Thesis formalities

A PhD thesis should preferably be written in English, and  may either be written as a monograph or as a synopsis with manuscripts/papers included. As a general rule, the PhD student may not copy text directly from own  manuscripts/papers. This is perceived as potential self-plagiarism and is not acceptable.

Synopsis

The synopsis-based thesis consists of a synopsis and published papers and/or unpublished manuscripts. . There are
no specific requirements concerning the number or type of first or co-authored papers/manuscripts.

The synopsis is typically 30-60 pages long (papers or manuscripts not included), but there are no specific requirements concerning the number of pages in the synopsis. The synopsis should clearly and concisely encapsulate and discuss the research findings presented in the manuscripts/papers included in the thesis. The synopsis should at least include:

• Summaries in Danish and English (a requirement according to the PhD Order section 12, subsection 3)
• Objectives
• Methods
• Description of the research project placed in the context of international state-of-the-art research within the subject area
• Summary of the results of the papers and their relation to international state-of-the-art research within the subject area
• If required for the studies, information on ethical and legal permits and approvals
• Conclusions and perspectives for further research
• References
• Chapters consisting of any papers or manuscripts included in the thesis. The chapters must appear in the end of the thesis.

Monograph

The monograph is typically 100 pages long, but the number of pages can vary. The monograph should include the following elements:

• Summaries in Danish and English
• Objectives
• Description of the research project placed in the context of international state-of the-art research within the subject area
• Description of the research carried out (including materials, methods and results)
• If required for the studies, information on ethical and legal permits and approvals
• Discussion of results
• Conclusions and perspectives for further research
• References

Any articles included in the thesis may be written in cooperation with others, provided that each of the co-authors submits a written declaration stating the PhD student's or the author's contribution to the work. It must appear from the co-authorship declaration if an article or manuscript is also included in a co-author’s thesis.

If a manuscript or published paper has ten or less co-authors, all co-authors must sign a declaration of co-authorship. If it has more than ten co-authors, declarations of co-authorship from the corresponding author(s), the senior author and the principal supervisor (if relevant) are a minimum requirement.

The contribution of the PhD student must be described in the co-authorship declaration if an article or manuscript is
also included in a co-author’s thesis.

Download: Declaration of co-authorship

If you copy/adapt figures, tables or other content from published articles (including your own) it is important that the source is always clearly stated in the thesis (e.g. in the figure text).

To avoid conflicts with the owner of the copied material, the Graduate School recommends that you obtain permission from the copyright owner(s) to publish material from already published articles in your thesis. This includes your own publications if you have transferred copyright to the publisher. The allocation of the copyright often depends on which contract the journal's publisher has signed with the article's author(s). If the copied material is published open access, it is typically allowed to copy the material by referring to the Creative Commons license.

If you plan to use this kind of material, we recommend that you contact the relevant publisher to ask for permission to use the material. It can typically be done at no cost via an online permission application link on the publications website. We also advice you to consult the information on KUnet and/or contact the library if you have questions regarding copyright.