Thesis writing guide Essay Example for Free

Thesis writing guide Essay The Centre for Graduate Studies of Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia (UTHM) would like to extend its appreciation to the members of staff who contributed their efforts and ideas in the preparation of this fourth edition of the Thesis Writing Guide. This manuscript was updated based on the third edition published in 2006. The Centre would also like to thank all parties involved in the publication of the manuscript. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS PREFACE i ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ii TABLE OF CONTENTS iii LIST OF TABLES vii CHAPTER 1 THESIS STRUCTURE AND CONTENT 1 1. 1. Thesis definition 1 1. 2 Thesis structure 1 1. 3 Thesis status declaration 2 1. 4 Viva voce examination panel 3 1. 5 Title page 3 1. 6 Declaration page 3 1. 7 Dedication page (Optional) 3 1. 8 Acknowledgement page (Optional) 4 1. 9 Abstract 4 1. 10 Content page 4 1. 11 List of tables page 5 1. 12 List of figures page 5 1. 13 List of symbols and abbreviations page 5 1. 14 List of appendices page 5 1. 15 Text 6 1. 15. 1 References in the text 7 1. 15. 2 Tables in the text 7 iv 1. 15. 3 Figures in the text 8 1. 15. 4 Equation in the text 9 1. 16 References 9 1. 17 Appendices 10 1. 18 Vita 10 CHAPTER 2 SIZE AND FORMAT. 11 2. 1 Paper and size 11 2. 2 Margin 11 2. 3 Page numbering 11 2. 4 Numbering of chapters and sub-titles 12 2. 5 Typing 13 2. 6 Spacing and format 13 2. 7 Printing of documents 14 2. 8 Lettering and drawings 14 2. 9 Maximum number of pages 15 2. 10 Binding of thesis 15 2. 10. 1 Cover colour and letterings 15 2. 10. 2 Thesis cover 16 2. 10. 3 Thesis spine 16 2. 10. 4 Trimming 16 CHAPTER 3 FORMAT OF REFERENCES 17 3. 1 Introduction 17 3. 2 Author (Date) System 17 3. 2. 1 Writing cited information 19 3. 2. 2 Writing the reference list 21 3. 2. 3 Writing the names of authors 22 3. 2. 4 Referring different types of sources 23 v 3. 3 31 3. 3. 1 Citing references in the text 31 IEEE Format 31 3. 4. 1 Citing references in the text 3. 4 Referring to Electronic References 31 3. 4. 2 Writing Style in publishing of reference list 31 REFERENCES 36 APPENDIX 38 vi LIST OF TABLES 1. 1 Structure and content of thesis 1 CHAPTER 1 THESIS STRUCTURE AND CONTENT 1. 1 Definition The specific use of the word â€Å"thesis† in this guide refers to the academic writings submitted in fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the doctoral degree or the masters by research degree. The word â€Å"thesis† is also used in general to refer to the master’s project report and research dissertations, which are the documents submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of the degree of masters by coursework or mixed-mode, as well as the undergraduate project reports. 1. 2 Structure A thesis is made up of several sections, arranged in the sequence shown in Table 1. 1. Table 1. 1: Sequence of contents NO. SECTION REQUIREMENT EXAMPLE (APPENDIX) REMARKS 1 Blank Page 2 Declaration of Thesis Status Required A1/ A2/ A3/A4 Unnumbered 3 Examiners’ Declaration Required B Unnumbered 2 Table 1. 1 (continued) NO. SECTION REQUIREMENT 4 Title Required EXAMPLE (APPENDIX) C1/ C2/ C3 5 Student’s Declaration Required D1 /D2 6 Dedication Optional E 7 Acknowledgements Optional F 8 Abstract Required 9 Contents Required G1a/ G1b/ G2a G2b H 10 List of Tables Required I 11 List of Figures Required J 12 Required K 13 List of Symbols and Abbreviations List of Appendices Required L 14 Text Required M 15 References Required P1/P2 16 Appendices Optional 17 Vita Required Q 1. 3 REMARKS Unnumbered but considered as (i) Lowercase Roman numeral (ii) Lowercase Roman numeral Lowercase Roman numeral Lowercase Roman numeral Lowercase Roman  numeral Lowercase Roman numeral Lowercase Roman numeral Lowercase Roman numeral Lowercase Roman numeral Arabic numeral starting with the page number Arabic numeral continued with text Arabic numeral continued with text Unnumbered Declaration of thesis status The status of a thesis must be declared by completing the Thesis Status Form as shown in APPENDICES A1-A4. If a thesis is to be classified as confidential or limited, a letter seeking this classification must be obtained from the organisations concerned and submitted to the Dean of the Centre for Graduate Studies, the Dean of the Faculty or related academic centres. The approval letter must state the reasons for and duration of the classification. The typical duration for this classification is three years. Where an author classifies a thesis as unlimited, the University shall assume that the thesis is non-confidential. Copies of the thesis can be made and used by Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia. 3 1. 4 Viva voce examination panel The names of the members of the viva voce examination panel shall be included as shown in APPENDIX B. This page is not applicable for the master’s project report or the undergraduate project report. 1. 5 Title. The title page must contain the following information in the following order: (i) Title of the thesis; (ii) Full name of the student; (iii) Statement on the purpose of the thesis submission; (iv) Name of the faculty or centre where the student is registered; (v) Name of the University; and (vi) The month and year the thesis was written and accepted. Theses for the Master’s degree by research and the Doctor of Philosophy degree must be approved by the Graduate Studies Committee (Jawatankuasa Pengajian Siswazah), whilst others must be approved by the relevant committee. (Please refer to APPENDICES C1-C3) 1. 6 Declaration The declaration page contains a statement declaring the originality of the thesis. It must be signed by the author. Please refer to APPENDICES D1-D2. 1. 7 Dedication (optional) The dedication message must be concise, must not exceed one paragraph and must not contain any numbers, graphs or figures. Please refer to APPENDIX E. 4 1. 8 Acknowledgements (optional) Acknowledgements must be written on a single page only. Its purpose is to record the author’s appreciation for individuals or organisations that provided their assistance either directly or indirectly in the preparation of the thesis. Please refer to APPENDIX F. 1. 9 Abstract The abstract is a short summary of the thesis. It should describe the rationale and objectives (problem statement), the methodology, as well as the findings and conclusion of the study undertaken. The abstract must not be longer than 250 words for a Master’s thesis or Master’s project report and not longer than 350 words for a Doctoral thesis written in two languages, Bahasa Melayu and English. For a thesis written in English, the abstract must be written in English first followed by its Malay translation on the next page. Do not include any literature review, unexplained abbreviations, limitations or suggestions for future research in the abstract. It must be written with a spacing of one and a half (1? ) lines. Please refer example abstract for engineering at APPENDIX G1a and APPENDIX G2a and example abstract for social science at APPENDIX G1b and APPENDIX G2b. 1. 10 Table of contents The table of contents must begin on a new page. The information is organised by chapter, topic and page number. Every chapter, topic and page number shown in the table of contents must correspond to the same chapter, topic and page number in the thesis. Sub-titles may be displayed up to three levels only. Please refer to APPENDIX H. 1. 11 List of tables This page contains a list of all tables presented in the thesis. Information such as table numbers, table captions and the corresponding page numbers where the tables 5 appear must be shown clearly in the list. The list must be ordered by chapter. Please refer to APPENDIX I. 1. 12 List of figures All illustrations included in the text such as maps, charts, drawings, graphs, pictures and photos are considered as ‘Figures’. The list of figures contains all the figure numbers, titles and the corresponding page numbers on which they appear. The list of figures must be ordered by chapter. Please refer to APPENDIX J. 1. 13 List of symbols and abbreviations This page lists down all the symbols, abbreviations, nomenclature and terminology used in the text. The order of writing them is as follows: Roman letter alphabetical order Greek letter alphabetical order Superscript alphabetical order Subscript alphabetical order Please refer to APPENDIX K. For further information on spelling and abbreviations, students are advised to refer to the latest edition of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary published by Oxford University Press. 1. 14 List of appendices. This page lists down the appendices included with the thesis. Please refer to APPENDIX L. 1. 15 Text Text in the thesis must be organised in titled chapters. The titles must reflect the content of the chapter. Every chapter must begin on a new page. Chapters can be divided into sub-chapters with corresponding sub-titles. Titles and sub-titles must be 6 numbered. Please refer to APPENDIX O. There is no restriction on the total number of chapters in a thesis. Generally, a thesis will have the following basic structure. (a) Introduction This chapter describes the aim, objectives and scope of the research as well as the structure of the thesis. (b) Literature review The literature review is a critically written and comprehensive account of the published works on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers. It is directly related to the thesis, providing information on theories, models, materials and techniques used in the research. c) Methodology This important chapter explains in detail the samples, instruments, materials, procedures and data gathering methods used in the research. (d) Data analysis and results This chapter explains the data analysis techniques and results through written text, figures, tables, and/or other means. (e). Discussion and conclusions In this chapter, the writer discusses the results and research findings by comparing them with the previous research work mentioned in the literature review chapter. Conclusions are drawn based on the research findings and their implications. Future works are also discussed. Students who need to translate their theses are advised to refer to the latest edition of Gaya Dewan Bahasa dan Pedoman Translasi published by Dewan Bahasa dan Pustaka. 1. 15. 1 References in the text When an information or idea is taken from a source, the author of the source must be acknowledged in the text. References cited in the text must be written according to the style prescribed in CHAPTER 3: FORMAT OF REFERENCES. 7 1. 15. 2 Tables in the text All tables must be numbered using Arabic numerals. Table numbers must be linked to the chapter number. For example, the third table appearing in Chapter 4 is numbered, â€Å"Table 4. 3†. The caption for a table is placed 1. 5 lines above the table and written in Times New Roman font, size 12 without a period at the end and left justified with single line spacing between lines. The text in the table must be written using Times New Roman font, size 10 and single line spacing between lines. If a table extends beyond the end of a page, its continuation on the next page must, for example, be labeled, â€Å"Table 4. 3 (continued)†. As an example, please refer to Table 1. 1 on pages 12. If a table is taken from a particular source, the source must be stated at the end of the caption. Please refer to APPENDIX N. A table can only be presented after it is cited in the text. All tables that appear in the text must be listed in the list of tables as shown in APPENDIX I. 1. 15. 3 Figures in the text All figures must be of high quality and numbered using Arabic numerals. Figure numbers must be linked to the chapter number. For example, the third table/graph/chart/etc appearing Chapter 4 is numbered, â€Å"Figure 4. 3†. The caption for a figure is placed 1. 5 lines below the table/graph/chart/etc and written in font size 12 without a period at the end with single line spacing between lines. If a figure extends beyond the end of a page, its continuation on the next page must, for example, be labeled, â€Å"Figure 4. 3 (continued)†. If a figure is taken from a particular source, the source must be stated at the end of the caption. Please refer to APPENDIX N. A figure is best placed immediately after it is cited in the text. All figures that appear in the text must be listed in the list of figures as shown in APPENDIX J. Illustrations in diskettes, on slides or in other similar mediums must be placed inside a specially made pocket attached on the inside back cover of the thesis. Illustrations with large dimensions, such as plans and maps, must be reduced in size to fit into a single page. Illustrations must comply with the following conditions: 8 1. 15. 3. 1 Photographs Photographs used as illustration must be affixed in the text using high quality glue or other better techniques. 1. 15. 3. 2 Newspaper and other clippings. A clear and high quality photocopied version of the actual clipping must be used instead of the original. 1. 15. 3. 3 Maps and aerial photographs Maps and aerial photographs intended to be included in a thesis must have obtained prior written permission from the Ketua Pengarah Pemetaan Negara (Director General of National Mapping). Illustrations must be scanned and printed using a high resolution colour printer. 1. 15. 4 Mathematical equations Mathematical equations must be numbered using Arabic numerals. Equation numbers must be written at the end of the equation and linked to the chapter number. For example, the numbers (4. 3) and (4. 4) are given to the third and fourth equations respectively that appear in Chapter 4, as follows: y2= 32 + 3xy + C (4. 3) z = 106 + 9y5+84 + 7y6x5 + 6y5x4 + 54 + 4y4x3 + 3y3x2 + 2y2x + yx 1. 16 (4. 4) References References are the sources referred to when preparing a thesis and cited in the text of the thesis. Thesis writers are required to list down all cited materials in the list 9 of references (refer to APPENDIX P1 and APPENDIX P2). The list of references must be prepared according to the format prescribed in CHAPTER 3: FORMAT OF REFERENCES. 1. 17. Appendices (optional) The appendix section gives an author the opportunity to include materials that can provide additional information in the text to support the study. These materials include tables, charts, computer programmes and questionnaires. Here are some guidelines for the appendix. (a) Research data, tables, examples of questionnaires, maps, photos and other materials that are too long to be included in the text or are not directly required to comprehend the text can be included as appendices. Generally, tables and graphics that are more than two pages long should be put in the appendix section. (b) Appendices are labelled as APPENDIX A, APPENDIX B, etc depending on the type and quantity of the materials. Appendices can also be given specific titles. 1. 18 Vita Students must provide a one-page â€Å"Vita† of themselves to be placed at the end of the thesis after the appendices. This â€Å"Vita† page is unnumbered. See APPENDIX Q for an example of the â€Å"Vita† page. CHAPTER 2 SIZE AND FORMAT 2. 1 Paper quality and size Only high quality A4 size (210 mm x 297 mm) white simili paper, weighing 80 grams, may be used for the thesis. 2. 2 Margin The margins should be 4 cm from the left, 2. 5 cm from the top, 2. 5 cm from the right and 2. 5 cm from the bottom, on every page including the cover. 2. 3 Page numbering Number the pages according to the sequence given in Table 1. 1. The page number must be written at the top right corner, 1. 5 cm from the top and 2. 5 cm from the right, measured from the last digit of the page number. The page numbering system must conform to the following rules: (i) The preface of the thesis, starting from the title page, must be numbered using lower case Roman numerals (i, ii, iii and so on); the text pages and the rest of the thesis must be numbered using Arabic numerals (1, 2, 3, and so on). (ii). The first page of the thesis, the title page, is an unnumbered page ‘i’. (iii) The first page of Chapter 1 is unnumbered but is considered as page ‘1’. The same applies to the first page of all the following Chapters, where the first 12 page is unnumbered but taken into account for the purpose of numbering the subsequent pages. 2. 4 Numbering of chapters and sub-chapters Chapters and sub-chapters must be numbered using Arabic numerals. Chapters are numbered CHAPTER 1, CHAPTER 2, CHAPTER 3, and so on. Sub-chapters are nested, but its numbering is not indented, up to a maximum of 4 levels as in the example shown below: CHAPTER 2 First level (Chapter number) 2. 1 Level 2 (sub-title); 2. 1. 1 Level 3 (sub-sub-title); 2. 1. 1. 1 Level 4 (sub-sub-sub-title) If a chapter title or sub-title at any level exceeds a single line, the spacing between the lines must be the same as that of the text. Subsequent sub-chapters beyond the fourth nesting level must be numbered using alphabets. The distance between the title number and the title is one (1) cm irrespective of its nesting level (refer to APPENDIX R). 2. 5 Typing The thesis should be typed out on a computer in Times New Roman font, size 12, and using Microsoft Word version 6. 0 or later, except for tables and figures (refer to 1. 14. 2 and 1. 14. 3). Words in a language that is different from the language of the thesis must be typed in italics. The spacing between text lines should be 1. 5 lines. Text should be typed on one side of a paper only. Chapter titles should be typed with capital letters and centered between the left and right margins. Each chapter must begin on a new page. Chapters and subchapters should be titled. Titles should be typed in bold without underline. Only the first letter of the first word of a sub-title should be in uppercase. 13 2. 6 Spacing and format. Students must adhere to the following text spacing guidelines: (i) The spacing between the upper margin and a chapter number is 2. 5 cm. (ii) The spacing between the chapter number and the chapter title is 4 lines. (iii) The spacing between the chapter title and the first line of text is 2 lines. (iv) The spacing between a sub-title and the last line of the preceding text is 2 lines. (v) The spacing between a sub-title and the first line of the following text is 2 lines. (vi) There should be no spacing between paragraphs. (vii) Start a sub-title, including its numbering, from the left margin. (viii). Start the first line of text of the first paragraph below the sub-title without any indent, beginning from the left margin; the following paragraphs should be indented 1. 27 cm from the left margin. (ix) Do not start the first sentence of a new paragraph at the bottom of a page if the space available can only fit one line. (x) The text should be left justified except for the first line of the first paragraph in a section. (Refer to (viii) above). The author is responsible for removing any excess space between words. (xi) The spacing between the last line of text and a Table, Figure or Illustration should be 1 line. (xii) The spacing between a period (. ) and the first letter of the next sentence of the same paragraph is at least one (1) character. (xiii) 2. 7 The spacing after a comma (,) is at least one (1) character. Printing of documents Theses must be typed out using a computer and printed using a laser printer or a printer with an equivalent print quality. 14 2. 8 Letterings and drawings Letterings and drawings should be clear so that copies made will be of satisfactory quality without any loss of information. 2. 9 Maximum number of pages The maximum number of pages for a thesis is as follows: Undergraduate Project Report: should not exceed 100 pages Master’s Project Report and Thesis: should not exceed 200 pages Doctor of Philosophy Thesis: should not exceed 300 pages These limits do not include tables, diagrams and other illustrations except appendices. Students who intend to write a thesis that exceeds the given limit must obtain a written approval from the Dean of the Centre for Graduate Studies or the Dean of the Faculty (for undergraduate reports) by submitting an application through their supervisors. 2. 10 Binding All theses must be bound. A thesis must be temporarily bound (spiral binding) for the purpose of examination, and may only be hard-bound after obtaining the approval of the Graduate Studies Committee or other committee(s) for the related programme. 2. 10. 1 Cover colour and letterings For submission to the University, theses must be permanently bound with buckram covers and gold letterings using regular Times New Roman font, size 18. The colour codes for the cover are as follows: (i) Doctor of Philosophy Thesis: Black (585) (ii) Master’s Thesis: Moss Green (557) (iii) Undergraduate Project Report: New Blue (550) 15 2. 10. 2 Cover The thesis cover must be of A4 size (210mm x 297mm). The title, author’s name and the words ‘Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia’ must be written in capital letters on the front cover of the thesis, as shown in APPENDIX S. 2. 10. 3 Spine The abbreviated name of the University, â€Å"UTHM†, the author’s name, the month and the year the thesis is approved* and the level of study must be stated on the spine, as shown in APPENDIX T. *Date of status confirmation for undergraduate Project Report/Master’s Project Report/Master’s Thesis/Doctoral Thesis (Refer Appendix A1-A4) 2. 10. 4 Trimming. The thesis can only be trimmed by 2. 5 mm on each side of the A4 paper during binding. CHAPTER 3 FORMAT OF REFERENCES 3. 1 Introduction Sources that are referred to in a thesis, whether published or not, must be stated. The source of information must be acknowledged in the text as well as in the reference list. Proper acknowledgement is important because it will help others locate and verify the original sources. Furthermore, proper citation can avoid allegations of plagiarism. Acknowledgements in the text must be linked to the list of reference using the â€Å"Author (Date)† system or the â€Å"Number (IEEE) Format†. 3. 2 Author (Date) System The system is also known as the American Psychological Association (APA) system. 3. 2. 1 Citing references in the text A reference can be written in a sentence itself or at the end of a sentence. (a) In the Author (Date) style, the year of publication must be placed in brackets after the name of the author. For example; According to Mohamed (2005), a large proportion of scheduling problems in the various sectors, such as economic and engineering, can be classified with a class of problems known as constrained optimisation. (b). If a reference is not cited in the sentence itself, the author’s name and year of 17 publication must be written within brackets. For example; Therefore, research on effective solution methods for constraint optimisation has become the focus of current research (Mohamed, 2005). (c) If a source of reference is authored by two people, state both authors’ names. For example; Maintenance scheduling has been researched for a long time, for example in the generation of power by Kralj Petrevic (1995) (d) If a reference contains three authors, state all three names the first time it is referred to in the text. For the second and subsequent times it is mentioned, state only the first author’s name followed by â€Å"et al. † and year. For example; A study by Alias, Black Gray (2002) shows that engineering students have lower spatial visualisation ability than required. Since this ability is important in solving engineering problems, it needs to be improved among engineering students (Alias et al. , 2002). (e) For a reference with four or more authors, state only the name of the first author followed by â€Å"et al. † and year. (f). Use lowercase letters (a, b, c) to differentiate between two or more publications published in the same year by the same author. For example; An example of an application that uses a constraint programming language is ILOG Solver by Puget and Albert (1994a). In addition, Puget and Albert (1994b) also found that the use of object is widespread, especially within artificially intelligent programming. (g) Secondary sources may not be cited. Thesis authors must refer to the original reference source. An example of a secondary source is given below: Ali (in Abu, 2000) emphasised that . 3. 2. 2 Writing cited information There are three main ways to acknowledge the source of an idea or information cited in the text, namely (a) quotation, (b) paraphrasing and (c) summarising. examples that follow are based on the following excerpt: The 18 Biological time is not only scientifically important, but it also greatly affects the productivity and health of a nation. The cost to the nation’s health of working out of phase with our biological clocks is probably incalculable at present. In the short term, poor sleep, gastrointestinal problems, higher accident rate, and social problems are evident. (p. 1000) Source: Rajaratnam, S. (2001). Health in a 24-hr society. Lancet, 358, pp. 999 – 1005. 3. 2. 2. 1 Quotation Words of an author may be quoted exactly by the writer to support an argument. When a direct quotation from a source is taken, it should run into the text with double quotation marks if it is reasonably brief (three (3) or less sentences) with the end-of-sentence period in the normal place. (a) Emphasis on the writer To give emphasis to the writer, the author’s name is written at the beginning of the sentence. For example; Rajaratnam (2001) concluded that, â€Å"The cost to the nation’s health of working out of phase with our biological clocks is probably incalculable at present. † (p. 1000). Furthermore (b) Emphasis on the idea To emphasise the idea, the author’s name is written at the end of the sentence. For example; A lot of discussion has been made on the cost of working out of phase with our biological clocks. â€Å"The cost to the nation’s health of working out of phase with our biological clocks is probably incalculable at present† (Rajaratnam, 2001, p. 1000). Therefore, A quotation containing more than three sentences must be set off from the text as a paragraph on its own with 1 cm indent, placing the period at the end of the quoted text with no period after the reference citation page number. Single spacing should be used for block quotations. For example; According to a renowned scholar (Rajaratnam, 2001), Biological time is not only scientifically important, but it also greatly affects the productivity and health of a nation. The cost to the nation’s health of working out of phase with our biological clocks is probably incalculable at present. In the 19 short term, poor sleep, gastrointestinal problems, higher accident rate, and social problems are evident. (p. 1000) 3. 2. 2. 2 Paraphrasing The paraphrasing method is used to acknowledge information taken from the original author by rewording the original text without altering its meaning nor providing the writer’s own interpretation. For example; Rajaratnam (2001) argues that while the notion of biological time is of scientific importance, it is also economically and socially significant at a national level. He points to the health, productivity and social problems which may be attributed to individuals working â€Å"out of phase† with their internal clocks. 3. 2. 2. 3 Summarising The writer may summarise cited text in his/her own words to present the key points of an author’s arguments or ideas, without altering the meaning. For example; In his conclusion, Rajaratnam (2001) points to the possible economic and social costs incurred by a nation, when individuals work â€Å"out of phase† with their biological clocks. 3. 2. 3 Writing the reference list All sources of reference that are cited in the thesis must be listed at the end of the text under the title â€Å"REFERENCES†. Do not use the word â€Å"BIBLIOGRAPHY† because it indicates a list of all sources that was referred to including those not cited in the text. The reference list must be in alphabetical order. Two or more sources by one author must be listed in chronological order. For example a 2002 publication by Suradi must be listed before his 2007 publication. 20 3. 2. 4 Writing the names of authors. In general, an author’s surname (family name) or patronymic name (father’s name) is written first followed by the initials of his/her other names. This is a common system used in academic writing internationally. Examples of how to write an author’s name are as follows: (i) Name : Malik ibn Anas : Ibn Anas, M. Name : Tan Beng Keat : Tan, B. K. Name : Raymond Tan Beng Keat : Tan, R. B. K. Name : Srinivasan Venkataraman : Venkataraman, S. Name : S. N. Gupta : Gupta, S. N. Name : Pretam Singh Written as : Singh, P. Name : Yasunori Matsufuji Written as (x) : Al-Attas, S. M. N. Written : (ix) : Syed Muhammad Naquib Al-Attas. Written as (viii) Name Written as (vii) : Abdullah, M. N. Written as (vi) : Mohd Noor Abdullah Written as (v) Name Written as (iv) : Pavlovic, J. N. Written as (iii) : John Neville Pavlovic Written as (ii) Name : Matsufuji, Y. 3. 2. 5 References from different types of sources In thesis writing, references can be made to various types of sources. The following examples can be used as a guide in writing the different types of sources in the reference list. 21 3. 2. 5. 1 Books The major elements that must be included when an article is taken from a book are as follows: Author (Year). Title of book. Edition. Location: Publisher. An example of a reference by one author; Race, P. (2002). How to Get a Good Degree: Making the Most of Your Time at University. Buckingham: Open University Press. An example of a reference by two or three authors; Creme, P. Lea, M. R. (2003). Writing at University. 2nd ed. Maiden: Open University Press. Delamont, S. , Atkinson, P. Parry, O. (2004). Supervising the Doctorate: A Guide to Success. 2nd ed. Maidenhead: Society for Research into Higher Education Open University Press. For publications that have more than one author, the word â€Å"and† and â€Å"dan† is replaced by the symbol â€Å"†. If the book has an editor, the name of the editor must also be written. The general format is as follows: Editor (Ed. ) (Year). Title of book. Location: Publisher. As an example; Martin, A. M. (Ed. ) (1991). Peat as an Agent in Biological Degradation of Waste. London: Elsevier. The page numbers are required if the editor edits part of the book. As an example; Lees, R. H. (Ed. ) (1974). Chemical Nomenclature Usage. Chischester: Ellis Horwood. pp. 314-362. 3. 2. 5. 2 Articles from books The major elements that must be included when an article is taken from a book are as follows: Author (Year). Title of article. in Author. Title of book. Location: Publisher. Page numbers. For example; 22 Sarmani, S. (1987). Pencemaran Radioaktif. in Mohamad, A. B. (Ed. ). Perspektif Persekitaran. Petaling Jaya: Fajar Bakti. pp. 71 -87. 3. 2. 5. 3 Articles from journals The major elements that must be included when an article is taken from a journal are as follows: Author (Year). Title of article. Title of journal, vol. no. (issue no. ), page numbers. For example; Mikac, N. Branica, M. (1994). Complexation of trialkyllead with diethyldithiocarbonate. Electroanalysis, 6(2), pp. 37 – 43.