dissertation writing and editing

dissertation writing and editing

The Importance of Dissertation Writing and Editing

1. Introduction

Research students are often told that they must produce a work of ‘original research’, but the clarification of what this means is not always forthcoming. It is generally agreed that the ‘originality’ is a matter of substance and not merely of appearance – a piece of work need not be different from anything ever written, but it must be different in a significant way. It must do something more than merely assemble, organise and present information. This is not to denigrate such work: it is valuable, but it is not research. If this is to be the criterion, then research must surely involve some element of risk-taking, an attempt to test old ground in new ways and a willingness to contemplate and work with the unexpected. All these are easier to state than to bring off and it is only honest to admit that they can be daunting, even, or especially, to the very able student. Failure here is all too possible, or at least a partial failure which falls short of realising original intentions. The task of dissertation writing is to elaborate a piece of research which shows you have gained sufficient mastery of a relevant body of learning in your speciality to be able to do independent work within it and to make a contribution, which is why written assessment has been the standard mode of testing at this level. It is expected that the dissertation will be an exercise which is both strenuous and satisfying. Regarding the last of these, it is not unknown for students to feel that the satisfaction will lie in reaching the end of the ordeal and getting a good mark. This is a short-changing of what could be a formative experience, for the good mark is a by-product of work well done, and the best work is done when the work itself is a good experience – now at the risk of using the word for the third time in this paragraph, a satisfying experience. And this is how it should be: the ability to do a piece of work which is personally satisfying is strong indication that you possess (or have possessed) the qualities necessary to do it well and to the limit of your powers.

2. Benefits of Dissertation Writing and Editing

A dissertation is an academic document of a person’s research study which is submitted in support of their candidature for a qualification, presenting the author’s research and findings. Completing a dissertation successfully shows that a student is able to: efficiently perform a significant amount of work over a period of time, formulate and research an interesting question, write a specified number of words, and so on. With all of the effort and time that goes into writing a dissertation, it is imperative to correctly present your research. This guide will help you produce a high quality dissertation document. The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) Clinical Research Network (CRN) has produced a European, peer reviewed Dissertation Toolkit to help you through this difficult stage. Any research done must be presented in a logical and conclusive way. A dissertation needs to be visual and easy to understand. The reader should be able to easily follow your investigation from the abstract, through the introduction and on to the methodology. If the reader is getting lost in a sea of data, they’ll be unlikely to finish reading your dissertation. People will have various views and comments regarding your work. You can’t please everyone and through various feedback, you may consider making changes to your dissertation. If your dissertation is extremely well written and concise, you might even consider publishing it. If a dissertation is a research project, there might be a query of field testing and/or experimentation. Publishing a research report is an in-depth experimental dissertation that often is compiled to make a case for a hypothesis. It often involves field testing an idea. The Published Research Report is both a prerequisite for a grant and a standalone document. With a well-written and publishable dissertation, you can achieve a step closer to becoming an influencer in your respective field of study.

3. Strategies for Effective Dissertation Writing

1. Set aside time for planning and redrafting. 2. Put words on paper. As Dr. Mchugh-Pierre says, “Don’t get it right, get it written!” The more you write, the easier it will be to keep writing. Edit later. 3. Keep up momentum. To continue writing on your dissertation, you must write daily. You don’t have to write a lot, only a paragraph. But if you don’t write anything for two weeks, your dissertation will be as good as forgotten. 4. Redrafting. First, you must determine with what frequency you will redraft a particular section. Don’t redraft as you write because it will affect the momentum of your writing. Write now, edit later is the rule here. Redrafting is a cyclic process because the more you redraft one section, the more you see faults in other sections. A way to avoid getting bogged down in a redraft of the whole dissertation is to look at redrafting as improving rather than rewriting. An average of three redrafts for each piece of writing is a good place to start. 5. Don’t be afraid to change your mind. It’s much better to think later in the project, “I was unsure until I wrote it down” than “If only I had followed my first idea”. High-quality writing can be achieved by taking your time, but make sure that time doesn’t turn into procrastination.

4. Techniques for Successful Dissertation Editing

Finally, once your work is as clear and error-free, get a friend or family member to read it. Often at this stage, you will have memorized parts of your work and will miss further errors or unclear points in your text. A fresh pair of eyes is invaluable.

Step three is to perform a paragraph-by-paragraph, and then sentence-by-sentence check for errors, unclear points, or mistakes in spelling and grammar. This can be an extremely time-consuming process – you need to be absolutely certain that you are communicating your ideas as clearly as possible, and this is often more difficult than it seems.

Step two will be to print it out. Getting away from the screen means that you can read it in a different setting, and with a pen to hand, you’ll be ready to make notes. The notes you make here need not always be detailed grammatical points – often the more important changes are in the formulation of ideas. Are you answering the question set, or have you wandered off-topic? Are the argument or general narrative clear to the reader? These are the kind of changes that need to be addressed first and foremost.

Firstly, read through your work from start to finish without making any changes. This may seem like a waste of time – after all, you’re looking to make changes and improvements. However, this is the most effective way of ensuring that you maintain an overall narrative and logical structure in your work. By reading it through, you can take a mental ‘step back’ and gain a sense of the reader’s experience of your work. This is something that it is very easy to lose sight of when you are engaged in detailed writing.

As such, there are a number of steps you should consider in order to ensure that your work is as clear and well-presented as possible. Unfortunately, there are few (if any) shortcuts – the process demands time, attention to detail, and above all, a thorough understanding of your work.

When you reach the editing stage of your dissertation, you are nearing the end of a long and often arduous journey. The editing of your dissertation, then, is perhaps the most crucial task in preparing your work for an audience – it’s likely to be the first time you have engaged with a piece of work of this length and of this level of complexity.

5. Conclusion

Dissertation writing and editing are imperative to a scholar and a professional. It is a gate pass to academic as well as professional excellence. Although it is a time taking and boring process, the importance of dissertation writing is unrevealed. Moreover, if it is written and edited in an organized way, it can fetch you good grades and add more value to your profession. As already mentioned, dissertation writing and editing consumes a great deal of time. In fact, it can break your success or failure. This is because when you are writing and editing, you get to explore new ideas, methodologies, and many more things in your subject. These findings can be very useful for your career. You just need to implement these ideas in an innovative way. One more thing is you get a chance to show your knowledge and capabilities in your field. So starting from a student to a professor, everyone wants to excel in their field and dissertation writing and editing provides them a fantastic chance for the same. Nowadays, when companies are hiring, the first thing they look for is your academic record, your knowledge in the subject, and communication skills. Successful completion of a dissertation in a field of study may serve as a requirement for the completion of a course of study or as a step towards obtaining a degree or diploma. It adds evidence of your capabilities and communication skills. So it is a good example to show to your future employer. Thus, it can open new opportunities for your profession. Last but not least, the quality of your dissertation matters the most. Editing is all about going through your written material, finding out mistakes and inconsistencies, and correcting them. It is an easy task said than done. People feel fatigued of selecting a topic, writing, researching, and validating a dissertation during the first view. As such, editing is often neglected by the writer. This is not a good practice. According to research from a wide range of colleges and universities, it is one thing to complete a dissertation, but another to achieve a desired grade for it. By this, we can say you might have written a good dissertation, but it need not be a quality one. So editing is the most important part of your dissertation. By editing, you get a chance to apply better ideas and can attain a better grade for your dissertation. So we can conclude that dissertation writing and editing are two faces of the same coin. Success is always on your side if you do it in an organized way.