Worried about Dissertation

Da.kid

I have to start my dissertation this year (3rd year) and I am terrified. I know I have not put in enough work the past 2 years and I am worried about this big time. Has anyone any advice? Is it easier than it looks?

Stellaluna

First thing is don't worry too much. You'll probably find most people in your year will feel the same.

Break the process down into more manageable chunks. Start with research i.e. doing background reading and gathering relevant information for your dissertation subject. Don't rush this stage because it will be easier to plan and write the dissertation if you are familiar with the material; it will also help you to form your own opinions and put the material into your own words. If there's anything you don't understand you can always ask your lecturers/fellow students at this stage.

Plan out the structure of your dissertation and break it up into chapters that you plan to cover and then note what key points you want to describe and discuss within each chapter. You might allocate a tentative word count to each section to have a rough idea of what you are aiming for - there's no need to stick to this but it can help to allocate more to sections you feel are more important.

Then it's a case of writing each section and linking them together. As well as going back to the literature, you might find that you need to do a bit more research as you write to flesh out points or provide more back up for a statement.

Your lecturers might set aside a class or two to tell you about the format and referencing of the dissertation. If not, I'd take advantage of the library sessions on dissertation writing and referencing. There are a number of referencing styles so just be sure you know which one is preferred for your discipline.

You'll get through it

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Da.kid wrote: »

I have to start my dissertation this year (3rd year) and I am terrified. I know I have not put in enough work the past 2 years and I am worried about this big time. Has anyone any advice? Is it easier than it looks?

What are you studying? and What did you put forward in your dissertation proposal??

Lyrical

First of all calm down and don't panic,we're only back in college 3 weeks a dissertation is supposed to be completed by the end of the year so plenty of time.It's irrelevant about what work you put in the previous two years in my opinion as your dissertation is about a new subject or expanding on a topic you've done already and doing your own research on it.

Have you got a project supervisor yet,I'm unsure are all courses the same but in my course you get a project supervisor who will help you out,tells you want he/she wants in the dissertation and organizes weekly meetings with you to see your progress.If this isn't applicable to you first thing you do is pick a topic you have an interest in,you'll surely have to confirm with a lecturer is it suitable for a dissertation.

Just remember don't put all your time into the dissertation as you have exams at Xmas again I don't know what course you're in but in my course the dissertation is worth two subjects whereas we have five exams at Christmas and in the Summer so you can't put all your focus into a dissertation.You will need to find a healthy balance between the dissertation and studying.

Hope this is of help to you and good luck to you this year .