Dissertation Tips

DISSERTATION TIPS-

Start thinking early about possible topics, and read through departmental guidelines carefully. Good dissertation choices usually arise from lots of reading, talking and thinking about areas of your subject that you find interesting. You can change your mind several times before finalising your aims. Keep your supervisor informed. 

Keep full records of all your reading. Referencing tends to be marked very strictly in dissertations, and you can save yourself a lot of time and effort if you assemble the reference list / bibliography as you read, rather than leaving it until the very end of the process. (You can easily delete any sources that you do not ultimately use.)

Don’t be too ambitious. It’s usually better to research one very specific idea thoroughly than to attempt to tackle a big theme (or many ideas) and not be able to treat it (or them) in depth.

To help you focus your thoughts and devise hypotheses, research questions and objectives, think of answers to this question: what would you like your readers to understand by the end of the dissertation?

 A dissertation is a major undertaking. Create a timetable that allows you to meet deadlines without putting yourself under unnecessary pressure. Make back-up copies of your drafts as you go.
Create clear research objectives and then choose appropriate methods that will (hopefully!) enable you to meet those objectives. You could even draw up a table for yourself to link each objective to possible methods. 

Before selecting particular research methods, think carefully about how you will analyse (i.e. get results and meaning from) the data that you want your methods to give you. If, for example, you think that interviews might be a suitable method for one or more of your objectives, stop and think about how you are going to summarise and present interview data.
You should be able to justify every choice you make in your dissertation. There should be good, academic reasons for your choice of focus, of reading, of methodology, and of analytical techniques. Know why you did things the way you did, and make sure your reader knows why too. 
 Don’t worry if you don’t find out what you thought you would. Unexpected results are normally just as valuable as (and sometimes more valuable than) those you anticipated. 


Remember to consider the limitations of your research. You are expected to think carefully and write fluently about the reliability and validity of your findings.
Plan for plenty of time to edit and proofread your drafts, and remember to allow time for binding, if that is a requirement. 


Plan an overall work schedule

Break down your dissertation into stages and plan backwards from your deadline to fit them all in.

Start with your literature review
Think about your methodology
Identify primary sources
Identify secondary sources, if appropriate
Write as you go along
Organise and analyse your material
Write up
Redraft / check / proofread
Do a little bit on a regular basis
Decide in advance when you're going to work on your dissertation – set aside time each week or have a particular day to work on it
Give yourself a specific task to do in that time
Do difficult tasks at the times of day you work best
Do easy tasks when you're tired / less motivated

Top tip... have a contingency plan!

No one ever sticks to their plan perfectly, and you can't predict all the things that might intervene, so build in some extra time for "catching-up".

Also be aware that mechanical tasks like sorting the bibliography and proofreading will take longer than you think. Computers and printers know when you're in a hurry and will scheme to break down at the most inconvenient moment!


Structuring your dissertation
Dissertations based on qualitative or quantitative research are usually organised as follows:

Abstract

Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. Literature Review
Chapter 3. Methodology
Chapter 4. Results and Analysis
Chapter 5. Discussion
Chapter 6. Conclusion
Bibliography & Appendices


Other dissertations may be based around discussions of themes or texts:
Chapter 1. Introduction
Chapter 2. (theme / text 1)
Chapter 3. (theme / text 2)
Chapter 4. (theme / text 3)
Chapter 5. Conclusion

Bibliography & Appendices

This kind of structure often can't be finalised until you've done some research and found out what themes or texts you want to focus on.

It's a good idea to write an overall plan outlining what you need to cover in each chapter.

Think of a dissertation like a series of linked essays; each chapter is self-contained and has its own purpose, but they all connect together to contribute to the argument of your dissertation.

The chapters don't have to all be the same length – some can be longer because they are more detailed (like the literature review) and others can be shorter because they are summarising and finalising information (like the conclusion).

Writing up

Your dissertation may be the longest piece of writing you have ever done, but there are ways to approach it that will help to make it less overwhelming.

Write up as you go along. It is much easier to keep track of how your ideas develop and writing helps clarify your thinking. It also saves having to churn out 1000s of words at the end.

You don't have to start with the introduction – start at the chapter that seems the easiest to write – this could be the literature review or methodology, for example. Alternatively you may prefer to write the introduction first, so you can get your ideas straight. Decide what will suit your ways of working best - then do it.

Think of each chapter as an essay in itself – it should have a clear introduction and conclusion. Use the conclusion to link back to the overall research question.

Think of the main argument of your dissertation as a river, and each chapter is a tributary feeding into this. The individual chapters will contain their own arguments, and go their own way, but they all contribute to the main flow.

Write a chapter, read it and do a redraft - then move on. This stops you from getting bogged down in one chapter.

Write your references properly and in full from the beginning.

Keep your word count in mind – be ruthless and don't write anything that isn't relevant. It's often easier to add information, than have to cut down a long chapter that you've slaved over for hours.

Keeping going

After the initial enthusiasm wears off, it can be hard to keep motivated – it's also natural to feel confused and overwhelmed at points throughout your dissertation; this is all part of sustaining a longer project. Here are some suggestions to keep you going.

Break down large, unappealing tasks into smaller bearable ones. Molehills are always easier to climb than mountains!

Give yourself rewards when you've completed tasks - these might range from a cup of coffee, to an exercise session, or even a night out.

If you're not in a good thinking mood, do more straightforward tasks like compiling the bibliography or doing the title page.

If you're feeling confused about what you're doing, try writing a short paragraph summarising what your research is about. This can help you find a focus again.

If you're feeling overwhelmed, try identifying the one thing that you need to do next; often this will logically lead to further steps, and you'll be able to get started again.

Talk to friends or your supervisor about what you're doing; explaining where you are in your project and how it's going can help clarify your thinking.

Finishing off and checking through

This stage can be time consuming, so leave yourself enough time to have a final read through of your dissertation to pick up any lingering mistakes or typos. Good presentation matters – it gives a professional appearance and puts the reader in a good mood. So it is worth making sure you have enough time to proof-read and get your layout right.

General principles are:
Double-space your writing, do not have narrow margins, and print on one side of the page only.
Use a font that is legible and looks professional (Comic Sans is not appropriate!).
Check what should be included in cover pages and headers and footers (e.g. page numbers).
Have a clear Table of Contents to help your reader, and a separate List of Illustrations or tables if appropriate.
Consider what information should be put in Appendices and check that you have referred to the appropriate appendix in your text.

If you're trying to track down that missing reference for your bibliography, you can always ask a librarian for help finding it.
Binding

Undergraduate dissertations are usually 'soft bound'. This means having a soft card cover, with the pages joined together with comb, spiral, or thermal binding. You can get this done at many print shops, often while you wait.

If you choose to get your work hard bound, it can take a few days (more at busy times), so check with the printers / stationers beforehand.