How to prevent the length of your dissertation from intimidating you?

1)      Does the thought of writing a dissertation intimidate you because you think you can’t write twenty thousand words or may be more? 

2)      Are you not going for your Master’s degree or PhD because you think you won’t be able to write a long dissertation that will contain hundreds of pages?

Most, if not all, students feel intimidated when they think about writing dissertations.  It’s a false perception that your dissertation has to be 200 or 300 pages long or that it should at least have 20 or 30 thousand words.  What in reality intimidates these students is their speculation, not dissertation.  But what if you actually have to write a long dissertation that should contain at least 300 pages?  We will discuss this as well in this article below.

Don’t let Dissertation Intimidate You:

• You need to understand that the length of dissertation depends on your area of study.  If you are doing your Master’s or PhD in Psychology then your guidelines will be completely different as compared to someone who is doing his Master’s or PhD in English. 

• Also, writing about something that you enjoy in your field will keep you engaged and you will have your desired number of words or pages before you know it.  Therefore, write about something you find interesting.

• You must stop speculating and procrastinating.  You might have to write may be 70 or 80 pages maximum and you are getting intimidated just by thinking that you will have to write at least 200 pages.  Check university guidelines for length and also consult with your advisor.  Don’t let your assumptions preoccupy you completely. 

Long Dissertation or Short – Shouldn’t Matter:

Now, you have to write a dissertation and let’s say you have checked your university guidelines and also consulted with your advisor and you have to write 200 pages or say 50000 words.  If you think that it won’t be possible then who should be blamed – you or dissertation?  You need to understand that you were not arbitrarily given 200 pages to write.  If you have been given 200 pages to write then it means there is enough information available in your area of study that after thorough research you can write the desired number of pages.  Therefore, if you think you won’t be able to collect ample matter to write your dissertation then your research skills should be blamed, not dissertation.

The structure of your dissertation is designed in such a way that you eventually end up writing the required number of words or pages.  Find out that what each chapter or part of your dissertation requires.  You will notice that your dissertation will continue to extend as you study.  You must write about something that you enjoy in your area of study as it will keep you engaged and motivated.

Therefore, you must:

• Find out the exact length for your dissertation from your advisor.
• Choose a topic you find interesting as it will keep you engaged.
• Understand the structure of your dissertation thoroughly that what each chapter requires.
• Do thorough research as this is the key to your success.
• Collect ample matter for your dissertation.
• Stay focused and keep reminding yourself that whether 20 pages or 200 pages, it doesn’t matter.

You are now on your way to successfully completing your dissertation.

Dissertation Doesn’t Intimidate You Anymore – But Somehow Stuck Now?

So, you have done your research, have ample matter, you know you can do it as you proceed step by step.  But now you are still, somehow, stuck and don’t know how to proceed further.  Remember, you must avoid verbosity and can’t just add words to meet the required length.  You can’t put more words in just to extend your dissertation as it may lower your grade.  The quality of content is the most important thing and it must be maintained.  Follow these two tips to complete your dissertation successfully:

1)      If you are disagreeing with someone then mention more examples that why their argument is weak.  Try to make your argument or position stronger by adding more examples.  Adding pros and cons is an excellent way of adding quality information to your dissertation.

2)      Another important thing you can do is to ask a friend or someone, who doesn’t know your topic, to read it.  A lot of times we don’t include information that we think is basic or not too important.  But it might not be basic or unimportant for others.  After they read your dissertation, they will be able to guide you where you don’t make sense.  It will enable you to add quality matter to your dissertation to further extend it.

Final Thoughts:

“Writing dissertation is impossible” is a myth which must be debunked.  Fear of dissertation begins with speculations.  Check your university guidelines and consult with your advisor about the length of your dissertation before getting intimidated.  That certainly doesn’t mean that you can feel intimidated after you know the required length for your dissertation.  If you have been given a specific number of pages or words to write then it means there is sufficient information available in your area of study and after thorough research you can complete your dissertation successfully.  Therefore, whether you have been given 20 pages or 200 pages, it shouldn’t be a problem at all.  If you still feel intimidated then you must blame your research skills, not dissertation.  If you get stuck somewhere, somehow, then you should research a bit more and add more examples to make your position or argument stronger.  Also, ask someone to read it who doesn’t know your topic as they will be able to let you know where you don’t make sense.  It will allow you to add more quality matter to your dissertation and improve its content.

You are on your way to completing your dissertation successfully as you now know that whether 30 pages or 300 pages - it doesn’t matter!!!