What Are The Steps To Writing a PhD Dissertation?
The following steps are fundamental in writing a PhD dissertation:Topic Selection
The first step is to ascertain the purpose of your dissertation by selecting a topic. It involves the following:- What is the topic of your dissertation?
- What will be the contribution of your dissertation?
- What makes your work significant?
- How will you justify it?
Define your Research Questions
Initially, you will be thinking in broad terms, and therefore it is pertinent to narrow down your focus. After selecting the topic that matches your interests, you need to narrow it down by establishing central research questions. Your research questions should not be too broad or vague but draft manageable research questions. Once you identify the research question, start doing research on it and find all the relevant information. Once you compile all the relevant information, you will have a clear purpose in mind, and you will be ready to write your dissertation.Start Writing the First Chapter
The first chapter describes your dissertation's purpose, and it sheds light on the significance of the study. You can highlight the significance of your dissertation by contextualizing it within the broader knowledge of your field. You will have to demonstrate the need for conducting your research in the light of available literature. You will have to justify that your research work is original, and it will be an addition to the existing body of knowledge. You must spend significant time writing this chapter by clearly articulating the purpose and significance of your dissertation.Write Literature Review
The purpose of the literature review is to elaborate the existing theoretical frameworks further and highlight the significance of your research. A literature review provides a thorough analysis of the previous research conducted in your field. According to the dissertation writing and editing experts' literature review should not be a summary of the existing knowledge. It should rather be a critical review of the body of knowledge and identification of existing gaps in the studies. A literature review has the following features:- Identification of existing gaps in the body of knowledge
- It saves you from replicating knowledge and allows you to demonstrate the originality of your research
- Provides the background of the study
- Increases the scope of your knowledge in your field of study
- It helps you in identifying the pioneering research in your field
- Allows you to place your research in a larger intellectual perspective and compare it to other studies
- Opposing viewpoints help you in establishing divergence and convergence in the studies
- Aids in discovering research methodologies that may be useful to your research.
It is important to remember that being critical does not necessarily mean that you will have to be skeptical about the existing body of knowledge. Instead, critical evaluation entails appreciating the accomplishments of other researchers while at the same time highlighting the limitations of their studies.
Write the Methodology
In this chapter, you will explain and defend the data collection strategies and explain how you analyzed your data. Begin by outlining the approach you selected and why it was the best option and cite the selected research designs. The next step is to highlight the stages of data collection and analysis procedures that you employed. According to the dissertation writing and editing experts, this section should not be a description of the methodology, but it should justify the chosen method and its validity.Write the Findings
In this chapter, you will discuss the results acquired from data analysis. Use tables, graphs, and charts for quantitative data to articulate your findings clearly. It is important to remember that you do not have to interpret your results in this section. Interpretation must be included in the discussions section.Write the Discussion
This chapter aims to examine what your findings denote in reference to the theoretical body of knowledge on the relevant research problem. According to the dissertation writing and editing experts, this chapter is not just a summary of your findings.Write the Conclusion
This part summarizes what you discovered throughout your research, its importance to the field, and possible future research directions. As this serves as a summary of your dissertation, it's critical to explain how your research findings will impact the academic community.How long does it take to edit a dissertation?
Documents with fewer than 50 pages take five days to edit on average, whereas full-length dissertations (100-250 pages) require 7-12 days.How do I edit my dissertation?
Students often ignore the editing part, and they think that since they have written the dissertation, they have completed the task. But that is not the case, writing is only partial completion of your dissertation, and it requires polishing and refinement by editing. According to the dissertation writing and editing experts, you need to spend significant time editing your dissertation. Let's discuss the necessary steps in editing your dissertation.Step 1: Entirely review your dissertation
The first step in editing your dissertation requires a thorough review of your research. Bring out your outline for the research and ask the following questions:- Have you built strong arguments in response to your central research questions?
- Are there any other areas that need improvement?
- You need to ensure that the content of your research paper is in alignment with the title of your study and your thesis statement
- If you think that the content of your dissertation is straying from the original topic, then you might consider making some changes to that
- Identify whether you elaborated the key terminologies and concepts for the readers
- It will help you in bringing more clarity to your dissertation
- Ask a friend or a mentor to read your dissertation to understand that have you adequately explained each term and concept
Step 2: Get Specific
The next step is to review each section separately and make changes. According to the dissertation writing and editing experts, you need to do the following:- Review each section and assign a title to every section to ensure that the points and facts are directly relevant to your research problem
- Identify that the content of each section is appropriate and relevant to the chapter heading
- Identify the irrelevant details if there are any and either remove them or place them in any other section that is relevant to that information
- Examine the contents of each section by ensuring that there is a healthy balance between description and analysis
- Review your arguments and ensure that those points provide enough justification to the readers about their inclusion. Also, provide reasons for how those points contribute to solving the problems or answering the questions raised by your research.
Step 3: Examine the Paragraphs
After reviewing the contents of each section, it is essential to review the paragraphs to ensure that they are in alignment with the central idea of your dissertation. Please make sure the opening sentence of each paragraph establishes the concept you're trying to convey and explains how it links to the rest of the conversation. It is important to remember that each paragraph should introduce only one idea. To establish a link between your ideas in each paragraph, use the following opening phrases:- In addition to this problem
- Furthermore
- However
- In contrast to this view
- An elaboration or expansion of your arguments
- Support your points with the references gathered through your readings
- Support your points with examples
- Hint at the issues that need further discussion
Step 4: Refine your Sentences
It's easy to make simple mistakes when editing such a vast text. Make sure you don't have sentences longer than three lines and double-check your punctuation. You can do the following things:- Loud reading of each sentence to check for frequent homophone problems
- Double-check your punctuations and apostrophes
- Remove extraneous words and phrases from your sentences and ensure that each sentence conveys the ideas relevant to your research problem
- Spellcheck and remove any typos
Conclusion
Dissertation writing and editing is an arduous task, and many students feel anxious when they have to write a PhD dissertation. But it is not an impossible task, and you can overcome this anxiety by planning properly and abiding by the guidelines. We hope that the above-mentioned dissertation writing and editing strategies will help you write an impressive dissertation.