Dissertation Compare

First dissertation mistake to avoid: wrong topic

admin — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 05:22:25 +0000

Dissertation writing is a coursework assigned to university students as part of their degree requirement. In some countries, a dissertation is needed for acquiring a doctor’s degree. But for countries like the United Kingdom, a dissertation is a requirement for getting a master’s degree. Because one’s degree is on the line, one needs to avoid common mistakes in writing a dissertation. One common mistake in dissertation writing is selecting the wrong topic. A topic becomes a wrong one if it is any of the following: a) not covered in the student’s subject area or expertise; b) not interesting enough to gain the writer’s full attention throughout; and c) too ambitious to proceed with.

Writing a dissertation outside the student’s course is like venturing into a location with no prior knowledge of the area’s topography. It would be difficult for a student to search for information sources and create his own input. A dissertation is not just a mere degree requirement; it is the culmination of the many years of academic studies and a crucial assessment of the student’s wisdom over a specified course. So, it is a must that student write a dissertation directly related to his chosen course.

Interest could be defined as an attribute of an object that draws one’s attention. It results in a person’s taking part in the object with success being in mind. If a student has no student in his chosen topic, he would not be able to pay attention to it for a long period of time. He may lose impetus during the process, even during the writing of the dissertation proposal. If a student has no real interest in the topic, his involvement would be limited to just being able to submit a dissertation but not write a good one.

Some students may choose a topic that is too ambitious that runs out of ideas and research materials even before the deadline approach.

Dissertation writing depends much on the how the process was started – the selection of the topic. Students who want to write a good dissertation better choose the right topic.

Understanding Dissertation Proposals

admin — Thu, 15 Dec 2011 05:44:53 +0000

As a postgraduate student, you can expect that one of your most important tasks in order to acquire your degree programme will be to make a dissertation project. A dissertation formally begins when the student submits a dissertation proposal to the university’s dissertation committee. A dissertation proposal is important because it will allow the student to plan ahead for the most important parts of the dissertation. As the dissertation committee reviews it, they will determine whether there are major issues that need fixing such as:

if the topic is too broad or too narrow

if the presentation of the problem and objectives are feasible considering the resources the student has at his or her disposal

if the methodology that the student has chosen to study the problem are attainable

if there is enough related literature about the subject

if the topic contributes to the existing knowledge in a field of study or helps clarify an issue or controversy in the field

if the topic allows for continuity of future resources

The dissertation committee, composed of faculty and experts in the field of study, will then evaluate the students’ dissertation proposals and offer advice and guidance to point students in the right direction. The dissertation proposal functions as the student’s road map for the entire dissertation project. It is therefore important that you should satisfy the dissertation committees points and concerns in the proposal. The sections of a dissertation proposal generally consists of::

I. Introduction
II. Statement of the Problem and Question
III. Review of Literature
IV. Methodology
V. List of References
VI. Appendices

Creating a dissertation proposal will require a lot of time and commitment on your part. Therefore it is important that you should be mentally and physically prepared for the demands of a dissertation project, which will be gruelling at times. It will also help if you formulate a dissertation outline along with the proposal as it will further help you with the dissertation project.

Seeking Perfection in Writing the Dissertation Proposal

admin — Mon, 12 Dec 2011 06:25:36 +0000

It is not uncommon individuals to seek perfection in their dissertation writing, especially if they have been used to being achievers all their lives. That is why even if they are only writing their dissertation proposal, they would already strive to write perfectly. Thus, this causes delays in writing and researching. Perfectionists would wait for the right moment, the right conditions, and the right mood in order to write. Some even wait for the right “inspiration” in order to commence the writing process.

However, this is hardly ideal because the dissertation proposal, even though it is only a “mini version” of the actual dissertation, still requires a lot of work. Therefore, it does not sense to work only when the mood suits you. With all the stress and pressure that is the normal part of a postgraduate student’s university life, an “inspired” state of a happy mood and a clear head would be few and far between. In contrast, a dissertation project has an impending timeline and activities related to research and writing that need to be done constantly. For example, a certain chapter or section needs to be finished by a specified week in order for the student to move on to the next stage.

Therefore, in order to avoid unnecessary delays, just write when you need to, regardless of whether you are feeling up to it or not. Otherwise, you will find yourself lagging behind the timeline you have set and when the “right time” does come around, you would already be overwhelmed with so much work that you will find yourself lapsing out of the good mood you are in. If you are struggling with writer’s block, or the feeling when no word seems to appear on the page, just write whatever it is that comes to mind, as long as it is related to the task at hand. Do not concern yourself with grammar, standards or conventions at this time. You can have a lot of time to edit and revise later. The point is just to get the ideas out of your head and into a written form. You can style and shape these ideas later by applying the appropriate standards and conventions before you turn in the final dissertation proposal.

Benefits of Using Online Dissertation Proposal Samples

admin — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 08:33:59 +0000

In the United Kingdom, the researching and writing of dissertation projects could be performed by undergraduate degree students and by master’s degree students. Regardless whether the student is taking up undergraduate course or a master’s degree, the initial phase of his dissertation project would be planning, writing and submitting the dissertation proposal document to the supervising or dissertation committee that would oversee the entire duration of the student’s dissertation project task. The proposal document states the student’s intention in pursuing a research study and presents an outline or summary of the different stages or sections to be performed for the actual dissertation project.

Many of the undergraduate degree students would also simultaneously perform other important academic tasks as part of their course requirements, while many of the master’s degree students would hold part-time or full-time jobs to finance their postgraduate studies. Therefore, it is not surprising that many of those students would obtain free dissertation help from various Internet websites through the free reading and downloading of dissertation proposal sample documents. The free online samples of proposal documents are previously written proposal documents that are written by two types of writers. The first type is that the writer is an actual student who has successfully completed his document and he provided a copy of his proposal to a website so it could be used by other students who need help in writing their proposals. The second type is that the writer is a professional writer employed by the website where the sample is posted.

There are several reasons on why both undergraduate degree students and master’s degree students would download and use free online dissertation proposal sample documents as dissertation help for writing their own dissertation proposals. But the main reasons given by those students would be the benefits they would get if they use the sample proposal documents as their primary help for planning and writing their own proposal documents. If a student downloads a thoroughly planned and well-written sample proposal, he would have an effective model document that he could use for planning and writing his own proposal document. A high quality proposal sample could serve as an efficient comparative template and writing guide.

The formatting of a genuine proposal sample is based on a published style guide or style manual. The student who downloads a high quality proposal sample would be able to see the actual formatting of the document that is based on a specified style guide and compare it to the proposal that he is writing. By studying a sample proposal, the student would be able to know the formatting aspects such as paper margins for the left, right, top and bottom portions of the paper, and the spacing between the sentences and paragraphs.

Maximise the Chances of Your Dissertation Proposal

admin — Tue, 22 Feb 2011 13:52:24 +0000

Most students get their dissertation proposal rejected and have to revise or change it altogether several times before finally getting the nod of the committee. It is up to the student if or when he or she will give up. But you do not need to go that far; with the help of the following steps, you will greatly increase or maximise the chances of your dissertation proposal:

How to Achieve Specificity – Single out a specific area in your field of study. To do this, you should choose a subcategory and zero in on a particular area. You could also do this if you want to select from your work or career. The goal here is to narrow down your study and research so that you will spend time, effort and resources only on necessary and significant matters.
How to Make Your Thesis Clear – This is a very crucial step because once you get this done, the rest of the task will flow smoothly. You should state your thesis in a manner that is conceptually clear to people who are not in the field which you are doing the dissertation. To do this, write five (5) different versions of your thesis statement to choose from.
How to Follow Guidelines – Make sure that you follow guidelines or requirements in preparing your proposal. Check if your university has such and make sure to follow it. If you are confused or if the university does not specify one, draft an outline with your advisor. See to it that you include all that is needed to make your proposal pass.
How to Do More – Do not waste time and do not put off starting the preparation of your dissertation proposal. As soon as any idea comes into your mind, write it down before you forget it or its significance.

Dissertations are halfway done when their proposals are approved. The given steps lead you toward the halfway mark of your dissertation writing.

Guides for Writing the Structure of an Academic Dissertation

admin — Fri, 18 Feb 2011 13:43:04 +0000

An academic dissertation or thesis is the document submitted in support of an individual’s candidature for an academic degree qualification and the document presents the author’s research and finding about the dissertation topic. In the United Kingdom, the dissertation is usually part of the substantial project that is submitted as an important part of a taught master’s degree or an undergraduate degree.

Academic dissertations could have variations in their structures because the dissertation structures would depend on the specific areas of study or disciplines is the focus or concentration of the dissertation.

Since the dissertation would usually present and report about a research project and its findings or results, the basic structure of an academic dissertation would consist of:

The title page would usually contain the dissertation title, submission date, place of study, name of the author, and name of the supervisor.
The abstract briefly and concisely present the general overview of the research.
The table of contents is the plan of the dissertation and outlines the page numbers of each chapter or section of the document.
The introduction paragraph about the research topic and an explanation on why the topic is the focus of the study.
The body would consist of the various chapters or sections of the dissertation. The three main chapters of the body consists of the literature review, methodology, and research findings. The literature review evaluates and shows how the literature explains the information for the issue or concern of the research. The methodology explains the design of the research process and on the selection procedures that were the basis for the research methods used. The findings outline the research findings, the analyses of the findings, and discussions of the findings relative to the literature review. Each of the main chapters should have coherent links in the flow of reading and would contain brief and concise summaries of the contents.
The conclusion in the body would summarise or restate the materials presented and explained in the abstract and introduction. The conclusion would also point out the main topics, arguments, evidence, and findings discussed and explained in the body.
The bibliography or references section is the final chapter or section of the academic dissertation.