Nature of the Thesis
Theses produced within different disciplines are very different but they have certain things in common:
- a thesis is a sustained argument based upon evidence;
- a thesis contributes to the creation of knowledge in the field;
- a thesis is set within the relevant academic discourses and methodologies;
- a thesis requires a high level of commitment and integrity commensurate with the professional respect it will command when it is completed.
Characteristics of a Thesis of 20,000 words
The thesis provides an ordered, critical exposition of knowledge gained through the student's own efforts and demonstrates a sound understanding of the research process. In scope, the thesis of 20,000 words (excluding appendices) is more limited than the thesis of 30,000 words in that it is not necessarily a new line of development or a major contribution to knowledge, but it should:
- limit attention to a few main questions;
- keep data collection to a minimum;
- work with subjects or on experiments easily accessible to the student;
- reduce the literature survey to a point where it is sufficient to place the study in its research context, and to be critical without claiming to be exhaustive;
- speculate on findings instead of aiming at generalisations grounded on the findings; and
- be written in succinct, polished English be about 20,000 words in length, excluding appendices.
Characteristics of a Thesis of 30,000 words
The thesis marks the possession of advanced knowledge in a specialist field, and therefore should:
- show evidence of an original investigation and the testing of hypotheses;
- demonstrate an ability to make critical use of published work and source materials and appreciate the relationship of the topic to the wider field of knowledge.
- demonstrate competence in independent work or experimentation and an understanding of techniques and/or approaches which are appropriate to the research question(s);
- demonstrate that the candidate has mastered research and synthesising skills in producing a contribution to knowledge, though it need not necessarily be a new line of development in research;
- demonstrate its contribution to knowledge through the drawing of generalised conclusions or further hypotheses for testing, where they are well grounded in the findings;
- be written in succinct, polished English be about 30,000 words in length, excluding appendices.
Characteristics of the Doctor of Education
The essential difference between the PhD and the Doctor of Education is that the latter concentrates on, and takes its dissertation topic from, a problem area at the cutting edge of the education profession. Dissertations tend to be interdisciplinary and selective in deriving their conceptual framework and methodologies as the dissertation topic will typically arise from a professional base rather than from only one of the academic disciplines. The doctoral seminars provides the opportunity for the candidate to explore constructs from several related fields which will help to firm up the approaches to be used in the dissertation phase of the degree. A Doctor of Education dissertation should be about 55,000 words in length (25,000-30,000 for coursework classified), excluding appendices. Apart from these differences the Doctor of Education dissertation resembles the PhD thesis in all the other ways listed under “Doctor of Philosophy”.
Characteristics of the Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
The degree of Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) signifies that the candidate has conducted a substantial piece of research which has been conceived, conducted and reported by the candidate under proper academic supervision and in a formal academic environment for a prescribed period. In scope, the PhD thesis differs from a Masters Research degree primarily due to its deeper and more comprehensive treatment of the subject. A PhD should:
- demonstrate authority in the candidate's field and shows evidence of a command of knowledge in relevant related fields;
- show mastery of appropriate methodological techniques and awareness of their strengths and limitations;
- make a distinct contribution to knowledge based on an originality of approach and/or interpretation of the findings and, in some cases, the discovery of new facts;
- demonstrate an ability to communicate research findings effectively in the professional arena and in an international context;
- be written in succinct, polished English and should not exceed 100,000 words.
Notwithstanding the above, the PhD is rarely flawless and definitive; it is, however, a careful and sustained piece of work demonstrating that a research “apprenticeship” is complete and the holder is admitted to the community of scholars in the discipline.