Preparing for your dissertation

It’s that time of year – exams are finished and semester two begins, bringing along with it the dreaded dissertation. I was fortunate enough during my undergraduate degree to have been an intern within ECS (Electronics and Computer Science) after my second year, where I began a research project that became my dissertation completely by accident.

However, keeping momentum on any project is tough. This time last year, despite having started technically some months ago, I was still fairly unsure of what I was actually supposed to be doing. I’ve jotted down a few key pieces of advice for those of you embarking on your dissertation marathon. Take it with a pinch of salt; it worked for me, but ultimately this is your project and you know how you work best.

1. Read

Read everything about your topic that you can get your hands on. If you aren’t sure what your specific research question is yet, read an array of literature and write down questions that arise as you go - maybe one of them will be interesting enough to become your project. Once you have your research question, don’t jump into the literature review straight away. keep reading and learn as much as you can. Then when you sit down to actually write something, it will be much, much easier.

2. Talk to your supervisor

Supervisors are your best resource for advice and guidance. Arrange meetings with them and make sure to attend prepared, make a list of the questions you want to ask so that you don’t waste your time. Some departments have a limit on how frequently you can meet with your supervisor, so make sure you check your department’s rules and regulations.

3. Plan your time

Discuss a timeline with your supervisor, set reasonable deadlines for each stage of the work and try to meet them. Setting deadlines helps to avoid things being left to the last minute, and by involving your supervisor it becomes harder to miss the deadline.

4. Don’t let it take over your life

Remember that you have other modules and coursework to do, don’t let the dissertation become the only thing that you work on. Third year is a crucial time and you don’t want to ensure success in the dissertation at the expense of your other modules.

5. Talk about your ideas

Get together with friends and coursemates and talk about your ideas for your topic. Talking to someone else can really help clarify your ideas; it doesn’t matter whether or not they actually know what you are going on about. It’s like the ‘programming teddy bear’; the idea that, when you are programming, talking to a teddy bear on your desk explaining your code helps you to avoid mistakes and helps you understand what you are trying to do. The exact same thing is true with your dissertation. Find your teddy bear!

My teddy bear is actually an owl – poor thing has listened to me talk about my work far too often

The final piece of advice isn’t really so much advice as it is a cliché. Don’t leave it to the last minute. As with most things, the way to ensure a really strong dissertation is to give yourself plenty of time to write and re-write. It’s an organic process where things improve the longer you give yourself to understand what it is you are trying to do.

The final thing! Sending it to be bound is only slightly less terrifying than actually handing it in.

Good luck!

Emma