Thesis Word Limits
It is very important that your thesis does not exceed the maximum word limit appropriate to your College and degree type. Your thesis may not be sent for examination if it is longer than the prescribed limits.
The maximum word limits are:
College of Arts, Humanities, and Law and College of Social Science
| PhD thesis | 80,000 words |
| EdD thesis | 55,000 words |
| DSocSci thesis | 50,000 words |
| MPhil thesis | 50,000 words |
| These word limits include all appendices and footnotes. |
College of Science and Engineering
| PhD thesis | 50,000 words |
| EngD thesis | 25,000 words |
| MPhil thesis | 30,000 words |
| These word limits exclude tabulated data and diagrams. |
College of Medicine, Biological Sciences, and Psychology
| PhD thesis | 50,000 words |
| DClinPsy thesis | 30,000 words |
| MPhil thesis | 30,000 words |
| These word limits exclude contents lists, tabulated data, diagrams, and references. | |
| Where the research is qualitative/case study based, the following word limits apply: | |
| PhD thesis | 80,000 words |
| MPhil thesis | 50,000 words |
| These word limits exclude contents lists, tabulated data, diagrams, and data. |
What do I do if my thesis is longer than the prescribed limits?
It is very important that you comply with the maximum word limit appropriate to your College and degree type. If your thesis looks like it will exceed this, you should look to see how it can be edited to bring it under the limit. Your supervisor should be able to offer advice if you are finding editing your thesis difficult.
If this proves to be problematic, then you can request permission to exceed the permitted limit - however, requests are considered in exceptional cases only and after consultation with your supervisor. If your thesis does exceed the permitted limit, you will need to have been granted approval for this before you are allowed to submit it.
If you have spoken with your supervisor about the length of your thesis and need to seek approval to exceed the word maximum word limit, please contact the Graduate Office for advice.
