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What would a typical thesis word count be & how many references?

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  • 02-10-2011 4:18am
    #1
    hayser
    Registered Users Posts: 393 ✭✭


    I was curious as any thesis I have read or heard about seems to be 15000 - 20000 words. Would this be the standard amount? Also roughly how many references would a person typically put into their thesis? I understand this is an individual choice and varies depending on the topic but would like to have a ball park figure.


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    #2
    Improbable
    Registered Users Posts: 1,576 ✭✭✭Improbable


    hayser wrote: »
    I was curious as any thesis I have read or heard about seems to be 15000 - 20000 words. Would this be the standard amount? Also roughly how many references would a person typically put into their thesis? I understand this is an individual choice and varies depending on the topic but would like to have a ball park figure.

    I would imagine that it differs from degree to degree. Mine was 14,000 words and had more references than I care to remember. Probably around a hundred or so...


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    #3
    Victor
    Registered Users Posts: 78,350 ✭✭✭✭Victor


    You will really need to check with your thesis supervisor on word count.

    The word count is your words, not background notes or quotes.

    I saw one thesis where the explanatory notes and references were longer than the main text! :)


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    #4
    Tar.Aldarion
    Moderators, Science, Health & Environment Moderators, Social & Fun Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 60,091 Mod ✭✭✭✭Tar.Aldarion


    Supervisor all the way, mine was 27000 words, 70 references.


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    #5
    djpbarry
    Registered Users Posts: 13,104 ✭✭✭✭djpbarry


    Your institute probably has guidelines on what form the thesis should take. Both word count and number of references will vary substantially from degree to degree, discipline to discipline.


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    #6
    woodchuck
    Moderators, Society & Culture Moderators Posts: 15,411 Mod ✭✭✭✭woodchuck


    My PhD thesis was 81,253 words (excluding references and appendix) and I had 354 references… no wonder my supervisor nicknamed it ‘The Monster’ :rolleyes: I have seen some that are longer though and others that are a lot shorter. Generally a masters thesis will be a lot shorter than a PhD thesis. And mine was biology based, which I also think tend to be longer compared to say chemistry based ones.

    But as already has been said, check with your supervisor/department/institute. There weren't any set guidelines for length where I was... there were actually instructions encase you needed 2 volumes :eek:

    I wouldn’t worry about the references as much for now, you need as many as you need. If you end up with a ridiculous amount your supervisor may ask you to cull them at the last stages of corrections.


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