There is/are/was/were in thesis writing

Academic students undertaking a master’s or PhD degree are expected to write their thesis paper in line with academic language requirements. 

Writing a thesis is – after all – quite distinct from writing a news article, a business report, or a story. It requires adherence to academic style of writing and appropriate English usage. 

As part of their research and investigations, academic students often conduct surveys, questionnaires and experiments.  

To present their findings in writing, MA and PhD students should follow certain rules of language in order to meet the criteria of appropriate academic English – in order not to lose important marks unnecessarily. 

One of the most common asked questions related to dissertation writing revolves around the use of “there is” and “there are” – and their past form: there was and there were – when reporting findings and conclusions in the thesis paper. 

To explain, let’s look at some practical and actual examples of how and where students may use “there is”, “there are”, “there was” and “there were” in their manuscripts: 

“The author argues that there is a gap between the two generations.” 

“Robert et al. insist that there are extensive data on all cases studied.” 

“There were clear differences between the experimental group and the control group.” 

“There was no significant correlation between experience and age.” 

Generally, students should make every effort to avoid using “there is” and “there are” or their past form in their thesis manuscript. 

This is because it makes the sentence weak and detracts from adequate academic English usage. 

What should I use then? 

As a student, you can present your information in an alternative way that would achieve two goals: 

1.         Make your sentence read and flow much better
   
2.         Make your sentence stronger
   

Let’s give an example: 

“The author argues that there is a gap between the two generations.” 

You could write: 

“The author argues that a gap exists between the two generations.” 

Another example: 

“Robert et al. insist that there are extensive data on all cases studied.” 

You could say: 

“Robert et al. insist extensive data are available on all cases studied.”

Another example:

“There were clear differences between the experimental group and the control group.”

You could write:

“Clear differences were observed between the experimental group and the control group.”

Or

“Clear differences were found between the experimental group and the control group.”

Another example:

“There was no significant correlation between experience and age.”

You could write:

“No significant correlation was found between experience and age.”

Or

“No significant correlation was observed between experience and age.”

For more tips and advice on dissertation writing, visit our blog section. If you are writing your thesis and are uncertain about any aspect related to dissertation writing best practice, we provide a bespoke dissertation and thesis proofreading service for MA and PhD students in the UK and around the world.