Writing a dissertation means being on the home straight of your academic career. Thereby, you have to present your skills and capacity to conduct a thorough research in a chosen topic.
So, what is a dissertation?
People often use this term to present the result of their research for an undergraduate program. It is the final project of PhD student to gain their doctoral degree.
The process of carrying out a research and writing can be long and complex. To get the rewarding results, you should overcome several obstacles. Take a look at some of the most popular challenges most students face when writing dissertations:
Procrastination. Thinking there is much time to complete the project, student put off the starting point. However, burning midnight oil is far more stressful.
Lack of research skills. Poor research conducting skills will result in failure to analyze research data and present it as a thorough discussion.
Lack of writing skills. Writing a dissertation requires following academic writing rules including formal language and citation style.
We have prepared a guide how to write a dissertation step by step.
Step 1: Create a successful dissertation proposal
You may wonder what it is.
Although it is a shorter paper than a dissertation, it is a significant part of the whole project. Here, you set your aims and develop an outline of your further research. How to write a dissertation proposal?
Choose the theme, problem, and title:
- What issue is your dissertation dealing with?
- Why is it a problem for the scientific, academic, and research community?
- What is the importance of a solution?
- Which methods are you going to apply?
You should brainstorm and pick a valuable, original, and reasonable theme. However, the question you pose should be simple and leading to a particular hypothesis you need to prove.
Discuss it with your scientific advisor.
Structure of the dissertation proposal
Successful proposal has clear format, which is easy to follow. You should include the following points:
- Dissertation title.
- Objectives. You need to set about three objectives. If more, your papers will seem not focused.
- Literature. Consult with your advisor regarding the specific references and sources of information in this section.
- Research. The paramount part of your project requires you to elaborate the research ideas and its area.
- Methodology. Whether you are collecting data through the non-empirical or empirical methods, you have to explain your choice.
- Results. Discuss the probable outcomes of your research and analysis.
- Timeframe. Set the timing for completing each stage.
- References. Consult with your advisor regarding this section to get the necessary instructions.
Step 2: Conduct an efficient research
Here are a few tips to develop methodically and effectively:
Deadlines for the research stage
You can’t read all available sources to understand your issue completely. Decide how much time you may afford to working on the research stage and keep stick to it.
Right places for relevant sources
Always double check the information you find in the Internet. Use various scholar online libraries, but not Wikipedia. Consider going to an actual library. Librarians are quite helpful as they may provide you with some exclusive publications.
Arrange your resources
Always take notes. Otherwise, you will confuse yourself when moving from one argument to the other and backing up your ideas. Use Penzu, Evernote or any other online tool to gather your ideas.