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A Beginner’s Guide to Dissertation

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If you are a post-graduate student, you must be worried about the research due in the final half of your degree. In the master’s and doctoral degrees, students conduct research and do a dissertation. A dissertation is a primary requirement for the fulfillment of a post-grad degree.

A dissertation is a primary document that contains the literature review, research introduction, experimentation, data, and results of the research in the form of a book. Students first conduct the study and then write a detailed document that covers all the dissertation’s research details.

A supervising/monitoring committee analyzes the dissertation according to the rules put in place by the university. Passing the dissertation is mandatory for passing the dissertation. In case of failing the dissertation, the student will fail the degree as a whole.

Many students struggle to write a good dissertation due to several factors. Starting from choosing good dissertation topics to final formatting, some students have no knowledge about the process. This guide will cover all the fundamental aspects a student must care about to write a good dissertation. 

Choosing good dissertation topics

Choosing good dissertation topics is crucial in any dissertation, no matter which field you are from. A good topic can lay the basis for a good thesis. The following criteria can be fulfilled while choosing a dissertation topic

  1. Choose innovative topic
  2. The topic should be relevant to your field of study
  3. It will be helpful if prior research by other scholars backs your topic
  4. The scope of the study
  5. Facilities are available at the university. If you choose a research topic that is impossible to complete at your campus, then you may face difficulties.
  6. The chance for future growth in the field

Structure of the dissertation

After securing approval of the topic/title from the supervisor and completing the research work for the thesis, writing work begins. The writing process demands good writing skills complemented by good structure and proper formatting of the document. Custom dissertation writing services are available in abundance if you need help in formatting and structuring the document.

Many universities bound their students to strictly follow the conventions set by the university to write a dissertation. The rules include formatting, word count, referencing, and citation styles. The generally accepted structure of a dissertation is

  • Title: A front page aiming to introduce the dissertation title, name of author, department, and university name.
  • Acknowledgment (optional): A page to thank anyone who helped you in your work
  • Abstract: A single-page summary of the dissertation usually 400 words.
  • Table of Contents: This is to help readers navigate through the dissertation. It enlists all the headings and subheadings with corresponding page numbers.
  • Introduction: The introduction chapter provides a brief overview and historical reasons why the research question needs addressing and what is in the research.
  • Literature Review: In the Literature review, the author discusses already available literature on the topic, and gaps in the literature, and presents arguments that support the author’s dissertation topic.
  • Methodology: One of the core chapters focuses on the research methods adopted to carry out the study. 
  • Results: Discusses the results of experimentation, surveys, or studies.
  • Discussion: The author presents his/her point of view on the results.
  • Conclusion: conclusive arguments are written in this chapter about the research.
  • Reference list: The author enlists all the resources he/she consulted in completing the dissertation like journal articles, books, conference papers, etc.

No Plagiarism 

Plagiarism means using copied material and presenting it as your work. Plagiarism can ruin your grades as plagiarism-checking tools can efficiently detect plagiarized content. Proper citation and paraphrasing can help avoid plagiarism.