How to Write a Dissertation Acknowledgement with Examples

A dissertation is a written work that describes the conducted research and determines outcomes based on the research question or the subject matter. It is considered significant as it signifies the knowledge of the students regarding the subject as well as their capability to utilise research methodologies to explain the concept of the subject (Whyte, 2011). Acknowledgements are a part of dissertation writing, and students need to submit an acknowledgement while writing a dissertation. Writing an acknowledgement for a dissertation refers to thanking and acknowledging everyone, such as family, friends, teachers and professors, other academicians, and our guide or supervisor who helped in the writing and researching process. It is written just after the title page and is not more than one page (Whyte, 2011).

Why is writing acknowledgement important?

Several students write an acknowledgement in their dissertations as they were not that easy to write; meanwhile, others wrote it due to their hard work of a long time. Many individuals aid you in writing an acknowledgement, and you must thank these people. Writing an acknowledgement conveys your thanks and appreciation to those who aided you in your dissertation (Yang, 2012).

How to Write Acknowledgement for a Dissertation

To write an acknowledgement for a dissertation, there exists no format. You can start writing simply by thanking everyone. Because the acknowledgement tends to be more personal, you may write in a more casual tone. It must be written in the first person. Institutions, groups, and individuals can all be recognised (Cheng and Kuo, 2011). It is best, to begin with formal acknowledgements and then go to personal acknowledgements. You might say thank you in some acknowledgements; however, in others, you can expound on how that individual assisted you. Several tips are discussed below that should be followed while writing an acknowledgement for a dissertation.

  1. Thanking those who have helped – You should include all the names of the individuals who have helped you in writing and completing this dissertation and those who played active participation in drafting this piece of writing. Several people, such as professors, librarians, research participants, editors, laboratory assignments, supervisors, classmates, family and friends, can be addressed. The names of casual friends are not included in this section as it affects the purity of the acknowledgement, even though it is important to thank individuals at the start who have assisted you by giving valuable suggestions in completing this project.
  2. Full names must be mentioned – To ensure that your project follows the guidelines given by your guide or professor, you must write his full name. This is because it will affect the trustworthy categorisation. Also, the surname of the individuals compels them to be considered as worthy as well as professional.
  3. Including Friends and Family – Family members are the first to provide you with the moral encouragement you require to move on in your objective. However, it is also true that friends provide a psychological burst when it is most needed. So, they are equally significant and play a critical role in the finalisation of the thesis. However, you must select whom you wish to mention because you should make sure your acknowledgement section is clear and out of order.
  4. Do include the Supervisor – Students are required to add their supervisor’s name, even if they believe they failed to provide sufficient assistance for their dissertation. For instance, learners may believe their supervisor needed to contribute during the research. On the other hand, students must include the supervisor’s name in the acknowledgement. Because failure to do so will have a direct influence on your academic performance. And, in the end, you must suffer the consequences.
  5. Writing order of acknowledgement – There is a structure that must be observed while thanking everyone in the acknowledgement. For example, supervisors, other academicians, funders, participants, family and friends. This is the sequence by which many students create an acknowledgement.
  6. Brief and convincing language – This section of the dissertation must be persuasive and concise in language. So, the students should write in a natural flow. In other sense, phrases, wordings or words must not sound comical. Repetitions should be avoided because they make the content sound hazy and unclear. So, it is good to use praiseworthy and engrossing linguistics as it is one of the sections that is read widely in the overall dissertation.
  7. Using Personal Language – Using a first-person writing style to construct acknowledgement is the first thing to do. For example, they use words such as I and my. Using these words makes the look of the acknowledgement more emotional, heartfelt and appealing. Conjunctions such as lastly, firstly and secondly are also used to enhance the weightage and influence the acknowledgement’s weightage. A few common examples are given below –
  •    I would like to express my gratitude….
  •    …..for their unwavering support and encouragement
  •    ……for their moral support
  •    I want to extend my appreciation from the bottom of my heart to ….
  • Body and Paragraph – Both the body and the paragraph must be written systematically. It is similar to writing an accurate introduction. It is similar to writing an essay or anything else, after which the paragraphs are synchronised as they are understandable and clear.
  • Proofreading –  Once all of the work is completed, the most exciting yet difficult portion begins: proofreading all of the written content. It must be accomplished in such a way that any errors or wordiness are deleted. Going through the content only once is considered insufficient since the gaze cannot capture all the errors simultaneously. So, to make the written content free of error, it must be read twice.

Length of writing the acknowledgement

The length of writing an acknowledgement differs considerably. Some areas are short as a small paragraph, whereas others are longer as more than one page. The length of this section is mostly indicated by the number of individuals you want to thank. As a common suggestion, it should be a one-pager with no word count limitations. You must understand that a lengthy acknowledgement weakens the purpose of writing the acknowledgement, especially to those who have helped you in your research (Hyland, 2003).

Where should my acknowledgement go?

In almost all cases, your recognition should follow the abstract afterwards but before the table of contents. We highly advise you to investigate the norms of the university, as certain higher education institutions have a particular set of criteria you must follow (Hyland, 2003).

Example of Acknowledgement

I am grateful to my institution for providing a state-of-the-art facility for research at this prestigious institute of national repute. I sincerely thank the vice president Prof. ABC for making me learn about the important concepts I used in my work.

With deep regards and genuine obligation, I seize this jubilant occasion to express my sincere, heartfelt and respectful gratitude to my venerable supervisor Prof. XYZ, Assistant Professor, DEF University, for his esteemed, valuable, highly knowledgeable and illuminating ideas, suggestions, critical evaluation and expert advice on the designing and execution of this research problem in the best possible way. He made me understand the different aspects of the subject, reflected on me the importance of work discipline and encouraged me to reach much above my natural abilities. His support, concern and assistance are available throughout the work. I am extremely fortunate to have been trained under his guidance. I am happy and indebted that I carried out this work under his supervision to put in my best.

I special thanks to all my professors for their valuable help, cooperation and advice throughout the dissertation.

Conducting research is a challenging task and, thus, requires the help of so many people. I begin with a profound gratitude to the Department of XXX, which helped me lead the path through a dip into an ocean of knowledge.

I would also like to thank my father, Mr ABC and mother, Mrs XYZ, for making me what I am today. They are always with me in my dreams and actions. Their teachings have taught me that excellence is a continuous journey without a destination. I am short of words for their contribution to shaping my life, as they are the real architect of my life.

Lastly, I would like to thank my friends for their motivation, love and support.

Dos and Don`ts while Writing an Assignment

Dos:

  • Check whether the university has given any instructions for writing acknowledgement.
  • Ensuring to thank people who aided directly in the research process.
  • The writing style should be personal as well as informal.
  • Write the full name of everyone with their titles and qualifications.
  • Keep the length of the acknowledgement suitable.

Don`ts:

  • There is no need to thank each family member except those who specifically supported or inspired.
  • It is not important to include people who have helped you in your professional capacity but have not helped in the project.
  • After all this, it is important to go through the acknowledgement to figure out any mistakes or redundancies.

Conclusion

The acknowledgement part of the project report is the one over which you have little to say. There are no specific word counts or headers necessary for this part. You should show gratitude to the people who helped complete this journey. On the other hand, acknowledgement explains to you and everyone else in society that these individuals had a big effect on the course of your life. Understand that, although this is an opportunity to express thanks to others, how you choose to do it and with what care reveals your kind of person. Even if you are tired of writing, it is critical to put effort into writing this section as it will express the kind of person you are to every individual who reads it.

References

  • Cheng, W. and Kuo, C., 2011. A pragmatics analysis of MA thesis acknowledgements. Asian ESP Journal, 7(3), pp.29-58.
  • Hyland, K., 2003. Dissertation acknowledgements: The anatomy of a Cinderella genre. Written Communication, 20(3), pp.242-268.
  • Whyte, S.R., 2011. Writing knowledge and acknowledgement. Evidence, ethos and experiment: The anthropology and history of medical research in Africa, 7(5), pp.29-56.
  • Yang, W., 2012. A genre analysis of PhD dissertation acknowledgements. LSP Journal-Language for special purposes, professional communication, knowledge management and cognition, 3(2), pp.46-78.

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