A Guide To Dissertation Writing: 10 Planning Tips For Dummies

The perspective of writing a dissertation often turns out to be quite discouraging, as getting it started and completed requires much time, effort and inspiration. The following 10 steps will help make this process easier and enjoyable:

  1. Identify the subject area.
  2. Define the sphere of your interest within the discipline you are engaged in. You may look through your textbooks and notes on lectures in search of ideas. Do some preliminary reading on the selected subject area.

  3. Put everything down.
  4. While reading, write down notions, names and facts that may become the material of your dissertation.

  5. Choose the subject.
  6. Think carefully of a topic which is interesting and fascinating enough to develop it into a research paper. Consider not only your personal preferences but also the amount of literature available on the subject.

  7. Formulate the main point.
  8. Specify the chosen topic by defining the “core” of your research; it may be a theory, a hypothesis or a controversial statement.

  9. Collect the information.
  10. Try to cover as many sources related to the subject as you can. They will make the scientific basis of your dissertation. Classify the received data to produce the systematic investigation of the object of your study.

  11. Work on the bibliography.
  12. It is time-saving to note down the titles of books, articles and other resources on the stage of collecting the information. Later you will compile these data into your bibliography.

  13. Plan the structure.
  14. On defining what you are going to write about, figure out how you will set forth your ideas. List the main points to be mentioned in the three structural divisions of your paper: Introduction, Main Body and Conclusion.

  15. Arrange the sections.
  16. Develop the basic structure of the dissertation dividing the information into chapters, paragraphs and sub-paragraphs. Make sure there`re logical links between them.

  17. Think of a title.
  18. Producing the final title is expected on completing the paper; however, nothing prevents you from composing several variants of it and selecting the most appropriate one later.

  19. Present your ideas.
  20. If you are to submit an account of your current work, remember to prove the topicality of your dissertation subject and explain in what way you are going to develop it.

  21. Plan and improvise.
  22. Be flexible: don`t stick bluntly to your plan and modify its points, if necessary. Don`t be afraid to take unprompted steps, if you feel it worth doing. Concentrate on the final goal, work and enjoy it!