phd examples sentence

How to Use PhD in a Sentence

Some of these examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'PhD.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Can you solve 4 words at once?

Word of the day.

See Definitions and Examples »

Get Word of the Day daily email!

How to use the PhD title and all the little doctorate “rules”

There are many conventions in the academic world that can make it difficult to navigate the PhD title. The PhD title is awarded to those who have completed a doctoral degree but, not many people know how to use it once they have it.

This article will go through everything you need to know about using the PhD title and when you can start using it.

The “rules” are relatively simple and can be broken as they are not officially set in stone – other than when you can officially call yourself a doctor.

There is no one correct answer but it may be misleading if you use the PhD title incorrectly. Here are the recommendations for effective communication.

It very much depends on the setting. Here are some examples of how I would use my PhD titles awarded to me after my PhD degree.

How do you Write PhD correctly after a name? Is it ph d or phd?

It can be confusing to know exactly how to write PhD after your name. Which bits are capitalised? Is there a ‘.’ In the middle?

When writing a name with a PhD after it, the correct way to do so is to use “PhD” or “Ph.D. or Ph.D”

Depending on the preference of the individual, either form can be used.

However, if the individual has a business card that states their degree in full, then the more formal “Doctor of Philosophy” should be used.

It is important to note that using “PhD” without any periods is incorrect; this abbreviation should only be used in informal contexts such as emails or text messages. I tend to use PhD in my YouTube videos and some people have pointed out that this is incorrect…

Following the individual’s preferred format will ensure that their name and credentials are properly represented.

Should you use Dr as well as PhD?

Some people like to use Dr and PhD in their official titles. There are a couple of important points that you need to know about markers and academic titles.

• A person can have more than one marker in their name. For example my full title is Dr Andrew Stapleton, PhD, MChem.
• The doctor title at the front can be used as a variant to the PhD at the end.

It can be a little bit ambiguous if I was to use Dr Andrew Stapleton, PhD as there are two markers. This could mean that I have two PhD’s, it could mean that I have a PhD and a medical doctorate, or it could just be that I want to use both the doctor and the PhD tags for the one degree.

However, in my experience, I still like to use the doctor title at the front and the PhD tag at the end of my name for official purposes.

Academics would rarely use the PhD suffix in everyday communication. They would much rather just use the doctor title.

What is the proper title for a PhD?

The proper title for a PhD is Doctor of Philosophy. However, some teachers and professors like to be referred to without their official title.

If you are not sure about how your professor, lecturer, or friend with a PhD wishes to be officially addressed you can ask them.

Most of the time, I like to refer to my colleagues with their doctor title for official purposes, but I do not include the PhD at the end of their name. That is much better suited to a business card.

Your lecture may wish to be referred to as:

• Dr [last name]
• Dr [first name]

Asking them in the early stages of your relationship is the best way to work out which one they prefer.

If in doubt, always go for the more formal name and nomenclature.

When can you start to use your PhD title after your doctorate?

When you have earned your PhD, you can start using your title immediately. Although, it can be a little bit confusing as to when you have actually passed your PhD. Is it when you have submitted your dissertation? Is it when you have received the comments back?

The University of Adelaide says that you can use it from your conferral date:

Students can be conferred on one of five dates during the year and for PhD students the conferral date will be the first available following the completion of all the academic requirements of your degree, including final thesis lodgement and the disbursement of any outstanding financial obligations to the University.

I started using my PhD title as soon as my confirmation letter arrived at my house. It was the first letter from the University that referred to me as Dr Stapleton. It was incredibly excited.

Generally, it is acceptable to use the title “Dr.” both professionally and socially but socially, people very rarely use it – at least in Australia. But you should never use it if you are a PhD student, PhD candidate or enrolled in a PhD program without a previous PhD qualification. 

I do use it in professional settings but it always makes me feel a little bit awkward.

However, there may be some restrictions for certain settings. For example, if have a research degree resulting in a doctor title and you are working in a medical setting – some institutions do not like you to use Dr as it can confuse patients into thinking that you have a medical degree. 

Instead, they ask that you use the PhD tag at the end of your name rather than the doctoral title for official and professional communications.

What is the correct way to write PhD?

When writing about someone’s PhD, the correct way is to write the term in full and capitalize each letter.

This should be done for all academic degrees, not just PhDs.

For example, it would be “Doctor of Philosophy” or “PhD” instead of “Ph.D.”, “Dr.”, or “DPhil”.

Additionally, it is common to mention the field of study in which the degree was earned if known, such as “Doctor of Philosophy in Mathematics”. It is also good practice to include the institution that granted the degree if it is a recognized one.

When writing about someone’s PhD, use proper capitalization and include relevant information like field of study and institution if known to ensure accuracy.

How do you put a PhD in a title?

Putting a PhD in a title is not as complicated as it may sound.

Generally speaking, the proper way to list a PhD in an academic or professional setting is by writing “Dr.” before the name, followed by the person’s full name and the appropriate abbreviations for their degree.

For example, if John Smith has earned a doctorate in psychology, his credentials would be listed as “Dr. John Smith, Ph.D.”

In some cases, such as when addressing someone formally in speech or on a business card, it may also be acceptable to list their credentials as “John Smith, Ph.D.”

Depending on context and personal preference, some people may also choose to list their higher degrees after their names by writing out the entire degree instead of just its abbreviation.

For example, John Smith could choose to write his full title as “John Smith, Doctor of Psychology”

However, I have not seen this in real academic life.

Should the font size of Ph.D. be the same as someone’s name?

The question of whether the font size of a Ph.D. should be the same as someone’s name is an interesting one.

On one hand, it could be argued that the Ph.D. deserves to be highlighted and therefore should be given a larger font size than someone’s name to denote its importance.

On the other, it could be argued that this would not be necessary or appropriate, and that treating everyone equally regardless of their title or degree is more important.

It depends on context and usage – if both names appear in the same document then they should likely have the same font size; however, if one appears in a formal setting such as a diploma or certificate, then it may make sense to give it a larger font size than someone’s name to emphasize its importance and significance.

Ph.Ds (or PhDs) are an important academic achievement and should be respected accordingly but without going overboard by giving them overly large fonts sizes which can take away from rather than add to their importance.

Wrapping up – doctoral title rules

this article has been over everything you need to know that using the PhD title properly and effectively.

The doctor title can be used in place of the PhD and for incredibly formal communications, such as a business email or card, you can use both.

However, sometimes using both can cause confusion as to whether or not there is a reason first using both the doctor and PhD tags. Nonetheless, many people still use both.

Dr Andrew Stapleton has a Masters and PhD in Chemistry from the UK and Australia. He has many years of research experience and has worked as a Postdoctoral Fellow and Associate at a number of Universities. Although having secured funding for his own research, he left academia to help others with his YouTube channel all about the inner workings of academia and how to make it work for you.

Thank you for visiting Academia Insider.

We are here to help you navigate Academia as painlessly as possible. We are supported by our readers and by visiting you are helping us earn a small amount through ads and affiliate revenue - Thank you!

2024 © Academia Insider

To support our work, we invite you to accept cookies or to subscribe.

You have chosen not to accept cookies when visiting our site.

The content available on our site is the result of the daily efforts of our editors. They all work towards a single goal: to provide you with rich, high-quality content. All this is possible thanks to the income generated by advertising and subscriptions.

By giving your consent or subscribing, you are supporting the work of our editorial team and ensuring the long-term future of our site.

If you already have purchased a subscription, please log in

How to use "phd" in a sentence?

These sentences come from external sources and may not be accurate. bab.la is not responsible for their content.

• open_in_new Link to source
• warning Request revision

CULTURE & TRAVEL

Search for translations, search by language, social login.

• Dictionaries home
• American English
• Collocations
• German-English
• Grammar home
• Practical English Usage
• Learn & Practise Grammar (Beta)
• Word Lists home
• My Word Lists
• Recent additions
• Resources home
• Text Checker

Definition of PhD noun from the Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary

• to do/have/be a PhD
• Anne Thomas, PhD
• acquire/​get/​lack (an) education/​training/ (British English) (some) qualifications
• receive/​provide somebody with training/​tuition
• develop/​design/​plan a curriculum/ (especially British English) course/ (North American English) program/​syllabus
• give/​go to/​attend a class/​lesson/​lecture/​seminar
• hold/​run/​conduct a class/​seminar/​workshop
• sign up for/​take a course/​classes/​lessons
• go to/​start preschool/​kindergarten/​nursery school
• be in (North American English) the first, second, etc. grade/ (British English) year 1, 2. etc. (at school)
• study/​take/​drop history/​chemistry/​German, etc.
• (British English) leave/​finish/​drop out of/ (North American English) quit school
• (North American English) graduate high school/​college
• be the victim/​target of bullying
• (British English) play truant from/ (both British English, informal) bunk off/​skive off school (= not go to school when you should)
• (both especially North American English) skip/​cut class/​school
• (British English) cheat in/ (North American English) cheat on an exam/​a test
• get/​be given a detention (for doing something)
• be expelled from/​be suspended from school
• do your homework/ (British English) revision/​a project on something
• work on/​write/​do/​submit an essay/​a dissertation/​a thesis/​an assignment/ (North American English) a paper
• finish/​complete your dissertation/​thesis/​studies/​coursework
• hand in/ (North American English) turn in your homework/​essay/​assignment/​paper
• study/​prepare/ (British English) revise/ (North American English) review/ (North American English, informal) cram for a test/​an exam
• take/ (both British English) do/​sit a test/​an exam
• (especially British English) mark/ (especially North American English) grade homework/​a test
• (British English) do well in/ (North American English) do well on/ (especially North American English, informal) ace a test/​an exam
• pass/​fail/ (especially North American English, informal) flunk a test/​an exam/​a class/​a course/​a subject
• apply to/​get into/​go to/​start college/ (British English) university
• leave/​graduate from law school/​college/ (British English) university (with a degree in computer science)
• study for/​take/ (British English) do/​complete a law degree/​a degree in physics
• (both North American English) major/​minor in biology/​philosophy
• earn/​receive/​be awarded/​get/​have/​hold a master’s degree/​a bachelor’s degree/​a PhD in economics
• dissertation

Want to learn more?

Find out which words work together and produce more natural-sounding English with the Oxford Collocations Dictionary app. Try it for free as part of the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary app.

• New biocomputing methods allowed first author Martina I. Lefterova, a PhD candidate in the Lazar lab, to discover roughly 5,300 additional sites that PPAR gamma targets in fat-cell DNA. Emaxhealth 0 0
• Cdr.M. R. Morgan, PhD , FRMetS, climate consultant, former Director in marine meteorology policy and planning in DND Canada, NATO and World Meteorological Organization and later a research scientist in global climatology at Exeter University, UK, now residing in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada Think Progress » Avatar director wants to ‘shoot it out’ with ‘asshole’ Glenn Beck and climate-denier ‘boneheads.’ 0 0
• Guitarist and producer Dave is a PhD student at Columbia, and a musical mastermind. 0 0
• Academician of China Engineering Academy , Researcher, PhD Tutor, national expert with outstanding contribution soil engineering expert. 0 0
• After a PhD from the University of Michigan, and a post doctorate from MIT, he decided to train in mass spectrometry, which uses sophisticated instrumentation for proteomics. 0 0
• I got the PhD studentship – there was only one going for the whole of humanities, £13000ish... Hannah Nicklin 0 0
• National Institute of Technology (NIT), Rourkela invites application for admission into PhD and MTech (Research) Programmes. Archive 2009-03-01 0 0
• I'm not a lawyer (never even had a teensy tiny hankering to go to law school), but a PhD student in political science. 0 0
• Good sense tells me: don't write petulant first-person columns to the CHE as an outraged fat PhD in urban studies who didn't get a job at Ivy last year, especially not a column that highlights the role of that blond hosebag who was especially snotty during my interview. Age Ain't Nothin' But a Number 0 0
• Heyzanie's World thinks that driving a taxi is not an inferior job even for someone who has a PhD from Stanford Global Voices in English » Singapore: Taxi driver-blogger is a PhD graduate 0 0
• Susannah has a PhD in Italian literature. 0 0
• Awarded the degree of PhD in agrobiology for the thesis entitled ‘Studies on hemolymph proteins in the silkmoths.’ 0 0
• Disclosure: C. Raina MacIntyre, MBBS, FRACP, FAFPHM, M App Epid, PhD , has disclosed that she has received grants for clinical research from 3M. Medscape Medical News Headlines 0 0
• The more we look for neurologic signs, the more we discover new syndromes," said I.G. Joe Mayhew, BVSc, FRCVS, PhD , Dipl ACVIM, ECVN, head of Equine Massey and professor of Equine Studies at Massey University in New Zealand, at the 2009 WEVA Congress. TheHorse.com News 0 0
• For more information over the PhD , MTech programmes and other programmes please visit the Institute website www. nitrkl.ac.in. Archive 2009-03-01 0 0
• Come by at 1 PM if you want to hang out with a septuple- PhD . Triangle Meetup Today - The Panda's Thumb 0 0
• However, in order to make this project work, the Institute needs the input of PhD and MA supervisors to put students in contact with them. 0 0
• Slide 3: We have put our knowledge about algal ecophysiology to good use in the following major field studies: •Port Phillip Bay Environmental Study - the Beardall lab was responsible for studies on •phytoplankton distributions and productivity (R. Royle and Simon Roberts); •benthic microalgal distributions and productivity (B. Light, PhD project) and Recently Uploaded Slideshows 0 0
• Whoa, was that com­men­tary writ­ten by a nine year old girl, or an aspir­ing PhD in cul­tural studies? Snuppy!!! « Snarkmarket 0 0
• John Trigilio, Jr., PhD , ThD, president of the Confraternity of Catholic Clergy and co-author of Catholicism For Dummies, has written in that vein: Archive 2005-10-01 0 0
• In due course she also obtained a PhD in physical chemistry. Times, Sunday Times 0 0
• Doing a PHD in social networking (and stints at Yahoo) would make Danah forecast 'social network fatigue', but her dystopian Desperate Housewives meets their always-on kids in the gootube bazaar is so funny it must be true - Class will be split into private mean girls cliques and interspersed with child star bonaduces, security guard gary coleman playing net nanny, and Marcia Cross tubd spankn vignettes. "Forget dirty laundry, we're talking a full inversion of the house." 0 0
• PhDs are a dime a dozen nowadays. 0 0
• The piece ends with Winerip cudgeling legalization activist Ethan Nadelmann (who -- gasp -- has a PhD from Harvard!) into admitting that he still, at ripe middle age, smokes pot -- and has even done so in the presence of children ... [pause for reader to make a call to protective services]. Daniel Denvir: I, Pot Smoker 0 0
• The spunky teen went on to pursue a PhD in neuroscience. 0 0
• I sense a PhD thesis lurking somewhere here. Times, Sunday Times 0 0
• Zbigniew Jaworowski, PhD , DSc, professor of natural sciences, Senior Science Adviser of Central Laboratory for Radiological Protection, researcher on ice core CO2 records, Warsaw, Poland. Think Progress » Avatar director wants to ‘shoot it out’ with ‘asshole’ Glenn Beck and climate-denier ‘boneheads.’ 0 0
• Stanley Coren, PhD , FRSC, is a professor emeritus in the psychology department at the University of British Columbia and a recognized expert on dog-human interaction. Born to Bark 0 0
• The shows are filled with PhD 's and experts claiming this and that with hardly a shred of real truth brought to the fore. 0 0
• Ronald A. Kuipers: March 3rd, 2009 at 9:58 am Ronald A. Kuipers, PhD (Free University), MPhil (Institute for Christian Studies) is assistant professor of the philosophy of religion. Archive 2009-03-01 0 0
• In 1983, he received a PhD in environmental geochemistry from the University of Heidelberg. Contributor: Rudolf Reuther 0 0
• As a PhD student in politics and international relations I am wading through security related analysis every day. 0 0
• We have secured funding for a new PhD studentship to be based at GCU. PhD Studentship - Being a Learner 0 0
• Mark graduated from IT Sligo with a national certificate in chemistry, a national diploma in analytical chemistry, a degree in environmental chemistry and a PhD in environmental radiochemistry. 0 0
• The rest of the books were too clinical, written by some PhD in psychology or some “expert” in thanatology. The Life You Longed For 0 0
• It just seems to me that so much progress is being made by people with PhDs in biochemistry, or whatnot. Income over Time, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty 0 0
• The Charlie Brown Theory of Personality, James C Kaufman PhD posits the theory that Lucy represents "disagreeableness". The Guardian World News 0 0
• Stephen B. Wilcox, PhD , is founder and principal of Design Science Consulting Inc. 0 0
• One of the anonymice has pointed out that the Cato Institute is joining in on its new petition to President Obama, awarding a dishonorary PhD . to our old friend Dipl. Rabett Run 0 0
• Unfortunately a Russian immigrant named Vladimir Zworykin PhD , had the same idea at the same time. 0 0
• He is more highly educated, with a PhD in Chemistry. 0 0
• Roseanne Mirabella, PhD Associate Professor at Seton Hall University. She is the top nonprofit management education researcher in the field. 0 0
• The purse-lipped PhD People in charge think tv, movies and pop music are degraded and evil. 0 0
• He is hoping to expand on research completed for his PhD , which focussed on seasonality and its impacts on people's moods. 0 0
• He earned three degrees at Harvard University: a bachelor's in economics, an MBA, and a PhD in business economics. 0 0
• Try joining the SLED emailing list and count the huge thruput of PHD students chatting about SecondLife. Second Life Breaks 1 Million Mark 0 0
• Professor Joe Brownlie BVSc PhD DSc DipECVP FRCPath FRAgS FRCVS was announced as the recipient of the British Veterinary Association's most prestigious scientific award. Health News from Medical News Today 0 0
• This technology is used in ophthalmology right now, but you can use this in kidney transplantations, too," said Jeremiah Wierwille, a PhD student in the Fischell Department of Bioengineering at the University of Maryland. Festival on the Mall challenges young and old to think scientifically 0 0
• In 2007 the Archbishop's Examination in Theology launched the MPhil/ Phd research degrees, developed with Quality Assurance Agency requirements and general university standards in mind, and the Lambeth MA is being phased out. Archbishop awards twenty first 'Lambeth MA in Theology' degree 0 0
• idea 1: well, in addition to the drug databases, it's also called the proteome bioknowledge database. they pay phds to populate genetic databases by reading papers. it's extremely useful for yeast, less so for humans so far.. Why ask why? Or, who wants raw knowledge? 0 0
• PHD 2 seems to be responsible for the hydroxylation, and hence the proteolysis of, HIF-α, PHD 3 appears to hydroxylate the α-subunit during reoxygenation. Conservapedia - Recent changes [en] 0 0
• Up to then, PhD funding and postdoc research grants had fallen at her feet, thanks to the success of her departmental head. 0 0
• Our clinical work in sarcoma — cancers involving muscle, bone, cartilage and tendons — are closely linked to the basic science conducted in the laboratory of Frederick G. Barr, MD, PhD and in surgery to the orthopaedic and general surgeons, and to the Radiation Oncology Program. Pediatric cancer research 0 0
• McClintock received her PhD in botany from Cornell University in 1927, where she was a leader in the development of maize cytogenetics; the field remained the focus of her research for the rest of her career. Photos of 2� Feria de Ma�z Criollo, P�tzcuaro 0 0
• “When women hear the word menstrual, they tend to think cramps and discomfort,” says our resident (female) PhD of the hour, quoted in the magazine. ProWomanProLife » When pregnancy comes as a big surprise 0 0
• He received his PhD in 1983 and habilitated in 1986, both times specializing in political sciences at the University of Bonn. 0 0
• In this study, a team of neuroscientists led by José Contreras-Vidal, PhD , of the University of Maryland, College Park, placed an array of sensors on the scalps of five participants to record their brains 'electrical activity, using a process called electroencephalography, or EEG. PhysOrg.com - latest science and technology news stories 0 0
• Flood taps over the conversion –England 14-0 Georgia.19 min: You don't need to be Dr Rugby PhD to tell that's a wonderful kick from the Georgian scrum half, bobbling and boinging its way out of play a metre or so from the England line. Rugby World Cup 2011: England v Georgia – live! | John Ashdown 0 0
• His PhD wasn't concerned with the fission of a large nucleus but with the scattering of small nuclei or, to be precise, on how to calculate three-body forces - a very abstract topic. 0 0
• As a result, Abdullah, on top of being probably the only PhD in electrical and computer engineering who can “deadlift” 111 kilos, today qualifies for national championships while wearing a headscarf and long sleeves. IWF Changes Dress Code Rules, Lets Muslim Weightlifter Compete 0 0
• I was on the other side, with my fancy Harvard PhD and my book agent with the name-droppable list of clients. Bella DePaulo: How O. J. Killed My Book 0 0
• I am an architect and Urban morphologist, recently completed my PhD at the Bartlett, UCL, University of London. Archive 2009-11-01 0 0
• Mr Aceti is a PhD candidate and researcher at Central St Martin's College in London. 0 0
• The Papermate PhD is a reasonably priced ballpoint with a very usable grip. Loosen Up Your Writing Grip To Banish Pain | Lifehacker Australia 0 0
• Since when does a PhD in English qualify you to speak with authority on scientific issues… Barbara Forrest's role in Kitzmiller - The Panda's Thumb 0 0
• We humans are too diverse to establish a norm, " says Betty Dodson, PhD , a New York City-based sexologist and the author of Sex for One. 0 0
• People who are smart but don't get things done often have PhDs and work in big companies where nobody listens to them because they are completely impractical. 0 0
• David Haye, "chinny" and all is probably best suited to put a "Jack Dempsey" on the heavy-handed PhD 's. Doghouse Boxing News 0 0
• She had her papers published in top scientific journals and Leakey got her a place at Cambridge to write a PhD thesis in ethology - the study of animal behaviour. 0 0
• ‘I have said to you before that if you have a PhD and a posh accent from a school like yours, you are regarded as a sophisticate,’ he said. 0 0
• And when Kerr's PhD supervisor left the University of Cambridge with Kerr only half way through his thesis, it didn't perturb him. 0 0
• He obtained a PhD in medical helminthology from the University of London. ANC Daily News Briefing 0 0
• The Rambler: The Rambler is a PhD candidate in musicology and a music teacher who blogs about music, music research, and the state of affairs of music. PhD Bloggers « Lorelle on WordPress 0 0
• The most recent development in academic programs has been the initiation of the PhD -granting program in Rehabilitation Sciences. 0 0
• According to the Specific Character of SPHD Steel and FTSC Sheet bar, analyzed the Physical Chemistry Index of Protecting Powder for the Casting Mould of SPHD Steel. 0 0
• Oh, and the donkeywork is done by ones PhD student who is now to busy to archive, and one obviously wouldn’t stoop to that sort of thing oneself. Wilson et al 2007 « Climate Audit 0 0
• She is also completing a PhD and is a much exhibited photo-media artist. 0 0
• For those of you, who like myself 6 years ago, have no idea about what kind of rigamarole getting a PhD involves, I thought I would break it down in a paragraph, as I did for my dad who emailed me the other night asking, "SO YOU ARE REALLY ALMOST DONE WITH THAT PHD ? Academic Milestones ... and Hoops 0 0
• A/Professor Prem Rashid MBBS (UWA) PhD (UWA) FRACGP FRACS (Urol.) WN.com - Articles related to Physicians in Qatar work on treatment of ovarian cancer 0 0
• The Oticon Foundation has reviewed the proposed research headed by Dr Greg O'Beirne ( PhD ) and Mr Phil Bird, (MBChB, FRACS) and believes it is of such significant importance internationally that it is providing the $340,895.53 needed to fund the three year project. ScreenTalk 0 0
• In research published recently in Neuron, Marcos Frank, PhD , Assistant Professor of Neuroscience, at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, postdoctoral researcher Sara Aton, PhD , and colleagues describe for the first time how cellular changes in the sleeping brain promote the formation of memories. Interfictions 2, edited by Delia Sherman and Christopher Barzak 0 0
• Dark-haired, youthful, and confident with a PhD in physics from Oxford University, Ford sits at the kitchen table with his wife, Sarah Gordon, a top authority on the psychology of people who write and unleash computer viruses. 0 0
• Of course, she was on the verge of finishing a PhD in molecular biology when she gave it all up to become an artist. Times, Sunday Times 0 0
• Gramm’s a bozo; is this what a Phd in Economics gets you? McCain: Send Gramm to Minsk - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 0 0
• I used PHD Guiding to autoguide and it seemed to work really well. Chattablogs 0 0
• Martin has a PhD in behavioural biology and a track record as author and co-author of popular science books. 0 0
• A PhD student will be analysing mosquito fish as part of that project. 0 0
• No one who takes 20+ years to complete a PhD is taken seriously by REAL academic institutions. The Bidens on Oprah - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 0 0
• Professor Glenn Bowes, MBBS PhD FRACP GradCert Mgmt. Elected 1 January 2008. Slackbastard 0 0
• Fast forward 1 bachelors degree, years working as a modeller, and just having finished my PhD (where I was forced to play catch up and teach myself basic calculus, because shock horror - I needed it!), I have struggled unnecessarily because of my very dumb decision to drop maths prematurely. Why Girls Don't Like Math 0 0
• The MP3 format was developed by just one guy for his PhD thesis, with 2 fellows helping him. 0 0
• Irene S. Levine, PhD is a freelance journalist and author. Dr. Irene S. Levine: Friendship, trust, and the bottom line 0 0
• And we have privates in the Army Reserve who have PhDs , as well as all of the medical providers here as part of our theater support command. 0 0
• I was thinking of returning to graduate school; I asked a friend who had recently finished his PhD at a good program in the Northeast and who has since earned a reputation for himself in Victorian studies for an introductory list of titles on structuralism, which is what literary theory was called at the time. Introduction to structuralism 0 0
• In 1968, he received a PhD from the University of Manchester in the UK, for "research on the biotransformation of amylobarbitone in healthy adults and patients with chronic renal insufficiency. James Love: Dr K. Balasubramaniam Will Be Missed 0 0
• About 25 percent of the program is now PhD -level scientists in the social or behavioral sciences, nutrition, biostatistics or epidemiology. 0 0
• This is of concern for the discipline, as PhD enrolment or completion is a requirement for entry to academia. 0 0
• A PhD in an area such as mathematical sciences, biomathematics, biology, chemistry, computer science, physics, and engineering is required. Naturejobs - All Jobs 0 0
• Chalking it up to moodiness or trouble at work or tiredness is pretty common," says Carrie Bearden, PhD , associate professor in residence of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and psychology, at the David Geffen School of Medical at UCLA. Bipolar Disorder: 10 Subtle Signs 0 0
• Sex is a great mode of exercise, " says Patti Britton, PhD , a Los Angeles sexologist and president of the American Association of Sexuality Educators and Therapists. 0 0
• My understanding is that this is because funding is now directly tied to 'productivity' and one of the criteria for productivity is how many finished and passed PhDs your department/school/faculty/whatevs can churn out in the shortest possible time. 0 0
• There was those diborane leaks, the transformator fire, my collegue who was thrown across the lab from high voltage, the unlabeled flasks with chemicals, … Oh, well, maybe I earned that PhD after all! fnxtr On the Contemplation of Panda Poo - The Panda's Thumb 0 0
• How about asking someone with a PhD in linguistics whether the berries from the decorative juniper bush outside are the same kind as the ones used in cooking? Think Progress » Poll: Large Number Of Texans Doubt The Theory Of Evolution, Believe In Human-Dinosaur Coexistence 0 0
• What’s really scary for me is that Giertych is a professor of biology (BA and MA at Oxford, PhD at University of Toronto), and an active member of Institute of Dendrology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, who only recently stopped teaching (forest genetics and population genetics )… Who knows what kind of idiotism he promoted in the classroom, under the “scientific banner”. More Zaniness From Poland - The Panda's Thumb 0 0
• He was alarmed that among non-fiction publications based on PhD theses, anything that seeks to move beyond anecdotage to argument and analysis becomes fair game for reviewers. 0 0
• Inside Higher Education's Mama PhD is a group blog by mothers "attempting to balance motherhood and academics", that includes "ABCs and PhDs : Biologists at Home" Liz Stockwell, Dana Campbell, and Susan Bassow, as well as "Math Mom" Della Fenster. Blog Roll Update 0 0
• Fourth, one has to face the fact that the quality of the average PhD is not as good as it might be. 0 0
• We tried desperately to discover why an organisation devoted to tanks and jets is interested in microscopic machines, but the conventioneers, despite their PhDs , failed to convince us. 0 0
• a few months with our parents and to get another 6 month's training in ophthalmology, while I had to write up my PhD thesis and Peter Doherty was sweating to correct my offences to the Rolf M. Zinkernagel - Autobiography 0 0
• And the whole Mr/Ms etc palaver is yet another bonus of having a PhD . Archive: Oct 08 - Mar 09 0 0
• After obtaining her honours and master's degrees with distinction, she went to study at the University of Pretoria where she completed a PhD . 0 0
• PhD in security studies from the Fletcher School in Boston. WALL GAMES 0 0
• During his eight years in England, Krishan Kumar Mahajan ( "Kumar") achieved a great deal: the FRCS at his first attempt, a PhD thesis, and many publications. Latest headlines from BMJ 0 0
• But then what is that compared to Steven Hawkins, Phd , maybe more than one, who has been in a wheel chair, talking through a voice synthetiser for most of his life, yet one of the top scientist in the world, who was told many years ago that he did not have long to live, but just trucked on, instead of feeling sorry for himself. Page 5 0 0
• A year later, I became an external PhD student at the college, studying seed dispersal by lemurs in Madagascar. 0 0
• Most recently I functioned as opponent in a PhD thesis at the Institut d'études politiques de Paris 0 0
• Recentioref editiones, inter quas eminet, quae Lipfiae 1760 pro - diit, curavitGOTTLiEB schumann, PhdoCMa - joller Lipfienfis. Bibliotheca historica. A.I.G. Meuselio ita digesta ut pæne novum opus videri possit 0 0
• The lone researcher bears a large emotional burden, and there is simply no denying that this is a cross many PhD students will have to carry. 0 0
• Candidates 'require a masters degree or PhD in a science / engineering related discipline with extensive relevant experience in both management and the use of a diverse portfolio of fabrication equipment, deposition and etch equipment including dry (RIE) and wet processes, but may also include ink-jet processes, embossing processes, electroforming and other non-traditional fabrication routes. Physicsworld.com: all content 0 0
• In other words, foresight, the ability to look ahead, is not an esoteric activity restricted to a few people with PhDs . 0 0
• However, doing a PhD requires a high level of emotional management both within and outwith the field. 0 0
• A newly designed satellite centre is operational on the premises of the Animal Production and Health Division ( APHD ) in Apia. 0 0
• “Having exclusively military installations [as targets] helps you little, because you have hundreds of recruiting stations and other military things,” said Garrett, who also has a PhD in criminology. Former FBI agent Brad Garrett: Tips crucial to cracking case of mysterious shootings 0 0
• The degree of PhD , as I remember, is conferred on us with all the perquisites and emoluments pertaining thereto. 0 0
• Dr. Sun and his multidisciplinary team are uniquely poised to address key questions regarding the structure and function of the bladder urothelium," said Chris Mullins, PhD , director of Basic Cell Biology Programs, Division of Kidney, Urologic and Hematologic Newswise: Latest News 0 0
• On the day he met Watson he had not even earned a PhD , let alone made a discovery or a reputation. 0 0
• Zhang says: "I was thrilled to win a PhD prize, it is a tremendous encouragement for me to continue with my research." 0 0
• Of course, he got his PhD in Deutschland, but that's not important. Your Right Hand Thief 0 0
• But one advantage of large project-oriented or center-oriented* grants is that they are educational 'sinks' -- they soak up surplus PhDs . ScienceBlogs Channel : Life Science 0 0
• He has a PHd in surfing the internet and specialized in leaving comments on blogs. What A Bunch Of Plonkers « POLICE INSPECTOR BLOG 0 0
• Imagine, two PhD -chasing buckos arrived at the oh so-obvious conclusion that most English football matches would put an insomniac to sleep. 0 0
• Sophie Mogotlane, PhD , is dean/professor of nursing at the Medical University of South Africa. 0 0
• F.M. Burnet with PhD student G.J.V. Nossal, who became Director of the Institute in 1965, at the age of The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute 0 0
• This is important because training a PhD student in medical research costs about $100,000 / year in consumables etc. 0 0
• This PhD studentship is funded, and will be supervised by the Caledonian Academy. Archive 2009-03-01 0 0
• Apply for PhD opportunity in geophysical / geochemical process modeling of magma emplacement and fluid exsolution Naturejobs - All Jobs 0 0
• The perception of excellence because of the term PhD being tossed around lands this writer work. Define Professional 0 0
• Compared with CHOP -- cyclophosphamide, hydroxydaunorubicin, vincristine (Oncovin), and prednisone -- plus rituximab, the combination of bendamustine and rituximab showed substantially lower toxicity and better complete response rates in a randomized Phase III trial, reported Mathias Rummel, MD, PhD , of University Hospital in Giessen, Germany. MedPageToday.com - medical news plus CME for physicians 0 0
• He has a PhD in agronomy and a masters in soil science. Jeffrey Smith: The Biggest Election Showdown is WHERE? 0 0
• He has an MEd in instructional technology from George Mason University and is presently pursuing a PhD at George Mason's Graduate School of Education. 0 0
• I just learned that she also has a PhD in neuropsychology. A plug for Neurartic 0 0
• Peter J. Timoney, FRCVS, PhD , of the University of Kentucky's Gluck Equine Research Center, covered the basics of the disease in a new video interview on TheHorse. com. TheHorse.com News 0 0
• Considered a child prodigy, he went to Harvard and graduated, then he got his PhD in mathematics from the University of Michigan. Five Things To Remember on May 4th | myFiveBest 0 0
• Steinman and authors Michael Platten, MD, and Sawsan Youssef, PhD call for more studies to investigate the potential use of drugs like lisinopril for treatment of MS. 0 0
• He received his PhD from Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. 0 0
• An interestin­g place to start is a book called, "Perfect Health Diet" which is a Paleo-base ­d diet book written by two PhDs who were quite sick before healing themselves through their diet; their diet plan actually resembles the Pacific Islander diet where you see very healthy centenaria ­ns. The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com 0 0
• Two positions are PhD -RD positions with cross appointments with the University of Toronto. 0 0
• The U. Chicago program ranks us third below applicants with degrees (not even PhDs ) in accredited and non-accredited medical physics programs. Archive 2006-08-01 0 0
• Yesterday one of the secretaries asked one of the Dutch PhD students, in Dutch, what the English word for kermis was, and I immediately said “carnival”. 2007 July « The expat numbat: from AU to NL 0 0
• `My maid has a BA in Applied Economics, and my cook has a PhD in Gourmet Arts. MISS MELVILLE REGRETS 0 0
• We also talked about the nature of the contemporary PhD and how difficult it is to get things like conferences and symposia organised. 0 0
• With her PhD in animal behaviour, natural good looks and easy way with a camera, she's a natural. 0 0
• I know that working towards a PhD means sacrifices, and in my current position it feels that I have definitely sacrificed too much without getting the rewards in return. 0 0
• DVM, PhD , professor in the Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology at Washington State University, and C. Wayne McIlwraith, BVSc, PhD , DSc, FRCVS, Dipl. TheHorse.com News 0 0
• Interested candidates can apply for the admission into PhD and MTech programmes throughout the year. Archive 2009-03-01 0 0
• Her PhD thesis investigated the role of surfactants and emulsions in the petrochemical industry, and detailed the chemical mechanisms involved in road making. 0 0
• The end of a PhD is a written thesis, evidence of work completed, not what and how we, as students struggled with and overcame. April Scientiae: We Rise Up 0 0
• Dr. Arthur V. Chadwick, PhD , Geologist, dendrochronology (analyzing tree rings to determine past climate) lecturing, Southwestern Adventist University, Keene, Texas, U.S.A. Think Progress » Avatar director wants to ‘shoot it out’ with ‘asshole’ Glenn Beck and climate-denier ‘boneheads.’ 0 0
• Ryan Drum, PHD has been a professional wildcrafter, herbal educator, and practicing medical herbalist for over 20 years after a successful career as an academic research scientist. 0 0
• It feels a bit strange to start talking about everyday life when I haven't introduced myself properly ...... in brief, I'm a PhD student in Chemistry, situated somewhere Oop Norf in the UK, and I'm currently skiving off work (ahem, I mean, I'm ill in bed) with not much to do, having surfed on the net for an unhealthy amount of time already today. Geekchic-uk Diary Entry 0 0
• Apparently, Mark Liberman, PhD , the phonetician at the University of Pennsylvania who runs the Language Log, had the same questions about the study that I had. Find Your Focus Zone 0 0
• Dr. Pammla Petrucka holds a PhD in nursing from the University of Alberta, a CIHR post-doctoral fellowship in Aboriginal health policy with the Indigenous Peoples Health Research Centre, and a research associate appointment with the Centre for Knowledge Transfer. Archive 2006-03-12 0 0
• Rue's Kitchen The Black Madonna by Ken Rabac, PhD -ThD The Black Madonna 0 0
• When you ultimately get someone working in those companies, they are PhD graduates with a huge amount of skills that are almost not purchasable in the west anymore. 0 0
• Come on Melv, tell the world what your PhD is in … on May 18, 2009 at 5: 08 pm Dr Melvin T Gray The First Of The Gang To Die. « POLICE INSPECTOR BLOG 0 0
• Unlike the biomedical fields, it is rare in - ology to have six digit multiple year grants which can fund an entire post-doc or PhD , so the process of grant-writing is much more ubiquitous. Archive 2006-11-01 0 0
• The same was true for most issues covered led recently by the “Katrina Hurricane” coverage that included so much mis reporting worthy of several Phd Dissertations in vaunted journalism schools. Ohio Congresswoman Dies - The Caucus Blog - NYTimes.com 0 0
• All second- and third-year clinical PhD students now participate in the clinic and its research lab. 0 0
• They available for anyone, believe I will get a PHD or Dr, what-efer it takes to make some extra $$$$ to hunt the Rockies with MY BOLT GUNS and Single Action Handguns, if they don; t work, then will take my Auto's,. Why the NRA Should Try Being Reasonable 0 0
• In this module, Peter Gruber, MD, PhD , attending cardiothoracic surgeon, presents some brief video excerpts from the Arterial Switch Operation for repair of TGA. Transposition of the Great Arteries 0 0
• Ms Simpson was the first woman to receive a PhD in meteorology and has authored more than 190 studies. Think Progress » Donald Trump: Take Al Gore’s Nobel Prize away because of ‘coldest winter ever recorded.’ 0 0
• Three years postdoc Harvard Society of Fellows; PhD in economics from M.I.T.; BA, summa cum laude, in economics from Harvard University. 0 0
• Schoeman averaged 92,79 % throughout her years of study, and her master's thesis was described by two overseas academics as of " PhD standard". 0 0
• Mr Sellers, who has spoken about how Yuri Gagarin's first adventure into space sparked his desire to become astronaut, did a Bachelor of Science degree in ecological science at the University of Edinburgh, before a PhD in biometeorology at Leeds University. Kos RSS Feed 0 0
• For more dazzling insights into the history of pubic sciences, please read my PhD dissertation, ‘Is that a pube in my salad?’ 0 0
• Hey ryan boggy we unwearable ya sincerely phd programs online, oh aside we bulblike goddam what tacheometer we are inescapable to marsupialia you are peevishly. Rational Review 0 0
• I mean, I saw some Scientific American articles a while back with scientists lecturing on economics that were like a pack of economists who had never heard of Darwin lecturing to PhD biologists. Math and Economics, Arnold Kling | EconLog | Library of Economics and Liberty 0 0
• Ai tayk careob dem an noes wha yu meen by de—1 or 2 or fwee don wan tuch. a cple tyms a kitteh needz hoomin halps fwum vetwinarianwiffaPhd so ai took sikness one in fur helps. oOvers got birf contwol from Humaneness socialness….berry musch halps fur awl. Really? - Lolcats 'n' Funny Pictures of Cats - I Can Has Cheezburger? 0 0
• You have to study for years before you're allowed to come to that conclusion, leave your PhD program, and move to Nova Scotia to become a lobsterman. 0 0
• On the flip side, though, it's a nearly infallible sign of personality problems when a PhD insists on the honorific ‘Dr.’ 0 0
• It is awarded to Andrea Nackley, PhD , assistant professor of endodontics with a joint appointment in pharmacology at the University of North Newswise: Latest News 0 0
• He obtained his PhD in 1964 for a thesis on partial differential equations. Times, Sunday Times 0 0
• She had broad-ranging interests, having studied mythology and psychology, in which she gained a PhD . 0 0
• Still, throughout her writing, the biology Phd wears her scientific foundation and technical training on her sleeve, and her wording is sprinkled with turns-of-phrase belying her academic background. Green Mountain Daily - Front Page 0 0
• We will remember the days which you spent with us, the days which witnessed our successful application for PhD degree conferment, and the days when we grow with the Undergraduate Teaching Assessment. 0 0
• Jaclyn Biegel, PhD is investigating mutations in the INI1 gene that are associated with the formation of atypical teratoid/rhabdoid tumors of the brain and/or kidneys. Pediatric cancer research 0 0
• Meanwhile, a PhD student is setting traps to collect hair samples from the park's population of spotted-tailed quolls. 0 0
• The World Peace Diet: Eating for Spiritual Health and Social Harmony, by musician, educator, and Zen Buddhist Master Will Tuttle, PhD , was published in 2005. 0 0
• My professor has a Master of Arts degree from Boston College and a PhD from the School of Oriental and African Studies at the University of London. Into the Wardrobe 0 0
• One of your old Monty Python writers, who had an unused PhD in medicine, told of his drinking days--and they were every one of them bespotted--that he drank 80 ounces of gin a day. [alcohol] which nations drink the most 0 0

Report a problem

Please indicate a type of error, additional information (optional):.

How to write a PhD thesis: a step-by-step guide

A draft isn’t a perfect, finished product; it is your opportunity to start getting words down on paper, writes Kelly Louise Preece

Kelly Louise Preece

• More on this topic

Created in partnership with

You may also like

Popular resources

.css-1txxx8u{overflow:hidden;max-height:81px;text-indent:0px;} Students using generative AI to write essays isn't a crisis

How students’ genai skills affect assignment instructions, turn individual wins into team achievements in group work, access and equity: two crucial aspects of applied learning, emotions and learning: what role do emotions play in how and why students learn.

Congratulations; you’ve finished your research! Time to write your PhD thesis. This resource will take you through an eight-step plan for drafting your chapters and your thesis as a whole. 

Organise your material

Before you start, it’s important to get organised. Take a step back and look at the data you have, then reorganise your research. Which parts of it are central to your thesis and which bits need putting to one side? Label and organise everything using logical folders – make it easy for yourself! Academic and blogger Pat Thomson calls this  “Clean up to get clearer” . Thomson suggests these questions to ask yourself before you start writing:

• What data do you have? You might find it useful to write out a list of types of data (your supervisor will find this list useful too.) This list is also an audit document that can go in your thesis. Do you have any for the “cutting room floor”? Take a deep breath and put it in a separate non-thesis file. You can easily retrieve it if it turns out you need it.
• What do you have already written? What chunks of material have you written so far that could form the basis of pieces of the thesis text? They will most likely need to be revised but they are useful starting points. Do you have any holding text? That is material you already know has to be rewritten but contains information that will be the basis of a new piece of text.
• What have you read and what do you still need to read? Are there new texts that you need to consult now after your analysis? What readings can you now put to one side, knowing that they aren’t useful for this thesis – although they might be useful at another time?
• What goes with what? Can you create chunks or themes of materials that are going to form the basis of some chunks of your text, perhaps even chapters?

Once you have assessed and sorted what you have collected and generated you will be in much better shape to approach the big task of composing the dissertation. 

Decide on a key message

A key message is a summary of new information communicated in your thesis. You should have started to map this out already in the section on argument and contribution – an overarching argument with building blocks that you will flesh out in individual chapters.

You have already mapped your argument visually, now you need to begin writing it in prose. Following another of Pat Thomson’s exercises, write a “tiny text” thesis abstract. This doesn’t have to be elegant, or indeed the finished product, but it will help you articulate the argument you want your thesis to make. You create a tiny text using a five-paragraph structure:

• The first sentence addresses the broad context. This locates the study in a policy, practice or research field.
• The second sentence establishes a problem related to the broad context you have set out. It often starts with “But”, “Yet” or “However”.
• The third sentence says what specific research has been done. This often starts with “This research” or “I report…”
• The fourth sentence reports the results. Don’t try to be too tricky here, just start with something like: “This study shows,” or “Analysis of the data suggests that…”
• The fifth and final sentence addresses the “So What?” question and makes clear the claim to contribution.

Here’s an example that Thomson provides:

Secondary school arts are in trouble, as the fall in enrolments in arts subjects dramatically attests. However, there is patchy evidence about the benefits of studying arts subjects at school and this makes it hard to argue why the drop in arts enrolments matters. This thesis reports on research which attempts to provide some answers to this problem – a longitudinal study which followed two groups of senior secondary students, one group enrolled in arts subjects and the other not, for three years. The results of the study demonstrate the benefits of young people’s engagement in arts activities, both in and out of school, as well as the connections between the two. The study not only adds to what is known about the benefits of both formal and informal arts education but also provides robust evidence for policymakers and practitioners arguing for the benefits of the arts. You can  find out more about tiny texts and thesis abstracts on Thomson’s blog.

• Writing tips for higher education professionals
• Resource collection on academic writing
• What is your academic writing temperament?

Write a plan

You might not be a planner when it comes to writing. You might prefer to sit, type and think through ideas as you go. That’s OK. Everybody works differently. But one of the benefits of planning your writing is that your plan can help you when you get stuck. It can help with writer’s block (more on this shortly!) but also maintain clarity of intention and purpose in your writing.

You can do this by creating a  thesis skeleton or storyboard , planning the order of your chapters, thinking of potential titles (which may change at a later stage), noting down what each chapter/section will cover and considering how many words you will dedicate to each chapter (make sure the total doesn’t exceed the maximum word limit allowed).

Use your plan to help prompt your writing when you get stuck and to develop clarity in your writing.

Some starting points include:

• This chapter will argue that…
• This section illustrates that…
• This paragraph provides evidence that…

Of course, we wish it werethat easy. But you need to approach your first draft as exactly that: a draft. It isn’t a perfect, finished product; it is your opportunity to start getting words down on paper. Start with whichever chapter you feel you want to write first; you don’t necessarily have to write the introduction first. Depending on your research, you may find it easier to begin with your empirical/data chapters.

Vitae advocates for the “three draft approach” to help with this and to stop you from focusing on finding exactly the right word or transition as part of your first draft.

This resource originally appeared on Researcher Development .

Kelly Louse Preece is head of educator development at the University of Exeter.

If you would like advice and insight from academics and university staff delivered direct to your inbox each week, sign up for the Campus newsletter .

Students using generative AI to write essays isn't a crisis

Eleven ways to support international students, indigenising teaching through traditional knowledge, seven exercises to use in your gender studies classes, rather than restrict the use of ai, embrace the challenge, how hard can it be testing ai detection tools.

Register for free

and unlock a host of features on the THE site

Keep Your Reader Engaged: How To Craft PhD Thesis Statements

Sep 1, 2023

In this post, I’m going to give you what I think is the easiest win when it comes to improving your writing: using thesis statements to tell the reader what the destination is right at the outset of your writing. PhD thesis statements will be a useful tool in your arsenal. 

I read a lot of dissertations and essays, not just at PhD level. I must have read well into the millions of words by now. So when I say this is the easiest win, I mean it.

Whenever you start a chapter, a paper, or a section, rely on thesis statements to tell the reader what the destination is. Inform the reader upfront where you’re headed, so they’re better able to keep up with you.

This contradicts our instinct. We often treat our writing as if it’s a murder mystery, writing in a way that shields the conclusion from the reader until the last possible moment.

I blame school. For me, at least, this was how I was told to write my essays there. Layer up evidence, and then present the conclusion in some grand reveal at the end.

This approach is nonsense, however, and serves only to ensure that the reader has no idea what you’re talking about much of the time.

Whilst you certainly need to layer up evidence to make your argument as convincing as possible, you need to tell the reader what the destination is before you start. That’s where thesis statements come in.

This is not a normal blog subscription

Each week we send a short, thought-provoking email that will make you think differently about what it means to be a PhD student. It is designed to be read in thirty seconds and thought about all day.

​What Are PhD Thesis Statements?

PhD thesis statements are sentences that condense all of the key ideas from that particular paper, chapter, or section. They answer the question: ‘I’ve only got 10 seconds, but can you tell me what this section/paper/chapter is about?’

Read back the opening sentence of this blog post—that’s a thesis statement. It told you right at the outset what I was going to explain in this blog post.

You don’t have to limit yourself to one sentence. Sometimes you need a couple of sentences to explain the main headlines of what’s about to come.

In summary, thesis statements fulfil three roles:

• Sets the Tone: They tell your reader what to expect.
• Guidepost for Your Reader: Think of them as the roadmap that directs your reader through your paper, keeping them oriented along the way.
• Snapshot: It’s the condensed version of your argument, giving a glimpse into what the paper will discuss.

Why Are PhD Thesis Statements So Useful?

The easiest way to understand why they’re so useful is to imagine life without them.

Imagine you’ve submitted your thesis for examination. Your examiners are reading through your literature review, eager to get a sense of where your research sits and why it is relevant. They’re immediately overwhelmed by detail. It doesn’t take long for anyone reading your thesis to become very, very lost.

You want to avoid losing your examiner at all costs.

Herein lies the problem: you know where you’re headed, but the reader doesn’t. You need to guide them to the destination.

By doing so, the reader is primed for what is about to come.

Your PhD Thesis. On one page.

How do i write phd thesis statements, step 1: identify your main argument.

What to do: Think about the main point you want your paper to convey. This should be something arguable and specific.

First and foremost, be sure about your main argument or point. What is the core message you want to convey? Have it clear in your mind or, better yet, jot it down. If you’re struggling to condense it in two one or a small number of sentences, you may need to ask yourself if your argument is as refined as it could be. There’s a joy in simplicity, and often simplicity is the result of an incredible amount of hard work. Ask yourself if you need to do more work to simplify the essence of your writing.

Our thesis writing template will help here. It’s designed around a series of question prompts, which force you to, in effect, create thesis statements for each chapter.

Real-world example: Let’s say you’re writing a paper on the impact of remote work on employee productivity. Your main argument could be: “In this paper, I will argue that remote work significantly impacts employee productivity.”

As you can see, this tells the reader what the destination is But it’s a little vague, and doesn’t really prepare them for the detail you’ll have to bring in to elaborate upon that point. In other words, we haven’t told them what the stops are en route.

That’s where supporting ideas come in…

Step 2: Find Supporting Ideas

What to do: List two or three supporting points that reinforce your main argument. Each point should offer a different facet of support. These will typically form the basis of the various paragraphs or sections in the writing to come.

Real-world example: For our remote work paper, supporting points could be:

• Remote work improves work-life balance (paragraph/section one).
• Remote work cuts down on commute time (paragraph/section two).
• Remote work may lead to distractions at home (paragraph/section three).

Step 3: Keep It Concise

What to do: Combine your main argument and supporting points into one or two sentences.

Real-world example: “In this paper, I will argue that , remote work significantly boosts employee productivity by improving work-life balance and eliminating commute time, although it may also introduce distractions.”

You can see now that by combining the broad summary form step one with the specific ideas in step two, we’ve created a clear roadmap for where our argument will end up. We’ve told the reader what the destination is, and what the stops are en route.

Step 4: Make It Specific

What to do: Add specific metrics or criteria that can be measured or argued, if possible.

Real-world example: “In this paper, I will argue that , remote work has been shown to increase employee productivity by up to 35% by improving work-life balance and cutting down on average commute time by 1.5 hours per day, although it may also increase the likelihood of at-home distractions by 20%.”

Step 5: Test Its Strength

What to do: Evaluate your statement. Is it clear? Is it compelling? Does it invite discussion? You want your thesis statement to meet these criteria. It should also be open to evidence-based confirmation or refutation.

The example thesis statement we developed above is:

• Clear: It straightforwardly presents an argument.
• Compelling: It provides multiple angles (both pros and cons).
• Invites Discussion: It is not a foregone conclusion but rather invites evidence-based discussion on the extent and situations in which the pros and cons apply.

Step 6: Revise and Refine

Once you’ve written your thesis statement, it’s a good idea to revisit it after finishing your paper to ensure it still aligns with the content. If you’ve shifted your argument in any way, your thesis statement should reflect that.

Real-world example: After completing your paper, you may find that the focus has shifted slightly, to more of a psychological perspective on productivity. In this case, you could refine the thesis statement to: “In this paper, I will argue that, remote work increases employee productivity by up to 35% due to improved work-life balance and mental well-being, although it may raise the incidence of home-related distractions.”

Tips to Elevate Your PhD Thesis Sentences

• Use Powerful Vocabulary: Choose words that pack a punch.
• Appropriate Punctuation: A well-placed comma or semi-colon can make all the difference.
• Fluidity and Rhythm: Make it easy on the ears. Read it aloud and see how it flows.

Common Problems With Thesis Statements:

• Vagueness: The reader can see straight through academic mumbo-jumbo and they’ll be the first to spot when you are confused. Be clear about your point.
• Run-on Sentences: Long, complicated sentences can confuse the reader. Keep sentences concise, and use more than one sentence if you need to.
• Off-Topic Details: Stick to your main point. Tangents have no place in your thesis statements. The detail comes later.

As with everything in academic writing, there are no hard and fast rules. There’s only guidance. Writing at this level isn’t a tick-box exercise; it’s a craft that needs to be honed. That means that there’s some fluidity to how, or whether, you apply thesis statements to your writing and, if you do, the form they take. You might find that you need to include these kinds of statements throughout your writing, say for each new section or indeed for each new paragraph (in which case, they’ll be referred to as ‘topic sentences’, but the principle is the same). Or, if the writing is more more straightforward, you might just have one at the outset.

But however you approach it, keep your writing simple, and do all you can to avoid confusing the reader by showing them the path ahead.

Share this:

Submit a comment cancel reply.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search The PhD Knowledge Base

Most popular articles from the phd knowlege base.

The PhD Knowledge Base Categories

• Your PhD and Covid
• Mastering your theory and literature review chapters
• How to structure and write every chapter of the PhD
• How to stay motivated and productive
• Techniques to improve your writing and fluency
• Advice on maintaining good mental health
• Resources designed for non-native English speakers
• PhD Writing Template
• Explore our back-catalogue of motivational advice

Testimonials

Free Resources

PrepScholar GRE Prep

Gre prep online guides and tips, 3 successful graduate school personal statement examples.

Looking for grad school personal statement examples? Look no further! In this total guide to graduate school personal statement examples, we’ll discuss why you need a personal statement for grad school and what makes a good one. Then we’ll provide three graduate school personal statement samples from our grad school experts. After that, we’ll do a deep dive on one of our personal statement for graduate school examples. Finally, we’ll wrap up with a list of other grad school personal statements you can find online.

Why Do You Need a Personal Statement?

A personal statement is a chance for admissions committees to get to know you: your goals and passions, what you’ll bring to the program, and what you’re hoping to get out of the program.  You need to sell the admissions committee on what makes you a worthwhile applicant. The personal statement is a good chance to highlight significant things about you that don’t appear elsewhere on your application.

A personal statement is slightly different from a statement of purpose (also known as a letter of intent). A statement of purpose/letter of intent tends to be more tightly focused on your academic or professional credentials and your future research and/or professional interests.

While a personal statement also addresses your academic experiences and goals, you have more leeway to be a little more, well, personal. In a personal statement, it’s often appropriate to include information on significant life experiences or challenges that aren’t necessarily directly relevant to your field of interest.

Some programs ask for both a personal statement and a statement of purpose/letter of intent. In this case, the personal statement is likely to be much more tightly focused on your life experience and personality assets while the statement of purpose will focus in much more on your academic/research experiences and goals.

However, there’s not always a hard-and-fast demarcation between a personal statement and a statement of purpose. The two statement types should address a lot of the same themes, especially as relates to your future goals and the valuable assets you bring to the program. Some programs will ask for a personal statement but the prompt will be focused primarily on your research and professional experiences and interests. Some will ask for a statement of purpose but the prompt will be more focused on your general life experiences.

When in doubt, give the program what they are asking for in the prompt and don’t get too hung up on whether they call it a personal statement or statement of purpose. You can always call the admissions office to get more clarification on what they want you to address in your admissions essay.

Quick side note: we've created the world's leading online GRE prep program that adapts to you and your strengths and weaknesses. Not sure what to study? Confused by how to improve your score? We give you minute by minute guide.

You don't NEED a prep program to get a great GRE score. But we believe PrepScholar is the best GRE prep program available right now , especially if you find it hard to organize your study schedule and don't know what to study .

Click here to learn how you can improve your GRE score by 7 points, guaranteed .

What Makes a Good Grad School Personal Statement?

A great graduate school personal statement can come in many forms and styles. However, strong grad school personal statement examples all share the same following elements:

A Clear Narrative

Above all, a good personal statement communicates clear messages about what makes you a strong applicant who is likely to have success in graduate school. So to that extent, think about a couple of key points that you want to communicate about yourself and then drill down on how you can best communicate those points. (Your key points should of course be related to what you can bring to the field and to the program specifically).

You can also decide whether to address things like setbacks or gaps in your application as part of your narrative. Have a low GPA for a couple semesters due to a health issue? Been out of a job for a while taking care of a family member? If you do decide to explain an issue like this, make sure that the overall arc is more about demonstrating positive qualities like resilience and diligence than about providing excuses.

Specific Examples

A great statement of purpose uses specific examples to illustrate its key messages. This can include anecdotes that demonstrate particular traits or even references to scholars and works that have influenced your academic trajectory to show that you are familiar and insightful about the relevant literature in your field.

Just saying “I love plants,” is pretty vague. Describing how you worked in a plant lab during undergrad and then went home and carefully cultivated your own greenhouse where you cross-bred new flower colors by hand is much more specific and vivid, which makes for better evidence.

A strong personal statement will describe why you are a good fit for the program, and why the program is a good fit for you. It’s important to identify specific things about the program that appeal to you, and how you’ll take advantage of those opportunities. It’s also a good idea to talk about specific professors you might be interested in working with. This shows that you are informed about and genuinely invested in the program.

Strong Writing

Even quantitative and science disciplines typically require some writing, so it’s important that your personal statement shows strong writing skills. Make sure that you are communicating clearly and that you don’t have any grammar and spelling errors. It’s helpful to get other people to read your statement and provide feedback. Plan on going through multiple drafts.

Another important thing here is to avoid cliches and gimmicks. Don’t deploy overused phrases and openings like “ever since I was a child.” Don’t structure your statement in a gimmicky way (i.e., writing a faux legal brief about yourself for a law school statement of purpose). The first will make your writing banal; the second is likely to make you stand out in a bad way.

Appropriate Boundaries

While you can be more personal in a personal statement than in a statement of purpose, it’s important to maintain appropriate boundaries in your writing. Don’t overshare anything too personal about relationships, bodily functions, or illegal activities. Similarly, don’t share anything that makes it seem like you may be out of control, unstable, or an otherwise risky investment. The personal statement is not a confessional booth. If you share inappropriately, you may seem like you have bad judgment, which is a huge red flag to admissions committees.

You should also be careful with how you deploy humor and jokes. Your statement doesn’t have to be totally joyless and serious, but bear in mind that the person reading the statement may not have the same sense of humor as you do. When in doubt, err towards the side of being as inoffensive as possible.

Just as being too intimate in your statement can hurt you, it’s also important not to be overly formal or staid. You should be professional, but conversational.

Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

Our graduate school experts have been kind enough to provide some successful grad school personal statement examples. We’ll provide three examples here, along with brief analysis of what makes each one successful.

Sample Personal Statement for Graduate School 1

PDF of Sample Personal Statement 1 – Japanese Studies

For this Japanese Studies master’s degree, the applicant had to provide a statement of purpose outlining her academic goals and experience with Japanese and a separate personal statement describing her personal relationship with Japanese Studies and what led her to pursue a master’s degree.

Here’s what’s successful about this personal statement:

• An attention-grabbing beginning: The applicant begins with the statement that Japanese has never come easily to her and that it’s a brutal language to learn. Seeing as how this is an application for a Japanese Studies program, this is an intriguing beginning that makes the reader want to keep going.
• A compelling narrative: From this attention-grabbing beginning, the applicant builds a well-structured and dramatic narrative tracking her engagement with the Japanese language over time. The clear turning point is her experience studying abroad, leading to a resolution in which she has clarity about her plans. Seeing as how the applicant wants to be a translator of Japanese literature, the tight narrative structure here is a great way to show her writing skills.
• Specific examples that show important traits: The applicant clearly communicates both a deep passion for Japanese through examples of her continued engagement with Japanese and her determination and work ethic by highlighting the challenges she’s faced (and overcome) in her study of the language. This gives the impression that she is an engaged and dedicated student.

Overall, this is a very strong statement both in terms of style and content. It flows well, is memorable, and communicates that the applicant would make the most of the graduate school experience.

Sample Personal Statement for Graduate School 2

PDF of Sample Graduate School Personal Statement 2 – Musical Composition

This personal statement for a Music Composition master’s degree discusses the factors that motivate the applicant to pursue graduate study.

Here’s what works well in this statement:

• The applicant provides two clear reasons motivating the student to pursue graduate study: her experiences with music growing up, and her family’s musical history. She then supports those two reasons with examples and analysis.
• The description of her ancestors’ engagement with music is very compelling and memorable. The applicant paints her own involvement with music as almost inevitable based on her family’s long history with musical pursuits.
• The applicant gives thoughtful analysis of the advantages she has been afforded that have allowed her to study music so extensively. We get the sense that she is insightful and empathetic—qualities that would add greatly to any academic community.

This is a strong, serviceable personal statement. And in truth, given that this for a masters in music composition, other elements of the application (like work samples) are probably the most important.  However, here are two small changes I would make to improve it:

• I would probably to split the massive second paragraph into 2-3 separate paragraphs. I might use one paragraph to orient the reader to the family’s musical history, one paragraph to discuss Giacomo and Antonio, and one paragraph to discuss how the family has influenced the applicant. As it stands, it’s a little unwieldy and the second paragraph doesn’t have a super-clear focus even though it’s all loosely related to the applicant’s family history with music.
• I would also slightly shorten the anecdote about the applicant’s ancestors and expand more on how this family history has motivated the applicant’s interest in music. In what specific ways has her ancestors’ perseverance inspired her? Did she think about them during hard practice sessions? Is she interested in composing music in a style they might have played? More specific examples here would lend greater depth and clarity to the statement.

Sample Personal Statement for Graduate School 3

PDF of Sample Graduate School Personal Statement 3 – Public Health

This is my successful personal statement for Columbia’s Master’s program in Public Health. We’ll do a deep dive on this statement paragraph-by-paragraph in the next section, but I’ll highlight a couple of things that work in this statement here:

Want to improve your GRE score by 7 points?  We have the industry's leading GRE prep program. Built by world-class instructors with 99th percentile GRE scores , the program learns your strengths and weaknesses through machine learning data science, then customizes your prep program to you so you get the most effective prep possible.

Try our 5-day full access trial for free:

• This statement is clearly organized. Almost every paragraph has a distinct focus and message, and when I move on to a new idea, I move on to a new paragraph with a logical transitions.
• This statement covers a lot of ground in a pretty short space. I discuss my family history, my goals, my educational background, and my professional background. But because the paragraphs are organized and I use specific examples, it doesn’t feel too vague or scattered.
• In addition to including information about my personal motivations, like my family, I also include some analysis about tailoring health interventions with my example of the Zande. This is a good way to show off what kinds of insights I might bring to the program based on my academic background.

Grad School Personal Statement Example: Deep Dive

Now let’s do a deep dive, paragraph-by-paragraph, on one of these sample graduate school personal statements. We’ll use my personal statement that I used when I applied to Columbia’s public health program.

Paragraph One: For twenty-three years, my grandmother (a Veterinarian and an Epidemiologist) ran the Communicable Disease Department of a mid-sized urban public health department. The stories of Grandma Betty doggedly tracking down the named sexual partners of the infected are part of our family lore. Grandma Betty would persuade people to be tested for sexually transmitted diseases, encourage safer sexual practices, document the spread of infection and strive to contain and prevent it. Indeed, due to the large gay population in the city where she worked, Grandma Betty was at the forefront of the AIDS crises, and her analysis contributed greatly towards understanding how the disease was contracted and spread. My grandmother has always been a huge inspiration to me, and the reason why a career in public health was always on my radar.

This is an attention-grabbing opening anecdote that avoids most of the usual cliches about childhood dreams and proclivities. This story also subtly shows that I have a sense of public health history, given the significance of the AIDs crisis for public health as a field.

It’s good that I connect this family history to my own interests. However, if I were to revise this paragraph again, I might cut down on some of the detail because when it comes down to it, this story isn’t really about me. It’s important that even (sparingly used) anecdotes about other people ultimately reveal something about you in a personal statement.

Paragraph Two: Recent years have cemented that interest. In January 2012, my parents adopted my little brother Fred from China. Doctors in America subsequently diagnosed Fred with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy (DMD). My parents were told that if Fred’s condition had been discovered in China, the (very poor) orphanage in which he spent the first 8+ years of his life would have recognized his DMD as a death sentence and denied him sustenance to hasten his demise.

Here’s another compelling anecdote to help explain my interest in public health. This is an appropriately personal detail for a personal statement—it’s a serious thing about my immediate family, but it doesn’t disclose anything that the admissions committee might find concerning or inappropriate.

If I were to take another pass through this paragraph, the main thing I would change is the last phrase. “Denied him sustenance to hasten his demise” is a little flowery. “Denied him food to hasten his death” is actually more powerful because it’s clearer and more direct.

Paragraph Three: It is not right that some people have access to the best doctors and treatment while others have no medical care. I want to pursue an MPH in Sociomedical Sciences at Columbia because studying social factors in health, with a particular focus on socio-health inequities, will prepare me to address these inequities. The interdisciplinary approach of the program appeals to me greatly as I believe interdisciplinary approaches are the most effective way to develop meaningful solutions to complex problems.

In this paragraph I make a neat and clear transition from discussing what sparked my interest in public health and health equity to what I am interested in about Columbia specifically: the interdisciplinary focus of the program, and how that focus will prepare me to solve complex health problems. This paragraph also serves as a good pivot point to start discussing my academic and professional background.

Paragraph Four: My undergraduate education has prepared me well for my chosen career. Understanding the underlying structure of a group’s culture is essential to successfully communicating with the group. In studying folklore and mythology, I’ve learned how to parse the unspoken structures of folk groups, and how those structures can be used to build bridges of understanding. For example, in a culture where most illnesses are believed to be caused by witchcraft, as is the case for the Zande people of central Africa, any successful health intervention or education program would of necessity take into account their very real belief in witchcraft.

In this paragraph, I link my undergraduate education and the skills I learned there to public health. The (very brief) analysis of tailoring health interventions to the Zande is a good way to show insight and show off the competencies I would bring to the program.

Paragraph Five: I now work in the healthcare industry for one of the largest providers of health benefits in the world. In addition to reigniting my passion for data and quantitative analytics, working for this company has immersed me in the business side of healthcare, a critical component of public health.

This brief paragraph highlights my relevant work experience in the healthcare industry. It also allows me to mention my work with data and quantitative analytics, which isn’t necessarily obvious from my academic background, which was primarily based in the social sciences.

Paragraph Six: I intend to pursue a PhD in order to become an expert in how social factors affect health, particularly as related to gender and sexuality. I intend to pursue a certificate in Sexuality, Sexual Health, and Reproduction. Working together with other experts to create effective interventions across cultures and societies, I want to help transform health landscapes both in America and abroad.

This final paragraph is about my future plans and intentions. Unfortunately, it’s a little disjointed, primarily because I discuss goals of pursuing a PhD before I talk about what certificate I want to pursue within the MPH program! Switching those two sentences and discussing my certificate goals within the MPH and then mentioning my PhD plans would make a lot more sense.

I also start two sentences in a row with “I intend,” which is repetitive.

The final sentence is a little bit generic; I might tailor it to specifically discuss a gender and sexual health issue, since that is the primary area of interest I’ve identified.

This was a successful personal statement; I got into (and attended!) the program. It has strong examples, clear organization, and outlines what interests me about the program (its interdisciplinary focus) and what competencies I would bring (a background in cultural analysis and experience with the business side of healthcare). However, a few slight tweaks would elevate this statement to the next level.

Graduate School Personal Statement Examples You Can Find Online

So you need more samples for your personal statement for graduate school? Examples are everywhere on the internet, but they aren’t all of equal quality.

Most of examples are posted as part of writing guides published online by educational institutions. We’ve rounded up some of the best ones here if you are looking for more personal statement examples for graduate school.

Penn State Personal Statement Examples for Graduate School

This selection of ten short personal statements for graduate school and fellowship programs offers an interesting mix of approaches. Some focus more on personal adversity while others focus more closely on professional work within the field.

The writing in some of these statements is a little dry, and most deploy at least a few cliches. However, these are generally strong, serviceable statements that communicate clearly why the student is interested in the field, their skills and competencies, and what about the specific program appeals to them.

Cal State Sample Graduate School Personal Statements

These are good examples of personal statements for graduate school where students deploy lots of very vivid imagery and illustrative anecdotes of life experiences. There are also helpful comments about what works in each of these essays.

Want to improve your GRE score by 7+ points?

Check out our best-in-class online GRE prep program . We guarantee your money back if you don't improve your GRE score by 7 points or more.

PrepScholar GRE is entirely online, and it customizes your prep program to your strengths and weaknesses . We also feature 2,000 practice questions , official practice tests, 150 hours of interactive lessons, and 1-on-1 scoring and feedback on your AWA essays.

Check out our 5-day free trial now:

However, all of these statements are definitely pushing the boundaries of acceptable length, as all are above 1000 and one is almost 1500 words! Many programs limit you to 500 words; if you don’t have a limit, you should try to keep it to two single-spaced pages at most (which is about 1000 words).

University of Chicago Personal Statement for Graduate School Examples

These examples of successful essays to the University of Chicago law school cover a wide range of life experiences and topics. The writing in all is very vivid, and all communicate clear messages about the students’ strengths and competencies.

Note, however, that these are all essays that specifically worked for University of Chicago law school. That does not mean that they would work everywhere. In fact, one major thing to note is that many of these responses, while well-written and vivid, barely address the students’ interest in law school at all! This is something that might not work well for most graduate programs.

Wheaton College Personal Statement for Graduate School Sample 10

This successful essay for law school from a Wheaton College undergraduate does a great job tracking the student’s interest in the law in a compelling and personal way. Wheaton offers other graduate school personal statement examples, but this one offers the most persuasive case for the students’ competencies. The student accomplishes this by using clear, well-elaborated examples, showing strong and vivid writing, and highlighting positive qualities like an interest in justice and empathy without seeming grandiose or out of touch.

Wheaton College Personal Statement for Graduate School Sample 1

Based on the background information provided at the bottom of the essay, this essay was apparently successful for this applicant. However, I’ve actually included this essay because it demonstrates an extremely risky approach. While this personal statement is strikingly written and the story is very memorable, it could definitely communicate the wrong message to some admissions committees. The student’s decision not to report the drill sergeant may read incredibly poorly to some admissions committees. They may wonder if the student’s failure to report the sergeant’s violence will ultimately expose more soldiers-in-training to the same kinds of abuses. This incident perhaps reads especially poorly in light of the fact that the military has such a notable problem with violence against women being covered up and otherwise mishandled

It’s actually hard to get a complete picture of the student’s true motivations from this essay, and what we have might raise real questions about the student’s character to some admissions committees. This student took a risk and it paid off, but it could have just as easily backfired spectacularly.

Key Takeaways: Graduate School Personal Statement Examples

In this guide, we discussed why you need a personal statement and how it differs from a statement of purpose. (It’s more personal!)

We also discussed what you’ll find in a strong sample personal statement for graduate school:

• A clear narrative about the applicant and why they are qualified for graduate study.
• Specific examples to support that narrative.
• Compelling reasons why the applicant and the program are a good fit for each other.
• Strong writing, including clear organization and error-free, cliche-free language.
• Appropriate boundaries—sharing without over-sharing.

Then, we provided three strong graduate school personal statement examples for different fields, along with analysis. We did a deep-dive on the third statement.

Finally, we provided a list of other sample grad school personal statements online.

What’s Next?

Want more advice on writing a personal statement ? See our guide.

Writing a graduate school statement of purpose? See our statement of purpose samples  and a nine-step process for writing the best statement of purpose possible .

If you’re writing a graduate school CV or resume, see our how-to guide to writing a CV , a how-to guide to writing a resume , our list of sample resumes and CVs , resume and CV templates , and a special guide for writing resume objectives .

Need stellar graduate school recommendation letters ? See our guide.

See our 29 tips for successfully applying to graduate school .

Ready to improve your GRE score by 7 points?

Author: Ellen McCammon

Ellen is a public health graduate student and education expert. She has extensive experience mentoring students of all ages to reach their goals and in-depth knowledge on a variety of health topics. View all posts by Ellen McCammon

• 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.

Browse PhDs Now

Join thousands of students.

Join thousands of other students and stay up to date with the latest PhD programmes, funding opportunities and advice.

• Graduate School

15 Winning Graduate School Statement of Purpose Examples

Featured Expert: Dr. Shiti Malhotra, PhD

Here’re the top 15 graduate school statement of purpose examples that got their writers accepted! In this article, you will learn how to increase your chances of getting into graduate school by submitting a statement of purpose that stands out among thousands! Let’s get started! 

>> Want us to help you get accepted? Schedule a free strategy call here . <<

Article Contents 11 min read

Graduate school statement of purpose example #1.

This graduate school statement of purpose got 5 acceptances!

“Architecture is the will of an epoch translated into space.” I was 16 when I first read this quote by Mies van der Rohe, and, back then, I thought I really understood what it meant. Thinking of this quote one summer evening, as I walked around my beloved New York City, I was inspired to commit to a future in architecture. At that early stage, I cherished romantic ideals of designing grandiose buildings that would change a city; of adding my name to the list of architectural geniuses who had immortalized their vision of the world in concrete, steel, glass, and stone. It was in college that I became passionately interested in the theoretical design and engineering concepts that form the basis of architecture, while also exploring in greater detail the sociological and economic impact of architecture.

The true breakthrough for me took place in my sophomore year of college, when I was volunteering at The Bowery Mission, a women’s shelter situated in Queens, New York. The shelter was in a poorly ventilated building, with an essentially non-functioning air conditioning system. The little bit of relief for the people who stayed there was a small park nearby, a patch of green between suffocating buildings. One day when I was working the afternoon shift there in the peak of summer, I looked out to see bulldozers in the park. It was being torn up to make room for yet another building. I saw that completed building a year later – a grey block of steel that did not utilize any of the original park space. Witnessing this injustice, while learning every day about how climatology, materials technology, and engineering mechanics intersect with urban planning and architectural design, ignited a passion for sustainable design in me. [BeMo2] How can we, as architects, minimize our harm to communities and eco-systems? How can we design buildings with a view to sustain long-term energy and resource efficiency without sacrificing immediate economic viability? What are the eco-conscious solutions that architects can put forward to address the environmental changes of the 21st century? These were the questions that plagued me then and I have pursued the answers to these questions throughout my academic career so far.

I found the answers to some of these questions in the robust curriculum I pursued at ABC College of Architecture, New York. I took up advanced coursework in Engineering Mechanics, Surveying, Soil Mechanics, Steel Structures, Model Making etc. which helped me hone my technical skills. As my interest in sustainable architecture developed, I became curious about the social and anthropological impact of architecture. I studied Art History, African American Literature, Anthropology, and Cultures of Ancient Greece, which helped me develop a deeper understanding of the socio-ecological impact of architecture and ethical responsibilities of architects. With this strong background of academic exploration, my architectural philosophy continued to evolve. I became interested in cutting-edge design techniques and their application to sustainable design. In my junior year at college, I participated in the New Dimensions of Architecture conference held in New York City, presenting my own paper on “Analyzing the Implications of the Weiszman Design Theory for the Sustainable Architecture of the Future”. In fact, it was at this conference that I met Professor Richard Wright, the esteemed architect and professor emeritus at the Architecture department of XYZ University. Talking with him was one of the most enlightening moments of my life. We discussed our shared passion for ecologically efficient and socially cohesive architectural solutions, and he introduced me to the works of Leonard Nieman, Mary Andrews, and other cutting-edge green architecture firms that are making a real contribution to ecologically sustainable urban planning.

In fact, the possibility of learning from and working directly with Professor Wright is one of my main reasons to seek admission into your M.Arch program. His innovative design theories have a tremendous potential for sustainable architecture solutions. I would love to learn from him and collaborate with him to continue to explore my interest in these topics. I am also deeply interested in the scope of studies afforded by your wide-ranging curriculum that focuses on the latest architectural innovations as well as socio-economic evolutions in architecture. Moreover, for a budding green architect, nothing is more attractive than your quarterly line-up of seminars and conferences that frequently feature the names of the architects at the forefront of design innovation. With my strong academic background in both the technical and socio-economic aspects of architecture, and my focused passion on sustainable architectural solutions for the future, I think I am a perfect candidate for your master’s program. This education is exactly what I need to launch me into the next phase of my career, where I hope to gain experience at one of New York’s top green architecture firms, working on problems of low-budget housing, eco-friendly factory designs, and organic city planning. Eventually, I hope to specialize in sustainable, low-budget urban planning for socio-economically disadvantaged neighborhoods.

It’s funny to think how far I’ve come from my early romanticized ideals of what it meant to be an architect. Those sunset walks around New York city from my teenage years, surrounded by the works of Mies van der Rohe and Rem Koolhas, inspired in me an awe for the cultural power an architect can wield. It was an early lesson that a building can both represent and transform spaces. Today when I walk around my beloved city, what I see are the innumerable missed architectural opportunities to organically inhabit and improve any given space with sustainable design. And now, when I consider Mies van der Rohe’s famous quote, I no longer think of my own petty will or the limited scope of individual genius; I think of the will of an entire generation committed to saving our planet with teamwork, collaboration, and true passion, and how grateful I am to be a part of this generation of architects. (998 words).

Click here to read this grad school statement of purpose example.

Graduate School Statement of Purpose Example #3

Graduate school statement of purpose example #4, graduate school statement of purpose example #5, graduate school statement of purpose example #6, graduate school statement of purpose example #7, graduate school statement of purpose example #8, graduate school statement of purpose example #9, graduate school statement of purpose example #10, graduate school statement of purpose example #11, graduate school statement of purpose example #12, graduate school statement of purpose example #13, graduate school statement of purpose example #14, graduate school statement of purpose example #15.

A graduate school statement of purpose provides the admissions committee with a way of understanding more about you as an applicant. This essay gives them the opportunity to assess your suitability for their particular program and institution. Finding the right fit between an applicant and a graduate program is crucial for both parties, and your statement of purpose is your opportunity to explain to the admissions committee why you believe this graduate program is right for you. Here’s what our admissions expert Dr. Malhotra, PhD, shared about her experience writing an SOP:

“I found the graduate school statement of purpose to be the hardest application component, as I was not sure which experience to include and which to exclude. Additionally, it was difficult to know how to present me as a unique candidate; someone who will be a good fit for the graduate program. My biggest advice for writing the statement of purpose is to keep a balance between academic and non-academic aspects of your background.” – Dr. Shiti Malhotra, Ph.D.

With this in mind, it is important to use the statement of purpose as a way of showcasing what led you to graduate school and your chosen program , and what you hope to achieve if accepted. Here’s a quick list of what should be included in your grad school statement of purpose:

• Why you are pursuing a PhD or a Master's program
• Why you are interested in a field or a specific program
• How you have prepared yourself academically or professionally for a career in this field
• What you will contribute to the program
• Your future career goals and how the program will help you achieve them

Here's a quick guide to writing a grad school statement of purpose if you'd rather watch a video:

How to Write a Graduate School Statement of Purpose

You need to lay some groundwork  before  you even start drafting your statement of purpose. Here are the steps you need to take to prepare yourself.

#1 Set Aside the Time

Preparing and writing a statement of purpose is not a quick undertaking. Since the statement itself will also require several drafts before reaching its final form, always keep in mind that this is not something to leave to the last minute! Ideally, you should give yourself 6-8 weeks to write your statement.

#2 Research Your School and Program

 Visit the school’s website and pay close attention to any mission statements or values that are stated. Visit the pages dedicated to your department and program of choice to glean clues regarding their academic culture.

#3 Brainstorm How and Why You Would Fit into the School and Program

It’s not enough to want to attend a particular school just because of their good reputation or nice location. While learning about your program of choice and its faculty, you should be constantly reflecting upon how and why you would fit in as a member of that community. Think about what you can contribute to the school and how the program will help you achieve your career goals.

#4 Contact any potential mentors

If during your research you have discovered a faculty member whose work sounds intriguing to you, reach out to them to introduce yourself. Forming a direct connection with a faculty member could significantly boost your candidacy, especially if the faculty member is willing to supervise you or write you a  graduate school recommendation letter . Plus, you can mention your interest in their research in your statement:

"My advice for writing [a statement of purpose] is to always include some specific faculty members and their research that was interesting to you. Look into their research! Find some recent publications that you can offer some ideas for!” – Dr. Hanlin Liu, PhD, University of Toronto

"statement of purpose was the hardest [application component]. i did not know how to structure it based on my university/program requirements.” - helen martin, phd.

Every program is unique. Make sure you understand the specifics of what they are looking for, e.g. length, emphasis, any required formatting guidelines. Many graduate schools will provide prompts to make your writing process easier. Make sure to read the prompt carefully, as they provide clues as to what the admissions committee expects to see in your statement.

#6 Choose Experiences to Include

“the hardest part was narrowing down my experiences into a concise impactful narrative.” – dr. reem sabry, phd.

And our admissions expert Dr. Sabry is not alone! To make this process simpler, make a short list of which experiences and achievements you would especially like to highlight in your statement. Ideally, include 1 to 3 experiences in your SOP. Note down specific examples of achievements you want to highlight. Make sure your experiences reflect WHY you are pursuing a graduate degree. Make sure the experiences you choose align with the program’s mission and culture. Think of your accomplishments and strengths in relation to what you know about the school. Do they value research? Share your top research experience. Does the program tout the importance of community? Discuss any community service you have participated in. Dr. Sabry continues:

“The biggest advice for a SOP is to highlight specific experiences that align with the specific program/research you are applying for.”- Dr. Reem Sabry, PhD

When you are ready to write, take a moment to review the length requirements. A statement of purpose is typically between 500 to 1,000 words long.

The statement of purpose should follow the structure of an academic paper, with a clear introduction, main body, and conclusion.

Introduction:

You need to grab your reader’s attention. Start with a compelling first sentence: choose an anecdote, a quotation, or jolt the reader with a gripping personal fact. Your opening statement would make a reader stay with you to the end. The second half of your introduction should provide a brief snapshot of what you will cover in greater detail in the main body of your statement.

If you find yourself struggling to write your introduction, set it aside until you have written the body and conclusion of your statement, since you will then know how the introduction could tie it all together.  

The main body of your statement should highlight 1-3 formative experiences that led you to grad school. Avoid making your statement of purpose just another grad school CV – you need to create a narrative! Remember, it’s more important to show why you are a great candidate, rather than simply talk about it.

Conclusion:

Your conclusion needs to tie everything together and should leave the reader wanting to know more about you. Try to leave your reader with one last compelling thought or insight as you reflect upon what enrolling in the program would mean to you. You could speak about the current challenges faced by experts in your discipline, and your own eagerness to become more involved in contributing to the field.

Otherwise, your conclusion might also be a good place to address your career plans, as it ends the statement by looking to the future. You could end by specifying how the program will help you achieve your professional goals. 

Be prepared to write and re-write your statement as many times as necessary! Carefully review your statement after every draft to look for areas you could improve or elements you might need to add or replace. ","label":"Important Note:","title":"Important Note:"}]" code="tab6" template="BlogArticle">

Checklist for Submitting Your Statement of Purpose

Click here for the checklist.

------------------------

Here's how we helped Nikki get into graduate school!

A strong statement of purpose offers a compelling narrative about your interests, abilities, and experiences, to show the committee that you are a strong applicant and the right fit for their institution and graduate program.

A graduate school statement of purpose usually ranges between 500 and 1,000 words in length. Be sure to check the specific requirements stated by the program as you prepare to apply.

A graduate school statement of purpose should contain an introduction, a main body based on 2 or 3 experiences, and a conclusion. Your statement should be clearly written and well-organized to help the reader follow the flow of your narrative.

A statement of purpose should include four main elements: your research interests in your chosen field, your academic and professional preparation, and your career plans. You need to give specific examples for each of these main elements, and to explain what you have learned from every experience you mention.

In writing your statement of purpose, you need to commit to writing several drafts to make sure your statement is as strong as it can be. You should ask for feedback from trusted academic mentors or professional consultants to ensure that your statement is effective and compelling. You also need to carefully proofread your work multiple times before submission.

You must never plagiarize your statement of purpose. Avoid using clichés and tired phrasing to keep your writing original and fresh. It is also important to favor clarity over artfulness, so be sure to avoid using overly-fancy language so that the focus is always on the substance of what you’re saying. Also avoid technical or overly specialized language unless absolutely necessary, and be sure to define any technical or specialized terms that you must use. 

Want more free tips? Subscribe to our channels for more free and useful content!

Apple Podcasts

Like our blog? Write for us ! >>

Have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions, 19 comments.

BeMo Academic Consulting

Hi Ablie! Thank you for your comment! We are glad you found this helpful!

Ayman Alfadil

Thanks a lot for your information. If my intended field of Ph.D. research is quite different from my previous research experiences, what am I suppose to do to link my previous interest with the new one? and Is it possible to have feedback on my writing?

Hello Ayman! Thank you for this wonderful question! It is not a problem that your previous research experience is not related to your new PhD interest. Even if they are not related in theme, it is important to showcase how your previous research experience honed your skills as a researcher. Demonstrate that the expertise that you acquired throughout your research history can be easily translated into this new field. Do not forget to give the admissions committee some sense of how you got interested in this new field, but it is not a problem that you decided to switch disciplines/interests. And of course we can help you with feedback on your writing. Please contact us for a free initial consultation (https://bemoacademicconsulting.com/Contact-Us.php) and we can discuss how we can help you make your statement the best it can be.

Ayman Alfadil, you are the winner of our weekly draw. Please email us by the end of the day tomorrow (June 19) at content[at]bemoacademicconsulting.com from the same email address you used to leave your comment to claim your prize!

Joana Smith

This is indeed the best Statement of purpose ever ,I love everything written here! It has really help me thank you!!!

Hello Joana! Thanks for your comment! We are glad you enjoyed this article!

Asra Tabassum

Hi...I want the sample for statement of purpose (for masters) where the student changes his filed/background/majors from science to IT... Atleast one sample which helps me to write my own. Thank you.

Hi Asra! Thanks for your comment and suggestion! We will try adding this kind of example as soon as possible!

Segun Abiri

I am so much in love with the way you make a big and difficult task simple. As a practitioner in adult education in Nigeria with over 6 years of experience, I intend to further my experience by having a Masters program in Canada. Problem is, my first degree is not in education, but Arts - Philosophy. I hope to scale through. Thank you for this great write ups.

Hi Segun! Thanks so much for your comment! We are glad you enjoyed the article. When you apply to a Master's program in Education, you do not need to have an undergrad degree in education. Your first degree in liberal arts will be a perfect fit for an Education graduate degree. Good luck and let us know if we can help you any further!

Chika happiness nwachukwu

Hi,indeed is the best statement of purpose ever,please I want the sample for statement of intents for masters,where the student changes his field,background/ majors from accounting education to educational foundations that will help me write my own. Thank you.

Hello Chika! Thanks for your comment! We will keep your request in mind when we update this blog! Thanks!

Hi, I wonder if you can only help me with SOP edits? Thanks.

Hello Bob! We can absolutely help you! Please contact us here https://bemoacademicconsulting.com/Contact-Us.php to schedule your free initial consultation.

Nwabueze Kewulezi

Hi, this is the best article on SOP I have read. Please, I need your advice. I am very passionate about teaching. I studied English, but my M.A. thesis is related to pragmatic. How do I relate both to my deep flare for education?

Hello Nwabueze! Thanks for your comment. Try to reflect on what connects your educational and professional background to teaching? Just because your MA thesis is not related to education, it does not mean that it cannot inform your love for teaching. Try making connections between your experience in the MA and what you want to do next. Hope this helps!

Samuel Frimpong

Can i get samples of these write-ups in Music?

Hello Smuela! Thanks for your comment. When we update the blog, we will make sure to keep your request in mind.

Chisa Amadi

Good morning, please I want to start up personal statement but don't seem to know how to go about it am applying for Agricultural science soil and water option. Please I will need a guide. Thank you

Hi Chisa! Thanks for your comment. Please feel free to reach out to us to discuss how we can help you with your personal statement! Look forward to hearing from you!

hey, thanks for the clear explanation, can you please help me write purpose statement for a journalism degree course

Hello Lucy! Please feel free to reach out to us to discuss how we can help you with your statement of purpose. Hope to hear from you!

This piece is extremely helpful

Hi Frimpong! Thanks! Glad you found this helpful!

Thank you for sharing this useful tips on SOPs.

Hello Anne! Thank you so much for your comment. Glad you found this helpful!

Elif Ülkü Türkoğlu

Thank you so much, this will be super helpful for my MA applications.

Hi Elif! Thanks for your comment! We are glad this is helpful!

Raphael Barrack Wangusu

Currently struggling with SOP preparations..i pursued Law for my bachelor degree and i wish to apply for masters scholarships in CANADA, UK, SWEEDN and USA. Thank you.

Hello Raphael! Thank you for your question. Please reach out to us for a free strategy call to discuss how we can help. 

Amazing content! I've never seen it explained the way you guys did it here!! Thank you!!!

Hello Joy! We are very glad you found this helpful!

It made me understand clearly what i have to do. thank you

Thanks Tumie! Glad you found this helpful!

i cant find any sop become related to food science. I really need a sample to help me. Could you help me please

Hello Shabnam, thanks for your message. We will keep your request in mind for when we update this blog.

I have enjoyed reading every bit of this document. I am so enlightened by it. Thank you.

Hello Michael! Glad you found this helpful! Thanks for your comment. 

Get Started Now

Talk to one of our admissions experts

Our site uses cookies. By using our website, you agree with our cookie policy .

FREE Training Webinar:

How to make your grad school application stand out, (and avoid the top 5 mistakes that get most rejected).

Time Sensitive. Limited Spots Available:

We guarantee you'll get into grad school or you don't pay.

Swipe up to see a great offer!

Chad Daybell sentenced to death for killing wife and girlfriend’s 2 children in jury decision

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A jury in Idaho unanimously agreed Saturday that convicted killer Chad Daybell deserves the death penalty for the gruesome murders of his wife and his girlfriend’s two youngest children, ending a grim case that began in 2019 with a search for two missing children.

The 55-year-old Daybell, wearing a dress shirt and tie, sat with his hands in his lap at the defense table. He showed no emotion when learning he would face the death penalty for the murders of Tammy Daybell, 16-year-old Tylee Ryan and 7-year-old Joshua “JJ” Vallow.

When asked by the judge whether he wanted to make a statement, Daybell declined.

Jurors found him guilty Thursday and decided on the death sentence after deliberating for just over a day.

The mother of the children is Lori Vallow Daybell, whom Chad Daybell married shortly after his wife’s death. Vallow Daybell was convicted last year in the three murders and is now awaiting trial in Arizona, charged with murder in connection with the shooting death of her fourth husband, Charles Vallow. Charles Vallow was JJ’s father.

The case began in 2019, when a family member called police. Investigators soon realized both children were missing, and a multistate search ensued. Nearly a year later, their remains were found buried on Chad Daybell’s property. Tylee’s DNA was later found on a pickaxe and shovel in a shed on the property, and JJ’s body was wrapped in trash bags and duct tape, prosecutors have said.

During a nearly two-month-long trial, prosecutors said Chad Daybell, a self-published author who wrote doomsday-laced fiction, promoted unusual spiritual beliefs including apocalyptic prophecies and tales of possession by evil spirits in order to justify the killings.

“This has been a tough case because of its complexity, both in telling the story of an investigation that spanned years and trying to figure out the best way to present it in a way that would make sense to others,” Fremont County Prosecutor Lindsey Blake said outside the Boise courthouse after the sentencing.

Relatives of the victims welcomed the jury’s decision.

“This is the best justice we can possibly get. And again, it doesn’t change the outcome, but it is good news, and it brings closure for everybody that’s been hurt,” Colby Ryan, Vallow Daybell’s oldest child, told reporters.

Larry Woodcock, JJ’s grandfather, thanked the judge, law enforcement and the people who have followed the case and shared their support over the years.

“You are family,” he said. “I look at the faces, and I’m going to tell you all: I’m going to miss you.”

“We saw justice,” he added. “Equal, honest and righteous.”

Daybell’s defense attorney, John Prior, argued during the trial that there wasn’t enough evidence to tie Daybell to the killings, and suggested Vallow Daybell’s older brother, Alex Cox, was the culprit. Cox died in late 2019 and was never charged, and Vallow Daybell was convicted last year and sentenced to life in prison without parole.

During the sentencing hearing, Prior asked the jurors to judge Daybell on his life before he met Vallow Daybell, describing her as a bomb that blew him off the trajectory of an otherwise wholesome life. But Daybell also declined to offer any mitigating evidence during the sentencing hearing. Mitigating evidence is often used to encourage jurors to have sympathy for a defendant in an effort to show that a life sentence would be more appropriate than capital punishment.

Family members of the victims gave emotional statements to the jurors. JJ Vallow’s grandmother, Kay Woodcock, tearfully described how the 7-year-old would show empathy and compassion to others through soft touches and by frequently asking if those around him were OK. She also said Tylee was a doting big sister, and that it warmed her heart to see them together.

“I can’t express just how much I wish for more time to create memories,” Woodcock said, beginning to weep.

Ryan, Vallow Daybell’s oldest child, described what it was like to lose his entire family. His father died years earlier.

“My three kids will never know the kindness of Tylee’s heart or JJ’s silly and goofy personality ... The only way I could describe the impact of their lives being lost is like a nuclear bomb dropping,” he said. “It’s not an overstatement to say that I lost everything.”

To impose the death penalty, the jurors had to unanimously find that Daybell met at least one of the “aggravating circumstances” that state law says qualifies someone for capital punishment. They also had to agree that those aggravating factors weren’t outweighed by any mitigating factors that might have lessened his culpability or justified a lesser sentence.

The jury decided there were aggravating factors including an utter disregard for human life and the murders being especially heinous and cruel.

Idaho law allows for execution by lethal injection or firing squad, though firing squad executions have never been used in the state.

Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.

Beaver River student charged with making threat of mass harm

DA: no evidence that Massena man used weapon to kill mother

10 recruits graduate from Watertown Firefighter Academy

American Legion seeks new members

Saturday Sports: South Jeff Girls’ Lacrosse heads to State Final 4, other post season scores

Latest news.

Prosecutors to dismiss charges against trooper who shot Black man in traffic stop

Plenty of variety at this year’s General Brown Days

The LGBTQ+ community comes together for the 5th Lewis County Pride Picnic

Pride Flag raised in Watertown, brings communities together

California firefighters battle wind-driven wildfire east of San Francisco overnight