Why Figures and Tables in a Malaysian Thesis Require Particular Attention
Formatting figures and tables in a Malaysian thesis according to APA 7th edition represents one of the most error-prone areas of thesis presentation. Unlike grammatical errors that may be scattered throughout the text, formatting errors in tables and figures are concentrated, visible, and systematically repeated — meaning that one misunderstanding of the rules will produce the same error in every table or figure throughout the thesis. Examiners who identify a formatting error in the first table they encounter will actively look for the same error in every subsequent table, which can leave an impression of carelessness that affects the overall evaluation.
APA 7th edition introduced several changes to how figures and tables are formatted compared to APA 6th edition, and many Malaysian postgraduate students are still applying the older rules. This guide explains the current APA 7th edition requirements specifically as they apply to the formatting of figures and tables in Malaysian thesis contexts.
APA 7th Edition Rules for Tables in a Malaysian Thesis
The formatting requirements for tables in a Malaysian thesis under APA 7th edition follow a specific structure that differs from common practice. Each table must begin with the word “Table” followed by its Arabic numeral (Table 1, Table 2), flush left and in bold. The table number is followed on the next line by the table title in italics and title case, also flush left — the title should be brief but descriptive enough that the reader understands the content of the table without reading the surrounding text. These two elements — number and title — appear above the table.
The table itself should use horizontal lines (rules) at the top, below the column headings, and at the bottom — but generally no vertical lines between columns and no horizontal lines between data rows unless absolutely necessary for clarity. This clean, minimal design is a deliberate APA requirement that many students violate by using the default table formatting in Microsoft Word, which often includes gridlines throughout.
Below the table, a Note section is required whenever the table contains information that needs explanation, abbreviations that are used, statistical symbols that are not self-explanatory, or — critically — whenever the table is reproduced or adapted from another source. The Note begins with the word “Note.” in italics followed by a period, flush left below a rule. For tables adapted from external sources, the note must contain a copyright statement that cites the original source in APA format.
APA 7th Edition Rules for Figures in a Malaysian Thesis
Formatting figures in a Malaysian thesis under APA 7th edition follows a parallel structure to tables, but with one important difference: the figure number and caption appear below the figure, not above it. The figure number (“Figure 1.”, “Figure 2.”) appears flush left in bold, followed immediately on the same line — not on the next line — by the figure caption in regular typeface (not italics). The caption provides a brief description of the figure.
Any figure reproduced or adapted from another source must include a note below the caption, formatted similarly to a table note, that credits the original source. This is a requirement that is frequently omitted in Malaysian theses, particularly for figures such as theoretical models, conceptual diagrams, or charts that students have reproduced from published articles or books to illustrate their theoretical framework. Omitting this attribution can raise plagiarism concerns even when the omission is unintentional.
Numbering Figures and Tables in a Malaysian Thesis
In most Malaysian university thesis formatting guidelines, tables and figures are numbered using one of two systems: consecutively throughout the entire thesis (Table 1, Table 2… through to the final table in the last chapter), or using a chapter-based system (Table 3.1, Table 3.2 for tables in Chapter 3, Table 4.1 for the first table in Chapter 4). Check your university’s specific IPS formatting guidelines, as different Malaysian universities require different systems and the APA 7th edition manual defers to institutional requirements on this point.
Regardless of the numbering system used, tables and figures must be numbered in the order in which they are first mentioned in the text, and they must be mentioned in the text before they appear. The in-text reference uses the table or figure number: “As shown in Table 3.2, the frequency distribution indicates…” or “Figure 2 illustrates the conceptual framework underlying this study.” Never refer to a table or figure using directional language such as “the table above” or “the figure below,” as the position of tables and figures relative to text may change during formatting.
List of Tables and List of Figures in the Thesis Preliminaries
Formatting figures and tables in a Malaysian thesis also involves correctly generating the List of Tables and List of Figures in the thesis preliminary pages. Every table and every figure in the thesis must be listed, in order, with its full number, title (for tables) or caption (for figures), and the page number on which it appears. These lists should be generated from the actual tables and figures in the document — manually typed lists are prone to errors and will be inconsistent after any editing that causes page numbers to shift.
Conclusion
Formatting figures and tables in a Malaysian thesis correctly requires attention to the specific APA 7th edition requirements for placement of labels and captions, note formatting for adapted materials, the use of minimal bordering in tables, and consistent numbering aligned with your university’s formatting requirements. A dedicated proofreading pass focused exclusively on tables and figures — checking every element of every table and figure against this guide — is the most reliable way to ensure this dimension of your thesis presentation meets the standard expected by Malaysian examiners.
