WRITING YOUR DISSERTATION

Writing your dissertation

Writing your dissertation

Dissertation

As a requirement for an advanced university degree, the dissertation is usually the last requirement a candidate fulfils for a doctorate. Probably its most salient characteristic is that it is a unique product, one that embodies in some way the creativity of the author—the result of research and of original thinking and the creation of a physical product. Depending on departmental tradition, some dissertations are expected to be solely originated by the candidate; in others, the topic (and sometimes the approach as well) is given by the major professor. But even in the latter case, the candidates are expected to add something of their own originality to the end result.

This description of some relatively common features of the dissertation requirement applies primarily to higher education in the United States. That there are common features owes much to communication among universities, no doubt through such agencies as the Council of Graduate Schools and the American Association of Universities. But the requirement's evolution at the local level has resulted in considerable variation across the differing cultures of universities and even the departments within them.

The dissertation process typically moves through three stages: the proposal stage; the activation stage, in which the research, thinking, or producing work is accomplished; and the final stage of presentation and approval. Though distinguishable for explanatory purposes, these stages are often blurred in practice. This is particularly evident when the area in which one intends to work is known, but not the specific aspect. For example, the proposal and activation stage often merge until the project outlines become clear (Nettles, 2006, 11).

The Proposal Stage

Depending on the department's tradition, the dissertation may or may not be a collaborative affair with the faculty. Regardless, the dissertation, beginning with the formulation of the problem in the proposal, is often a one-on-one, give-and-take relation between the candidate and the committee chair. In How to Prepare a Dissertation Proposal, David R. Krathwohl and Nick L. Smith described a dissertation proposal as a logical plan of work to learn something of real or potential significance about an area of interest. Its opening problem statement draws the reader into the plan: showing its significance, describing how it builds on previous work (both substantively and/or methodologically), and outlining the investigation. The whole plan of action flows from the problem statement: the activities described in the design section, their sequence often illuminated graphically in the work plan (and, if one is included, by the time schedule), and their feasibility shown by the availability of resources. Krathwohl and Smith point out that a well-written proposal's enthusiasm should carry the reader along and reassure the reader with its technical and scholarly competence. A solid proposal provides the reader with such a model of the clarity of thought and writing to be expected in the final write-up that the reader feels this is an opportunity to support research that should not be missed.

While at first it may appear that this definition suggests that the ...