Thesis Writing

Dr. Tamara O’Connor

Dr. Mark Matthews
Student Learning Development
http://student-learning.tcd.ie
Steps in Thesis Writing
1. Background
2. Ideas
3. Planning
4. Writing
Demystifying Dissertation Writing
Peg Boyle Single
Background
why? – preconceptions - starting
Why do we write

• A professional thesis writer?

• Learn how to write
• Learn how to think
• Learn how to conduct research
• Plus much more
Preconceptions

• It takes 6 months
• You do it at the end
• You can cut and paste from papers
• No one will read it
When do I start?

Immediately – keep a journal

Where do I start?

Read theses

Do the groundwork
Ideas
message – title – abstract
Start with….
A focus statement….
• The essence of your research
• 1-4 sentences
• Get feedback on it
• Discuss with supervisor
Examples
Why do some graduates succeed and others
don’t? Is it due to the student, the department, or
both? Using mixed methods, I examine how
subject variables and departmental variables
influence the adjustment and success of first year
graduate students. The study uses data from
surveys and semi-structured interviews. (PhD in
Social Psychology)
Focus Statement Interview

Play the role of a journalist.

Using the Focus Statement Sheet
Interview the PhD student
Take notes
in pairs
5 mins
The Title
Then develop an abstract

A tool to think about your thesis/research

• 100-300 words
• Structure
• Precise, clear & interesting
SPSE Technique
• Situation: Describe the general background /
setting in which your research takes place
• Problem: Describe a problem that the research
addresses.
• Solution: What did you do or try to address this
problem?
• Evaluation: How did you evaluate the proposed
solution and what were the results?

Individually complete
5 mins
5 / Brown’s 8 Questions
1. Who are the intended readers? (name 3-5)
2. What did you do? (50 words)
3. Why did you do it? (50)
4. What happened? (50)
5. What do the results mean in theory? (50)
6. What do the results mean in practice? (50)
7. What is the key benefit for readers? (25)
8. What remains unresolved? (50)
(Brown 1994/95)
Planning
structure – thinking vs. writing – table of contents
Structure
• Outline
• Generic thesis structure
• Allocate word count for each
section
• Design sub-sections
• Table of contents
feature
• Write in layers
Outlining – Level 1

Background
Objectives
Method
Findings
Conclusions
Outlining – Level 2
Level 3
Rule of Three
• Within each chapter, repeat 3 times
– Intro. We will show ..
– Body. Show them ..
– Concl. We have shown ..

• Within thesis, repeat contributions 3 times

– Intro chapter
– Main chapters
– Conclusion chapter
Writing
a habit – how not to write - strategies
The Habit of Writing

Writing at the end of a long list of tasks – no

fixed deadline

“I can’t find the time for writing….”

“I have no energy for writing…”
Balance

Where you work

When you work
What you do
10 ways to not write
1. Open your email at the start of the day and never quit it.
2. Keep your writing goals quite general.
3. Don’t talk about your writing-in-progress.
4. Only seek feedback when you have a full draft.
5. Don’t write unless you know exactly what you want to
say.
6. Wait till you’re ready to write.
7. Don’t bother defining sub-goals – you know what you
have to do.
8. Don’t bother with the 5-minute warm up for writing -- you
know what to do.
9. Always write in large chunks of time.
10. Try and find more time for writing.
Rowena Murray
Writing Strategies

1. Book/journal
2. Warming Up
3. Write to prompts
4. Freewriting
5. Writing in Layers
Warming Up Exercise
What I want to write about today is….. (30 words)
This is important because…. (30 words)
Today, I will not write about…… (30 words)
Writing to prompts

• What writing have I done and what would I

like to do?
• Where do my ideas come from?
• How does what I read compare with my
own views?
• What I want to write about next is…
• What do I want to write about next?
Freewriting

• Writing for 5 minutes

• Without stopping
• In sentences
• Private – no external reader
• No structure needed
• Topic related to your research
• Like brainstorming in sentences
Writing in layers
• Write a list of chapter headings
• Write a sentence or two on contents of each
chapter
• Write lists of headings for each section in each
chapter
• Make notes for each heading on how you will
develop the section
• Write an introductory paragraph for each chapter
• Write the word count, draft number and date at
top of first page
Tools &
Techniques
a habit – how not to write - strategies
Tools?

Academic Writing: http://www.phrasebank.manchester.ac.uk

What do you use?

What are examiners looking for?

Look at the checklist in your guide

• Review of literature
• Methodology
• Presentation of Results
• Discussion and Conclusions
Tips for successful writing
1. Plan to write regularly
2. Make a time plan and stick to it
3. Write up section as soon as it’s ready
4. Stop writing at a point where you could go on –
makes it easier to start next time!
5. Decide where and when best for you
6. Don’t write when exhausted
7. Seek support
Steps in Thesis Writing
1. Background
2. Ideas
3. Planning
4. Writing
Student Learning Development

Thank you for your time

Visit our website at:

http://student-learning.tcd.ie