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- Thesis & Dissertation Acknowledgements | Tips & Examples
Thesis & Dissertation Acknowledgements | Tips & Examples
Published on May 3, 2022 by Tegan George . Revised on November 11, 2022.
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 informal style than is usually permitted in academic writing , as well as first-person pronouns . Acknowledgements are not considered part of the academic work itself, but rather your chance to write something more personal.
To get started, download our step-by-step template in the format of your choice below. We’ve also included sample sentence starters to help you construct your acknowledgments section from scratch.
Download Word doc Download Google doc
Table of contents
Who to thank in your acknowledgements, how to write acknowledgements, acknowledgements section example, acknowledgements dos and don’ts, frequently asked questions about the acknowledgements section.
Generally, there are two main categories of acknowledgements: professional and personal .
A good first step is to check your university’s guidelines, as they may have rules or preferences about the order, phrasing, or layout of acknowledgements. Some institutions prefer that you keep your acknowledgements strictly professional.
Regardless, it’s usually a good idea to place professional acknowledgements first, followed by any personal ones. You can then proceed by ranking who you’d like to thank from most formal to least.
- Chairs, supervisors, or defense committees
- Funding bodies
- Other academics (e.g., colleagues or cohort members)
- Editors or proofreaders
- Librarians, research/laboratory assistants, or study participants
- Family, friends, or pets
Typically, it’s only necessary to mention people who directly supported you during your thesis or dissertation. However, if you feel that someone like a high school physics teacher was a great inspiration on the path to your current research, feel free to include them as well.
Professional acknowledgements
It is crucial to avoid overlooking anyone who helped you professionally as you completed your thesis or dissertation. As a rule of thumb, anyone who directly contributed to your research process, from figuring out your dissertation topic to your final proofread, should be mentioned.
A few things to keep in mind include:
- Even if you feel your chair didn’t help you very much, you should still thank them first to avoid looking like you’re snubbing them.
- Be sure to follow academic conventions, using full names with titles where appropriate.
- If several members of a group or organization assisted you, mention the collective name only.
- Remember the ethical considerations around anonymized data. If you wish to protect someone’s privacy, use only their first name or a generic identifier (such as “the interviewees”)/
Personal acknowledgements
There is no need to mention every member of your family or friend group. However, if someone was particularly inspiring or supportive, you may wish to mention them specifically. Many people choose to thank parents, partners, children, friends, and even pets, but you can mention anyone who offered moral support or encouragement, or helped you in a tangible or intangible way.
Some students may wish to dedicate their dissertation to a deceased influential person in their personal life. In this case, it’s okay to mention them first, before any professional acknowledgements.
After you’ve compiled a list of who you’d like to thank, you can then sort your list into rank order. Separate everyone you listed into “major thanks,” “big thanks,” and “minor thanks” categories.
- “Major thanks” are given to people who your project would be impossible without. These are often predominantly professional acknowledgements, such as your advisor, chair, and committee, as well as any funders.
- “Big thanks” are an in-between, for those who helped you along the way or helped you grow intellectually, such as classmates, peers, or librarians.
- “Minor thanks” can be a catch-all for everyone else, especially those who offered moral support or encouragement. This can include personal acknowledgements, such as parents, partners, children, friends, or even pets.
How to phrase your acknowledgements
To avoid acknowledgements that sound repetitive or dull, consider changing up your phrasing. Here are some examples of common sentence starters you can use for each category.
Note that you do not need to write any sort of conclusion or summary at the end. You can simply end the acknowledgements with your last thank you.
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Here’s an example of how you can combine the different sentences to write your acknowledgements.
A simple construction consists of a sentence starter (in purple highlight ), followed by the person or entity mentioned (in green highlight ), followed by what you’re thanking them for (in yellow highlight .)
Acknowledgements
Words cannot express my gratitude to my professor and chair of my committee for her invaluable patience and feedback. I also could not have undertaken this journey without my defense committee, who generously provided knowledge and expertise. Additionally, this endeavor would not have been possible without the generous support from the MacArthur Foundation, who financed my research .
I am also grateful to my classmates and cohort members, especially my office mates, for their editing help, late-night feedback sessions, and moral support. Thanks should also go to the librarians, research assistants, and study participants from the university, who impacted and inspired me.
Lastly, I would be remiss in not mentioning my family, especially my parents, spouse, and children. Their belief in me has kept my spirits and motivation high during this process. I would also like to thank my cat for all the entertainment and emotional support.
- Write in first-person, professional language
- Thank your professional contacts first
- Include full names, titles, and roles of professional acknowledgements
- Include personal or intangible supporters, like friends, family, or even pets
- Mention funding bodies and what they funded
- Appropriately anonymize or group research participants or non-individual acknowledgments
Don’t:
- Use informal language or slang
- Go over one page in length
- Mention people who had only a peripheral or minor impact on your work
In the acknowledgements of your thesis or dissertation, you should first thank those who helped you academically or professionally, such as your supervisor, funders, and other academics.
Then you can include personal thanks to friends, family members, or anyone else who supported you during the process.
Yes, it’s important to thank your supervisor(s) in the acknowledgements section of your thesis or dissertation .
Even if you feel your supervisor did not contribute greatly to the final product, you must acknowledge them, if only for a very brief thank you. If you do not include your supervisor, it may be seen as a snub.
The acknowledgements are generally included at the very beginning of your thesis , directly after the title page and before the abstract .
In a thesis or dissertation, the acknowledgements should usually be no longer than one page. There is no minimum length.
You may acknowledge God in your dissertation acknowledgements , but be sure to follow academic convention by also thanking the members of academia, as well as family, colleagues, and friends who helped you.
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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’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.
Table of Contents
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:
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:
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!
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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15+ Samples of Acknowledgement for Thesis and Dissertation
Here, in this blog post, you can find some of the samples of acknoweldgement for thesis written by students all over the world on different topics. These acknowledgement examples are to inspire you and to show how the thesis is written.
Acknowledgement Examples for School/College Projects
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You can get some idea of how you can write your own acknowledgement with these samples. All of these are samples are one of the best acknowledgement for thesis for masters and PHDs .
All of these samples of acknowledgement is taken from publicly available documents. Some of these samples are from award winning thesis writings. Here are some beautiful thesis acknowledgement from different writers.
Saying thank you with style
How to write an acknowledgement: the complete guide for students, thesis acknowledgement – sample 1, acknowledgement for thesis – sample 2.
This short acknowledgement is written by Christopher Sipola from University of Edinburgh for his thesis. You can check the full thesis sample here.
University: University of Edinburgh Author: Christopher Sipola Full Thesis Sample: https://project-archive.inf.ed.ac.uk/msc/20172438/msc_proj.pdf
Example of Acknowledgement For Thesis – Sample 3
University: University of Ottawa Author: Matthew Brillinger Full Thesis Sample: https://ruor.uottawa.ca/bitstream/10393/35312/1/Brillinger_Matthew_2016_Thesis.pdf
Acknowledgement Sample For Thesis – Sample 4
University: Columbia University Author: Julien Saint Reiman Full Thesis Sample: https://history.columbia.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2016/06/Reiman-Julien-Thesis.pdf
Acknowledgement Example For Thesis – Sample 5
University: University of Ottawa Author: Heather Martin Full Thesis Sample: https://ruor.uottawa.ca/bitstream/10393/32518/3/Martin_Heather_2015_thesis.pdf
Thesis Acknowledgement Example – Sample 6
University: University of Ottawa Author: Guillaume Thekkadath Full Thesis Sample: https://ruor.uottawa.ca/bitstream/10393/36669/3/Thekkadath_Guillaume_2017_thesis.pdf
Thesis Acknowledgement – Sample 7
Example of thesis acknowledgement – sample 8.
University: Sample Thesis Author: Full Thesis Sample: https://www.cs.siu.edu/files/thesis.pdf
Acknowledgement for Thesis – Sample 9
Sample acknowledgement for thesis – sample 10.
University: The University of Toledo Author: Sample Thesis Full Thesis Sample: https://etd.ohiolink.edu/apexprod/rws_etd/send_file/send?accession=toledo1333741245&disposition=attachment
Sample Acknowledgement for Thesis – Sample 11
University: IOWA STATE University Author: Varsha Ravichandra Mouli Full Thesis Sample: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cs_etd/
Acknowledgement for Thesis – Sample 12
Acknowledgement samples for thesis – sample 13.
University: IOWA STATE University Author: Jenna Mertz Full Thesis Sample: https://lib.dr.iastate.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=8273&context=etd
Acknowledgement for Thesis – Sample 14
University: Nottingham University Author: Jean D. M. Underwood. Full Thesis Sample: http://eprints.nottingham.ac.uk/11711/1/325961.pdf
Acknowledgement Samples – Sample 15
University: The University of Western Ontario Author: Katie Hart Full Thesis Sample: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=9356&context=etd
Acknowledgement Samples for Thesis – Sample 16
Thesis acknowledgement samples – sample 17.
University: Brunel Business School Brunel University Author: Kinana Ahmad Jammoul Full Thesis Sample: http://107.170.122.150:8080/xmlui/bitstream/handle/123456789/95/Shristi%20Karmacharya%20Thesis%209881.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
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How-to Guides on Academic Writing and Others
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Acknowledgement Letter
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Master Thesis Acknowledgement Sample
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If you are looking for some master thesis acknowledgement sample’ s, then here you will get a few samples & a detailed guide on it.
Writing a master’s thesis can be a daunting and time-consuming task, but it’s important to remember to take a moment to acknowledge the people who helped you along the way. Acknowledgements in a master’s thesis serve as a way to thank those who have supported you during your studies and research.
When writing your acknowledgement, it’s important to be sincere and heartfelt. Start by thanking your advisor, who likely played a key role in your research and writing process. You should also consider thanking any other members of your thesis committee, as well as any colleagues or mentors who provided guidance or support.
If you conducted your research at an organization or with the help of any resources, be sure to express your gratitude to those who made it possible. You should also consider thanking any friends or family members who supported you during this process, as they likely played a crucial role in helping you stay motivated and on track.
Finally , don’t forget to thank the participants in your study. Without their contribution, your research would not have been possible.
Overall, the acknowledgement section of your master’s thesis is an important way to show appreciation for those who have helped you along the way. Be sure to take the time to express your gratitude in a sincere and heartfelt way.
I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor, _______ [Advisor Name], for their invaluable guidance and support throughout my master’s program. Their expertise and encouragement helped me to complete this research and write this thesis.
I would also like to thank _______ [Name] and _______ [Name] for serving on my thesis committee and providing helpful feedback and suggestions.
I am grateful to ______ [Name] for providing me with the opportunity to conduct my research at ______ [Organization Name], and for all of the resources and support they provided.
I would also like to thank my friends and family for their love and support during this process. Without them, this journey would not have been possible.
Finally, I would like to thank all of the participants in my study for their time and willingness to share their experiences. This work would not have been possible without their contribution.
Acknowledgement For Master Thesis
I am deeply grateful to my advisor, _______ [Advisor Name], for their unwavering support and guidance throughout my master’s program. Their expertise and patience have been invaluable to me and have played a crucial role in the success of this thesis.
I am grateful to [Organization] for providing me with the opportunity to conduct my research and for all of the resources and support they provided. I would like to extend a special thanks to [Name], who went above and beyond to help me with my work.
I would also like to thank [Name] for serving on my thesis committee and providing valuable feedback and suggestions. Their insights and guidance were instrumental in helping me to shape my research and write this thesis.
I am deeply thankful to my friends and family for their love and support during this process. Without their encouragement and motivation, I would not have been able to complete this journey.
I would also like to thank my colleagues at [Organization] for their support and collaboration during my research. In particular, I would like to thank [Name] for their help with [specific task] and [Name] for their assistance with [specific task].
Finally, I would like to extend my sincere gratitude to all of the participants in my study. Their willingness to share their experiences and insights has been invaluable to my research and has helped to make this thesis a success. Thank you for your time and contribution.
I am grateful to everyone who has supported me throughout this process. Without your help and guidance, this thesis would not have been possible.
Master Thesis Acknowledgement Sample PDF
Some Tips To Write A Good Master Thesis Acknowledgment
Here are some tips for writing a good acknowledgment for your master’s thesis:
- Keep it brief: Your acknowledgement should be brief and to the point. You don’t need to go into great detail about everyone who has helped you.
- Be specific: Make sure to mention specific people or organizations that have helped you. For example, “I would like to thank Professor XYZ for her invaluable guidance and support throughout my research.”
- Show gratitude: Make sure to express your appreciation to those who have helped you. For example, “I am deeply grateful to my advisors, Professor XYZ and Professor ABC, for their guidance and support throughout my research.”
- Use proper formatting: Follow the guidelines of your university or department for formatting your acknowledgement.
- Use a personal tone: While you should maintain a professional tone, it’s okay to use a more personal tone in your acknowledgement. This is your chance to express your appreciation to those who have helped you, so don’t be afraid to let your personality shine through.
- Keep it in order: Consider organizing your acknowledgement in importance or the amount of help each person provided.
- Proofread: Make sure to proofread your acknowledgement for spelling and grammar errors. It’s important to make a good impression with your writing, even in the acknowledgement section.
Read Also: How To Write Acknowledgement For Research Paper
In conclusion, writing a master’s thesis acknowledgement is a way to show appreciation to the people who have helped and supported you during the research and writing process. It is a way to thank them for their time, effort, and guidance, and to recognize the important role they played in the success of your work.
By taking the time to express your gratitude, you can not only show your appreciation, but also strengthen your relationships with those who helped you. So take a moment to reflect on the people who have contributed to your journey, and consider including them in your acknowledgement section as a way to say thank you.
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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
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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Acknowledgement Sample
Master thesis acknowledgement template
The acknowledgements or dedication page is optional. If you decide to include Acknowledgements in you paper, than you should place the word acknowledgements should at the top center of the page in capital letters. If it is included, the acknowledgements page will immediately follow the abstract. Here we have prepared general template for Acknowledgement page for Master thesis. This template is suitable for any subject, area of research, so you are welcomed to use it. Good luck.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I would first like to thank my thesis advisor [title] [Name Surname] of the [School / Faculty name] at [University name]. The door to Prof. [Last name] office was always open whenever I ran into a trouble spot or had a question about my research or writing. He/She consistently allowed this paper to be my own work, but steered me in the right the direction whenever he thought I needed it.
I would also like to thank the experts who were involved in the validation survey for this research project: [List professional Titles, Name and Surnames of the experts who participated/contributed]. Without their passionate participation and input, the validation survey could not have been successfully conducted.
I would also like to acknowledge [title] [Name Surname] of the [School / Faculty name] at [University name] as the second reader of this thesis, and I am gratefully indebted to his/her for his/her very valuable comments on this thesis.
Finally, I must express my very profound gratitude to my parents and to my [partner, spouse, girl/boyfriend] for providing me with unfailing support and continuous encouragement throughout my years of study and through the process of researching and writing this thesis. This accomplishment would not have been possible without them. Thank you.
[Name Surname]
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14 Dissertation Acknowledgements Examples
Dissertation acknowledgements examples.
Here are 14 dissertation acknowledgements examples to inspire you. They cover a range of academic subjects and are all from UK students. Note how they vary in length, style and substance.
Note – all samples have been taken from documents available in the public realm.
Remember to always keep your acknowledgements to a maximum of a page .
So let’s dive right in!
Thank you to my supervisor, Dr Andrew R., for providing guidance and feedback throughout this project. Thanks also to my wife Anna, for putting up with me being sat in the office for hours on end, and for providing guidance and a sounding board when required.
I would like to thank the following people for helping with this research project: Representatives from Historic England, Historic Scotland, the Society for the Protection of Scottish Buildings and the Sustainable Buildings Alliance for their willingness to impart their knowledge. All the conservation officers and heritage team members who took the time to complete my questionnaire and who contributed so thoroughly through their further comments and emails. I would particularly like to thank those conservation officers who agreed to be interviewed. Brenda P., my tutor, who guided me so positively and who always made me feel confident in my abilities after coming off the phone to her. Jan W. for his help with statistics. My husband and children for their patience and encouragement.
I would like to thank the following people, without whom I would not have been able to complete this research, and without whom I would not have made it through my masters degree! The XYZ team at Johnson University, especially to my supervisor Dr Paul C., whose insight and knowledge into the subject matter steered me through this research. And special thanks to Linda T., whose support as part of her PhD allowed my studies to go the extra mile (sorry for all the extra work Linda!). The residents of Dundee, who took the time to return surveys and allowed me into your homes for follow up surveys, and without whom I would have no content for my thesis. My colleagues at the Old Building Trust and Old Building Foundation, who have supported me and had to put up with my stresses and moans for the past three years of study! And my biggest thanks to my family for all the support you have shown me through this research, the culmination of three years of distance learning. For my kids, sorry for being even grumpier than normal whilst I wrote this thesis! And for my wife Jenny, thanks for all your support, without which I would have stopped these studies a long time ago,. You have been amazing, and I will now clear all the papers off the kitchen table as I promised!
I would like to thank the following people who have helped me undertake this research: My supervisor Dr. Peter B., for his enthusiasm for the project, for his support, encouragement and patience; The Institute of Energy and Sustainable Development, Johnson University, for input throughout this MSc programme. For their contributions to data collection: David K at Tech David K, VS Limited Steven M Conal M., Engineer, County Council The good people of Brighton who were so generous with their time in completing the questionnaire surveys. My partner Billy – I simply couldn’t have done this without you, special thanks. Dear friends and family and Hattie. And to my parents, who set me off on the road to this MSc a long time ago.
I would like to thank Mr. Joe Smith for guiding me to his important publications and for the stimulating questions on artificial intelligence and automation. The meetings and conversations were vital in inspiring me to think outside the box, from multiple perspectives to form a comprehensive and objective critique.
First of all, I would like to express my sincere gratitude to Beauville Scholarships, the UK government’s global scholarship programme, funded by the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) and partner organisations, for letting me be part of this incredible leaders’ network. Further, I would like to thank my supervisor Alejandro for the thoughtful comments and recommendations on this dissertation. I am also thankful to the School of Engineering and all its member’s staff for all the considerate guidance. To conclude, I cannot forget to thank my family and friends for all the unconditional support in this very intense academic year.
I would like to thank my supervisor Prof. Mark W. and Liam H. for their consistent support and guidance during the running of this project. Furthermore I would like to thank the rest of the undergraduate research team for their collaborative effort during data collection. I would also like to acknowledge the school in Bradford for their participation and engagement in the study.
I would like to thank my supervisor Gina K. for her dedicated support and guidance. Gina continuously provided encouragement and was always willing and enthusiastic to assist in any way she could throughout the research project. I would also like to thank Andrew P. for providing advice regarding analysis.Finally, many thanks to all participants that took part in the study and enabled this research to be possible.
With many thanks to my supervisor Dr Martyn G. for his guidance during this research. To Jennie R., the dissertation module leader, for her support and encouragement throughout the process. Furthermore, to my mentor, Josh B. for providing access and introductions to women leaders, without this, the research would not have been possible. Finally, to all of the women who sacrificed their time, and the support of these well-known companies for their participation.
I would like to express my gratitude and appreciation for Barbara S. whose guidance, support and encouragement has been invaluable throughout this study. I also wish to thank the team an CIL who have been a great source of support.
Firstly, I’d like to express my thanks to my patient and supportive supervisor, Tao J., who has supported me throughout this research project. I am extremely grateful for our friendly chats at the end of our meetings and your personal support in my academic and business endeavours. I’d also like to thank my participants and customers who took the time to reflect on their consumption choices. Thank you for expressing your thoughts so eloquently and your feminism so unapologetically.
I would like to say a special thank you to my supervisor, Jennie R. Her support, guidance and overall insights in this field have made this an inspiring experience for me. I would also like to thank all of the women who participated in the study’s interviews. Finally, I would like to thank my family for supporting me during the compilation of this dissertation.
I would like to thank Rik B. for his continued support throughout this project. Guy R., through Dyesol and Philip L. for their SIM images of porous stone. I would also like to thank Dr. Steven M. for his advice throughout the project. Finally I would like to thank Maureen H. at the University of Freetown for allowing me to visit her and her explanation of various techniques.
From the bottom of my heart I would like to say big thank you for all the bioelectronics research group members for their energy, understanding and help throughout my project, especially to Mr D. N. for the guidance throughout the gel extraction, Mr Andrew L. for the help with AFM imaging and Mr Samuel D. H. for advice on the DNA analysis process. It truly has been very, very good time in this lab. I also would like to say special thank you to Professor P. W.and Dr R. S., without your help and wise guidance this project would have not been the same!
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Regardless, it’s usually a good idea to place professional acknowledgements first, followed by any personal ones. You can then proceed by ranking who you’d like to thank from most formal to least. Example: Thanking order Chairs, supervisors, or defense committees Funding bodies Other academics (e.g., colleagues or cohort members)
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.
Acknowledgement For Thesis – Sample 2 This short acknowledgement is written by Christopher Sipola from University of Edinburgh for his thesis. You can check the full thesis sample here. University: University of Edinburgh Author: Christopher Sipola Full Thesis Sample: https://project-archive.inf.ed.ac.uk/msc/20172438/msc_proj.pdf
Master Thesis Acknowledgement Sample I would like to express my sincere gratitude to my advisor, _______ [Advisor Name], for their invaluable guidance and support throughout my master’s program. Their expertise and encouragement helped me to complete this research and write this thesis.
Title: Microsoft Word - GUIDELINES FOR SUBMISSION OF THESES AND DISSERTATIONS (show final markups).doc Created Date: 4/14/2015 3:54:02 PM
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.
Here we have prepared general template for Acknowledgement page for Master thesis. This template is suitable for any subject, area of research, so you are welcomed to use it. Good luck. ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I would first like to thank my thesis advisor [title] [Name Surname] of the [School / Faculty name] at [University name]. The door to Prof.
So let’s dive right in! Example 1 Thank you to my supervisor, Dr Andrew R., for providing guidance and feedback throughout this project. Thanks also to my wife Anna, for putting up with me being sat in the office for hours on end, and for providing guidance and a sounding board when required. Example 2