Writing Dissertations

Undertaking an independent research project requires you to be both a project manager and author. As such, it is important to consider six key, strategic questions:

• What exactly you are being required to do? Do you know the preferred format? What are the guidelines around structure, length and presentation?
• Why you are writing the dissertation?
• Who is your audience?
• When are your deadlines? Either final or intermediary.
• Where will you do you research? Is it primary or secondary research based? How will you undertake it?

Starting the Research

Preliminary Reading

Start reading about your topic area to gain an understanding of the current research landscape, and try to appreciate where your original focus could sit. Reading might include academic texts, theoretical models, research papers, grey literature written by practitioners and policy documents.

Consider:

• If you have basic understanding of the topic?
• What themes or topic areas can you identify within the literature?
• Are there current theories or frameworks available to help guide your investigation?
• What are the key debates or controversies in the area?
• Are you aware of the related studies, their methodologies and findings?

Your initial reading should help clarify if your research question is worthwhile and meaningful.

To help clarify your research question and what your project involves, try to re-frame your question as:

'I am trying to find out....'

Time Management

For longer projects, time management is key for success. You will need to maintain an overview of your project, while fulfilling weekly tasks and completing interim goals. Planning can take the form of To Do lists,  task timelines or Gannt charts.

The Research Plan

A research plan will help you take and prioritise actions.  It will give you an overview of your strategic questions and how they can be implemented.

A research proposal is a outline of your project, illustrating what you will investigate, why it is important and how you plan to undertake your research. This proposal can be submitted in a written format, or presented to an audience. Also, a research proposal can act as stand alone assessment.

Most research proposals require a short review of the literature. You should define concepts, outline debates briefly, showing where gaps lie and justify your question.  When outlining your methods, supervisors want to see a realistic and attainable plan, potential outcomes and problems.

Finding the Literature

When reading the literature you should have three objectives:

• Finding out what is known about your topic, the current research and emergent themes
• Appreciating the different approaches other researchers have taken- the concepts, theories, models and frameworks identified
• Identifying the methods they have use- are they adaptable for your research, what challenges did they pose?

Always use the best quality sources you can. Use the Library resources, services and training to help achieve this.

Make effective critical notes on your sources , making certain to  add your own observations and thoughts.

For further detailed information on active reading and  note making please visit our guide.

Analysing and Synthesising the Literature

Analysing the literature goes beyond passively describing information, and requires the researcher to actively engage with the research critically. You will be expected to analyse and synthesise your literature, examining how key components fit together and how these connections support your argument. Synthesising the information will help draw out themes form the literature.  A greater level of sophistication is required to show your argument.

When you have completed your literature review, it is time to start the practical aspect of your research.

Depending on your discipline and what you are investigating, you will need to decide what type of methods you will use:

• If you are carrying out primary research you might use an interview or survey
• If you are drawing together existing theories, you might want to critique or evaluate existing ones
• If you are creating a performance, you might want to show the underpinning theory
• If you want to propose the best intervention in healthcare, you might want use a systematic approach to reviewing the literature

Aims and objectives

Your research aim is the umbrella, or overall purpose of your project, and your research objectives are the steps needed to achieve it. Your research objectives will correspond to some stages within your research project, and can help show your progression.

Always make sure that your methods align with your aims.  Consider the  information that is needed to answer your question and confirm that your methods will gather the necessary information.

Your methodology should show a justification of your methods:

• that you have considered different ways to approach your research
• why your preferred methods and approach will answer your question
• that you can achieve your methods within the time frame and with the resources you have

Don't worry if your research does not go according to plan. This could be an opportunity to critique your methods, and show the limitations and challenges of your research.  A dissertation is marked on the research skills , processes and the academic rigor that you demonstrate, not the outcomes of the project.

Literature Reviews as Methodology

A review of the existing literature to answer a research question, is the most used methodology at undergraduate level. This methodology is appropriate when:

• you would be unable to generate the data yourself to answer your question
• you want to develop best practices based on existing evidence

You should review the literature in a systematic way, showing clearly your structure and processes, so your methods are transparent and can be duplicated.

Report style structures

These dissertations follow the basic outline of an academic paper.  They suit projects where you make hypothesis and your own data has been collected.  They are typically used in science, technology, psychology and some business subjects.  Their format and sequence follow:

• Abstract
• Introduction
• Literature review
• Methods
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion
• References
• Appendices

Thematic essay style structures

Essay style structures are more thematic, and suit research that analyses research or theories . It is generally used the Arts and Humanities subjects.  Their format and sequence typically follow:

• Introduction
• Theme 1
• Theme 2
• Theme 3.....
• Conclusion
• References
• Appendices

Always check your module handbook and assessment brief for guidelines around the format and sequencing of your written work.

Regardless of the format of your written work, the structure of your work should show a logical progression of your argument. The internal structure of your paragraphs are important. You should use one paragraph to develop one idea, and employ the PEEL outline to fully develop the paragraphs.  For more information on developing paragraphs  and developing your academic writing style, visit our Writing critically and Structuring your Essay and Academic Writing Style guides.

A literature review has many different ways that you can engage with the evidence. Use the Manchester Phrase bank to help develop your language for literature reviews.