Yes – if you are a master's student planning to reuse or adapt a table, figure or image in your thesis, you should obtain permission. See why on the previous page or here: Images, tables and figures are sources too.

How do you obtain permission?

Check the licence in the article (in the PDF or on the article's webpage). If you see words such as Copyright, All rights reserved, Request permission or Permission, you will generally need to ask.
Request permission through a service such as RightsLink. The link is often found on the article's webpage. Some journals also have an i-icon you can click. The library cannot do this on your behalf.
If permission is granted, include the confirmation (e.g. an email or screenshot) as an appendix in your master's thesis, after the reference list.
If the figure, table or image is from a book, you must contact the publisher directly.

You do not need permission if

the article has a Creative Commons licence (e.g. CC BY) – in that case you may use and adapt the material as long as you cite the source and licence correctly. For more on licences, read About CC licenses.
you create an entirely new figure yourself, based on textual information from the article – in that case it is your own work. Remember to cite the source both in your text and in the reference list.
you describe the table in words rather than reproducing it, e.g.: Table 2 in Hansen (2019, p. 12) shows a clear relationship ....

Good to know

At bachelor's level, you do not need to request permission to use figures, tables or images, as the paper is submitted internally at NIH only. You must still cite sources correctly and follow the APA guidelines.

Still have questions? Visit the library or email us at library@nih.no

Useful links

How to format tables: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/tables-figures/tables

Sample tables in APA style: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/tables-figures/sample-tables

How to format figures: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/tables-figures/figures

Sample figures in APA style: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/tables-figures/sample-figures

Use of color in tables and figures: https://apastyle.apa.org/style-grammar-guidelines/tables-figures/colors