch from the top of the page, and it is not labeled “Table of Contents Continued.” Main headings are followed by a double space in the table of contents; all subheadings are single spaced. The words “Chapters” and “Appendices” are used as referents only, printed above the list of entries. The word “Chapter” or “Appendix” is not repeated with each entry.

List of Figures / List of Tables

The enumeration continues in sequence; no number appears on pages with main headings (those in all caps). A list of tables, a list of figures, a list of symbols, a list of abbreviations, or a glossary may be used. All lists follow the table of contents. The title is placed 2 inches from the top edge of the page in all capital letters: LIST OF TABLES. Following a heading space, the list begins. A list of tables or a list of figures is required if there are 5 to 25 entries. Lists with fewer than 5 entries or more than 25 are not included. It is not permissible to combine a list of tables and figures. The word “Table” or “Figure” is not repeated with each entry.

As noted for entries in the table of contents, the listing of tables and figures must agree exactly in wording, capitalization, and punctuation with the table title or figure caption. (An exception to this rule occurs if the table title appears in all capital letters on the table itself; table titles in the list of tables are not typed in all capital letters.) Capitalization styles may not be mixed. In the case of long titles or captions, the first sentence must convey the essential description of the item. The first sentence alone then is used in the list. Long captions may not be summarized.

The table or figure number begins at the left margin and is followed by the title or caption. The page on which each table or figure appears is at the right margin. As in the table of contents, the page numbers are lined up with each entry by a row of evenly spaced, aligned periods (period leaders). If a table or figure occupies more than one page, only the initial page number is listed. If the title or caption of a table or figure appears on a part-title page preceding the table or figure, the page number in the list refers to the number of the part-title page.

If a list continues to a second page, the second page of text begins 1 inch from the top of the page. The second page is not labeled “List of Tables Continued” or “List of Figures Continued.” Individual entries are single-spaced with a double space between each entry.

A list of symbols and abbreviations or a glossary does not replace defining terms, symbols, or abbreviations upon their first occurrence in the text. When introducing terms, always introduce terms upon their first usage in the document.

The enumeration continues in sequence; no number appears on the first page. Acknowledgments are optional. If a preface is used, the acknowledgments are added to the end of the preface without a separate heading. The word ACKNOWLEDGMENTS is placed 2 inches from the top of the page in all capital letters. Following a heading space, the acknowledgments begin. The text of the acknowledgments must be double spaced. In the acknowledgments, students may wish to recognize special assistance from committee members, friends, or family members who may have helped in the research, writing, or technical aspects of the thesis or dissertation. Research funding, grants, and/or permission to reprint copyrighted materials should be acknowledged. Individuals employed to prepare the manuscript are not acknowledged.

The enumeration continues in sequence; no number appears on the first page. This is an optional entry. The word PREFACE is placed 2 inches from the top of the page in all capital letters. Following a heading space, the preface begins. The text of the preface must be double spaced. A preface includes the reasons for undertaking the study, the methods and design of the researcher, and acknowledgments. Background data and historical or other information essential to the reader’s understanding of the subject are placed in the text as an introduction, not in the preface. Theses and dissertations generally do not contain a foreword (i.e., a statement about the work by someone other than the author).

What is a Dedication Page in Academic Papers?

A dedication is an optional section in an academic paper where you can show your appreciation to the individual(s) who have given you support or inspiration throughout your work. This is one of the shortest parts of an academic paper.

In this post, we will take a quick look at this very special part when it comes to writing your academic papers. And by the time you finish reading, you will understand what dedication is, where it goes, what it means, who to include, and some best practices.

What is a dedication page in academic papers?

With a dedication page, you can honor the individual in the process of researching and writing your paper. It’s an act of gratitude to all those persons in your life who have a role in the academic journey. And a dedication for a paper is a personal note of thanks to the ones that may or may not have even been involved in your work, but played a special role to make it happen.

Why should I write a dedication in my writing?

Dedication is not a required section in most academic writing.

However, by showing appreciation to the individuals or even the higher power who meant the most to you, you attach meaning to your work beyond the academic level.

For instance, a song is just a song. But if you dedicate a song to someone special to you, you inject new meanings into the song. And takes your writing to the next level by connecting your work with the people who mean the most to you.

The same goes for your academic writing. Do you agree?

Who should I include in the dedication page?

You can include individual(s) who have inspired you or emotionally support you on a personal level throughout your work.

They may or may not involve in your research work. So you may include:

God or the higher power

The people you mention in your dedication are usually your personal influences as opposed to your academic or professional ones like your supervisors, professors, or TAs.

Where does the dedication appear in a paper?

The dedication page should appear before the main body of a thesis or dissertation.

But every institution has its own requirements. You should always check the formatting guidelines provided by your school, faculty or department.

How long is a dedication page?

A dedication page can be as short as one sentence, if not in a few short paragraphs.

Phrases to begin your dedication:

“This paper is dedicated to…….”

This paper is dedicated to my institution mentors under whose constant guidance I have completed this dissertation. They not only enlightened me with the academic knowledge but also gave me valuable advice whenever I needed it the most.

“My paper is a dedication to my…”

My paper is a dedication to my respectful parents and beloved wife without whose constant support this thesis paper was not possible. They always inspire me. At the same time, my thanks also go to my caring siblings whose advice really worked for this thesis paper.

“ I dedicate this paper to… “

Example: I dedicate this thesis to my father and my mother, who with love and effort have accompanied me in this process, without hesitating at any moment of seeing my dreams come true, which are also their dreams.

Also read: 11 Examples of Well-Written Dedication Section

Dedication best practices

While there is no set format or requirements for writing a dedication in an academic paper, you may want to follow these general rules to start:

Always check the style guides provided by your school, faculty, or department. Every institution has its own requirements.
Use the same font as in the rest of your paper.
Align the page in the center.
No image is needed.
Capitalize the title as “DEDICATION”
The dedication page should not count towards the body text and should be paginated with small Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, iv, v, etc.).

Check out the guide below to start writing your dedication:

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Academic Acknowledgement for Research Paper [5 Examples] Acknowledgement for Internship Report [5 Examples] Acknowledgement for Thesis and Dissertation [15 Examples] Acknowledgement for Portfolio [5 Examples] Acknowledgement for Case Study [4 Examples] Acknowledgement for Academic Research Paper [5 Examples] Acknowledgement for College/School Assignment [5 Examples] Acknowledgemet to God in Reports [5 Examples]

Others Acknowledgement to Funeral Attendees [5 Examples] Funeral Acknowledgement Templates (for Newspapers and Websites) Common Website Disclaimers to Protect Your Online Business Notary Acknowledgement [5 Examples]

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Dedication of Gate of the Muses for Ray Charles at Dreamers Garden to be held June 1

Press release from Gate of the Muses Projects at Dreamers Garden

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Around 2006, we learned that Ray Charles had a brief stay in Gainesville before going to study at the Florida School of the Deaf and the Blind. This may be an urban legend among old-timers, especially within the Black community. Truth or legend, soon after, we began talking about this project following the completion of our very first Gate of Philip dedicated to the legendary blacksmith Philip Simmons, a Gullah man born on Charleston’s Daniel Island.

We thought this was appropriate for our garden because we were the first community garden in Northeast Florida that dedicated a special space for the visually impaired community of Alachua County. In fact, it was the Alachua County Council Of The Blind (ACCB) that first approached and became a life-long partner of Dreamers Garden. ACCB supported many of our early projects, and to this day we have fond memories of each of those ACCB members, at least one of whom has passed away.

Philip Simmons’ grandson AJANI ADEMIWA (Ade) OFUNNIYIN first came into Dreamers Garden in 2004 with Jody Berman, then a student at UF Department of Art History writing her Master’s Thesis on YAW OWUSU SHANGOFEMI. Yaw and Ade were lifelong friends and colleagues in blacksmithing. Ade, now affectionately known as “Dr. O,” also received his PhD in anthropology from UF and dedicated his life after graduation to empowering the Gullah culture and community in Charleston, South Carolina. After the passing of Dr. O on October 7, 2020, Dr. Jody Berman and Maria Huff Edwards (Founder of Dreamers Garden) began discussing dedicating the creation of this special GATE OF THE MUSES FOR RAY CHARLES in his memory.

Both the Board of County Commissioners and Mayor Harvey L. Ward, Jr., have approved a PROCLAMATION declaring June 1, 2024, THE GATE OF THE MUSES FOR RAY CHARLES AT DREAMER GARDEN DAY.

As a special honor, Dr. O’s friend and fellow dreamer, Mr. Shangofemi—who created the Gate of Philip in 2007—also crafted the Gate of the Muses . Dedication of this most recent piece of blacksmithing artistry will take place at the Dreamers Garden on Saturday, June 1, 2024, at 2 p.m.

Dr. Ofunniyin has seven children that celebrate this honor on his behalf: ADEOLU HARRISON (son); TOLU HARRISON (son); NZINGA HENDERSON (daughter); MSHINDE HARRIS (son); BABABI “AYA” OFUNNIYIN (daughter); ABENI OFUNNIYIN (daughter); and OLABISI (Ofunniyin) AJAO (daughter).(Unfortunately, Adeolu and Olabisi are unable to attend in person.)

Also attending the DEDICATION will be former Council Member and Mayor of Greenville, Florida, ELESTA PRITCHETT. Elesta Pritchett was a childhood friend of Ray Charles when Ray Charles and his mother Aretha Robinson lived in Greenville. ELESTA was instrumental in having the Ray Charles bronze statue created and installed in Greenville in 2006, and also for the reconstruction of Ray Charles’ childhood home in Greenville in 2008, where Ray Charles lived with his mother until age 7. Elesta will be 95 years old on August 31, having beaten Ray Charles senior by 23 days as Ray Charles was born on September 23, 1930.

Please join us for this historic and special event at Dreamers Garden on Saturday, June 1, at 2 p.m.

The post Dedication of Gate of the Muses for Ray Charles at Dreamers Garden to be held June 1 appeared first on Alachua Chronicle .

Dedication of this most recent piece of blacksmithing artistry will take place at the Dreamers Garden on Saturday, June 1, 2024, at 2 p.m.

May 23, 2024

Jordan Fridley '24 Found Their Voice at Guilford

Jordan's honors thesis focused on the history and experiences transgender students in the Triad.

“I felt drawn to Guilford College because I liked the teaching style and appreciated the time and dedication professors showed toward their students." Jordan Fridley '24

When Jordan Fridley ’24 attended honors day at Guilford College as a senior in high school, taking a sample class and eating in Founders Hall, they had no idea that a mere four years later they’d be presenting an honors thesis three times in one day, garnering the recognition of achieving the Hege Research Award for outstanding honors thesis just days before graduating with honors with a double major in History and Political Science.

Like many students at Guilford, Jordan looks back on their time spent at the College proud of the opportunities to learn and grow. “I felt drawn to Guilford College because I liked the teaching style and appreciated the time and dedication professors showed toward their students,” Jordan says. “I experienced that first-hand as a student, and will always cherish the relationships I built with many of my professors.

Doing the research and writing necessary for an honors thesis is a feat of its own, but Jordan’s choice for research stands out for the important role it will play in history. Titled “Aliens from Mars: The Experience of Transgender students in Triad Colleges and Universities, 1974-2017,” the work documents the experience of transgender students locally in a way that helps bring a voice to that community.

Jordan chose to do this work in part because they wanted to give a voice to others. “I’m not a very outspoken person, so public activism is really difficult for me,” Jordan says. “This research gave me the opportunity to speak out for what I believe in and make a difference in the community.”

Jordan spent long hours poring over primary documents in local archives. They used the Pride of the Community collection and oral history at UNCG, and found materials at Guilford College and Wake Forest University’s archives as well. Bringing all of these sources together and compiling the research in the thesis was a way for Jordan to preserve the history. “For me, historical preservation is a way to make a social difference,” Jordan says. “Collecting the history of marginalized communities ensures they don’t lose their history.”

The thesis research was not Jordan’s only experience with the archives. As a student they also worked in the Guilford archives, where they got the opportunity to learn about digital archives and Library of Congress organizational methods. One of the projects Jordan did through work was writing biographies to accompany each of the portraits in the Guilford College art collection.

That work helped Jordan see the importance of archives and history, which led to their plans to attend the University of North Carolina at Greensboro for a Masters in Library Science. After that, Jordan plans to continue to work in university libraries doing research and historical preservation. “During my time at Guilford, with my research and work in the archives, I was able to see how this work connects two of the things I’m passionate about, historical preservation and social activism,” Jordan says. “I am excited to be able to do work that helps give marginalized communities a voice.”

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2024 Top Faculty Awards Announced

2024 ysph faculty awards.

From left to right: Associate Professor Michaela Dinan, Assistant Clinical Professor Michael Wininger, and Assistant Professor Kai Chen.

Dean Megan L. Ranney Thursday announced the recipients of this year’s Distinguished Teaching Award and Distinguished Student Mentoring Award. Two outstanding members of the Yale School of Public Health faculty are being honored with the 2024 Distinguished Teaching Award this year – Associate Professor Michaela Dinan and Assistant Clinical Professor Michael Wininger. Michaela Dinan’s students cited her “unparalleled commitment to student success” while fostering “a supportive and inclusive learning environment” in nominating her for the award. Students spoke highly of Michaela’s mentorship, passion, and engaging curriculum stating: “She consistently delivers high-quality content, ensuring that each week is filled with valuable learning experiences.” It is evident that Michaela’s teaching has made an enduring impact, with students sharing that they aspire to emulate her level of dedication in their own work. Michael Wininger was lauded by his students for his versatility, active and inclusive instruction, and ability to deliver concepts “in fresh and innovative ways.” One student said: “His ability to seamlessly weave personal experiences, real-world examples, and academic theories left students eagerly awaiting each lecture session.” Michael was praised for consistently supporting his students' development both inside and outside the classroom, and for being a “true mentor” who focuses on the overall growth and success of each student. The 2024 Distinguished Student Mentoring Award was given to Kai Chen. Assistant Professor Kai Chen’s students praised his dedication and commitment as a mentor and for going “above and beyond” to ensure their academic success. Students referenced Kai’s passion for his work. One student said Kai’s encouragement “has ensured that I will create the best possible version of my thesis that it can be.” Dean Ranney invited everyone to join her in congratulating Michaela, Michael, and Kai on receiving these well-deserved honors and for being leaders in shaping the next generation of public health professionals!

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Michaela Dinan, PhD Associate Professor Tenure; Co-Leader, Cancer Prevention and Control, Yale Cancer Center
Michael Wininger, PhD Assistant Clinical Professor of Biostatistics
Kai Chen, PhD Assistant Professor of Epidemiology (Environmental Health); Director of Research, Climate Change and Health; Deputy Faculty Director, Climate Change and Health; Affiliated Faculty, Yale Institute for Global Health

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She Just Earned Her Doctorate at 17. Now, She’ll Go to the Prom.

Dorothy Jean Tillman II of Chicago made history as the youngest person to earn a doctoral degree in integrated behavioral health at Arizona State University.

Dorothy Jean Tillman II stands at a lectern wearing a black cap and gown at Arizona State University’s commencement.

By Alexandra E. Petri

When Dorothy Jean Tillman II successfully defended her dissertation in November 2023 to earn her doctoral degree from Arizona State University, she couldn’t wait to share the news with her best friend.

“It was a surreal moment,” Dr. Tillman said, “because it was crazy I was doing it in the first place.”

Dr. Tillman, at only 17, became the youngest person to earn a doctoral degree in integrated behavioral health from Arizona State’s College of Health Solutions, all before she was eligible to vote. Earlier this month, Dr. Tillman, now 18, took part in Arizona State’s commencement ceremony and delivered remarks as the outstanding 2024 graduate at the College of Health Solution’s convocation.

Lesley Manson, program director for the doctorate of behavioral health at Arizona State and Dr. Tillman’s doctoral chair, said Dr. Tillman displayed extraordinary perseverance, hard work and dedication for her young age, tackling every challenge head-on.

“She can serve as a real role model,” Ms. Manson said.

Dr. Tillman, called D.J. by her family and friends, was an early bloomer. She grew up in Chicago and was home-schooled from a young age, first in a group setting through online classes, and then by her mother, Jimalita Tillman, a single parent with a background in community theater.

Dr. Tillman was part of a gifted program before transitioning to home-schooling. Jimalita Tillman continued her daughter on an accelerated track: By the time she was 8, she was taking high school classes. While most 9-year-olds were learning math and reading, Dr. Tillman was starting college online.

At the time, they lived with Jimalita Tillman’s mother, Dorothy Wright Tillman, a civil rights activist who worked alongside the Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and was a Chicago alderman. Dr. Tillman is her grandmother’s namesake (hence the II at the end of Dr. Tillman’s name).

During her early college days, Dr. Tillman’s classroom was often a Starbucks in Chicago, and her days began as soon it opened, she said. Her go-to order was an iced peach green tea with lemonade.

“Around the time when kids went to lunch, we’d be closing the computer,” said Dr. Tillman, who said her discipline and focus come from her grandmother.

Because of her age, Dr. Tillman lived at home while pursuing her higher education, and most of her coursework was online — a challenge for a self-described social butterfly. “I do love meeting new people and talking to people and understanding them and how their brains work,” she said. She found other ways to stay connected with friends through after-school activities.

At 10, she earned her associate degree in psychology at the College of Lake County in Illinois. At 12, she received her Bachelor of Science in humanities at Excelsior College in New York, and at 14, she earned a Master of Science from Unity College in Maine. She chose those fields because they can help scientists “understand why people treat the environment the way they do,” she told Time for Kids in a July 2020 interview.

Ellen Winner, a professor of psychology at Boston College and the author of “Gifted Children: Myths and Realities,” said that children like Dr. Tillman have a motivational intensity she calls a “rage to master.”

“One of the reasons they push themselves is they have a high, innate ability of some kind, and so learning, in whatever they are gifted in, comes easily to them and it’s very pleasurable,” she said. Schools are often not equipped for such gifted children, she added, which may lead parents to home-school their children. The trade-off, she and some experts say, is missing out on socialization and learning with children their age.

“There’s no perfect solution to kids like this,” Ms. Winner said.

Jimalita Tillman said she was sure her daughter was finished with higher education after earning her master’s degree. Dr. Tillman had just launched an organization to support Black youth in Chicago interested in STEM and the arts called the Dorothy Jeanius STEAM Leadership Institute. It was 2020, just after the beginning of the pandemic.

She was surprised when her daughter said she wanted to pursue her doctorate, and even tried to dissuade Dr. Tillman. But Dr. Tillman wanted to help young people with their mental health. She told her mother to trust her.

“I had to follow her lead,” Jimalita Tillman, 42, said.

Dr. Tillman was accepted into the management concentration at Arizona State’s College of Health Solutions, an online doctorate program. Her thesis on developing programs to reduce the stigma for college students seeking mental health services was based on a study she conducted for an in-person internship at the Illinois Institute of Technology in Chicago. Dr. Tillman hopes her story resonates with girls who are talkative, outgoing “out-there kind of girls who are trying to figure themselves out but are very smart.”

“I want them to see someone who has taken that energy, sparkle and excitement and packaged it in a way that is classy and beautiful,” she said.

Dr. Tillman may now have her doctorate, but she’s also excited about teenage things — like attending a prom. On Saturday, she going as her best friend’s date to his senior dance. They’re taking an Escalade outfitted with stars on the ceiling, she said, a feature she requested and that her mother made happen.

Dr. Tillman has been focused on school and her professional pursuits, and she plans to host her institute’s summer camp again. Then, she said, she plans to take a beat and have a “fun teenage summer,” doing things she loves, discovering new hobbies and figuring herself out in the process.

“I want to focus on who I am,” she said.

Rod Serling, veteran: 'Twilight Zone' creator's unearthed story examines human cost of war

Entering the Twilight Zone was always an eerie and unpredictable journey, but TV viewers could count on one constant: the familiar voice and face of creator Rod Serling .

Serling died in 1975, but fans now have a new story from him to sink their teeth into. “First Squad, First Platoon,” a short story written in his early 20s, was published for the first time in May's issue of The Strand Magazine , a quarterly that runs previously unpublished works by literary masters and new fiction by modern authors.

“First Squad, First Platoon” offers an unusually personal glimpse into Serling's World War II experience , where he served in the 511th Parachute Infantry Regiment of the 11th Airborne Division in the Philippines. The story is a chilling look at the impact of war, and he dedicated it "To My Children," even before he had any kids of his own.

How a rare Rod Serling war story was uncovered

Amy Boyle Johnston, writer of the biography “Unknown Serling,” spent years poring through his archives across the country. On one journey to the Wisconsin Historical Society 's public collection more than 20 years ago, she came across “First Squad, First Platoon” and shared it with his family.

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Now, it's available to the public in a special edition of The Strand. Editor-in-chief Andrew Gulli, who specializes in finding lost manuscripts, is a long-time “Twilight Zone” fan. Often, works found posthumously need heavy editing, he says. With Serling’s story, he was shocked at “the work of a very mature writer.”

“When I read this, I said to myself ‘My God,’” Gulli says. “You know how this governed the rest of his life.”

“First Squad, First Platoon” is five short chapters, each focusing on one squad member – and their relationships with each other – and how they died.

This is not the Serling we know of “Twilight Zone” fame. When he wrote this story in his early 20s at Antioch College, Johnston said he was writing quietly, as a reflection. At the time, he could not have comprehended how successful he would be in later years. His daughter, Anne Serling, told USA TODAY he never thought his writing would be remembered.

“He wanted this to be understood on a small emotional level about who he was as a man and what he had witnessed,” Johnston says. “When we think of the public persona of who Rod Serling is, even though he was shrouded in mystery, Serling is having an intimate conversation.”

This is particularly clear in the story’s dedication to his future children. He urges them to remember the horrors of war – the shrapnel, the mustard gas – in the same breath as patriotism and honor.

“Human beings don’t like to remember unpleasant things,” he wrote. “They gird themselves with the armor of wishful thinking, protect themselves with a shield of impenetrable optimism, and, with few exceptions, seem to accomplish their ‘forgetting’ quite admirably.”

An early look at Serling's recurring themes in 'The Twilight Zone'

Serling was awarded a Bronze Star and Purple Heart for his service. He didn’t talk about the war, like so many other veterans , Serling told USA TODAY. But she still saw the effects it had on her father, the nightmares that kept him awake.

“To think, after all he’s been through and combined with his young age, to have the wherewithal to be able to articulate that incredibly as he did,” Serling says. It’s a stark contrast from the letters home that he wrote, which sound like “a kid writing from summer camp” asking for gum, candy and underwear. His father died while Serling was overseas and he came home to a "completely unknown world," his daughter says.

The impact of war would continue as a theme throughout Serling’s work in "Twilight Zone" episodes like “The Purple Testament” and "A Quality of Mercy" and Studio One’s “The Strike.” Johnston says Serling was proud of his service but would never stop trying to make sense of what happened to him and so many other young men.

The names he uses in “First Squad, First Platoon” are taken from many of the men he fought alongside in WWII. They are names that continue to show up in his later TV work. One character in the story is even named Serling.

“He was writing this from an adult point of view, saying ‘I don’t want to forget these men, I don’t want to forget what happened to us, and you should understand this about me later,’” Johnston says. “To the viewers, to us, the public, he always reminded us war came at the cost of lives.”

It's poignant, amid the Israel-Hamas and Ukraine wars. Serling says her dad would be “horrified” and “apoplectic” at the relevancy of “First Squad, First Platoon” today.

“My father cared deeply about people and felt we could do better. I believe his legacy has survived as long as it has because he dealt with moral issues – racism, mob mentality, marginalization ... that are (sadly) still so relevant and prevalent today,” Serling wrote in a follow-up email to USA TODAY.

She said it reminds her of a quote of his: "Human beings must involve themselves in the anguish of other human beings. This, I submit to you, is not a political thesis at all. It is simply an expression of what I would hope might be ultimately a simple humanity for humanity's sake."

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Dedication Page for Academic Papers [11 Examples]
Dedication for Dissertation/Thesis: Example #1. I dedicate my dissertation work to my family and many friends. A special feeling of gratitude to my loving parents, William and Louise Johnson whose words of encouragement and push for tenacity ring in my ears. My sisters Katie, Linda and Rhonda have never left my side and are very special.
Dedication in Dissertation: Examples and Guidance
Below are some examples and guidance for writing a meaningful dedication in your dissertation. Example 1: "To my beloved parents, Your unwavering love, endless support, and sacrifices have been the cornerstone of my academic journey. Your encouragement and belief in my abilities have been my guiding light through the highs and lows of this ...
How to Write a Dedication for a Thesis or Dissertation?
Writing a dedication page for your thesis or dissertation is a great way to honor the people who have supported you throughout the journey of your research and writing. In this guide, we'll show you everything you need to know about writing a dedication page for your thesis or dissertation. From formatting it to what you can include, we'll ...
Dedication, Acknowledgements, & Preface
Dedication, Acknowledgements, and Preface sections are all optional pages. But, what is the difference between these three? Dedication — A personal tribute to someone or a group of people. Example: "To my parents." Acknowledgements — A professional tribute to a person or people who helped you with the thesis. Example: "I wish to thank my thesis advisor for the hours of help in the lab ...
Examples of Dedications
Read on to discover how you can write the perfect dedication, whether it is a dedication to a friend, parent, child, or someone else. Tips for Writing a Dedication Page. A dedication is usually a single sentence at the beginning of a book, thesis, or dissertation that offers the work to someone who inspired you or helped you with it.
Thesis & Dissertation Acknowledgements
The acknowledgements section is your opportunity to thank those who have helped and supported you personally and professionally during your thesis or dissertation process. Thesis or dissertation acknowledgements appear between your title page and abstract and should be no longer than one page. In your acknowledgements, it's okay to use a more ...
Dedication Page
The Dedication Page is optional. If you choose to include a Dedication Page, please ensure that: You are using the same font as in the rest of your manuscript. No images are included. Page number ii appears centered at the bottom of the page. Please note that the Dedication Page is different from the Acknowledgements Page.
Thesis acknowledgements: Samples and how to write your own thesis or
Note - You can also use a thesis dedication to thank your family. This is a separate section to your thesis acknowledgements and is entirely optional. It's usually just a single line, just like you might find at the front of some books. Most people don't include a separate dedication section but you can if you want to go that extra step.
How to Write a Dedication
The dedication could simply be: "For my mom"; others may choose to explain their decision: "For my mom; without her I would not be here." You may want to write a funny anecdote about the person, an experience you shared, or even a private joke shared only by the two of you. ... whether you are drafting the perfect dedication for a book or a thesis.
Writing Your Dedication and Acknowledgements
The dedication, as the name suggests, allows you to dedicate your thesis to someone (or multiple people). This is quite a personal matter, and dedications are often made to family members, spouses, friends, or community groups. The acknowledgements page, by contrast, allows you to express thanks for specific contributions, and often features ...
How to Write a Thesis Statement
Step 2: Write your initial answer. After some initial research, you can formulate a tentative answer to this question. At this stage it can be simple, and it should guide the research process and writing process. The internet has had more of a positive than a negative effect on education.
PDF DEDICATION
DEDICATION I dedicate my dissertation work to my family and many friends. A special feeling of gratitude to my loving parents, William and Louise Johnson whose words of encouragement and push for tenacity ring in my ears. My sisters Katie, Linda and Rhonda have never left my side and are very special.
Acknowledgements for Thesis and Dissertations with Examples
Example 2. I would like to thank my supervisors Dr. XXX and Dr. XXX for all their help and advice with this PhD. I would also like to thank my sisters, whom without this would have not been possible. I also appreciate all the support I received from the rest of my family. Lastly, I would like to thank the XXX for the studentship that allowed me ...
Order and Components
A dedication is a message from the author prefixed to a work in tribute to a person, group, or cause. Most dedications are short statements of tribute beginning with "To…" such as "To my family". Acknowledgements are the author's statement of gratitude to and recognition of the people and institutions that helped the author's research and writing.
What Is a Thesis?
Revised on April 16, 2024. A thesis is a type of research paper based on your original research. It is usually submitted as the final step of a master's program or a capstone to a bachelor's degree. Writing a thesis can be a daunting experience. Other than a dissertation, it is one of the longest pieces of writing students typically complete.
Formatting Requirements: Preliminary Pages
Dedication. The dedication is an optional entry; enumeration continues in sequence, but no page number appears on the page. It follows the abstract and precedes the table of contents. Often only one or two lines, it is centered within the top and bottom margins of the page and within the thesis margins.
What is a Dedication Page in Academic Papers?
A dedication is an optional section in an academic paper where you can show your appreciation to the individual (s) who have given you support or inspiration throughout your work. This is one of the shortest parts of an academic paper. In this post, we will take a quick look at this very special part when it comes to writing your academic papers.
PDF DEDICATION
DEDICATION This dissertation is dedicated to all of my former students in Detroit. Although you called me teacher, I was the one who was learning. Thank you! I also dedicate this work to my mother and father, Joyce and Jim Stockdill, who first taught me the value of education and critical thought.
PDF THESIS
To my mother-in-law, Maryam, known only briefly but loved and missed, who represented to me 'living proof' of Black women's ability to redefine and recreate our lives despite, and maybe even because of, the tremendously constraining, oppressive and repressive situations in which we often exist. To my dear husband, Bala who remains willing ...
How formal should the dedication section in a master thesis be?
On my PhD thesis dedication page I first gave a gushy thanks to my supervisor. Then I included a quote from Yoda, and a quote from a song by the music group Queen. I think as long as it's generally not nasty it will be OK. You can also get some general ideas about format, writing style, citations, etc. Maybe the people who did the binding will ...
PDF DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my mother, Jane Bass, and my
DEDICATION This thesis is dedicated to my mother, Jane Bass, and my stepfather, Amos Bass. Without their endless love and encouragement I would never have been able to complete my graduate studies. I love you both and I appreciate everything that you have done for me. This thesis is also dedicated to my sister, Kelli Campbell
Dedication acknowledgement and abstract thesis sample
Unformatted Attachment Preview. DEDICATION, ACKNOWLEDGEMENT AND ABSTRACT THESIS SAMPLE DEDICATION This study is dedicated to our beloved parents, who have been our source of inspiration, guide and give us strength, when we thought of giving up, who continually provide their moral, spiritual, emotional and financial support.
Dedication of Gate of the Muses for Ray Charles at Dreamers ...
Both the Board of County Commissioners and Mayor Harvey L. Ward, Jr., have approved a PROCLAMATION declaring June 1, 2024, THE GATE OF THE MUSES FOR RAY CHARLES AT DREAMER GARDEN DAY. Dedication ...
Jordan Fridley '24 Found Their Voice at Guilford
When Jordan Fridley '24 attended honors day at Guilford College as a senior in high school, taking a sample class and eating in Founders Hall, they had no idea that a mere four years later they'd be presenting an honors thesis three times in one day, garnering the recognition of achieving the Hege Research Award for outstanding honors thesis just days before graduating with honors with a ...
Dissertation & Thesis Outline
Dissertation & Thesis Outline | Example & Free Templates. Published on June 7, 2022 by Tegan George.Revised on November 21, 2023. A thesis or dissertation outline is one of the most critical early steps in your writing process.It helps you to lay out and organize your ideas and can provide you with a roadmap for deciding the specifics of your dissertation topic and showcasing its relevance to ...
2024 Top Faculty Awards Announced < Yale School of Public Health
Assistant Professor Kai Chen's students praised his dedication and commitment as a mentor and for going "above and beyond" to ensure their academic success. Students referenced Kai's passion for his work. One student said Kai's encouragement "has ensured that I will create the best possible version of my thesis that it can be."
Bard College Berlin's 2024 Commencement Ceremony Celebrates Graduates
Students are nominated for the thesis prize by their academic advisors, and the prizewinners for each BA degree are chosen by a committee that includes members of the Faculty, the University Leadership, and the Board of Governors. ... Yiddishism and labor unions, among many other engaging works that resulted from months of hard work and dedication.
She Just Earned Her Doctorate at 17. Now, She'll Go to the Prom
Ms. Tillman earned her doctoral degree in integrated behavioral health from the school at age 17. Tillman Family, via Associated Press. When Dorothy Jean Tillman II successfully defended her ...
Graduate Program Awards Doctoral Degrees to 2024 Class
Associate Dean Laura Solt, Ph.D., draped graduates with their stoles during the Skaggs Graduate School's 2024 commencement ceremony. LA JOLLA, Calif. (May 21, 2024) - Scripps Research awarded doctoral degrees to 59 graduate students, including seven from its partner program based at The Herbert Wertheim UF Scripps Institute for Biomedical Innovation & Technology, during its 32nd ...
'Twilight Zone' creator's personal WWII story published for first time
Well before "The Twilight Zone," Rod Serling wrote about his time in World War II. His daughter spoke to us about the rare, recently published story.

Dedication in Dissertation: Examples and Guidance

Guidance for Writing a Dedication

Express Gratitude

Consider Relevance

Personalize Your Message

Proofread Carefully

Dedication in Dissertation: Final Remarks

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Dedication Page

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Thesis acknowledgements: Samples and how to write your own thesis or dissertation acknowledgements

What is the purpose of the acknowledgements section in a thesis?

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What is a Dedication Page in Academic Papers?

What is a dedication page in academic papers?

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