dissertation writing tips

dissertation writing tips

Effective Strategies for Writing a Dissertation

1. Introduction

The crucial key to developing a successful dissertation lies in preparation. Successful preparation includes planning, an overarching strategy and effective project management. It is crucial that the student set out on the right foot with the determination of the dissertation subject. This is perhaps the most important step to ensuring the success of the project. A good cover may be used as a reminder of the point at which the student wanted to challenge and what they wanted to achieve at every stage. This can be referenced throughout the course of the project to ensure that the point of the research stays on course.

As daunting as the possibility of writing a dissertation can be, the reality is that the finish result will serve as the embodiment of useful and valuable experience. The skills developed and practiced will prove valuable in future academic and professional endeavors, and the final product will exhibit an important piece of knowledge in the form of a well-concluded argument or thesis.

A dissertation is a decisive period in the lifetime of a pupil. Whether it’s marking the end of a master’s degree or the final report for a PhD, the dissertation will ultimately turn out to be a sign of one’s expertise in their field. A dissertation will exhibit not only understanding of a subject, but also the ability to carry out research, take in information, collect and review cited data and to structure that data into an effective argument. All of this is a challenging task for anyone to take on and create.

2. Selecting a Research Topic

When selecting a topic for your paper or project, choose something that interests you, as you will be more likely to put your heart into it. Although your topic should be narrow and specific, it should also be well-covered in the existing literature. Try to choose something that is relevant to your life and the lives of others. Is there a solution to a problem you have experienced? How can it be solved? What interests you so much that you would like to know more about it? Can you bring something new and innovative to a field of study? These are all questions to consider when selecting your topic. Once you have a general idea of your topic, narrow it down to something that can be researched thoroughly. Many times students choose a topic and are very enthusiastic about it, only to find out that there is very little research available, or that it is too difficult to access. You may need to consult with your professor or advisor at this point to assist you in narrowing and refining your topic. Remember that research is a process. It is unlikely that a topic will be 100% refined at the beginning, so be flexible and open to new ideas as they present themselves.

3. Developing a Strong Thesis Statement

Given the definition and components of a thesis statement, along with a sample writing prompt, how might you expect to employ the method of developing a thesis statement?

A thesis statement is a sentence or two that asserts your position on a given issue, specifically, the position that you will be arguing for in your paper. This thesis statement will usually be written above your outline and in some books, it is shown by the Roman Numeral “I”.

Fulfillment of a purpose to create a paper with the above characteristics, one of the fundamental tools employed is the development of a strong thesis statement.

The statement or question is a key piece of information within your writing because it describes the parameters of your study. Your statement should: – Be specific – Be appropriate to the type of paper you’re writing – Appear within the first section of your text so that it is immediately clear to your reader what the paper is about.

A thesis statement presents the position that you intend to argue within your paper, whereas a research question indicates your direction for inquiry in your research. In general, thesis statements are provided in course-level papers, whereas research questions are used in major research papers or theses.

4. Structuring Your Dissertation

You might have a well-defined topic; you might have a well-defined question. But it won’t stop there in terms of stringing a reader along, or persuading them and show them you have answered the problem. By now the reader is expecting that it is an answer, a resolution that they can apply too, or at least a set of guidelines that they can utilise. So as well as knowing that you answer the question, it’s vital that you answer it in the right way. Make sure you understand the issue, and that you have access to the right data to answer it. This means off on a tangent at any point! You do not want to confuse it with what you originally set out to do. Answering the question is your solution to the problem, and keep it at the back of your mind at all times. This is integral and should avoid a total rewrite at the end your work. One pitfall to watch out for is coming to a conclusion too soon. You need to give ample evidence in your essay in order to back your argument. So a conclusion on the very same day as answering the issue may not be right. This is surely not an issue for an undergraduate, it is an expectation derived from PhD style writing. This can be seen as a manner of inverse engineering an answer. Once you have learned how to write an answer to the way you interpret the question the next step should be to practice writing it to the question while time pressured. This is most prevalent in exams where answers are far too concise. With more practice and a with a lot more detail, and improvement in your writing ability an academically acceptable answer with relevant evidence should become second nature.

5. Refining and Polishing Your Writing

Once you have your dissertation written, you are in the best position to undertake a little editing and revision. Assuming that you have time to do this, it is invaluable as your dissertation is one of the most important documents you will ever write. It represents many months of hard work and takes a long time to read. You do not want those who read it to be put off by mistakes in language and unclear writing. And of course, your aim is to enhance your work; to make it read better, to better convey your meaning, and to demonstrate the depth of your understanding. So, this is well worth the effort. What you do will depend on the reason for and who is to read your dissertation. It is no bad idea to have a reader in mind – ideally someone who is conversant with the general area of research and someone who is not. For example, the examiner of a Masters dissertation or the external examiner of a research report of any sort will be an expert. But for a PhD, the area of expertise can vary, so it is worth checking who is to be the examiner in order to target the revision appropriately. At the other level, research student support groups can be very effective as peers can read each other’s work.