Footnotes and Endnotes in a Malaysian Thesis: What You Need to Know
The use of footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis is more nuanced than most candidates realise. Some Malaysian postgraduate students avoid them entirely, believing notes are incompatible with the APA citation style used in most Malaysian theses. Others use them freely to add supplementary information, not realising that excessive footnotes can undermine the flow of a thesis. Understanding when footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis are appropriate — and when they are not — requires understanding both APA style guidance and the broader conventions of academic writing.
This guide clarifies the appropriate use of footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis and explains how to format them correctly.
APA’s Position on Footnotes and Endnotes
APA 7th edition, which governs most Malaysian postgraduate theses, does permit footnotes and endnotes but uses them sparingly and for specific purposes. APA distinguishes between two types: content footnotes (which provide supplementary information that would interrupt the flow of the main text if included there) and copyright attribution footnotes (used to credit reproduced material). APA does not use footnotes for citations — that function is served by the author-date in-text citation system.
This is an important distinction: footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis using APA format should never contain citations as their primary content, as they would in Chicago Notes-Bibliography format. If you find yourself writing footnotes that are primarily citations, you are using the wrong citation system for APA.
When Footnotes Are Appropriate in a Malaysian Thesis
Content footnotes in a Malaysian thesis are appropriate in several specific situations. First, for important information that is relevant but would significantly disrupt the flow of the main argument if included in the text — detailed technical clarifications, extended methodological notes, or lengthy contextual explanations that the main reader does not need but that some readers would find valuable. Second, for translation notes when Bahasa Melayu terms or quotations appear in an English thesis and the full translation would be awkward in the main text. Third, for brief clarifications about terminology decisions — explaining why a specific term was chosen over alternatives when the explanation would distract from the main argument.
When Footnotes Are NOT Appropriate
Footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis using APA format should not be used as: the primary citation mechanism (all citations should appear as in-text author-date citations); a place to hide important information that should be in the main text; a way to add content that did not fit within the word count; or so frequently that they become a parallel text competing with the main argument. If your thesis has more than one or two footnotes per page on average, you are probably using them inappropriately.
Formatting Footnotes and Endnotes in a Malaysian Thesis
In APA format, the formatting of footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis follows specific conventions. Footnote numbers in the text appear as superscript Arabic numerals after any punctuation (except a dash): “The instrument used was the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-17).¹” Footnote text appears at the bottom of the page, separated from the main text by a short horizontal line, indented at the first line, and in a smaller font size (typically 10pt when the main text is 12pt). Footnotes are numbered consecutively throughout the thesis, not restarted at each chapter.
Endnotes vs Footnotes
Endnotes serve the same purpose as footnotes but appear at the end of a chapter or at the end of the thesis rather than at the bottom of the page. Footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis: footnotes are generally preferred for content that a reader might want to consult immediately while reading the relevant passage; endnotes are preferred when there are many notes that would clutter the page layout. Check your institution’s thesis manual for any specific preference — some Malaysian universities specify one form over the other.
Conclusion
Footnotes and endnotes in a Malaysian thesis are a legitimate and occasionally valuable tool when used sparingly for genuinely supplementary content that would disrupt the main argument if included in the text. In APA-format theses, they are never used as citation mechanisms. When in doubt about whether a piece of information belongs in a footnote or in the main text, ask whether a general reader in your field would need this information to follow the argument — if yes, it belongs in the main text.
