Thinking about writing a dissertation on your first day at the university might feel insane, but in the blink of an eye, three years will fly by, and you will see graduation approaching you rapidly. This writing is the last hoop you would have to complete before you can officially announce your graduation.
When you are writing a dissertation, make sure that you avoid these mistakes to make the process go smoother. Start taking notes!
Common Dissertation Mistakes To Avoid
1. Formatting issues on the first pages
The preliminary pages or the initial pages before your dissertation’s main text begins are important. These pages are often overlooked. They set the tone for your entire dissertation, plus the reviewers will see these pages before moving to the main text.
The question is, what material drops on these pages? These pages include the title page stating the title of the dissertation, the name of the instructor, the index, acknowledgement, and the definition of the important terms used in the main text. These pages must be not only correctly formatted but in the correct order.
2. Selecting a too-broad or too-narrow topic
One of the common mistakes that might take place in the early stages of your dissertation is the selection of a topic. The topic might be too narrow or too broad. Your dissertation must be focused and specific to allow you to investigate the topic in depth. For instance, if you choose a title that is too broad, you will not be able to explore the details in-depth enough to satisfy the marker. Likewise, choosing a narrow topic will cause problems as there will be very few pre-publications based on your study. In this way, you will be unable to develop a sufficiently substantial literature review.
3. The abstract is too lengthy
You might have collected a lot of data for your dissertation, and you are ready to share it with the audience. This excitement covers not only the deep research you conducted but also all the knowledge you have collected. It becomes difficult to summarize the information in a single-page abstract.
However, regardless of whether you are attending a traditional or online university, make sure your abstract is according to the dissertation guidelines. Typically, it is common practice that an abstract is not more than one page. If you need assistance in writing the abstract, get yourself connected to services like Do my Dissertation UK or others. Their expert guidance will certainly help you with crafting an appealing abstract.
4. Words from the proposal stage
This is something that happens unplanned, and if we say that, this is not your fault! As you have spent months, even years, viewing the same document. Despite the mistake being fossilized, it is surprisingly easy to overlook the changes in the tenses required once you are done with the dissertation process. But thankfully, this mistake can easily be fixed. The simple step is to use your word processing program and look for the ‘find’ feature. Search for words like ‘proposal’ or ‘proposed’. Just change them to words reflecting the concept of completed study versus proposed study.
5. Lack of cross-referencing chapters with one another
This is one of the pieces of advice often given by experts that the dissertation should flow and give a feel of reading a story. Like in a book, the characters from chapter 1 not only appear in the beginning but are referred to again in chapters 3, 9, and till the end of the book. This should be exactly how you should use the approach for your dissertation. Refer to all the chapters, linking them together. An easy section you can do is by analyzing your data. You can effectively discuss and compare the findings against those of the previous investigations discussed in your literature review. This is something that will be loved by the academic markers.
6. Lack of proper literature review
Literature review is one of the most crucial sections of dissertation writing. This is the section where the discussion about gaps and findings takes place. If the writer needs to do this, then they will have to witness many issues. Therefore, it is better to do this accurately. You can ask for help from any write my dissertation service. They will guide you on the technique of conducting the literature review to avoid all the mistakes.
7. Lack of searching respondents when collecting data
At a degree level, it is expected that the dissertation will extensively discuss more than just the surface-level findings. If you don’t question respondents enough during data collection, you won’t be able to gather enough information to draw detailed conclusions. This will limit the marks that are available for your analysis chapter. When gathering data, ensure that you ask the respondents why they gave their responses, not just what it is. This will help you in gaining a detailed understanding of the reason behind the answer. It will also increase your level of academic analysis. It is better to have a lot of data, not just enough, so investigate and keep on investigating!
8. Plagiarism
This may seem like an obvious thing, but academic oversights do happen, even if you have not planned them. Students do replicate someone else’s prose word-for-word. Ideas themselves can be plagiarized if they are not properly cited. Before you begin, carefully review the requirements and stick to them without any exceptions. If you fail to do so, this could not only have serious complications for your dissertation, but it could also put your degree in danger.
9. Invalid conclusion
Towards the end of the dissertation comes the conclusion part. This has to be written in a very crisp manner, along with giving the sum of the entire thesis. It is important to conclude the dissertation properly. Add all the points as discussed above.
10. Formatting issues
Remember! The dissertation’s formatting is as important as its content. By the time you begin writing the dissertation, you will be familiar with the formatting guidelines. But even at the peak of your degree, mistakes can still be made, especially if the document is lengthy. Make sure you have gone through the previous material written by your seniors. This will help you understand the formatting more clearly, including the preferred citation style, page numbering, margins, and indents.
Let’s Wind Up
In the end, it has become clear that all the above mistakes should be avoided while writing the dissertation if you want to complete it successfully.
When you are working hard, putting your heart and soul, and investing your time in writing a dissertation, avoid making mistakes. Keep this in mind! Once you can collect the details of each mistake, it becomes easy to avoid them.
As the editor of the blog, She curate insightful content that sparks curiosity and fosters learning. With a passion for storytelling and a keen eye for detail, she strive to bring diverse perspectives and engaging narratives to readers, ensuring every piece informs, inspires, and enriches.
