Just the conversation about writing a dissertation can be intimidating enough. Most students fear the time when dissertations cross their path. Yet, it always comes. So, it is better to be ready for it than scared. Generally, there is nothing new to a thesis that students haven’t done before. It’s just a more extensive paper, that’s all. Also, by the time one needs to write it, they have probably finished dozens of other assignments. So the work behind it is pretty much the same.
The main difference here is in the structure, really. The fact that the former is significantly larger in length makes it a bit harder to plan out and execute. Don’t worry, though. There are tips and tricks you can learn to nail on the first try. Let’s see how to start and sum up a paper, so it’s perfect from head to toe.
Plan your time wisely
Let’s start with the preparation stage. All students must take this assignment seriously and plan their time in advance. Working on such an important paper should be your main priority. Hence, it will take up a lot of your time. It will also take various forms of preparation, such as finding a good topic, researching, building evidence, and so on. You can’t rush through any of those stages. In fact, it’s best to dedicate specific hours to all your tasks at hand and cross them off as you go.
Thus, after research and thesis building, put structuring on your list. Sometimes it can take days to complete the ideal structure for your future work. By that time, you should know how many chapters you want to have, how many pages each of them will take, where your main arguments go, etc. Thus, structuring is impossible until you have a full picture of what you’d love to say in your work or what your main question is.
Next, you can break down your writing process into a few stages and see how many hours each of the sections will take you. In addition, you can start with the first section, leaving the introduction for later. The intro paragraph can be written along with the conclusion, once the majority of all your text is already finished. By doing so, you gain a clear idea of what your paper stands for and how it looks in the end. Do have a draft of your introduction, though, to help you through the process. Also, having a well-defined thesis statement as it helps glue everything together.
Learn the school’s requirements
For the most part, all dissertations look the same and pursue the same purpose. Yet, it won’t hurt you to check your school requirements and regulations in regard to thesis writing. For instance, you will see that an abstract is an absolute must for this type of work. You’ll also learn how to write a title page, what formats you should follow, or what a table of content must look like. Overall, when unsure, always come back to the very beginning, thus, to the instructions, in this case.
Draft an introduction
As per usual, all academic papers start with an introduction. Be aware, though, that this is the beginning of your text, not the dissertation itself. Lots of things like an abstract or an acknowledgment page can precede the intro paragraph. Yet, the text starts here, and it’s your first and maybe only chance to make a good impression. An introduction should include a question at hand, a thesis statement, and a brief description of the issue.
Remember that the right structure of the introduction is just as important as a well-structured text. In addition, consider adding a short map of what to expect in the text below. Thus, provide your readers with a summary of each chapter, outlining their nature and main arguments. Such an overview can help readers to orient themselves in the text better and set their expectations right.
Literature review
More often than not, dissertations have a section with a literature review that proceeds the introduction. Now, this section can be optional. Read the instructions for the assignment one more time to see what your school expects from you here. Still, having such a section can be helpful even for writers. For one, you get to analyze all your main sources and reevaluate what scholars have to say about your main argument.
Overall, this section does several things for you at once. For example, it demonstrates the in-depth research you’ve done. In fact, your supervisors will be able to tell whether you have done enough research or not just by looking at this section. Next, it shows off your analytical skills. It’s not enough to summarize the sources. One needs to put them to work, so to speak. Thus, you get to compare them, outline main points, or argue their ideas. In addition, this section should explain how the given sources will help further explore the main questions of the dissertation. Hence, a student must establish a clear connection between the literature review and the main body of the text.
Main body
The main body of a thesis should consist of at least two or three chapters divided into several sections. Each of the chapters should have a clear division and a title. It’s important to maintain the connection and relevance among all the sections in the text. Yet, you should keep each section original, so you don’t repeat yourself. Moreover, each section should have its own main question set aside along with the thesis statement given in the introduction. It’s not the easiest part to compete, and, of course, takes the most time in making. So you can pay for essay to get flawless writing worth the highest grade. Most writing services can provide a wide range of services, from structuring and outlining to editing.
Summary
A good conclusion should sum up nicely the main arguments given in the text while also answering the thesis statements. Thus, it’s crucial to write this part of your dissertation as perfectly as you can. Though, don’t forget that you can contact professional writers to order essay or just a single section of the work. Many students struggle with writing a strong summary that recapitulates all the text’s main points. Hence, they often turn for help to those who have more experience in the area.
