If this is your first time writing a dissertation, it may seem rather daunting, especially after listening to the opinions of people who are completing or have submitted their thesis. For those who already have experience from undertaking a dissertation, no doubt the process can be comparable to climbing a mountain.
However, breaking it down into manageable chunks allows completion of the dissertation within the time frame. Here are some useful tips for writing a dissertation, which is applicable whether you are an undergraduate, postgraduate or a PhD student.
Tops tips for writing a dissertation
1. Choose a good research topic
The first vital tip for writing a dissertation is to pick a good research topic. You can get inspiration from researching previous dissertation questions that have already been written about at your university.
You may be able to find these within your university library database. Another option is to browse academic journals online or you can look at the newspaper to see if there are any current issues that relate to your academic field.
It is important that you pick a research topic that you find to be genuinely interesting. Perhaps it could be something in relation to your future career or it could simply be something that sparks your interest and would like to learn more about.
Also, think about why the research topic is of importance and the objectives of your research. Spend sufficient time brainstorming potential research topics, as you will be devoting a significant period of time to writing your dissertation.
Once you have brainstormed your ideas, start narrowing down potential research topics until you have a clear and focused research topic. Ensure to discuss with your supervisor to check that the research topic is viable.
If you have constructed a specific research question, that is great! But if not, do not worry as once you have completed your literature review, you will be able to identify the gap in the research topic. You can then address the gap to formulate a research question accordingly.
2. Make a plan
Once you have identified a research topic or formulated a research question, the second step is to make a clear-cut plan. Write down deadlines of when you want to complete each section of your dissertation.
The section deadlines may include:
- Executive summary
- Introduction
- Literature review
- Theoretical Framework
- Methodology
- Findings and analysis
- Conclusion
- References
- Appendix
As well as section deadlines, allocate how many words you want to write each day. By creating smaller deadlines, this will make your dissertation writing appear to be less daunting.
It will also help to keep you motivated as you accomplish writing a certain number of words each day. Remember that if you do not meet one of your deadlines, you can update your schedule accordingly.
Some days you may be busy with other commitments or you may face a writer’s block and that’s ok.
A key tip is to plan your deadlines slightly earlier. So, you are not rushing to complete your dissertation on time, and you can afford the time to take a break. In addition, think about which time of the day you are productive.
Are you a morning person or do you work better in the evening? When you make your plan, one of the key tips for writing a dissertation is to select your working hours in accordance with the times when you believe you are most productive. Before you know it, you will have completed the word requirement for your thesis!
3. Start writing!
Once you have created a well thought out plan, it’s time to crack on with actually writing your dissertation! The total word count may seem rather daunting, however, as previously mentioned in tip 2, focusing on completing your tasks set out for each day will help you reach your target. The longer you procrastinate from writing your thesis, the more you work you will have to cram in within a shorter time frame.
It is not going to get easier the longer you leave it, so just start typing away. A key tip is to begin writing your literature review first, as opposed to your introduction. Many students tend to get stuck writing their dissertation when they begin with addressing the introduction.
Writing your introduction, before the body of your dissertation, is not ideal as you most likely will not know exactly what you are introducing. Moreover, as you write your thesis, you will notice that it will tend to evolve over time as you discover new information. Write your literature review first, as this will provide a further understanding regarding the research topic of your choice.
4. Data Collection
After you have written your literature review, it is time to think about the method of data collection that is optimal for answering your research question. Primary data involves collecting the data yourself. It is essentially ‘real-time’ data, as you will collect the data during the time of your research project. Make sure you comply with the ethics form provided by your university when carrying out primary research, such as when conducting interviews.
If you decide to use primary data, you have the option of using qualitative, quantitative or mixed methodologies. Qualitative research is explanatory and is based on the perspectives of individuals. Quantitative research is based on numerical data and often involves statistical analysis. You can also adopt a mixed research methodology, which is a combination of both qualitative and quantitative data.
On the other hand, secondary data is data that has already been collected by someone else in the past. It can usually be accessed via government sources, online resources as well as offline resources. This method of data collection tends to be much easier than primary data collection, as you do not need to collect the data yourself. This means you can save a lot of time focusing on writing your dissertation.
However, an important tip to note is to ensure that your secondary data is directly relevant to your dissertation. For the reason that secondary data is collected by another researcher, the data will most likely provide evidence to a different research question. This means that you will need to carefully extract the relevant data and not use the data that does not address your research question.
Watch this video to understand the various data collection methods that you can use for your dissertation.
5. Get feedback
One of the vital tips for writing a dissertation is to get feedback from your supervisor. Maintain a good relationship with your supervisor and try to get feedback at every stage of your dissertation. For example, before you even begin writing your thesis, check that your research question is good and viable with your supervisor. It is highly beneficial to get your work checked as early and as often as possible.
In this way, you can identify problems and amend your work at the beginning, rather than leaving it until the very last minute. This will prevent you from having to change large chunks of your dissertation closer to the deadline. Note that this tip is dependent on your supervisor and their working office hours. Try to take full advantage of their drop-in sessions by completing your work early and writing down all your questions beforehand.
6. Edit your work
When writing your dissertation, ensure to leave sufficient time at the end to proofread your work and edit your writing. In your first draft, your sentences do not need to be perfect. It is all about getting your research down on paper and formulating your argument.
After you have devised an initial draft, you can then spend time rewriting your work and refining it. Once you have proofread your dissertation several times, submit your draft (if you can) to your supervisor to check if anything needs to be amended.
7. Take breaks
Lastly, don’t forget to look after your mental health and ensure that you take regular breaks. This is especially needed if you are, for example, stuck on a particular section of your dissertation. Rather than spending hours stuck on the same section and burning yourself out, take a break to recharge yourself.
Perhaps go to the gym to get your heart rate pumping and this will also help to clear your mind. Or, if you want a shorter break, so that you continue to work within your schedule, you can simply go for a walk to clear your mind. It is easier to work on your thesis when you feel rested, and when your mental and physical health are both in check.
Summary: Tips for Writing a Dissertation
Thank you for taking the time to read this post! We hope that you find these tips for writing a dissertation helpful. Writing a thesis is a completely new experience, unlike anything else you may have done before. It essentially marks the transition from a student to a scholar.
While it may be stressful at times and the independence associated with the project can be very daunting, try to enjoy the process and really dive into your research to learn more about your topic. If you are finding it difficult to finish your dissertation or you are struggling with university, check out this post to learn some actionable tips that you can take to cope with university life.
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