how to start planning your dissertation

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Thesis and Dissertation: Getting Started

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The resources in this section are designed to provide guidance for the first steps of the thesis or dissertation writing process. They offer tools to support the planning and managing of your project, including writing out your weekly schedule, outlining your goals, and organzing the various working elements of your project.

Weekly Goals Sheet (a.k.a. Life Map) [Word Doc]

This editable handout provides a place for you to fill in available time blocks on a weekly chart that will help you visualize the amount of time you have available to write. By using this chart, you will be able to work your writing goals into your schedule and put these goals into perspective with your day-to-day plans and responsibilities each week. This handout also contains a formula to help you determine the minimum number of pages you would need to write per day in order to complete your writing on time.

Setting a Production Schedule (Word Doc)

This editable handout can help you make sense of the various steps involved in the production of your thesis or dissertation and determine how long each step might take. A large part of this process involves (1) seeking out the most accurate and up-to-date information regarding specific document formatting requirements, (2) understanding research protocol limitations, (3) making note of deadlines, and (4) understanding your personal writing habits.

Creating a Roadmap (PDF)

Part of organizing your writing involves having a clear sense of how the different working parts relate to one another. Creating a roadmap for your dissertation early on can help you determine what the final document will include and how all the pieces are connected. This resource offers guidance on several approaches to creating a roadmap, including creating lists, maps, nut-shells, visuals, and different methods for outlining. It is important to remember that you can create more than one roadmap (or more than one type of roadmap) depending on how the different approaches discussed here meet your needs.

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How to plan your dissertation

It's probably the most important piece of research and writing you will undertake during your undergraduate career – so the thought of writing your dissertation can be daunting. Starting out with a robust plan will focus your research, use your time efficiently and keep the task manageable.

Select your field of interest

First things first: what topics have you most enjoyed on your course? Investigating a subject you genuinely enjoy will make dissertation research less overwhelming.

Do as much preliminary reading around the subject area as you can to make sure there is plenty of literature out there to support your initial ideas.

Take a good look at the most recent writings in your areas of interest. They will help you to identify the best angle to take and could highlight the gaps in current inquiry that you can address.

Choose an approach and a title

What will your line of inquiry be? You may, for example, wish to extend a study that has already been carried out, apply a theory to some practical experience and critique how successful it is, or closely analyse an idea or object using a particular approach.

Your approach will inform your title. The title should clearly present the line of inquiry your dissertation will take. If you're unsure, make up a working title. You could even compose a few different titles each with a slightly different emphasis, and keep them all in mind as you do your research.

Remember to run your title by your dissertation tutor. They will be able to give you advice, help you refine any grey areas and suggest reading for research.

Make an outline plan

The general essay structure is as follows:

Introduction – say what you are going to say Main body – say it Conclusion – say what you've said

You can break down each of these three areas further. In the introduction, your subheadings could include:

What you are examining How are you going to do it (concepts/theories/studies)

The main body might break down into:

Definitions, setting out areas of research, anticipating problems Main argument or theme Alternative argument or theme

And your conclusion would include:

Summary of your findings Is there a solution? What remains unresolved? What future research could illuminate the issue further?

Start a list of sources

When you're planning your sections, include the full names of books and page numbers wherever you can to help you retrieve information quickly as you write your draft. It is also useful to begin to compile you bibliography during the planning stage.

Review and adjust your plan as you go

Even the best laid plans go astray – so don't worry! As you read and research around your key areas, the structure and direction of your initial plan may shift. This is the beauty of having a plan. As a potential new focus arises, you can adjust your title, section headings and content notes to encompass your new ideas before your draft writing begins. A good plan means you will not lose focus on the end result.

Next in this three-part series: How to write your dissertation.

Thanks to Goldsmiths University for supplying this content.

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Dissertation Structure & Layout 101: How to structure your dissertation, thesis or research project.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) Reviewed By: David Phair (PhD) | July 2019

So, you’ve got a decent understanding of what a dissertation is , you’ve chosen your topic and hopefully you’ve received approval for your research proposal . Awesome! Now its time to start the actual dissertation or thesis writing journey.

To craft a high-quality document, the very first thing you need to understand is dissertation structure . In this post, we’ll walk you through the generic dissertation structure and layout, step by step. We’ll start with the big picture, and then zoom into each chapter to briefly discuss the core contents. If you’re just starting out on your research journey, you should start with this post, which covers the big-picture process of how to write a dissertation or thesis .

*The Caveat *

In this post, we’ll be discussing a traditional dissertation/thesis structure and layout, which is generally used for social science research across universities, whether in the US, UK, Europe or Australia. However, some universities may have small variations on this structure (extra chapters, merged chapters, slightly different ordering, etc).

So, always check with your university if they have a prescribed structure or layout that they expect you to work with. If not, it’s safe to assume the structure we’ll discuss here is suitable. And even if they do have a prescribed structure, you’ll still get value from this post as we’ll explain the core contents of each section.  

Overview: S tructuring a dissertation or thesis

• Acknowledgements page
• Abstract (or executive summary)
• Table of contents , list of figures and tables
• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Chapter 2: Literature review
• Chapter 3: Methodology
• Chapter 4: Results
• Chapter 5: Discussion
• Chapter 6: Conclusion
• Reference list

As I mentioned, some universities will have slight variations on this structure. For example, they want an additional “personal reflection chapter”, or they might prefer the results and discussion chapter to be merged into one. Regardless, the overarching flow will always be the same, as this flow reflects the research process , which we discussed here – i.e.:

• The introduction chapter presents the core research question and aims .
• The literature review chapter assesses what the current research says about this question.
• The methodology, results and discussion chapters go about undertaking new research about this question.
• The conclusion chapter (attempts to) answer the core research question .

In other words, the dissertation structure and layout reflect the research process of asking a well-defined question(s), investigating, and then answering the question – see below.

To restate that – the structure and layout of a dissertation reflect the flow of the overall research process . This is essential to understand, as each chapter will make a lot more sense if you “get” this concept. If you’re not familiar with the research process, read this post before going further.

Right. Now that we’ve covered the big picture, let’s dive a little deeper into the details of each section and chapter. Oh and by the way, you can also grab our free dissertation/thesis template here to help speed things up.

The title page of your dissertation is the very first impression the marker will get of your work, so it pays to invest some time thinking about your title. But what makes for a good title? A strong title needs to be 3 things:

• Succinct (not overly lengthy or verbose)
• Specific (not vague or ambiguous)
• Representative of the research you’re undertaking (clearly linked to your research questions)

Typically, a good title includes mention of the following:

• The broader area of the research (i.e. the overarching topic)
• The specific focus of your research (i.e. your specific context)
• Indication of research design (e.g. quantitative , qualitative , or  mixed methods ).

For example:

A quantitative investigation [research design] into the antecedents of organisational trust [broader area] in the UK retail forex trading market [specific context/area of focus].

Again, some universities may have specific requirements regarding the format and structure of the title, so it’s worth double-checking expectations with your institution (if there’s no mention in the brief or study material).

Acknowledgements

This page provides you with an opportunity to say thank you to those who helped you along your research journey. Generally, it’s optional (and won’t count towards your marks), but it is academic best practice to include this.

So, who do you say thanks to? Well, there’s no prescribed requirements, but it’s common to mention the following people:

• Your dissertation supervisor or committee.
• Any professors, lecturers or academics that helped you understand the topic or methodologies.
• Any tutors, mentors or advisors.
• Your family and friends, especially spouse (for adult learners studying part-time).

There’s no need for lengthy rambling. Just state who you’re thankful to and for what (e.g. thank you to my supervisor, John Doe, for his endless patience and attentiveness) – be sincere. In terms of length, you should keep this to a page or less.

Abstract or executive summary

The dissertation abstract (or executive summary for some degrees) serves to provide the first-time reader (and marker or moderator) with a big-picture view of your research project. It should give them an understanding of the key insights and findings from the research, without them needing to read the rest of the report – in other words, it should be able to stand alone .

For it to stand alone, your abstract should cover the following key points (at a minimum):

• Your research questions and aims – what key question(s) did your research aim to answer?
• Your methodology – how did you go about investigating the topic and finding answers to your research question(s)?
• Your findings – following your own research, what did do you discover?
• Your conclusions – based on your findings, what conclusions did you draw? What answers did you find to your research question(s)?

So, in much the same way the dissertation structure mimics the research process, your abstract or executive summary should reflect the research process, from the initial stage of asking the original question to the final stage of answering that question.

In practical terms, it’s a good idea to write this section up last , once all your core chapters are complete. Otherwise, you’ll end up writing and rewriting this section multiple times (just wasting time). For a step by step guide on how to write a strong executive summary, check out this post .

Need a helping hand?

Table of contents

This section is straightforward. You’ll typically present your table of contents (TOC) first, followed by the two lists – figures and tables. I recommend that you use Microsoft Word’s automatic table of contents generator to generate your TOC. If you’re not familiar with this functionality, the video below explains it simply:

If you find that your table of contents is overly lengthy, consider removing one level of depth. Oftentimes, this can be done without detracting from the usefulness of the TOC.

Right, now that the “admin” sections are out of the way, its time to move on to your core chapters. These chapters are the heart of your dissertation and are where you’ll earn the marks. The first chapter is the introduction chapter – as you would expect, this is the time to introduce your research…

It’s important to understand that even though you’ve provided an overview of your research in your abstract, your introduction needs to be written as if the reader has not read that (remember, the abstract is essentially a standalone document). So, your introduction chapter needs to start from the very beginning, and should address the following questions:

• What will you be investigating (in plain-language, big picture-level)?
• Why is that worth investigating? How is it important to academia or business? How is it sufficiently original?
• What are your research aims and research question(s)? Note that the research questions can sometimes be presented at the end of the literature review (next chapter).
• What is the scope of your study? In other words, what will and won’t you cover ?
• How will you approach your research? In other words, what methodology will you adopt?
• How will you structure your dissertation? What are the core chapters and what will you do in each of them?

These are just the bare basic requirements for your intro chapter. Some universities will want additional bells and whistles in the intro chapter, so be sure to carefully read your brief or consult your research supervisor.

If done right, your introduction chapter will set a clear direction for the rest of your dissertation. Specifically, it will make it clear to the reader (and marker) exactly what you’ll be investigating, why that’s important, and how you’ll be going about the investigation. Conversely, if your introduction chapter leaves a first-time reader wondering what exactly you’ll be researching, you’ve still got some work to do.

Now that you’ve set a clear direction with your introduction chapter, the next step is the literature review . In this section, you will analyse the existing research (typically academic journal articles and high-quality industry publications), with a view to understanding the following questions:

• What does the literature currently say about the topic you’re investigating?
• Is the literature lacking or well established? Is it divided or in disagreement?
• How does your research fit into the bigger picture?
• How does your research contribute something original?
• How does the methodology of previous studies help you develop your own?

Depending on the nature of your study, you may also present a conceptual framework towards the end of your literature review, which you will then test in your actual research.

Again, some universities will want you to focus on some of these areas more than others, some will have additional or fewer requirements, and so on. Therefore, as always, its important to review your brief and/or discuss with your supervisor, so that you know exactly what’s expected of your literature review chapter.

Now that you’ve investigated the current state of knowledge in your literature review chapter and are familiar with the existing key theories, models and frameworks, its time to design your own research. Enter the methodology chapter – the most “science-ey” of the chapters…

In this chapter, you need to address two critical questions:

• Exactly HOW will you carry out your research (i.e. what is your intended research design)?
• Exactly WHY have you chosen to do things this way (i.e. how do you justify your design)?

Remember, the dissertation part of your degree is first and foremost about developing and demonstrating research skills . Therefore, the markers want to see that you know which methods to use, can clearly articulate why you’ve chosen then, and know how to deploy them effectively.

Importantly, this chapter requires detail – don’t hold back on the specifics. State exactly what you’ll be doing, with who, when, for how long, etc. Moreover, for every design choice you make, make sure you justify it.

In practice, you will likely end up coming back to this chapter once you’ve undertaken all your data collection and analysis, and revise it based on changes you made during the analysis phase. This is perfectly fine. Its natural for you to add an additional analysis technique, scrap an old one, etc based on where your data lead you. Of course, I’m talking about small changes here – not a fundamental switch from qualitative to quantitative, which will likely send your supervisor in a spin!

You’ve now collected your data and undertaken your analysis, whether qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods. In this chapter, you’ll present the raw results of your analysis . For example, in the case of a quant study, you’ll present the demographic data, descriptive statistics, inferential statistics , etc.

Typically, Chapter 4 is simply a presentation and description of the data, not a discussion of the meaning of the data. In other words, it’s descriptive, rather than analytical – the meaning is discussed in Chapter 5. However, some universities will want you to combine chapters 4 and 5, so that you both present and interpret the meaning of the data at the same time. Check with your institution what their preference is.

Now that you’ve presented the data analysis results, its time to interpret and analyse them. In other words, its time to discuss what they mean, especially in relation to your research question(s).

What you discuss here will depend largely on your chosen methodology. For example, if you’ve gone the quantitative route, you might discuss the relationships between variables . If you’ve gone the qualitative route, you might discuss key themes and the meanings thereof. It all depends on what your research design choices were.

Most importantly, you need to discuss your results in relation to your research questions and aims, as well as the existing literature. What do the results tell you about your research questions? Are they aligned with the existing research or at odds? If so, why might this be? Dig deep into your findings and explain what the findings suggest, in plain English.

The final chapter – you’ve made it! Now that you’ve discussed your interpretation of the results, its time to bring it back to the beginning with the conclusion chapter . In other words, its time to (attempt to) answer your original research question s (from way back in chapter 1). Clearly state what your conclusions are in terms of your research questions. This might feel a bit repetitive, as you would have touched on this in the previous chapter, but its important to bring the discussion full circle and explicitly state your answer(s) to the research question(s).

Next, you’ll typically discuss the implications of your findings? In other words, you’ve answered your research questions – but what does this mean for the real world (or even for academia)? What should now be done differently, given the new insight you’ve generated?

Lastly, you should discuss the limitations of your research, as well as what this means for future research in the area. No study is perfect, especially not a Masters-level. Discuss the shortcomings of your research. Perhaps your methodology was limited, perhaps your sample size was small or not representative, etc, etc. Don’t be afraid to critique your work – the markers want to see that you can identify the limitations of your work. This is a strength, not a weakness. Be brutal!

This marks the end of your core chapters – woohoo! From here on out, it’s pretty smooth sailing.

The reference list is straightforward. It should contain a list of all resources cited in your dissertation, in the required format, e.g. APA , Harvard, etc.

It’s essential that you use reference management software for your dissertation. Do NOT try handle your referencing manually – its far too error prone. On a reference list of multiple pages, you’re going to make mistake. To this end, I suggest considering either Mendeley or Zotero. Both are free and provide a very straightforward interface to ensure that your referencing is 100% on point. I’ve included a simple how-to video for the Mendeley software (my personal favourite) below:

Some universities may ask you to include a bibliography, as opposed to a reference list. These two things are not the same . A bibliography is similar to a reference list, except that it also includes resources which informed your thinking but were not directly cited in your dissertation. So, double-check your brief and make sure you use the right one.

The very last piece of the puzzle is the appendix or set of appendices. This is where you’ll include any supporting data and evidence. Importantly, supporting is the keyword here.

Your appendices should provide additional “nice to know”, depth-adding information, which is not critical to the core analysis. Appendices should not be used as a way to cut down word count (see this post which covers how to reduce word count ). In other words, don’t place content that is critical to the core analysis here, just to save word count. You will not earn marks on any content in the appendices, so don’t try to play the system!

Time to recap…

And there you have it – the traditional dissertation structure and layout, from A-Z. To recap, the core structure for a dissertation or thesis is (typically) as follows:

• Acknowledgments page

Most importantly, the core chapters should reflect the research process (asking, investigating and answering your research question). Moreover, the research question(s) should form the golden thread throughout your dissertation structure. Everything should revolve around the research questions, and as you’ve seen, they should form both the start point (i.e. introduction chapter) and the endpoint (i.e. conclusion chapter).

I hope this post has provided you with clarity about the traditional dissertation/thesis structure and layout. If you have any questions or comments, please leave a comment below, or feel free to get in touch with us. Also, be sure to check out the rest of the  Grad Coach Blog .

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This post was based on one of our popular Research Bootcamps . If you're working on a research project, you'll definitely want to check this out ...

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36 Comments

many thanks i found it very useful

Glad to hear that, Arun. Good luck writing your dissertation.

Such clear practical logical advice. I very much needed to read this to keep me focused in stead of fretting.. Perfect now ready to start my research!

what about scientific fields like computer or engineering thesis what is the difference in the structure? thank you very much

Thanks so much this helped me a lot!

Very helpful and accessible. What I like most is how practical the advice is along with helpful tools/ links.

Thanks Ade!

Thank you so much sir.. It was really helpful..

You’re welcome!

Hi! How many words maximum should contain the abstract?

Thank you so much 😊 Find this at the right moment

You’re most welcome. Good luck with your dissertation.

best ever benefit i got on right time thank you

Many times Clarity and vision of destination of dissertation is what makes the difference between good ,average and great researchers the same way a great automobile driver is fast with clarity of address and Clear weather conditions .

I guess Great researcher = great ideas + knowledge + great and fast data collection and modeling + great writing + high clarity on all these

You have given immense clarity from start to end.

Morning. Where will I write the definitions of what I’m referring to in my report?

Thank you so much Derek, I was almost lost! Thanks a tonnnn! Have a great day!

Thanks ! so concise and valuable

This was very helpful. Clear and concise. I know exactly what to do now.

Thank you for allowing me to go through briefly. I hope to find time to continue.

Really useful to me. Thanks a thousand times

Very interesting! It will definitely set me and many more for success. highly recommended.

Thank you soo much sir, for the opportunity to express my skills

Usefull, thanks a lot. Really clear

Very nice and easy to understand. Thank you .

That was incredibly useful. Thanks Grad Coach Crew!

My stress level just dropped at least 15 points after watching this. Just starting my thesis for my grad program and I feel a lot more capable now! Thanks for such a clear and helpful video, Emma and the GradCoach team!

Do we need to mention the number of words the dissertation contains in the main document?

It depends on your university’s requirements, so it would be best to check with them 🙂

Such a helpful post to help me get started with structuring my masters dissertation, thank you!

Great video; I appreciate that helpful information

It is so necessary or avital course

This blog is very informative for my research. Thank you

Doctoral students are required to fill out the National Research Council’s Survey of Earned Doctorates

wow this is an amazing gain in my life

This is so good

How can i arrange my specific objectives in my dissertation?

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How to Write a Dissertation Proposal | A Step-by-Step Guide

Published on 14 February 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on 11 November 2022.

A dissertation proposal describes the research you want to do: what it’s about, how you’ll conduct it, and why it’s worthwhile. You will probably have to write a proposal before starting your dissertation as an undergraduate or postgraduate student.

A dissertation proposal should generally include:

• An introduction to your topic and aims
• A literature review  of the current state of knowledge
• An outline of your proposed methodology
• A discussion of the possible implications of the research
• A bibliography  of relevant sources

Dissertation proposals vary a lot in terms of length and structure, so make sure to follow any guidelines given to you by your institution, and check with your supervisor when you’re unsure.

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Table of contents

Step 1: coming up with an idea, step 2: presenting your idea in the introduction, step 3: exploring related research in the literature review, step 4: describing your methodology, step 5: outlining the potential implications of your research, step 6: creating a reference list or bibliography.

Before writing your proposal, it’s important to come up with a strong idea for your dissertation.

Find an area of your field that interests you and do some preliminary reading in that area. What are the key concerns of other researchers? What do they suggest as areas for further research, and what strikes you personally as an interesting gap in the field?

Once you have an idea, consider how to narrow it down and the best way to frame it. Don’t be too ambitious or too vague – a dissertation topic needs to be specific enough to be feasible. Move from a broad field of interest to a specific niche:

• Russian literature 19th century Russian literature The novels of Tolstoy and Dostoevsky
• Social media Mental health effects of social media Influence of social media on young adults suffering from anxiety

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Like most academic texts, a dissertation proposal begins with an introduction . This is where you introduce the topic of your research, provide some background, and most importantly, present your aim , objectives and research question(s) .

Try to dive straight into your chosen topic: What’s at stake in your research? Why is it interesting? Don’t spend too long on generalisations or grand statements:

• Social media is the most important technological trend of the 21st century. It has changed the world and influences our lives every day.
• Psychologists generally agree that the ubiquity of social media in the lives of young adults today has a profound impact on their mental health. However, the exact nature of this impact needs further investigation.

Once your area of research is clear, you can present more background and context. What does the reader need to know to understand your proposed questions? What’s the current state of research on this topic, and what will your dissertation contribute to the field?

If you’re including a literature review, you don’t need to go into too much detail at this point, but give the reader a general sense of the debates that you’re intervening in.

This leads you into the most important part of the introduction: your aim, objectives and research question(s) . These should be clearly identifiable and stand out from the text – for example, you could present them using bullet points or bold font.

Make sure that your research questions are specific and workable – something you can reasonably answer within the scope of your dissertation. Avoid being too broad or having too many different questions. Remember that your goal in a dissertation proposal is to convince the reader that your research is valuable and feasible:

• Does social media harm mental health?
• What is the impact of daily social media use on 18– to 25–year–olds suffering from general anxiety disorder?

Now that your topic is clear, it’s time to explore existing research covering similar ideas. This is important because it shows you what is missing from other research in the field and ensures that you’re not asking a question someone else has already answered.

You’ve probably already done some preliminary reading, but now that your topic is more clearly defined, you need to thoroughly analyse and evaluate the most relevant sources in your literature review .

Here you should summarise the findings of other researchers and comment on gaps and problems in their studies. There may be a lot of research to cover, so make effective use of paraphrasing to write concisely:

• Smith and Prakash state that ‘our results indicate a 25% decrease in the incidence of mechanical failure after the new formula was applied’.
• Smith and Prakash’s formula reduced mechanical failures by 25%.

The point is to identify findings and theories that will influence your own research, but also to highlight gaps and limitations in previous research which your dissertation can address:

• Subsequent research has failed to replicate this result, however, suggesting a flaw in Smith and Prakash’s methods. It is likely that the failure resulted from…

Next, you’ll describe your proposed methodology : the specific things you hope to do, the structure of your research and the methods that you will use to gather and analyse data.

You should get quite specific in this section – you need to convince your supervisor that you’ve thought through your approach to the research and can realistically carry it out. This section will look quite different, and vary in length, depending on your field of study.

You may be engaged in more empirical research, focusing on data collection and discovering new information, or more theoretical research, attempting to develop a new conceptual model or add nuance to an existing one.

Dissertation research often involves both, but the content of your methodology section will vary according to how important each approach is to your dissertation.

Empirical research

Empirical research involves collecting new data and analysing it in order to answer your research questions. It can be quantitative (focused on numbers), qualitative (focused on words and meanings), or a combination of both.

With empirical research, it’s important to describe in detail how you plan to collect your data:

• Will you use surveys ? A lab experiment ? Interviews?
• What variables will you measure?
• How will you select a representative sample ?
• If other people will participate in your research, what measures will you take to ensure they are treated ethically?
• What tools (conceptual and physical) will you use, and why?

It’s appropriate to cite other research here. When you need to justify your choice of a particular research method or tool, for example, you can cite a text describing the advantages and appropriate usage of that method.

Don’t overdo this, though; you don’t need to reiterate the whole theoretical literature, just what’s relevant to the choices you have made.

Moreover, your research will necessarily involve analysing the data after you have collected it. Though you don’t know yet what the data will look like, it’s important to know what you’re looking for and indicate what methods (e.g. statistical tests , thematic analysis ) you will use.

Theoretical research

You can also do theoretical research that doesn’t involve original data collection. In this case, your methodology section will focus more on the theory you plan to work with in your dissertation: relevant conceptual models and the approach you intend to take.

For example, a literary analysis dissertation rarely involves collecting new data, but it’s still necessary to explain the theoretical approach that will be taken to the text(s) under discussion, as well as which parts of the text(s) you will focus on:

• This dissertation will utilise Foucault’s theory of panopticism to explore the theme of surveillance in Orwell’s 1984 and Kafka’s The Trial…

Here, you may refer to the same theorists you have already discussed in the literature review. In this case, the emphasis is placed on how you plan to use their contributions in your own research.

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You’ll usually conclude your dissertation proposal with a section discussing what you expect your research to achieve.

You obviously can’t be too sure: you don’t know yet what your results and conclusions will be. Instead, you should describe the projected implications and contribution to knowledge of your dissertation.

First, consider the potential implications of your research. Will you:

• Develop or test a theory?
• Provide new information to governments or businesses?
• Challenge a commonly held belief?
• Suggest an improvement to a specific process?

Describe the intended result of your research and the theoretical or practical impact it will have:

Finally, it’s sensible to conclude by briefly restating the contribution to knowledge you hope to make: the specific question(s) you hope to answer and the gap the answer(s) will fill in existing knowledge:

Like any academic text, it’s important that your dissertation proposal effectively references all the sources you have used. You need to include a properly formatted reference list or bibliography at the end of your proposal.

Different institutions recommend different styles of referencing – commonly used styles include Harvard , Vancouver , APA , or MHRA . If your department does not have specific requirements, choose a style and apply it consistently.

A reference list includes only the sources that you cited in your proposal. A bibliography is slightly different: it can include every source you consulted in preparing the proposal, even if you didn’t mention it in the text. In the case of a dissertation proposal, a bibliography may also list relevant sources that you haven’t yet read, but that you intend to use during the research itself.

Check with your supervisor what type of bibliography or reference list you should include.

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A Guide to Dissertation Planning: Tips, Tools and Templates

Dissertations are a defining piece of academic research and writing for all students. To complete such a large research project while maintaining a good work-life balance, planning and organisation is essential. In this article, we’ll outline three categories for dissertation planning including project management, note-taking and information management, alongside tools and templates for planning and researching effectively.

For both undergraduates and postgraduates, a dissertation is an important piece of academic research and writing. A large research project often has many moving parts from managing information, meetings, and data to completing a lengthy write-up with drafts and edits. Although this can feel daunting, getting ahead with effective planning and organisation will make this process easier. By implementing project management techniques and tools, you can define a research and writing workflow that allows you to work systematically. This will enable you to engage in critical thinking and deep work, rather than worrying about organisation and deadlines. 

To get prepared, you can do two things: First, start your preliminary readings and research to define a topic and methodology.  You can do this in summer or during the first few weeks of university but the sooner, the better. This gives you time to discuss things with your supervisor, and really choose a topic of interest. Second, begin preparing the tools and techniques you’ll be using for your research and writing workflow. You can use the preliminary research phase to test these out, and see what works for you. 

Below, we’ll cover three key aspects to consider when managing your dissertation, alongside some digital tools for planning, research and writing. 

The 3 Categories of Dissertation Planning

Project Management and Planning 

Your dissertation is a project that requires both long and short-term planning. For long-term planning, roadmaps are useful to break your work down into sections, chapters or stages. This will give you a clear outline of the steps you need to work through to complete your dissertation in a timely manner. 

Most likely, your roadmap will be a mixture of the stages in your research project and the sections of your write-up. For example, stage 1 might be defined as preliminary research and proposal writing. While stage 3 might be completing your literature review, while collecting data. 

This roadmap can be supplemented by a timeline of deadlines, this is when those stages or chapters need to be completed by. Your timeline will inform your short-term plans, and define the tasks that need completing on a daily, weekly or monthly basis. This approach, using a roadmap and timeline, allows you to capture all the moving parts of your dissertation, and focus on small sub-sections at a time. A clear plan can make it easy to manage setbacks, such as data collection issues, or needing more time for editing. 

Note-taking 

Whether you use a notebook, or digital tool, it’s ideal to have a dedicated research space for taking general notes. This might include meeting notes from supervision, important information from informational dissertation lectures, or key reminders, ideas and thoughts. It can be your go-to place for miscellaneous to-do lists, or to map out your thought processes. It’s good to have something on hand that is easy to access, and keeps your notes together in one place. 

Beyond this, you’ll also need a dedicated space or system for literature and research notes. These notes are important for avoiding plagiarism, communicating your ideas, and connecting key findings together. A proper system or space can make it easier to manage this information, and find the appropriate reference material when writing. Within this system, you might also include templates or checklists, for example, a list of critical reading questions to work through when assessing a paper. 

Information Management 

It’s important to consider how you plan to organise your literature, important documents, and written work. Note-taking is a part of this, however, this goes a step further to carefully organise all aspects of your dissertation. For example, it’s ideal to keep track of your literature searches, the papers you’ve read, and their citations but also, your reading progress. Being able to keep track of how many passes a paper has been through, how relevant it is, or where it fits within your themes, or ideas, will provide a good foundation for writing a well-thought out dissertation. 

Likewise, editing is an important part of the write-up process. You’ll have multiple drafts, revisions and feedback to consider. It’s good to have some way of keeping track of all this, to ensure all changes and edits have been completed. You might also have checklists or procedures to follow when collecting data, or working through your research. A good information management process can reduce stress, making everything easy to access and keep track of, which then allows you to focus on getting the actual work complete. 

Digital Project Management and Research Tools for Dissertation Planning 

Trello is a project management tool that uses boards, lists and cards to help you manage all your tasks. In a board, you can create lists, and place cards within these lists. Cards contain a range of information such as notes, checklists, and due dates. Cards and lists can be used to implement a digital kanban board system , allowing you to move cards into a ‘to-do’, ‘in progress’ or ‘complete’ list. This gives a visual representation of your progress.

This is a flexible, easy to use and versatile tool that can help with project management of your dissertation. For example, cards and lists can be used to track your literature, each card can represent a paper and lists could be 1st pass, 2nd pass, or be divided into themes. Likewise, you can use this approach to organise the various chapters or stages of your dissertation, and break down tasks in a visual way. Students have used Trello to manage academic literature reviews , daily life as an academic , and collaborate with their supervisors for feedback and revisions on their write-up. 

Notion is an all-in-one note-taking and project management tool that is highly customisable. Using content blocks, pages, and databases, this tool allows you to build a workspace tailored to your needs. Databases are a key feature of Notion, this function allows you to organise and define pages using a range of properties such as tags, dates, numbers, categories and more. This database can then be displayed in a multitude of ways using different views, and filters. 

For example, you can create a table with each entry being a page of meeting notes with your supervisor, you can assign a date, person, and tags to each page. You can then filter this information by date, or view it in a board format. Likewise, you can use the calendar to add deadlines, within these deadlines, you can expand the page to add information, and switch to ‘timeline’ view . This is perfect for implementing project management techniques when planning your dissertation. 

Although this may sound complicated, there are many templates and resources to get you started . Notion is an ideal tool for covering all three aspects of dissertation planning from project and information management to note-taking of all kinds. Students have used Notion for literature reviews , thesis writing , long-term PhD planning , thesis management , and academic writing . The best part, these students not only share their systems, but have also created free templates to help you build your own system for research. 

Asana is a project management and to-do list tool that uses boards, lists, timelines and calendars. If you’re someone who prefers using lists to organise your life and projects, Asana is ideal for you. You can use this tool to manage deadlines, reading progress, or break down your work into projects and sub-tasks. Asana can integrate with your calendar, which is perfect if you already use other calendar tools for organisation. If something like Notion is too overwhelming, using a mixture of tools with different purposes can be a more comfortable approach. 

Genei is an AI-powered research tool for note-taking and literature management. Your research and reading material can be imported, and organised using projects and folders. For each file, genei produces an AI-powered summary, document outline, keyword list and overview. This tool also extracts key information such as tables, figures, and all the references mentioned. You can read through documents 70% faster but also, collect related articles by clicking on the items in the reference list. Genei can generate citations, and be used alongside other popular reference management tools, such as Zotero and Mendeley . 

This tool is ideal for navigating information management and literature notes for your dissertation. You can compile notes across single documents or folders of documents using the AI-generated summaries. These notes remain linked to their original source, which removes the need for you to keep track of this information. If you find it hard to reword content, there’s also summarising and paraphrasing tools to help get you started. Genei is a great tool to use alongside project management solutions, such as Trello and Asana, and note-taking tools like Notion. You can define an efficient research and writing workflow using these range of tools, and make it easier to stay on top of your dissertation. 

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Library Guides

Dissertations 1: getting started: starting your dissertation.

• Starting Your Dissertation
• Choosing A Topic and Researching
• Devising An Approach/Method
• Thinking Of A Title
• Writing A Proposal

What is a Dissertation?

A dissertation is a research project completed as part of an undergraduate or postgraduate degree. Typically, a dissertation will enable you to present your findings in response to a question that you propose yourself. It is probably the longest piece of academic work you will produce. At undergraduate level, word count requirements can range anywhere from 5,000 to 8,000 words while a Masters level dissertation can be 10,000 to 15,000 words long! 

Why are you required to write a dissertation? 

A dissertation is a core requirement of most university degrees. 

The dissertation will enhance your employability. For instance, you will develop transferable skills in inter-personal communication, data collection and analysis, report writing and effective time-management.  

While it is demanding, writing a dissertation is your chance to explore, in depth, a topic that interests you. Therefore, ensuring you choose a topic you are passionate about will make your experience more rewarding and even enjoyable! 

Supervision Advice

A supervisor will be assigned to you to assist with guidance on how to prepare, produce and improve your dissertation.  

The supervisor’s role is to: 

Assist in the organisation of the project in the early stages of preparation 

Advise you on the feasibility of what you plan to do 

Advise on methods and ethics of your research  

The supervisor is not expected to: 

Proofread your work 

Provide you with a topic or research question 

Direct the research  

Ensure that a dissertation is of sufficient quality to pass: this is your responsibility 

To get the best out of your time with your supervisor, you should: 

Check formal requirements early 

Check arrangements for supervisions and how your supervisor likes to work 

Organise regular supervision meetings and prepare work for each one 

Let your supervisor know how you work best 

Using Dissertation Marking Criteria

Your dissertation, like your previous assessments, will be marked against a set of assessment criteria which is published in your module or course handbook and posted on Blackboard.  

Assessment criteria are intended to: 

Ensure you meet the learning outcomes. 

Help you understand how your work is assessed. 

Allow tutors to focus their feedback. They will let you know what you are doing well and what needs improvement. 

Dissertation assessment criteria usually specifies what the tutor expects in terms of: 

Clarity: have you expressed your ideas clearly? 

Relevance: does your work fit into/fill a gap in existing research/literature on similar topics? 

Originality: does it offer a fresh perspective on a topic? 

Meeting course requirements: does it meet the word count / deadlines, for example? 

Before starting your dissertation, it is essential that you check what is expected of you and how your work will be graded. It is also useful to regularly check what you have written every few weeks and after you have finished to see if you are on track to meet the assessment criteria.  

First Steps

Ready to get started but uncertain how to begin? These are normally the first steps of dissertation writing:  

Choose a topic 

Conduct a literature search 

Devise research question(s) / hypotheses 

Devise your approach (e.g. if undertaking primary research, you will need to devise your methodology, methods, etc.) 

Think of a title 

Plan your time 

Write a proposal (if requested)

These steps are addressed in the tabs of this guide.

• Next: Choosing A Topic and Researching >>
• Last Updated: Aug 1, 2023 2:36 PM
• URL: https://libguides.westminster.ac.uk/starting-your-dissertation

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Dissertation planning

Information on how to plan and manage your dissertation project.

What is research?

A dissertation project is an opportunity to pursue your own ideas in an environment of relative intellectual freedom.

It also present a number of new challenges relating to the scale, scope and structure of a piece of work that is likely to be more substantial than any you have undertaken before.

These resources will help you to break the process down and explore ways to plan and structure your research and organise your written work.

A research-led university

Sheffield prides itself on being a  research-led university . Crucially, this means that teaching is informed by cutting-edge research in the academic field.

It also means that you are learning in an environment where you develop and use research skills as you progress. The most successful students tend to develop research skills early and use them consistently.

Research in higher education

Research sometimes just means finding out information about a topic. However, in the HE setting, specific understandings of 'research' carry a lot of weight.

The classic definition is that research leads to an original ' contribution to knowledge ' in a particular field of inquiry by defining an important question or problem and then answering or solving it in a systematic way.

You will build this contribution on the foundation of a robust structure of primary and secondary sources and evidence.

Differences across disciplines

Depending on the discipline you work in, there will be different ways of designing and articulating a research problem and different methods for answering these problems.

Not everything about research is 'original'. Sometimes the majority (or even all) of a research project will involve documenting or summarising information or ideas that are already available.

Not all research leads to answers. Sometimes research produces unusable results, or the inquiry leads to only more questions. Sometimes the originality of a research project is that it straddles more than one field of inquiry.

Some examples of approaches to research and what that contribution to knowledge might look like include:

• Explore an under-researched area
• Develop or test out a new methodology or technique
• Extend or develop a previous study
• Review the knowledge thus far in a specific field
• Makes connections between disciplines
• Replicate an existing study/approach in a different setting
• Apply a theoretical idea to a real world problem

This all adds up to the fact that research is a complicated topic that seems to mean a lot to academic experts but is very difficult to understand intimately when you are a novice.

As someone new to research, you will need to do some work to find out how research is conceived of and done in your discipline.

301 Recommends:

Our Dissertation Planning Essentials workshop will look at the initial stages and challenges of preparing for a large-scale dissertation project.

Our Dissertation Writing workshop will break down the process of writing a dissertation and explore approaches to voice and style to help develop a way of writing academically.

Our Creativity and Research interactive workshop looks at how to identify, develop and apply your creativity and innovation skills to the research process, whatever stage you're at. In our Creativity and Problem Solving interactive workshop you'll learn how to identify and develop your creativity and innovation skills, address problems and challenges, explore creative models and strategies, and look at how you can apply this to your academic work.

Our Part 1 workshop on Setting Research Priorities will help to break down the research process by identifying the key information that you need to have in place to develop your project. It will help you to prioritise key tasks and create a project workflow to set targets, track progress and reach key milestones. Part 2 will revisit that workflow to assess progress. It will encourage you to reflect on your project so far, identify opportunities for feedback and review your intermediate targets to ensure that you stay on track towards your deadline.

Explore this Illustrated Guide to a PhD  by Matt Might as a visualisation of research to help you identify how you can develop your research ideas.  

Our Video Dissemination workshop will give you an insight into the best practices for using video to disseminate research and communicate your ideas. It will look at styles, common communication techniques and the pedagogy of visual mediums, as well as top production tips for making your content engaging, informative and professional.

Research proposals

A research proposal often needs to encompass many things: it is part description, part analysis, part review, part guesswork, part advert, part CV.

Writing a research proposal that can achieve all these things is an important first step towards realising your project idea. Your research proposal will allow you to receive some early feedback on your ideas and will act as a guide as you plan and develop your project more fully.

But how can you explain what you hope to discover in the project before you’ve done the research?

There are a number of things that you can do to make sure that your research proposal is professional, realistic and relevant:

• Read around your topic of interest as much as possible. Getting a feel for what other kinds of research have been done will give you a much clearer idea of where your project might fit in. 
• Create a mind map of relevant topics to explore the links and connections between themes. Which branches of your mind map seem most promising as an area for enquiry?
• Be realistic. You may dream of making the next big breakthrough in the field, but this is probably unlikely! Set your self aims and objectives that are realistic within the timescales of your project. 
• Finally, make sure you follow your department guidelines and include everything that you need to in your proposal. 

301 Recommends: Research Project Design Template

Make a copy of this Research project design template (google doc) to capture the key information you need to complete your research proposal.

Research ethics

Whenever you undertake research, no matter what level you are working at, it is always important to consider the immediate and continued impact of your project.

All research should be designed to ensure that individuals involved in the project as subjects or participants are treated with respect and consideration. In practice, this means that:

• Participants have a right to full knowledge about the project and what its results will be used for.
• You should also be mindful of an individual's rights to privacy and confidentiality.
• You should consider the issue of data protection, how you will store project data safely and how long you will need to retain the data
• The physical, emotional and psychological well-being of participants and researchers should be prioritised in your research design.
• Environmental impacts of the research should be considered and mitigated where possible.
• Longer-term impacts, for example, if you are planning to publish findings from the project, should also be considered. 

It is perhaps easy to think that working directly with living participants raises the most pressing ethical questions.

However, you equally need to give very important consideration to the ethics of working in text-based subjects, especially when considering unpublished material (see also copyright).

Your department will have its own guidelines on the area of research ethics and you should certainly consult your tutor or supervisor as s/he will be able to give you detailed topic-specific guidance. More more guidance on ethics in research, visit Research Services Ethics and Integrity pages here . 

Project management

The key to completing a research project successfully is to invest time in planning and organising your project.

A student research project, whether a dissertation or a research placement, will usually involve tight timescales and deadlines. Given the wealth of tasks involved in a typical dissertation project, this can seriously limit the time available for actual data collection or research. 

Setting yourself clear and achievable aims and objectives will help to ensure that the project is manageable within the timeframe available.

As an early stage of the planning process, have a go at breaking your project down into its constituent parts: i.e. all of the tasks that you will need to complete between now and the deadline. How long will each of them take? For example:

Every project will have its own specific tasks, but breaking them down in this way will allow you to start planning ahead, adding milestones to your calendar and chipping away at the project task by task. 

301 Recommends: Trello

Trello is an online planning tool that allows you to create a project workflow. It is a simple and accessible tool that allows you to set yourself deadlines, colour code tasks and share your project plan with collaborators. View our example Dissertation Planning Trello board here and some guidance for students on using Trello (Linked In Learning) .

Working with your supervisor

Your supervisor will be your first point of contact for advice on your project and to help you to resolve issues arising. 

Remember, your supervisor will have a busy schedule and may be supervising several students at once. Although they will do their best to support you, they may not be able to get back to you right away and may be limited in their availability to meet you. 

There are a number of things that you can do to make the most out of the relationship. Some strategies to consider include:

• Share plans/ideas/work-in-progress with your supervisor early 
• Plan for meetings, sketch out an informal agenda 
• Write down your main questions before the meeting. Don’t leave without answers!
• Be receptive to feedback and criticism
• Take notes/record the meeting on a smartphone with your supervisor’s permission!)

301 recommends: Supervisor and supervisee relationships interactive digital workshop

This interactive resource will help you to develop a positive and productive working relationship with your supervisor. 

Top Tips and resources

• Read other dissertations from students in your department/discipline to get an idea of how similar projects are organised and presented. 
• Break your project down into its constituent parts and treat each chapter as an essay in its own right.
• Choose a topic that interests you and will sustain your interest, not just for a few days, but for a few months!
• Write up as you go along - writing can and should be part of all stages of the diissertation planning and developing process. 
• Keep good records – don’t throw anything out!
• If in doubt, talk to your supervisor.

Internal resources

• Library -  Research and Critical Thinking Resources
• Library –  Digital Skills for Dissertations : Information, resources and training on developing your dissertation projects, including finding and referencing sources, your literature review and creating and using images and infographics.
• ELTC -  Writing Advisory Service
• 301 -  Dissertation Essentials lecture recording
• 301 -  Dissertation Writing lecture recording

External resources

• The Theis Whisperer -  Writing Blog
• Gradhacker -  When it comes to dissertations, done is best

Related information

Scientific writing and lab reports

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Dissertations and major projects

• Planning your dissertation
• Researching your dissertation
• Managing your data
• Introduction

Managing your time

Structuring your dissertation, keeping going, finishing off and checking through, useful links for dissertations and major projects.

• Study Advice Helping students to achieve study success with guides, video tutorials, seminars and one-to-one advice sessions.
• Maths Support A guide to Maths Support resources which may help if you're finding any mathematical or statistical topic difficult during the transition to University study.
• Academic writing LibGuide Expert guidance on punctuation, grammar, writing style and proof-reading.
• Guide to citing references Includes guidance on why, when and how to use references correctly in your academic writing.
• The Final Chapter An excellent guide from the University of Leeds on all aspects of research projects
• Royal Literary Fund: Writing a Literature Review A guide to writing literature reviews from the Royal Literary Fund
• Academic Phrasebank Use this site for examples of linking phrases and ways to refer to sources.

Writing up your dissertation makes it sound like this is the last big step that you do, but it is a good idea to start writing as you go along, as the writing process will help clarify your thinking. It is also reassuring to have some words down on the page. You may have other coursework due so it is important to protect your dissertation writing time.

The guidance on this page takes you through the whole writing process from managing your time to those crucial mark-gaining final checks.

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
• 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
• Managing time for your dissertation (video) Watch this brief video tutorial for more on the topic.
• Managing time for your dissertation (transcript) Read along while watching the video tutorial.

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).

• Structuring your dissertation (video) Watch this brief video tutorial for more on the topic.
• Structuring your dissertation (transcript) Read along while watching the video tutorial.

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. Consider using a reference management tool such as EndNote or Mendeley to store the details of the materials you will want to use and to add them to your text.

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.

Save your work!  Remember to save your work frequently to somewhere you can access it easily. It's a good idea to at least save a copy to a cloud-based service like Google Docs or Dropbox so that you can access it from any computer - if you only save to your own PC, laptop or tablet, you could lose everything if you lose or break your device.

• Writing up your dissertation (video) Watch this brief video tutorial for more on the topic.
• Writing up your dissertation (transcript) Read along while watching the video tutorial.
• Literature reviews LibGuide Expert guidance on researching and writing your literature review.
• Doing your literature review (video) Watch this brief video tutorial for more on the topic.
• Doing your literature review (transcript) Read along while watching the video tutorial.
• Managing references An overview of different systems for managing your references.

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 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.

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 your Academic Liaison Librarian  for help finding it.

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.

• Finishing your dissertation (video) Watch this brief video tutorial for more on the topic.
• Finishing your dissertation (transcript) Read along while watching the video tutorial.
• << Previous: Managing your data
• Last Updated: Dec 12, 2023 11:46 AM
• URL: https://libguides.reading.ac.uk/dissertations

• How it works

A Step-By-Step Guide to Write the Perfect Dissertation

“A dissertation or a thesis is a long piece of academic writing based on comprehensive research.”

The significance of dissertation writing in the world of academia is unparalleled. A good dissertation paper needs months of research and marks the end of your respected academic journey. It is considered the most effective form of writing in academia and perhaps the longest piece of academic writing you will ever have to complete.

This thorough step-by-step guide on how to write a dissertation will serve as a tool to help you with the task at hand, whether you are an undergraduate student or a Masters or PhD student working on your dissertation project. This guide provides detailed information about how to write the different chapters of a dissertation, such as a problem statement , conceptual framework , introduction , literature review, methodology , discussion , findings , conclusion , title page , acknowledgements , etc.

What is a Dissertation? – Definition

Before we list the stages of writing a dissertation, we should look at what a dissertation is.

The Cambridge dictionary states that a dissertation is a long piece of writing on a particular subject, especially one that is done to receive a degree at college or university, but that is just the tip of the iceberg because a dissertation project has a lot more meaning and context.

To understand a dissertation’s definition, one must have the capability to understand what an essay is. A dissertation is like an extended essay that includes research and information at a much deeper level. Despite the few similarities, there are many differences between an essay and a dissertation.

Another term that people confuse with a dissertation is a thesis. Let's look at the differences between the two terms.

What is the Difference Between a Dissertation and a Thesis?

Dissertation and thesis are used interchangeably worldwide (and may vary between universities and regions), but the key difference is when they are completed. The thesis is a project that marks the end of a degree program, whereas the dissertation project can occur during the degree. Hanno Krieger (Researchgate, 2014) explained the difference between a dissertation and a thesis as follows:

“Thesis is the written form of research work to claim an academic degree, like PhD thesis, postgraduate thesis, and undergraduate thesis. On the other hand, a dissertation is only another expression of the written research work, similar to an essay. So the thesis is the more general expression.

In the end, it does not matter whether it is a bachelor's, master or PhD dissertation one is working on because the structure and the steps of conducting research are pretty much identical. However, doctoral-level dissertation papers are much more complicated and detailed.

Problems Students Face When Writing a Dissertation

You can expect to encounter some troubles if you don’t yet know the steps to write a dissertation. Even the smartest students are overwhelmed by the complexity of writing a dissertation.

A dissertation project is different from any essay paper you have ever committed to because of the details of planning, research and writing it involves. One can expect rewarding results at the end of the process if the correct guidelines are followed. Still, as indicated previously, there will be multiple challenges to deal with before reaching that milestone.

The three most significant problems students face when working on a dissertation project are the following.

Poor Project Planning

Delaying to start working on the dissertation project is the most common problem. Students think they have sufficient time to complete the paper and are finding ways to write a dissertation in a week, delaying the start to the point where they start stressing out about the looming deadline. When the planning is poor, students are always looking for ways to write their dissertations in the last few days. Although it is possible, it does have effects on the quality of the paper.

Inadequate Research Skills

The writing process becomes a huge problem if one has the required academic research experience. Professional dissertation writing goes well beyond collecting a few relevant reference resources.

You need to do both primary and secondary research for your paper. Depending on the dissertation’s topic and the academic qualification you are a candidate for, you may be required to base your dissertation paper on primary research.

In addition to secondary data, you will also need to collect data from the specified participants and test the hypothesis . The practice of primary collection is time-consuming since all the data must be analysed in detail before results can be withdrawn.

Failure to Meet the Strict Academic Writing Standards

Research is a crucial business everywhere. Failure to follow the language, style, structure, and formatting guidelines provided by your department or institution when writing the dissertation paper can worsen matters. It is recommended to read the dissertation handbook before starting the write-up thoroughly.

Steps of Writing a Dissertation

For those stressing out about developing an extensive paper capable of filling a gap in research whilst adding value to the existing academic literature—conducting exhaustive research and analysis—and professionally using the knowledge gained throughout their degree program, there is still good news in all the chaos.

We have put together a guide that will show you how to start your dissertation and complete it carefully from one stage to the next.

Find an Interesting and Manageable Dissertation Topic

A clearly defined topic is a prerequisite for any successful independent research project. An engaging yet manageable research topic can produce an original piece of research that results in a higher academic score.

Unlike essays or assignments, when working on their thesis or dissertation project, students get to choose their topic of research.

You should follow the tips to choose the correct topic for your research to avoid problems later. Your chosen dissertation topic should be narrow enough, allowing you to collect the required secondary and primary data relatively quickly.

Understandably, many people take a lot of time to search for the topic, and a significant amount of research time is spent on it. You should talk to your supervisor or check out the intriguing database of ResearchProspect’s free topics for your dissertation.

Alternatively, consider reading newspapers, academic journals, articles, course materials, and other media to identify relevant issues to your study area and find some inspiration to get going.

You should work closely with your supervisor to agree to a narrowed but clear research plan.Here is what Michelle Schneider, learning adviser at the University of Leeds, had to say about picking the research topics,

“Picking something you’re genuinely interested in will keep you motivated. Consider why it’s important to tackle your chosen topic," Michelle added.

Develop a First-Class Dissertation Proposal.

Once the research topic has been selected, you can develop a solid dissertation proposal . The research proposal allows you to convince your supervisor or the committee members of the significance of your dissertation.

Through the proposal, you will be expected to prove that your work will significantly value the academic and scientific communities by addressing complex and provocative research questions .

Dissertation proposals are much shorter but follow a similar structure to an extensive dissertation paper. If the proposal is optional in your university, you should still create one outline of the critical points that the actual dissertation paper will cover. To get a better understanding of dissertation proposals, you can also check the publicly available samples of dissertation proposals .

Typical contents of the dissertation paper are as follows;

• A brief rationale for the problem your dissertation paper will investigate.
• The hypothesis you will be testing.
• Research objectives you wish to address.
• How will you contribute to the knowledge of the scientific and academic community?
• How will you find answers to the critical research question(s)?
• What research approach will you adopt?
• What kind of population of interest would you like to generalise your result(s) to (especially in the case of quantitative research)?
• What sampling technique(s) would you employ, and why would you not use other methods?
• What ethical considerations have you taken to gather data?
• Who are the stakeholders in your research are/might be?
• What are the future implications and limitations you see in your research?

Let’s review the structure of the dissertation. Keep the format of your proposal simple. Keeping it simple keeps your readers will remain engaged. The following are the fundamental focal points that must be included:

Title of your dissertation: Dissertation titles should be 12 words in length. The focus of your research should be identifiable from your research topic.

Research aim: The overall purpose of your study should be clearly stated in terms of the broad statements of the desired outcomes in the Research aim. Try and paint the picture of your research, emphasising what you wish to achieve as a researcher.

Research objectives: The key research questions you wish to address as part of the project should be listed. Narrow down the focus of your research and aim for at most four objectives. Your research objectives should be linked with the aim of the study or a hypothesis.

Literature review: Consult with your supervisor to check if you are required to use any specific academic sources as part of the literature review process. If that is not the case, find out the most relevant theories, journals, books, schools of thought, and publications that will be used to construct arguments in your literature research.Remember that the literature review is all about giving credit to other authors’ works on a similar topic

Research methods and techniques: Depending on your dissertation topic, you might be required to conduct empirical research to satisfy the study’s objectives. Empirical research uses primary data such as questionnaires, interview data, and surveys to collect.

On the other hand, if your dissertation is based on secondary (non-empirical) data, you can stick to the existing literature in your area of study. Clearly state the merits of your chosen research methods under the methodology section.

Expected results: As you explore the research topic and analyse the data in the previously published papers, you will begin to build your expectations around the study’s potential outcomes. List those expectations here.

Project timeline: Let the readers know exactly how you plan to complete all the dissertation project parts within the timeframe allowed. You should learn more about Microsoft Project and Gantt Charts to create easy-to-follow and high-level project timelines and schedules.

References: The academic sources used to gather information for the proposed paper will be listed under this section using the appropriate referencing style. Ask your supervisor which referencing style you are supposed to follow.

The proposals we write have:

• Precision and Clarity
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• Authentic Sources

Investigation, Research and Data Collection

This is the most critical stage of the dissertation writing process. One should use up-to-date and relevant academic sources that are likely to jeopardise hard work.

Finding relevant and highly authentic reference resources is the key to succeeding in the dissertation project, so it is advised to take your time with this process. Here are some of the things that should be considered when conducting research.

dissertation project, so it is advised to take your time with this process. Here are some of the things that should be considered when conducting research.

You cannot read everything related to your topic. Although the practice of reading as much material as possible during this stage is rewarding, it is also imperative to understand that it is impossible to read everything that concerns your research.

This is true, especially for undergraduate and master’s level dissertations that must be delivered within a specific timeframe. So, it is important to know when to stop! Once the previous research and the associated limitations are well understood, it is time to move on.

However, review at least the salient research and work done in your area. By salient, we mean research done by pioneers of your field. For instance, if your topic relates to linguistics and you haven’t familiarised yourself with relevant research conducted by, say, Chomsky (the father of linguistics), your readers may find your lack of knowledge disconcerting.

So, to come off as genuinely knowledgeable in your own field, at least don’t forget to read essential works in the field/topic!

Use an Authentic Research database to Find References.

Most students start the reference material-finding process with desk-based research. However, this research method has its own limitation because it is a well-known fact that the internet is full of bogus information and fake information spreads fasters on the internet than truth does .

So, it is important to pick your reference material from reliable resources such as Google Scholar , Researchgate, Ibibio and Bartleby . Wikipedia is not considered a reliable academic source in the academic world, so it is recommended to refrain from citing Wikipedia content.Never underrate the importance of the actual library. The supporting staff at a university library can be of great help when it comes to finding exciting and reliable publications.

Record as you learn

All information and impressions should be recorded as notes using online tools such as Evernote to make sure everything is clear. You want to retain an important piece of information you had planned to present as an argument in the dissertation paper.

Write a Flawless Dissertation

Start to write a fantastic dissertation immediately once your proposal has been accepted and all the necessary desk-based research has been conducted. Now we will look at the different chapters of a dissertation in detail. You can also check out the samples of dissertation chapters to fully understand the format and structures of the various chapters.

Dissertation Introduction Chapter

The introduction chapter of the dissertation paper provides the background, problem statement and research questions. Here, you will inform the readers why it was important for this research to be conducted and which key research question(s) you expect to answer at the end of the study.

Definitions of all the terms and phrases in the project are provided in this first chapter of the dissertation paper. The research aim and objectives remain unchanged from the proposal paper and are expected to be listed under this section.

Dissertation Literature Review Chapter

This chapter allows you to demonstrate to your readers that you have done sufficient research on the chosen topic and understand previous similar studies’ findings. Any research limitations that your research incorporates are expected to be discussed in this section.

And make sure to summarise the viewpoints and findings of other researchers in the dissertation literature review chapter. Show the readers that there is a research gap in the existing work and your job is relevant to it to justify your research value.

Dissertation Methodology

The methodology chapter of the dissertation provides insight into the methods employed to collect data from various resources and flows naturally from the literature review chapter.Simply put, you will be expected to explain what you did and how you did it, helping the readers understand that your research is valid and reliable. When writing the methodology chapter for the dissertation, make sure to emphasise the following points:

• The type of research performed by the researcher
• Methods employed to gather and filter information
• Techniques that were chosen for analysis
• Materials, tools and resources used to conduct research (typically for empirical research dissertations)
• Limitations of your chosen methods
• Reliability and validity of your measuring tools and instruments (e.g. a survey questionnaire) are also typically mentioned within the mythology section. If you used a pre-existing data collection tool, cite its reliability/validity estimates here, too.Make use of the past tense when writing the methodology chapter.

Dissertation Findings

The key results of your research are presented in the dissertation findings chapter . It gives authors the ability to validate their own intellectual and analytical skills

Dissertation Conclusion

Cap off your dissertation paper with a study summary and a brief report of the findings. In the concluding chapter , you will be expected to demonstrate how your research will provide value to other academics in your area of study and its implications.It is recommended to include a short ‘recommendations’ section that will elaborate on the purpose and need for future research to elucidate the topic further.

Follow the referencing style following the requirements of your academic degree or field of study. Make sure to list every academic source used with a proper in-text citation. It is important to give credit to other authors’ ideas and concepts.

Note: Keep in mind whether you are creating a reference list or a bibliography. The former includes information about all the various sources you referred to, read from or took inspiration from for your own study. However, the latter contains things you used and those you only read but didn’t cite in your dissertation.

Proofread, Edit and Improve – Don’t Risk Months of Hard Work.

Experts recommend completing the total dissertation before starting to proofread and edit your work. You need to refresh your focus and reboot your creative brain before returning to another critical stage.

Leave space of at least a few days between the writing and the editing steps so when you get back to the desk, you can recognise your grammar, spelling and factual errors when you get back to the desk.

It is crucial to consider this period to ensure the final work is polished, coherent, well-structured and free of any structural or factual flaws. Daniel Higginbotham from Prospects UK states that:

“Leave yourself sufficient time to engage with your writing at several levels – from reassessing the logic of the whole piece to proofreading to checking you’ve paid attention to aspects such as the correct spelling of names and theories and the required referencing format.”

What is the Difference Between Editing and Proofreading?

Editing means that you are focusing on the essence of your dissertation paper. In contrast, proofreading is the process of reviewing the final draft piece to ensure accuracy and consistency in formatting, spelling, facts, punctuation, and grammar.

Editing: Prepare your work for submission by condensing, correcting and modifying (where necessary). When reviewing the paper, make sure that there are coherence and consistency between the arguments you presented.

If an information gap has been identified, fill that with an appropriate piece of information gathered during the research process. It is easy to lose sight of the original purpose if you become over-involved when writing.

Cut out the unwanted text and refine it, so your paper’s content is to the point and concise.Proofreading: Start proofreading your paper to identify formatting, structural, grammar, punctuation and referencing flaws. Read every single sentence of the paper no matter how tired you are because a few puerile mistakes can compromise your months of hard work.

Many students struggle with the editing and proofreading stages due to their lack of attention to detail. Consult a skilled dissertation editor if you are unable to find your flaws. You may want to invest in a professional dissertation editing and proofreading service to improve the piece’s quality to First Class.

Tips for Writing a Dissertation

Communication with supervisor – get feedback.

Communicate regularly with your supervisor to produce a first-class dissertation paper. Request them to comprehensively review the contents of your dissertation paper before final submission.

Their constructive criticism and feedback concerning different study areas will help you improve your piece’s overall quality. Keep your supervisor updated about your research progress and discuss any problems that you come up against.

Organising your Time

A dissertation is a lengthy project spanning over a period of months to years, and therefore it is important to avoid procrastination. Stay focused, and manage your time efficiently. Here are some time management tips for writing your dissertation to help you make the most of your time as you research and write.

• Don’t be discouraged by the inherently slow nature of dissertation work, particularly in the initial stages.
• Set clear goals and work out your research and write up a plan accordingly.
• Allow sufficient time to incorporate feedback from your supervisor.
• Leave enough time for editing, improving, proofreading, and formatting the paper according to your school’s guidelines. This is where you break or make your grade.
• Work a certain number of hours on your paper daily.
• Create a worksheet for your week.
• Work on your dissertation for time periods as brief as 45 minutes or less.
• Stick to the strategic dissertation timeline, so you don’t have to do the catchup work.
• Meet your goals by prioritising your dissertation work.
• Strike a balance between being overly organised and needing to be more organised.
• Limit activities other than dissertation writing and your most necessary obligations.
• Keep ‘tangent’ and ‘for the book’ files.
• Create lists to help you manage your tasks.
• Have ‘filler’ tasks to do when you feel burned out or in need of intellectual rest.
• Keep a dissertation journal.
• Pretend that you are working in a more structured work world.
• Limit your usage of email and personal electronic devices.
• Utilise and build on your past work when you write your dissertation.
• Break large tasks into small manageable ones.
• Seek advice from others, and do not be afraid to ask for help.

Dissertation Examples

Here are some samples of a dissertation to inspire you to write mind-blowing dissertations and to help bring all the above-mentioned guidelines home.

DE MONTFORT University Leicester – Examples of recent dissertations

Dissertation Research in Education: Dissertations (Examples)

How Long is a Dissertation?

The entire dissertation writing process is complicated and spans over a period of months to years, depending on whether you are an undergraduate, master’s, or PhD candidate. Marcus Beck, a PhD candidate, conducted fundamental research a few years ago, research that didn’t have much to do with his research but returned answers to some niggling questions every student has about the average length of a dissertation.

A software program specifically designed for this purpose helped Beck to access the university’s electronic database to uncover facts on dissertation length.

The above illustration shows how the results of his small study were a little unsurprising. Social sciences and humanities disciplines such as anthropology, politics, and literature had the longest dissertations, with some PhD dissertations comprising 150,000 words or more.Engineering and scientific disciplines, on the other hand, were considerably shorter. PhD-level dissertations generally don’t have a predefined length as they will vary with your research topic. Ask your school about this requirement if you are unsure about it from the start.

Focus more on the quality of content rather than the number of pages.

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Phrases to Avoid

No matter the style or structure you follow, it is best to keep your language simple. Avoid the use of buzzwords and jargon.

A Word on Stealing Content (Plagiarism)

Very straightforward advice to all students, DO NOT PLAGIARISE. Plagiarism is a serious offence. You will be penalised heavily if you are caught plagiarising. Don’t risk years of hard work, as many students in the past have lost their degrees for plagiarising. Here are some tips to help you make sure you don’t get caught.

• Copying and pasting from an academic source is an unforgivable sin. Rephrasing text retrieved from another source also falls under plagiarism; it’s called paraphrasing. Summarising another’s idea(s) word-to-word, paraphrasing, and copy-pasting are the three primary forms plagiarism can take.
• If you must directly copy full sentences from another source because they fill the bill, always enclose them inside quotation marks and acknowledge the writer’s work with in-text citations.

Are you struggling to find inspiration to get going? Still, trying to figure out where to begin? Is the deadline getting closer? Don’t be overwhelmed! ResearchProspect dissertation writing services have helped thousands of students achieve desired outcomes. Click here to get help from writers holding either a master's or PhD degree from a reputed UK university.

Frequently Asked Questions

What does a dissertation include.

A dissertation has main chapters and parts that support them. The main parts are:

• Introduction
• Literature review
• Research Methodology
• Your conclusion

Other parts are the abstract, references, appendices etc. We can supply a full dissertation or specific parts of one.

What is the difference between research and a dissertation?

A research paper is a sort of academic writing that consists of the study, source assessment, critical thinking, organisation, and composition, as opposed to a thesis or dissertation, which is a lengthy academic document that often serves as the final project for a university degree.

Can I edit and proofread my dissertation myself?

Of course, you can do proofreading and editing of your dissertation. There are certain rules to follow that have been discussed above. However, finding mistakes in something that you have written yourself can be complicated for some people. It is advisable to take professional help in the matter.

What If I only have difficulty writing a specific chapter of the dissertation?

ResearchProspect ensures customer satisfaction by addressing all relevant issues. We provide dissertation chapter-writing services to students if they need help completing a specific chapter. It could be any chapter from the introduction, literature review, and methodology to the discussion and conclusion.

You May Also Like

Are you looking for intriguing and trending dissertation topics? Get inspired by our list of free dissertation topics on all subjects.

Looking for an easy guide to follow to write your essay? Here is our detailed essay guide explaining how to write an essay and examples and types of an essay.

Learn about the steps required to successfully complete their research project. Make sure to follow these steps in their respective order.

Academic Research and Dissertation Consulting Test

• Coursework Assistance
• Comprehensive Exams
• Topic Development
• Prospectus/Concept Paper
• Introduction
• Literature Review
• Systematic Literature Review
• Qualitative Methodology
• Quantitative Methodology
• Power Analysis
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• Qualitative Analysis
• Statistical Analysis
• Discussion Section
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The Complete Guide on How to Write a Dissertation: From Topic Development to Defense

Defining the purpose of a dissertation, dissertation vs. thesis, choosing a topic and how to write your thesis, choosing an advisor, how to write your dissertation proposal, the dissertation committee, start with an outline, the importance of time management, combating writer’s block, avoiding procrastination, try writing every day, prioritize citing sources to avoid plagiarism, avoid unprofessional language and proofread as you work, regularly seek guidance and feedback from your advisor, preparing your defense, facing your committee.

More than 50% of PhD students have been found to drop out of their programs during the ABD phase – All But Dissertation. This somewhat shocking statistic seems to correlate with the popular construction of the dissertation and the academic as an overburdened and under-resourced student, attempting the nearly impossible task of starting, writing, and completing a behemoth of an intellectually rigorous piece of work. In truth, writing a dissertation takes time, commitment, and a lot of support.

The following page offers tips and guidelines to help you — from formulating an idea all the way to defending your work.

What is a Dissertation?

A dissertation is grounded in original research that offers substantial contributions to your field of study. The point of this comprehensive piece of writing is to highlight your competences and capacity for research within your field, analysis of that research, and application to your chosen field of study, offering content that will help advance the knowledge of your academic community. Ultimately, the dissertation acts as the final academic product of your doctoral journey.

Your dissertation is an essential element of both your own graduate education and of the academic community in which you learn and participate. Planning, executing, and writing your dissertation aids in the development of vital research, writing, and critical thinking skills, advancing your abilities to synthesize complex information, while challenging your time management and organizational capabilities. Regardless of the career you choose, or are already in, the dissertation process helps to heighten and refine your reading, writing, and research techniques. Moreover, the dissertation allows you to join the ranks of other academics and researchers who contribute to their chosen scholarly field. In this way, the dissertation acts as a final assessment benchmark for your program and your university in your pursuit of your graduate degree.

In general, a thesis refers to the research paper that is required at a masters level, while the dissertation is the product of a doctoral-level program. Both papers involve original research based on a specific set of questions, but the difference is primarily in scope, with the master’s thesis typically requiring a smaller scale. However, it is important to note that some universities use the words thesis and dissertation interchangeably; be sure to check the specific requirements of your degree program.

Moreover, both a thesis and a dissertation are different from a thesis statement. The latter involves a succinct but complex argument that grounds any sort of argument-based paper; the former, on the other hand, may be based on a thesis statement, but has an entirely larger scope, including original research to prove such an argument.

How to Start Your Dissertation

The following section will help introduce you to the beginning stages of the dissertation process. It is important at each step of the way to take your time and consider the options and decisions that work best for you, your personal and professional life, as well as your academic timeline. Each of these stages will be different for every student, and there is never a one-size-fits-all solution. Instead, consider how to apply our guidelines to work for you.

Perhaps the most important element of choosing a topic is picking something that you find appealing and significant. You will be spending a whole lot of time on this topic, so holding your interest is a great way to maintain your commitment to your dissertation project. First, think about topics that would fit with your current career or your career goals. What makes sense for where you see yourself going personally and professionally?

Next, you must consider whether your topic is meaningful to your chosen academic field, and if there is a gap in the literature. That is, you want to make sure your choice has intellectual significance and has not already been written about. During this phase, it may be useful to seek the advice of academic professionals who may help you identify gaps in research or discover a previously unknown problem that your research can address.

Your topic should be discussed with your chair or advisor, and will ultimately have to be approved by your committee, so allow yourself some flexibility in tweaking, altering, and slightly changing your ideas to best align with what your scholarly advisors have to say.

Once you have decided on your topic, you should start thinking about how to frame it as a problem that needs to be addressed, and the argument that you will be making about how to address such a problem. This requires not only research to situate your claims and your topic as a whole but also some analysis of how you will approach this problem through original research.

In large part, choosing an advisor (also called a chair or a mentor) can be just as important as selecting a topic . Your advisor should not only be a scholar in your field, but should also be someone with whom you have – or can have – an academic relationship. An advisor is there to guide you, to offer suggestions and advice on how to re-frame or re-think elements of your topic, research, and dissertation; an advisor also is there to help keep you on track through the dissertation phases – from choosing your topic to writing the proposal to writing your results to defending your dissertation. He or she should be an ally whom you can trust, but also someone who can motivate and critique you. Consider choosing a professor with whom you have had class before and have had a positive experience with; it can be more challenging to have an advisor with whom you have never worked.

Once your topic has been approved by your advisor and/or committee, you can move to the next phase in the dissertation process: writing the proposal. Establishing the importance of your topic, and the potential areas of research within that topic, will help you more easily write your introduction, literature review, and methodology (the three areas that most often comprise a dissertation proposal). The proposal should delineate the purpose of your dissertation, as well as outline how you propose to conduct your research. Having a detailed and comprehensive dissertation proposal will aid you in the long-term dissertation writing process, allowing you to stay focused and avoiding becoming overly ambitious in the scope of your research.

As you consider the three chapters that will most likely comprise your proposal – the introduction, the literature review, and the methodology – also consider the factors that contribute to that goal. This includes reading and researching, particularly literature within the last five years, collecting and analyzing information, organizing (and reorganizing) your arguments and analysis, drafting (and rewriting) each section of each chapter, and proofreading, possibly with the help of academic professionals.

The first part of your proposal is the first chapter. This will include an introduction to the topic, as well as background on the problem. Next, you will typically present the statement of the problem you hope to address with your study, as well as the purpose of the study. You will then delve into your research questions and design of your study (in a truncated form – the third chapter of your proposal will go more deeply into these areas).

The second part of your proposal is Chapter 2, which is your literature review. In this review, you will develop a synthesis of the extant literature around your topic. This will be based on studies from accredited scholars and researchers within the past five years. This chapter helps to identify the gaps in the literature, which you are proposing to fill with your study.

Finally, the proposal concludes with Chapter 3, the methodology. In this chapter, you will document how you propose to conduct the study with enough detail so that others would be able to replicate your process. This will include presenting and justifying your methodology and methods, as well as your population, sample size, data collection and analysis methods, and limitations.

When you begin to think seriously about your dissertation, as well as who your advisor will be (since this person also serves as the chair for your dissertation committee), you should also start to think about what other professors could serve as members of your committee.

Each committee has its own form, as well as its own set of expectations; however, there are some generalizations to consider when thinking about your committee. First, just like your advisor, your committee members will have an active role in helping shape your dissertation proposal, and will read your final dissertation in its entirety, offering recommendations, notes, and suggestions for changes. Indeed, your committee serves as your primary reading audience, a fact that should remain in the forefront of your thinking as you write your project.

Members should be chosen to create a balanced and comprehensive committee. Most often, this means that you should choose professors who will be able to provide methodological or discipline-related expertise. While one or some may be within your department, you may also choose committee members from complementary departments, particularly if your project is interdisciplinary in nature.

Planning Your Dissertation Work

Dissertations are daunting! They take time and effort, and planning can be your best ally in making sure that you have devoted the needed energy and time to write, re-write, and go through the revision process with your advisor and committee. The following sections will help you manage your workload down the dissertation-writing stretch, including how to outline, ways to combat writer’s block, and tips on time management.

With any sort of writing that includes complex thought, an outline is a lifesaver. For a dissertation, it is almost compulsory. First writing, and then keeping to, a dissertation outline will allow you to stay focused on your main argument and not go adrift of your primary claims. Most dissertations have a similar procedure, which you can follow below:

• Introduction with Thesis: In your introduction, you do exactly that – introduce the context of the issue that you will be focusing on, as well as situating the primary problems that arise from this context. This section sets the stage for the rest of the dissertation, arguing where there are gaps in the research, the consequences of those gaps, and how your study would be able to help fill those gaps. The introduction is essential in helping clarify the purpose of your research before diving into the deep-end of the dissertation pool.
• Definitions or Terminology: Since not everyone who will be reading your dissertation is an expert in your particular field, much less niche topic of interest, it is vital to explain terms that will be used throughout your project. This allows for an even playing field for you as a writer and the readers, ensuring an equal understanding of how you are using and applying certain terminology. Be sure to stick with the definition you give in this section throughout your dissertation to avoid confusion.

Literature Review: The literature review is an essential – if not overwhelming – element to your dissertation. Often requiring over 75 sources, most of which should be from the last five years of academic research, the literature review not only does offers a justification for your particular focus of research by synthesizing the existing literature and identifying those gaps, but it also provides a rationale for your methodological approach. One of the more comprehensive elements of your project, the literature review requires that you both summarize and analyze the extant research in your field of study.

The summary part of the literature review is not just a condensation of the individual studies that have been conducted in your area of study, but instead should be a cogent and focused explanation of the main issues, challenges, gaps, and germane findings of those studies. In this way, the summary of the current literature helps you to define the field of study as it exists in the last five years, as well as rationalize the need for your own study to contribute to that field.

Critical analysis will be a vital part of that summary, as you as a researcher apply your own analytical lens to the studies, exploring their strengths and weaknesses, and applying those results to your study’s methodological approach. This element requires you to engage with the text, not as a passive reader, but as an active academic.

• Methodology: The methodology section is where you decide, and then rationalize, how to go about finding the answers your dissertation is seeking. This necessitates deciding not only on a qualitative or quantitative study, but then choosing a specific research design. You will also need to include a significant amount of detail about how you will conduct your study – enough so that someone else reading your dissertation would be able to replicate it. Often, this chapter will include the participants you will be using, the instruments ( ways in which you will collect the data , such as interviews or specific surveys that have been used before), procedures for collecting the data, and the way in which you will be analyzing the data you have collected.
• Findings or Discussion Section: In this section, you will present the results of your analyses, typically in order of your research questions. Then, in the discussion segment, you will analyze the meanings that are created by these results. This includes the ways in which the results reinforce or subvert the existing literature, as well as the theoretical, practical, and social implications of your findings. Often, a discussion will also include specific limitations of your study, as well as recommendations for practice in your field (how the results of your study can be used practically). While the findings are an objective presentation of your results, the discussion is a critical analysis of those results.
• Conclusion: The conclusion is your last opportunity to connect the dots in your study; that is, this section allows you to summarize the study as a whole in addition to arguing the meaning of that study. Your conclusion often includes conclusions – what ideas and effects may come from your study, and how it may benefit the field as a whole.
• Conflict of Interest Statement and Further Research Recommendations: If required by your program or university, this section will explain any conflict of interest (or that none existed). This may also be a place to add any recommendations on further research, which can be linked to your limitations section from the discussion.
• Bibliographic Information (Sources): Using whichever guidelines are appropriate for your discipline, your sources should include full reference information for all the citations you have used throughout the dissertation.

Sometimes, the actual writing of the dissertation can be the hardest part. This stems, in part, from the sheer volume of writing you need to do, which can seem overpowering. To help calm those nerves, think of how you can best manage your time to write most efficiently and effectively. Consider giving yourself a weekly word count target – for instance, 1,000 words every week – to help you feel motivated. Or carve out the same day and time each week to work – Dissertation Wednesdays – which can make you feel accountable. The dissertation is a marathon, not a sprint, and you’ll want to take those 25 miles bit by bit, writing consistently each week. Everyone is different in what works and what stimulates. Try out different writing and time management strategies and see what’s best for you.

Another challenge of the dissertation writing process – writer’s block. It’s inevitable. You, a blank screen, and a blinking cursor. Whether it is because you burned out from thinking and writing too much, or simply are on an unachievable timeline or deadline, writer’s block can (and almost always does) fell the most accomplished of writers one time or another.

The key to writer’s block is to not let it stop your progress. Instead, try these methods to help loosen you up and get the words flowing through your fingertips.

• Forget writing. Focus on other elements of your dissertation that need to get done and write those down. What elements need to be in a certain section or chapter? What citations need to be formatted? Margins? Maybe there are articles you need to print. You don’t have to write every single day (or every single writing session) to make progress on your dissertation.
• Free write. This is an oldie but goodie for all writers. Don’t get caught up in every word, every phrase, and every citation. Let yourself be free from expectations and write what’s on your mind. This may be dissertation-related, or may be screed about how much you are hating writing your dissertation today. Allowing yourself to write without judgment can often get you over the blockage.
• Work on a section out of order. While some people like to write in sequence, if you’re stuck (or even if you aren’t) there is no reason why you can’t jump around. Choose a section and chapter that seems conquerable. Even if that’s writing the acknowledgements and remembering all the people who have helped you along your dissertation journey.

Everyone deals with procrastination, but how can you really make the best out of every opportunity? At the same time, when you’re absolutely worn out, how can you tell the difference between actual procrastination and burnout? Sometimes taking a break is important to reformulate your ideas or get a new perspective on your existing work.

First, consider taking inventory and checking to see if you are burned out or merely avoiding the work you need to do. If you do honestly feel that you’re postponing your work, rather than taking a much-needed break, they are several strategies you can employ. It can be helpful to figure out when you seem to procrastinate and what those behaviors often are. This will help you stop the behavior.

It may also be useful to consider why you are procrastinating. Sometimes there are psychological barriers that are stopping you from working – a fear of failure, or conversely, fear of success. Naming what is behind your avoidance can also be invaluable to getting past your stoppage.

Try creating a productive work environment, if you still find yourself procrastinating. Working with the television on or with roommates around might not aid in your writing process. Constantly checking email or watching cute animal videos may have the same effect. Find a space where you have a chance at getting your best work done.

The best way to write your dissertation is…to write your dissertation. It sounds silly, but that is exactly what you need to do: fortify your willpower and write – even a little bit – every single day. Treat writing your dissertation like any other part of your daily routine – taking your vitamins, brushing your teeth, eating your vegetables. Not only will it make it easier to write every day, but you also won’t fall behind in your research, your writing, or even your dissertation defense.

Be rational in your daily goals. You shouldn’t try to kill yourself with writing eight or ten hours a day – that’s just not doable. Instead, start with an achievable amount of time, perhaps 15 minutes to start, and work your way up. Schedule breaks and allow yourself to turn your brain off every now and then. The same goes for writing goals. Don’t try to accomplish everything in one seating. Allow yourself to work incrementally by working day-by-day.

Important Information to Consider for Your Dissertation

Once you have decided on a topic and have started your writing routine, you still want to make sure that you remain on track to completing your dissertation. This means not only on how much and when you write, but what you write and how you write. The next few sections are a good reminder on what to check in on when you’re knee-deep in the writing process.

In case it wasn’t drummed into your head enough in high school or in your undergraduate years, plagiarism can ruin you. It can ruin your grades, it can ruin your standing in a post-graduate program, and it can ruin your career. Don’t do it.

More than just avoiding deliberate plagiarism, you also want to make sure you aren’t committing inadvertent plagiarism . That means you want to cite every source you use, and every idea that is not your own. Here are some general rules to follow to make sure you aren’t plagiarizing.

• Words and phrases: If you are using an author’s exact words, you have to use quotations around those words and credit the source.
• Ideas: Even when you paraphrase – use your own words – if the information is not common knowledge, and it is someone else’s idea/conclusion/concept/theory, you have to cite the source.
• Know your sources: You always want to make sure the sources you are using are credible and, for the most part, academic. This will help ensure that the source from which you are paraphrasing has not used plagiarism itself.
• Cite and Cite and then Cite: When in doubt, cite it. It is always easier in the editing process to take out superfluous citations than add them back in. Make sure you are citing correctly – that is, according to your field’s style guidelines. There are a handful of different citation methods (APA, MLA, Chicago, Turabian, IEEE), so double-check which is used in your field, and then check out Purdue’s Writing Center , a treasure trove of citation guideline information.

A dissertation is the highest academic level of writing, and you want your language and your content to reflect that. While you may not suppress your writing style in the first draft, revisions and edits are the time to make sure you have taken out stylistic elements that are inconsistent with dissertation-level writing. Aren’t sure about your stylistic choices? Ask your advisor or go to your university’s writing center, where experts are there to help you.

• Voice, Tense, and Tone: Avoid any form of slang or informal language. Your dissertation should employ a scholarly tone to help uphold its objectivity. This often includes a lack of contractions (aren’t, isn’t, shouldn’t) as well as any vernacular that you would use in an informal conversation. Remember, your audience is a scholarly one – first, your advisor and dissertation committee, and then, the larger academic community. Your voice and tone should reflect this. Additionally, most dissertations should be written in active voice and present tense.
• Indecisive Language: You are making an argument in your dissertation – claims about how to understand or comprehend certain phenomenon. In order to augment your credibility, avoid indecisive language like “maybe,” “probably,” and the like. While you do not want to make outrageous claims that you are unable to back up, you equally do not want to appear to be vacillating in your arguments.
• Definitions and Terminology: As discussed in the previous section, you will want to define your terminology in the first chapter to allow for all readers to have a uniform understanding of your definitions. Such definitions must remain consistent throughout the entirety of your dissertation.
• Formatting and Style Requirements: Be sure to follow whatever formatting/style guidelines (APA, MLA, etc.) are required by the university, the committee, or your advisor. If you are not certain what those guidelines are, do not hesitate to ask your advisor.

Common Terms or Phrases to Avoid: Here is a short (and not exhaustive) list of terms and phrases that you want to avoid when writing your scholarly work of research.

• Universal moral judgements: “Bad,” “Terrible,” “Amazing,” “Stupid.” You are not in the role of critic or moral moderator. You are in the role of assessing facts.
• Colloquialisms, clichés, and informal language: “Something like,” “Kind of,” “A bit,” “Stuff, “Thing,” “Think outside the box,” “At the end of the day.”
• Exaggerated language: “Universally,” “Throughout time,” “Always,” “Never.”
• Gendered language: “Firemen” (instead firefighter), “Mankind” (instead, humankind).
• Slang: “Cops,” “Awesome,” “Ripped off.”

Editing for these words and phrases can be difficult when you are used to hearing and writing in your own voice. We are often not objective editors of our own words and ideas. It’s often a vital step to let another pair of eyes proofread your dissertation – whether that’s someone in a writing group, at your university’s writing center, or a dissertation editing or dissertation editing services . This will ensure that your writing is up to the scholarly level it should be.

Regularly Seek Guidance and Feedback From Your Advisor”: “Your advisor is the main point of contact for you, and you want to think of your advisor as a friend and mentor. He or she is there not only to guide you but to also help you – if you are having writer’s block, if you want to brainstorm, if you need a second opinion on an argument. Your advisor is most helpful when you keep them informed – offering progress reports is one way to make not only yourself accountable, but also let your advisor check in on what you may need help with. Don’t be nervous about communicating with your advisor – he or she most likely has been in this position many times before, and come with a set of experiences and vast field of knowledge to help you with this process.

Completing and Defending Your Dissertation

So, you’ve finally finished that labor of love, sweat, and tears you call a dissertation? Congratulations! Savor and enjoy the feeling of accomplishment that you have worked for and earned. And then get ready for the final portion of your dissertation journey: the defense. While many a knee has knocked and oceans of sweat have been poured in fear of this last hurdle, the defense of your dissertation should actually be one of the most invigorating and rewarding steps in your journey – you get to share and show off this milestone research project.

Here are a few guidelines on the steps you should be taking when preparing your defense , and advice on how to do so, as you reach the final leg of your dissertation travels.

The best way to make yourself feel confident and go into your dissertation ready to take on the academic world is to be prepared. There are a number of different ways to do this:

• Visual Aids: As with nearly any presentation given in today’s society, a visual component is highly useful. Generally, this can be a Powerpoint or Prezi. You want to consider your visual to be a way to engage your committee but also a way for you to summarize your main point. Your slides should not contain more than four to five points, and should often have a visual component. This will allow your committee, and anyone else sitting in on your defense (like a spouse or significant other, family members, or colleagues) to follow along with what you are presenting. Remember, the slides are secondary to your own verbal presentation.
• Know Your Material: You know your work. You’ve spent years on your work. But remember that over those years your content has shifted and transformed, and that first chapter you wrote back three years ago may need a good dusting off. Re-read your dissertation. Every line, every chapter. Familiarize yourself with every component, not just your thesis or your results. Each and every element should and will be on the table. You don’t need to memorize your entire dissertation but you do want to feel confident in what you have written.
• Prepare for Questions: After you present your dissertation through an oral and visual presentation, your committee will ask you questions. That’s the defense part of the defense of your dissertation. While they won’t tell you the questions beforehand, you may have some indication to what they will be asking by the questions and comments they made in your review process. Either way, you want to be prepared for the questions they will ask. How? By knowing your material: the literature surrounding your topic, the results of your study, and the conclusions and implications of those results. If you know your work, you will feel comfortable answering any questions thrown at you.
• Practice Makes Perfect: Just like with anything else in life, practice makes your task easier. You will feel more comfortable, you will speak more confidently, and you will give a more polished and perfected presentation. Speak in front of a mirror, a dog, a friend or a loved one; actually read your presentation aloud and make sure you make eye contact with your practice audience. Side benefit of this practice: it will help calm your nerves when your defense begins.

On your big day, make sure you are prepared. Get as much sleep as your nerves allow the night before. Do your morning ritual that helps calm you – exercise, have a cup of coffee (just one!), take a long, hot shower. Then, dress the part. You are presenting at the pinnacle of your academic career and you want to look like it. Make sure you have your visual presentation in at least two places, just in case (for instance, email yourself and have it on a thumb drive). Arrive at least 30 minutes early to make sure you find the room, and check if the technology is working. Invite your family and friends to the defense – having a friendly face can help you make it through your sweaty palms. Remember, nerves are normal. This is an important day! But if you have prepared, at the end of your defense, you’ll be able to go and celebrate the end of this long journey.