The REES M.Sc.

Thesis
The thesis must be at least 10,000 words in length but must not exceed 15,000 words (excluding
bibliography but including footnotes, which should be used rather than endnotes). It must be
wholly or substantially the result of work undertaken while the student is studying for the Degree
of Master of Science.
(a) Thesis Preparation
Bear in mind that success in writing a thesis can be achieved in a number of ways: by an
imaginative search for sources, by a thorough investigation of evidence, by rigour of analysis, by
profundity or originality of interpretation, and by clarity of presentation. Thesis preparation
should be based on what you have learned from the Research Design course lectures during
Hilary Term.
(i) Topic and treatment
The exact topic and title of your thesis require careful thought. At the risk of stating the obvious,
it should be a topic which is of interest to you and which addresses interesting questions in
REES; which is researchable, in the sense that there is information in respect of the subject
preferably neither too little nor impossibly much; and which can be supervised and researched in
Oxford.
In choosing a thesis topic, consider carefully the human, archival and library resources in or near
Oxford. It is worth spending some time studying what is available. Before embarking on a topic,
check whether it or closely related themes have been covered before. Depending on the
particular subject areas, there is a range of subject catalogues and similar works, including lists
of theses, which may be consulted: for example, the Oxford Thesis Catalogue in the Bodleian
Library) and the general author part of the Oxford Thesis Catalogue. The REES Administrator
can provide you with a list of previous REES MSc thesis titles, and has some theses available for
consultation.
For theses throughout the British Isles, see Aslib, Index to Theses, with Abstracts, Accepted for
Higher Degrees in the Universities of Great Britain and Ireland, London, 1950 . There is a set
in the Bodleian Library stacks. For titles from 1970, Index to Theses is on the web at:
http://www.theses.com.
Students should not write theses on vaguely-defined, open-ended or future-oriented subjects.
They should choose topics that allow them to demonstrate mastery of sources and academic
method, and a good understanding of the events, works and ideas being examined. Students are
expected to demonstrate a good grasp of contextual and methodological issues relating to their
topic. It is important to be clear not only about the overall topic of the thesis, but also about the
particular questions regarding your topic that you seek to answer. These should be outlined in the
introduction to your thesis: see below.
(ii) Thesis titles
Thesis titles should be concise, clear and specific. They should be comprehensible to a non-

specialist. A sub-title, if used, should be separated from the first part of the title by a colon, and it
should begin with a capital letter. Titles should contain indications of the precise scope or focus
of the work. Dates are often useful. They should indicate the period that is the main focus of the
thesis, even if it strays outside them at times.
Should the focus of your research change during your work on your thesis, it is important that
you consider whether your current title is still appropriate or whether it should be revised. If you
wish to revise it, you must make an application to the REES Management Committee to do so,
after consultation with your supervisor.
(iii) The introduction
An introduction to a thesis can serve many different purposes, depending on the subject. It is
very important in clarifying the purpose and character of a thesis. The following are among the
items which you might wish to consider including in an introduction:
Short explanation of the thesis topic, and the reasons for choosing it.
A listing of the principal questions that the thesis seeks to answer.
A summary of the main existing views, or conventional wisdom, about your subject.
An indication of how the thesis confirms or challenges these views.
An account of the types of sources used, and a discussion of the problems associated with these
sources.
Explanation of the main methods of analysis/intellectual approaches used in the thesis.
An indication of what the thesis has not done: what parts of the subject were neglected, what
sources were ignored or unavailable, what questions were not asked, what methodologies were
not used.
(iv) The writing of the thesis
It is essential to keep in the habit of writing, and not to procrastinate on the grounds that one still
has not seen all the sources. Often the process of writing itself helps to clarify the precise areas
on which more information is still needed, and to refine the questions that should be asked in
respect of the topic.
Regarding the use of word processors and computing facilities, you should take full advantage of
the many facilities in Oxford. There are many excellent courses of instruction and sources of
advice. Use a good and up-to-date word-processing programme suitable for scholarly use, such
as Word. Above all, keep ample back-up copies of all parts of your work, and keep them
where they cannot be corrupted or lost. You are strongly advised to set your computer to save
work automatically every 5 minutes or so.
Theses must be in the English language and should be written in plain and comprehensible

English. Good syntax and punctuation is vital. You should not think that because you are writing
an academic thesis you must use long and complicated sentences. Correcting English is not the
responsibility of the supervisor. It is the responsibility of non-native English speakers to ensure
that their theses are written in correct and lucid English.
A thesis should have a clear and consistent style so far as matters of spelling, capitalisation,
abbreviation, dates, foreign words, references, bibliography etc. are concerned. Dates should be
rendered consistently both in text and footnotes, preferably as follows: 1 October 2007. Please be
similarly consistent about use of quotation marks. Use either single or double as the default, not
a mixture. The use of single quotation marks is generally preferred, with double quotes only
being used for a quote within a quote. Useful guides to style containing much material of
particular relevance to academic theses include:
R. E. Allen, The Oxford Writers Dictionary (or its immediate predecessor, The Oxford
Dictionary for Writers and Editors), Oxford University Press.
Robert Ritter, The Oxford Guide to Style, Oxford University Press.
Kate L. Turabian, A Manual for Writers of Research Papers, Theses, and Dissertations,
Heinemann, London, 1982; and University of Chicago Press, sixth edition 1996.
Most academic journals also contain at least brief guidance on style and footnoting.
(v) Headings and sub-headings
In most theses it is important to have a consistent system of headings and sub-headings to assist
the reader (and possibly the writer too) in following the narrative/argument of the thesis. Very
often a hierarchy of headings is needed. One quite common way of establishing a hierarchy is to
have major section breaks centred and in larger type, and lesser ones set left and in the same size
type as the main body of the text (albeit distinguished from it by being in bold, italics or similar).
Many variations in between are possible, the number of levels being dependent on the nature of
the material. Work out a clear and consistent hierarchy of headings appropriate to your subject,
and then stick to it.
(vi) Footnote references
References are an important part of a thesis. They enable you to provide an indication of your
skill and judiciousness in use of sources, and they assist the reader in understanding and
evaluating what you are saying. They can also be one line of protection against accusations of
plagiarism.
Apart from indicating a clear preference that footnotes should be at the bottom of each page, the
Examination Regulations give no guidance on a preferred style for reference notes. However,
you may wish to use the following guidelines:

Any system of footnoting is acceptable, provided it is rational, unambiguous and

consistent. Guidance may be sought from works mentioned above.

Footnotes should, if at all possible, be at the foot of the page to which they refer.

In almost all footnoting systems, book and journal titles should be either underlined or
italicised. Italics are preferred. Article and chapter titles should be in quotation marks. Be
consistent about these matters.
(vii) Bibliography
It is worth making clear, in a note at the start of the bibliography, on what basis it has been
compiled. Is it selective or comprehensive? Do you give comments or notes about some or all of
the works listed? Are there other bibliographies in the field? Does it refer only to works used in
the thesis? Are all works mentioned in the thesis included in the bibliography?
There is often a case for sub-dividing a bibliography, for example into books and articles; or
primary and secondary works; or works on different aspects of the subject. If you do this, it may
help to list the various headings at the beginning.
As with footnotes, so with bibliographies, it is important to have a consistent style. The
bibliography usually contains more details than the footnotes. The following is one acceptable
method for listing books and articles in a bibliography.
Surname, first name(s) or initials, Book Title: and Sub-title, publisher, place of publication, year
of publication.
Surname, first name(s) or initials, Article Title: and Sub-title, Journal Title, vol. number, date
including year, page references.
(viii) Title page
The title page of the thesis (i.e. the first printed page after the front cover etc.) should contain the
following information:
Title, and subtitle (if any).
Words to the effect of Thesis submitted in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree
of MSc in Russian and East European Studies at the University of Oxford.
Month and year, or the Oxford term and year, in which the thesis was submitted.
The exact word count of the whole thesis. This word count must include footnotes, but may
exclude permitted items usually just the bibliography.
(b) Final copy of the thesis and submission
The thesis (two copies) must be typed or printed on one side of A4 size paper only, double
spaced, with a margin of 3 to 3.5 cms on the left-hand edge of each page, and a minimum font
size of 11 point. A firm binding must be used (not ring-bound/loose-leaf) with covers of either
stiff cardboard or acetate and a canvas back, or the thesis may be stitched and bound in a stiff

case. Two copies of the bound thesis should be packed in a padded envelope or as a parcel,
bearing in the bottom left-hand corner the words:
M.Sc. THESIS IN RUSSIAN AND EAST EUROPEAN STUDIES
It should be sent to:
The Chairman of Examiners for the Degree of M.Sc. in REES,
c/o The Examination Schools
High Street, Oxford
The thesis must be accompanied by a statement that it is the candidates own work except where
otherwise indicated. This statement must be submitted separately in a sealed envelope addressed
as above. Both this and the main thesis envelope, as well as the thesis itself, should state clearly
the candidates examination number and course title, but not the candidates name.