How hard is it to write a dissertation? Based on the feedback from many post-graduate students, the dissertation is among the most daunting scholarly tasks.
Multiple factors may affect your capacity to write a dissertation, ranging from stress to procrastination, time mismanagement, to poor topic selection. These issues are translated to a broad thesis that takes longer than the allocated time or leaves loopholes within your argument, limiting your performance.
Read on for the tips essential for writing a dissertation in three months.
Step-by-step Guide to Writing a Dissertation
- Chunk your tasks
The main reason most students fall victim to various challenges is trying to cover the entire dissertation in a rush. When you are assigned three months, chunk your time into weeks, each week set for a different task.
Plan your dissertation tasks into:
- Research phase
- Planning phase
- Drafting phase
- Editing phase
Similarly, chunk each session into manageable minutes using the Pomodoro technique, thus managing the session without getting worn out quickly. After research, you may adopt a system that allows for writing your dissertation in fifteen minutes a day.
To follow your schedule, set targets and deadlines, with a reward after attaining various milestones. This will help you keep track of your deadlines and thus complete your dissertation before the due date.
Preferably, plan to complete your work a week before the deadline to fix any issues and compile the final copy.
- Do thorough research on your topics
The research phase is often the determinant step when writing a doctoral dissertation. If poorly done, you may end up stuck in the writing phase or end up with an incomplete paper with multiple loopholes in your argument.
Thorough research helps you gauge your argument and find the areas that require further investigation. Additionally, keep a meticulous record of the reference materials and the major concepts they tackle.
This list will serve as a reference when you are searching the materials as you handle specific topics. Proper research will help you analyze your dissertation, helping you select a topic you can manage.
- Tackle the introduction and conclusion last
The introduction and conclusion are among the most difficult parts when writing a dissertation. Scheduling these as the last items to handle helps you easily tackle them while highlighting the main concepts of the dissertation.
This also reduces the risk of covering ideas that are not contained in the body within the introduction.
- Delegate some tasks
When working with a deadline, you may have limited time to address some areas like editing. Delegating this to another party reduces the burden and helps you cater to errors you could easily miss.
You may also use tools to maximize your productivity and proofread errors, therefore, ensuring easy readability of your paper.
- Select a topic you are interested in
The interest in your dissertation topic is the heart that propels you through the developing your dissertation plan and editing of the paper. Interest in a topic ensures that you easily navigate research while discovering new information that ticks your curiosity.
- Find a conducive study environment
To ensure productivity, find a conducive environment to commit to various dissertation tasks free of distractions. If possible, the study area should have a strong internet connection and be within reach of critical materials for the dissertation.
Final Take
Completing a dissertation is among the few joys for many doctorates and post-graduate students. These dissertation tips should help you develop your thesis plan, thus creating an evocative paper.
