motivation der dissertation

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8 Motivational Tips for Dissertation Writing

By  Elisa Modolo

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Writing a dissertation is a grueling process that does not just require academic prowess, an excellent writing style and mastery of a very specific area of knowledge. It also demands discipline (in setting a writing schedule), perseverance (in keeping that schedule) and motivation (to get the writing done and the project completed).

The beginning of the academic year, with its array of looming deadlines, administrative procedures and mandatory adviser/graduate students/department meetings, can make it difficult to find motivation and hold on to it. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its utter disruption of normal operations, exacerbates this problem even further.

So, if you need additional motivation in these trying times, maybe a practice I followed when writing my own dissertation can help. I call it Motivational Post-it: a series of brief slogans to write on Post-it notes and put all over your desk or workstation, so you can see them every time you sit down to work. Here are some of mine.

Start with one (line/page). The idea of writing what may amount to hundreds of pages can feel disheartening, especially if you just started your project. So, if you find yourself staring at a white page while the white page stares back at you, don't think about the arduous work ahead. Focus on the present rather than the future. Start with one line or page. One is better than zero, and the lines, as well as pages, will accumulate over time if you keep it going regularly. Breaking down the work in more manageable chunks will get you writing and help you push through your writer's block.

Obsessing is not progressing. This is for all the perfectionists out there. I know it is not realistic to just stop obsessing on each line/quote/passage if you have done it for years and that is precisely what makes you great in an academic environment. Been there, done that! Thus, I propose what I call a “timed obsession”: leave a brief period -- such as three days -- out of the allotted time to obsess over the details of a specific chapter or phase of the project. Then, whether that chapter/project is now up to your standards or not, after your timed obsession, you let it go . You send it in as it is.

Finished is better than perfect. This is again along the lines of perfectionism, but it applies more broadly to the dissertation in its entirety rather than to the single chapters. Your dissertation is not (yet) an academic book. It has to pass the scrutiny of your dissertation committee -- not be published by a prestigious academic publishing house. Even if you wish to publish it in the future, that is not your goal right now.

Remember: the perfect dissertation does not exist, and a good dissertation is a finished or written dissertation. Prioritize writing all the chapters or completing all the experiments or sets of data rather than spending precious time refining small details in already written chapters.

Interruptions happen. When creating your writing schedule, try to plan with reasonable expectations on the amount and quality of your writing. That means you will need to accommodate the fact that some days you will exceed your writing goals, and some days you will not reach them, so your schedule will have to be adjusted accordingly.

Remember also to account for interruptions: it is normal and human to feel physically exhausted and/or emotionally drained in the middle of the daily emergency that is COVID-19. Recognize that such times will come and that you need a writing schedule flexible enough to allow you to get back on track without feeling overwhelmed.

Work backward. Write your introduction at the end. The intro to your entire dissertation? After you have written all the chapters, so you know precisely where you are going and which considerations to highlight. The intro to each single chapter? Again, after you have conducted your analysis, so you know which points you want your readers to concentrate on. In this way, you will create a more compelling text and avoid losing writing time at the very beginning that should be dedicated to the meat of your argument. (Note: This approach may not apply to those dissertations that acquire a linear approach.)

The most you can do is your best. Give it your best shot. Still feeling like your argument could have been more convincing or better framed? You did what you could, so you are at peace with your conscience. You cannot do more than your best.

Celebrate your accomplishments. Celebrate your achievements to feed your motivation. You sent your chapter in? Take one day to destress -- possibly with some pampering -- and celebrate this milestone. You reached your writing goals for today? Buy yourself a treat and/or your favorite latte and take a walk outside.

You may be tempted to capitalize on the adrenaline rush of completion or on being in the working/productive mind-set and try to tackle the next topic, but that is a recipe for burnout in the long run. Recognizing that you are progressing and getting closer to your main goal provides immediate reward and helps you envision your objective of completing a dissertation as feasible and attainable.

Why do you like it? If you got midway through your dissertation and are now feeling stuck, try focusing on the part of your project that you enjoy the most. That might be the close analysis of a particularly poignant passage or the application of a specific theory, method or approach to your data. If possible, see if you can start writing the chapter you are stuck on not from the beginning but from the portion that speaks to you the most.

Ask yourself: Which part of this study am I most looking forward to writing/dealing with? Then go there. The rest, the connective tissue between sections, will come. The goal is to get you going.

It can also be useful to just look at the beginning of your journey: Why did you choose this project? Focus on the reasons that got you interested in it in the first place. Remember the enthusiasm you felt when you started? The eagerness to jump right in? Tap in to that to motivate you to bring your project to the finish line.

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Nie den Fokus verlieren: Motivation für die Dissertation

Eine Dissertation ist der Gipfel einer akademischen Karriere. Der Weg zur Doktorwürde ist dabei vergleichbar mit einer herausfordernden Bergtour: Am Fuße des Berges blickt man zum Gipfel, der auf den ersten Blick unendlich weit entfernt scheint. Man fragt sich, ob es all die Anstrengungen, Zeit und Mühen wert ist, dorthin zu gelangen. Vielleicht beschleichen einen auch Zweifel, ob man es überhaupt wagen sollte, sich auf den beschwerlichen Weg zum Gipfel zu machen, ob die eigenen Fähigkeiten ausreichen.

Das Ziel der Dissertation fokussieren

Meilensteine zur motivation festlegen, etappensiege feiern als motivationshilfe, effektive arbeitszeiten verbindlich festlegen, kontinuierlich schreiben, die balance finden.

Wer gleich losrennt, wird am Ende seiner Kräfte sein, bevor er auch nur in die Nähe des Gipfels kommt. Wer hingegen in seinem eigenen Tempo Schritt für Schritt den Berg besteigt, sich Etappenziele setzt und deren Erreichen feiert, hat gute Chancen, es zu schaffen. Dabei gilt es, den Blick sowohl auf das Ziel als auch auf die bereits erfolgreich bewältigte Wegstrecke zu richten.

Dieser Beitrag liefert eine Motivationshilfe zur Dissertation und zeigt auf, wie man erfolgreich den Gipfel der akademischen Karriere erklimmt. Eine gut strukturierte  Planung einer Dissertation  ist dabei sehr hilfreich.

Die Basis der Motivation, eine Dissertation zu verfassen, ergibt sich aus dem Ziel, das man mit der Dissertation verfolgt. „Wenn man später in schwierige Phasen der Promotion gerät, ist es in der Regel das Wofür, das über Durchbeißen oder Abbrechen mitentscheidet.“ (Vuran/Seide, 2017).

Entscheidend ist dabei, mit sich selbst ehrlich zu sein und die wahren Beweggründe zu benennen. Persönliche Eitelkeit, der Wunsch, seinem Namen einen akademischen Titel hinzuzufügen, ist meist keine solide Grundlage für eine erfolgreiche Dissertation und keine gute Motivation. Der Wunsch, durch eine Doktorarbeit drohender Arbeitslosigkeit zu entgehen oder den Berufseinstieg zu verzögern, ist ebenfalls nicht der beste Grund. Dies betont unter anderem Jesse in seinen Zehn Anregungen für Doktoranden . Das Bedürfnis, selbst einen echten Mehrwert zur Forschung zu liefern, ist hingegen meist eine belastbares Motivation, die einen auf dem Weg zur Promotion tragen kann.

Diese grundsätzliche Motivation sollte man konkretisieren und verschriftlichen: „Ich leiste einen wichtigen Beitrag zur wissenschaftlichen Diskussion von XY.“, kann zum Beispiel ein solches verschriftlichtes Motiv sein. Diese Zielvorstellung sollte in großen Lettern den künftigen Arbeitsplatz zieren. So behält man sein wahres Ziel stets vor Augen.

Gleiches gilt für die Fragestellung der Dissertation. Auch sie gilt es auszuformulieren und dann gut lesbar am Schreibtisch, im Labor oder wo auch immer das  Schreiben  an der Doktorarbeit absolviert wird, zu platzieren. Diese Leitsätze, die zentrale Botschaft der Motivation sowie die Forschungsfrage, sind quasi das Gipfelkreuz, auf das man während des beschwerlichen Wegs der Promotion immer wieder den Blick richtet.

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Das Ziel der Doktorarbeit hat man nun klar und deutlich vor Augen – doch der Weg dorthin ist weit und führt nicht immer geradeaus. Daher ist es wichtig, bereits zu Beginn Meilensteine festzulegen und deren Erreichen zu feiern. Andernfalls bekommt man schnell den Eindruck, dass noch unendlich viel vor einem liegt und bekommt leicht Panik. Panik jedoch ist ein Killer für die Motivation und Leistung. Denn aufgrund biochemischer Vorgänge im Körper lähmen Stress und Angst die Kreativität und Leistungsfähigkeit, wie das Yerkes-Dodson-Gesetz beschreibt (Krengel, 2013). Das kann sogar zu einer  Schreibblockade führen.

Diesem Stress kann man entgegenwirken, wenn man realistische Zwischenziele anvisiert und sich gleichzeitig für das Erreichen von Zwischenzielen angemessen belohnt. Dabei kann es als Hilfe für die Motivation nützlich sein, diese Ziele ebenso wie die Leitsätze zur Dissertation zu visualisieren, so dass sie einem beim  Dissertation Schreiben stets vor Augen sind. Auf diese Weise wird zudem sichergestellt, dass der rote Faden der Forschungsarbeit nicht verloren geht. Der Weg zum Ziel bekommt Struktur, so dass man sich während der oft jahrelangen Auseinandersetzung mit der Forschungsfrage nicht verzettelt.

Das Festlegen realistischer Ziele hat einen wichtigen psychologischen Effekt, denn Motivation entsteht unter anderem aus Erfolgserlebnissen. Einzelne Punkte auf einer To do-Liste abhaken zu können, gibt ein positives Gefühl und gleichzeitig einen Schub für die eigene Motivation, die nächste Aufgabe anzugehen. Wenn man also Aufgaben wie „ Übersetzung von xy anfertigen“ oder „ Audio-Transkription verschriftlichen“, oder am Ende „ Layout “ oder „ Plagiatsprüfung “ auf einer langen Liste abhaken kann, schenkt man sich selbst Glückshormone.

Dazu kann es hilfreich sein, die erreichten Ziele anderen Menschen zu präsentieren – etwa im Rahmen von Arbeitsgruppen. Oder man führt ein persönliches Dissertationstagebuch, in dem jeden Tag stichwortartig der eigene Fortschritt festgehalten wird.

Beides führt dazu, die gewählten Pfade immer wieder kritisch zu hinterfragen. Führt dieser Weg wirklich zum Ziel? Oder ist das ein unnötiger Umweg, vielleicht sogar eine Sackgasse? Auch dazu ist ein Austausch anlässlich erreichter Ziele sowohl mit dem Betreuer  als auch mit anderen Doktoranden geeignet. Besser frühzeitig einen Irrweg als solchen entlarven und umkehren, als stur einem einmal eingeschlagenen Weg folgen und deswegen wertvolle Zeit und Kraft verlieren.

Das richtige Arbeitsumfeld für die Dissertation schaffen

Für den richtigen Fokus sorgen nicht nur die Plakate zum Promotionsziel, zur zentralen Forschungsfrage sowie zu den anvisierten Meilensteinen. Darüber hinaus sollte der Arbeitsplatz, an dem die Hauptarbeit an der Dissertation geleistet wird, ein Rückzugsort sein, an dem Ruhe und Ordnung herrschen. Es ist wichtig, anhand äußerer Bedingungen klare Strukturen für den Arbeitsprozess zu schaffen. Ganz praktisch bedeutet dies zum Beispiel, den Schreibtisch ordentlich zu halten oder nach getaner Arbeit aufzuräumen, so dass man am nächsten Tag nicht – wortwörtlich – vor einem Berg an Arbeit zurückschreckt.

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Die Promotion stellt höchste Anforderungen an die Selbstdisziplin und Selbstorganisation der Doktoranden. Oft ist es dabei hilfreich, mit sich selbst feste Arbeitszeiten und Termine zu vereinbaren und diese in einem gut sichtbar platzierten Kalender schriftlich festzuhalten. Auf diese Weise schafft man Verbindlichkeit und einen festen zeitlichen Rahmen. Es gilt die Faustformel: „Jedes Mal, wenn du eine Handlung aufschiebst, entfernst du dich ein Stück mehr davon.“ (Bücher, 2014)

Während der Arbeitszeit sollte man Ablenkungen durch Telefon, E-Mails, Apps vermeiden und sich ganz auf die Arbeit konzentrieren. Dazu wird empfohlen, eher kürzere, effektive Arbeitsphasen einzuplanen.

Der Prozess der Promotion ist ein Marathon, kein Sprint. Dementsprechend ist es wichtig, sich den Weg zum Ziel und die eigene Kraft realistisch einzuteilen und dabei auch immer wieder Freiräume einzuplanen, regelrecht Urlaub von der Dissertation zu machen. Bewegung an der frischen Luft, Sport, gemeinsame Zeit mit Familie und Freunden sind wichtige Motivations-Booster, die den Kopf frei machen und die Akkus wieder aufladen.

Doktorarbeiten sind zu umfangreich, als dass man quasi wie beim  Fazit Schreiben die eigene Forschung herunterschreiben könnte, nachdem man alle Erkenntnisse zusammengetragen hat. Vielmehr sollte das Schreiben Teil des Forschungsprozesses sein. Daher sollte man möglichst früh mit der Verschriftlichung der eigenen Forschungsergebnisse beginnen und den Prozess des Schreibens kontinuierlich fortführen. So vermeidet man, sich eines Tages einer riesigen Materialsammlung gegenüberzusehen, die dann in ihrer Fülle so gar nicht mehr aufs Papier zu bringen ist. Dazu kommen die Organisationsprobleme mit dem Material und den eigenen Notizen. Auf diese Art und Weise kommt es schnell zu Schusseligkeiten. Schließlich muss man eine Plagiatsprüfung   machen, um wieder Sicherheit zurückzuerlangen. Darüber hinaus ist es auch eine große Motivationshilfe zu sehen, dass die eigene Doktorarbeit wächst und gedeiht, und wieder: dass man seinem Ziel Schritt für Schritt – Seite für Seite – näherkommt.

Wunderbar, wenn man sich mit großem Forschungseifer auf das Abenteuer Dissertation einlässt. Bei allem Ehrgeiz und Fleiß ist es jedoch wichtig, die eigenen Kräfte richtig einzuschätzen und sich nicht zu überfordern. Dabei ist die Rückbesinnung auf den visualisierten roten Faden eine große Hilfe. Ansonsten gerät man schnell in einen Strudel aus immer weiter und weiter führenden Gedanken, der einen vom richtigen Weg abbringen.

Professor Wolfgang Leidhold von der Universität zu Köln nennt dies das „Drama der Peripherie des Wissens“. Er stellt sich das eigene Wissen als eine Kugel vor. Je mehr die eigene Wissenskugel an Umfang gewinnt, desto größer ist ihre Außenfläche. Sprich: Je mehr Wissen man hat, desto mehr Kontakt hat man auch zu dem, das man (noch) nicht weiß. Dies impliziert die Versuchung, die eigene Wissenskugel immer weiter auszudehnen – und auf diese Weise letztlich nie wirklich mit der Dissertation fertig zu werden. Es gilt also, sich bewusst auf einen sinnvollen Umfang zu beschränken, der akademischen Ansprüchen genügt und gleichzeitig in einem angemessenen Zeitraum als Doktorarbeit zu bewältigen ist. das bedeutet dann aber auch, das eine oder andere Buch nur zu überfliegen und nicht zu lesen.

Wer eine Promotion anstrebt, hat eine anstrengende, entbehrungsreiche Zeit vor sich. Denn wer den Gipfel erklimmen will, muss sich bergauf kämpfen. Hinfallen, wieder aufstehen, Rückschritte und Irrwege verkraften – das gehört dazu. Selbst wenn man fokussiert und strukturiert arbeitet und Motivationsfallen vermeidet, bleibt die Zeit der Promotion eine schwierige Lebensphase. Es geht also nicht nur darum, sich auf dem akademischen Fachgebiet weiterzuentwickeln, sondern auch darum, an dieser Herausforderung persönlich zu wachsen: eigene Strategien zu entwickeln, mit Frust und Unlust umzugehen und Versagensängste zu überwinden.

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Bücher, Norman (2014) : Abenteuer Motivation: Lebensimpulse des Extremläufers Norman Bücher, Berlin.

Krengel, Martin (2013) : Golden Rules: Erfolgreich Lernen und Arbeiten, 4. Auflage Lauchhammer.

Vuran, Atilla/Seide, Gunnar (2017) : Promovieren heißt scheitern, Offenbach.

Weiterführende Literatur:

Bauer, Kristin (2017) : Kleines Handbuch zum erfolgreichen Verfassen und Vollenden einer Dissertation, Hamburg.

Glatthorn, Allan A./Joyner, Randy L. (2013) : Writing the Winning Thesis Or Dissertation: A Step-by-Step Guide, 3rd Edition, Thousand Oaks.

Martens, Jens-Uwe/Kuhl, Julius (2013) : Die Kunst der Selbstmotivierung: Neue Erkenntnisse der Motivationsforschung praktisch nutzen, Stuttgart.

Stock Seffen et.al. (Hrsg.) (2013) : Erfolgreich promovieren: Ein Ratgeber von Promovierten für Promovierende, 3. Auflage Berlin/Heidelberg.

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Speaker 1: Hallo und herzlich willkommen zu einem weiteren G-Writers Video Tutorial. G-Writers ist eine akademische Agentur, die sich auf Coachings, Lektorate und die Unterstützung bei der Erstellung der wissenschaftlichen Texte spezialisiert und konkretisiert hat. Heute wollen wir uns mit dem Thema Dissertation beschäftigen. Ein Thema, mit dem sich sicherlich viele von Ihnen wahrscheinlich nur wenig oder vielleicht auch nur einmal im Leben beschäftigen werden. Nichtsdestotrotz eine ganz wichtige Thematik, wenn man sich mit einer Dissertation beschäftigt, weil es natürlich nicht etwas ist, was man gerade mal so in Anführungszeichen nebenher macht. Heute möchte ich Ihnen ein paar Tipps geben, wenn Sie eine Dissertation schreiben, wie Sie die Motivation beim Schreiben einer Dissertation nicht verlieren, weil eine Dissertation ist ein langwieriger und ein aufwendiger Prozess, der sich oftmals auch über mehrere Jahre hinweg strecken wird. Und gerade da ist es natürlich ganz, ganz wichtig, dass man dran bleibt am Thema, die Motivation nicht verliert, den roten Faden sozusagen nicht verliert, um am Ende auch zum Ziel zu kommen. Ein paar Tipps, wie Sie das am besten machen können, wenn Sie eine Dissertation schreiben. Das erste Punkt oder der erste wichtige Punkt ist, Sie sollten sich Klarheit über die Gründe verschaffen. Warum mache ich also überhaupt diese Dissertation? Was ist mein Ziel? Was möchte ich damit am Ende erreichen? Und wie immer im Leben ist es auch hier so, je konkreter, je klarer das Ziel ist, je leichter wird Ihnen auch die Erstellung der Dissertation fallen und je besser werden Sie sich auch selber motivieren können, wenn Sie am Ende ein klares Ziel haben. Das kann mit Sicherheit ein berufliches Ziel sein, ein Fortkommen, ein Weiterkommen im Beruf. Kann aber auch sein, dass man die Dissertation vielleicht, wenn man schon älter ist, nur in Anführungszeichen für sich schreibt oder um auch eine gewisse Reputation in der Wissenschaft und in der Forschung zu erhalten. Ganz egal, was es ist, diese Gründe, die sollten bei Ihnen klar sein und die sollten Sie sich auch immer gerne auch in visualisierter Form oder dergleichen immer wieder klar machen und sich immer wieder in den Kopf rufen. Dann haben Sie schon mal einen ganz wesentlichen Punkt erreicht, damit Sie die Motivation nicht verlieren werden. Ein zweiter wichtiger Punkt ist es, Meilensteine festlegen und feiern. Auch das ist jetzt mit Sicherheit nichts Neues und gilt mit Sicherheit nicht nur für eine Dissertation, gilt für viele Themen, wenn Sie im Leben unterwegs sind und Ziele verfolgen wollen. Aber gerade in einer Dissertation, Sie erarbeiten ja sowieso im Vorfeld einen Zeitplan und wenn Sie dann die Dissertation schreiben, dann ist es sicherlich ganz wichtig, sich an diesen Zeitplan zu halten, der auch nicht zu eng sein sollte, der auch entsprechende Lücken, entsprechenden Puffer haben sollte. Aber in diesem Zeitplan sollte es auch Meilensteine geben. Das könnten beispielsweise Fertigstellung von einzelnen Kapiteln, Fertigstellung von Forschungen, Fertigstellung von Befragungen oder auch Abstimmung, wir kommen gleich noch darauf zu sprechen, mit Ihrem Doktorvater sein. Und ganz bewusst dann auch ruhig mal diese bewussten Erfolge, diese bewussten Meilensteine dann auch feiern. Dann aber auch wieder aufhören zu feiern. Das heißt, hier sich dann auch erstmal vielleicht eine gewisse Ruhe nehmen für einige wenige Tage, vielleicht auch für ein, zwei Wochen. Aber und wir werden später noch auf den Punkt kommen, dann auch wieder anfangen zu schreiben, weiter zu schreiben, weil ein Meilenstein ist eben auch nur ein Meilenstein und heißt noch nicht, dass Sie am Ziel angekommen sind. Der dritte Punkt ist ein ganz, ganz wichtiger Punkt. Bauen Sie Vertrauen, bauen Sie ein Vertrauensverhältnis zu Ihrem Doktorvater auf und suchen Sie auch regelmäßig die Abstimmung mit Ihrem Doktorvater. Da geht es auch nicht nur darum, dass Sie jetzt irgendwelche fertigen Kapitel oder Teile von der Arbeit abliefern und er diese durchliest, sondern finden Sie einen regelmäßigen Kontakt, sprechen Sie mit ihm, tauschen Sie sich aus, zeigen Sie ihm auch, wie weit sind Sie, was sind vielleicht auch aktuelle Themenstellungen, aktuelle Fragestellungen, mit denen Sie sich gerade beschäftigen. Vielleicht gibt es auch ein, das eine oder andere Problem, das gerade bei Ihnen auftaucht, was man vielleicht mit ihm diskutieren kann. Kurzum, bleiben Sie mit Ihrem Doktorvater während der Erstellung der Doktorarbeit im Gespräch und bauen Sie ein vertrauensvolles Verhältnis mit ihm auf. Ganz, ganz wichtig, weil klar ist auch, je vertrauensvoller das Verhältnis ist, je näher Sie ihm auf die Erstellung der Doktorarbeit auch mitnehmen, je besser wird natürlich auch später eine Beurteilung stattfinden, weil dann erkennt die Doktorarbeit und er steigt im Prinzip nicht bei Null ein. Immer gefährlich ist es, wenn Sie eine Doktorarbeit quasi ohne Begleitung Ihres Doktorvaters schreiben, ihm am Ende die fertige Arbeit vorlegen und er sagt, nee, das war eigentlich nicht das, was ich mir vorgestellt habe, das sollte komplett in eine andere Richtung gehen. Das heißt hier, ganz wichtig, regelmäßige Abstimmungen und über diese Abstimmungen hinaus einfach auch immer wieder dieses Aufbau, dieser Aufbau eines Vertrauensverhältnisses. Schreiben und Pausen, ich habe es gerade eben schon mal ein bisschen angeschnitten, schreiben Sie regelmäßig. Eine Doktorarbeit hat ja auch einen gewissen Seitenumfang, hängt davon ab, in welchem medizinischen Bereich Sie beispielsweise unterwegs sind. Dort hat eine Doktorarbeit eher weniger Seitenzahlen, wenn Sie aber im betriebswirtschaftlichen Bereich unterwegs sind, dann können das schon mal auch 200, 300, 400, 500, 600 mit Anhängen dann auch mal bis zu 1.000 Seiten sein. Also von daher, Sie haben hier auch eine gewisse Menge einfach an Stoff, die es zu produzieren gilt und auch hier, wie immer im Leben, es ist wichtiger, es ist besser in kleinen Stücken, in kleinen Portionen zu arbeiten. Also hier auch mal vielleicht nur in Anführungszeichen wenige Seiten pro Tag oder pro Woche zu produzieren, als dass Sie große Pausen lassen, dann in Ihrem Zeitplan hinterherhinken und dann auf einmal wieder 20 oder 30 Seiten in einer Woche produzieren müssen. Deswegen dran bleiben, aber ganz bewusst auch wieder Pausen einbauen, sich regenerieren und dann weitermachen. Und legen Sie auch keinen Perfektionismus an den Tag. Ihre Doktorarbeit wird nie 100 Prozent, wird nie 1000 Prozent perfekt sein. Das heißt, wenn Sie ein Thema erforscht haben, wenn Sie der Meinung sind, Sie haben das ausreichend erforscht, machen Sie auch einen Haken dran. Sie werden wahrscheinlich immer, je mehr Sie lesen, noch neue Aspekte, neue Lücken an der einen oder anderen Stelle erkennen. Die können Sie dann vielleicht bei der Endkorrektur, am Endlektorat noch aufnehmen an der einen oder anderen Stelle, wo es sinnvoll scheint, das Ganze auch noch ergänzen. Aber begnügen Sie sich dann auch mit dem Stand, den Sie erreicht haben, wo Sie auch mit sich selber zufrieden sind und sagen können, das ist dann auch von meiner Seite aus eine ausreichende Erforschung, eine ausreichende Erhebung der Thematik. Sie sehen also, eine Dissertation, Schreiben durchaus ein herausforderndes Thema, ein herausforderndes Projekt, insbesondere deswegen, weil es sich eben über so lange Zeit, über so viele Jahre, über so einen großen Zeitraum eben auch hinweg streckt. Und gerade deswegen ist es eben wichtig, auch hier die Motivation zu behalten. Werden Sie sich klar über die Gründe, seien Sie sich klar über die Gründe, legen Sie Meilensteine fest und feiern diese. Haben Sie Vertrauen in Sie und im Dr. Vater, schreiben Sie und legen Sie auch entsprechende Pausen ein und zeigen Sie bitte keinen Perfektionismus. Wenn Sie diese Punkte berücksichtigen, dann werden Sie auch eine erfolgreiche Doktorarbeit schreiben können. Wenn Sie Unterstützung benötigen in diesem Thema, sei es jetzt bei einer Motivation, sei es jetzt aber auch bei einem Coaching, sei es auch im Sinne von Abstimmungen von einzelnen Kapiteln, vielleicht auch in der Unterstützung bei der Statistik, bei der Empirie, wie auch immer. In diesen Fällen lohnt es sich dann oftmals auch, externe Unterstützung zu nutzen. Hier ist G-Writers gerne Ihr Ansprechpartner. G-Writers kann Ihnen hier gerne Unterstützung liefern, externer Art, in all diesen genannten Fragestellungen. Von daher scheuen Sie sich auch nicht hier, die Begleitung in Anspruch zu nehmen. In diesem Sinne wünsche ich Ihnen viel Glück, viel Erfolg bei Ihrer Doktorarbeit und denken Sie an die Tipps, um die Motivation zu erhalten.

8 Most Effective Ways to Increase Motivation for Thesis Writing 

Writing a master’s or doctoral thesis is a tough job, and many students struggle with writer’s block and putting off work. The journey requires not just skill and knowledge but a sustained motivation for thesis writing. Here are eight essential strategies to help you find and maintain your motivation to write your thesis throughout the thesis writing process.

Know why you lack motivation

It’s important to understand whether you’re just avoiding writing (procrastination) or if you genuinely don’t feel interested in it (lack of motivation). Procrastination is when you delay writing even though you want to finish it, while a lack of motivation for thesis writing is when you have no interest in writing at all. Knowing the difference helps you find the right solution. Remember, not feeling motivated doesn’t mean you can’t write; it just might be less enjoyable.

Recognize external vs. internal motivation

In the early stages of your academic journey, things like job prospects or recognition may motivate you to write your thesis. These are external motivators. Over time, they might become less effective. That’s why it’s important to develop internal motivators, like a real passion for your topic, curiosity, or wanting to make a difference in your field. Shifting to these internal motivators can keep you energized about your thesis writing for a longer period.

Develop a writing plan

As you regularly spend time on your thesis, you’ll start to overcome any initial resistance. Planning and thinking about your work will make the next steps easier. You might find yourself working more than 20 minutes some days. As you progress, plan for longer thesis writing periods and set goals for completing each chapter.

Don’t overwhelm yourself

Getting stuck is normal in thesis or dissertation writing. Don’t view these challenges as impossible obstacles. If you’re frustrated or unsure, take a break for a few days. Then, consult your advisor or a mentor to discuss your challenges and find ways to move forward effectively.

Work on your thesis daily

Try to spend 15-20 minutes daily on tasks related to your thesis or dissertation. This includes reading, researching, outlining, and other preparatory activities. You can fit these tasks into short breaks throughout your day, like waiting for appointments, during commutes, or even while cooking.

Understand that thesis writing motivation changes

Realize that thesis writing motivation isn’t always the same; it changes over time. Your drive to write will vary with different stages of your research and life changes. Knowing that motivation can go up and down helps you adapt. When you feel less motivated, focus on small, doable parts of your work instead of big, intimidating goals.

Recharge your motivation regularly

Just like you need to rest and eat well to keep your body energized, your motivation for thesis writing needs to be refreshed too. Do things that boost your mental and creative energy. This could be talking with colleagues, attending workshops, or engaging in hobbies that relax you. Stay aware of your motivation levels and take action to rejuvenate them. This way, you can avoid burnout and keep a consistent pace in your thesis work.

Keep encouraging yourself

Repeating encouraging phrases like “I will finish my thesis by year’s end” or “I’ll complete a lot of work this week” can really help. Saying these affirmations regularly can focus your energy and keep you on track with your thesis writing motivation .

Remember, the amount you write can vary each day. Some days you might write a lot, and other days less. The key is to keep writing, even if it’s just rough ideas or jumbled thoughts. Don’t let the need for perfection stop you. Listening to podcasts where researchers talk about their writing experiences can also be inspiring and motivate you in your writing journey.

Paperpal is an AI writing assistant that help academics write better, faster with real-time suggestions for in-depth language and grammar correction. Trained on millions of research manuscripts enhanced by professional academic editors, Paperpal delivers human precision at machine speed.

Try it for free or upgrade to  Paperpal Prime , which unlocks unlimited access to premium features like academic translation, paraphrasing, contextual synonyms, consistency checks and more. It’s like always having a professional academic editor by your side! Go beyond limitations and experience the future of academic writing.  Get Paperpal Prime now at just US$19 a month!

Related Reads:

How to make your thesis supervision work for you.

• 6 Tips for Post-Doc Researchers to Take Their Career to the Next Level
• How to Write a Conclusion for Research Papers (with Examples)
• Presenting Research Data Effectively Through Tables and Figures

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Wie finde ich eine gute Motivation für die Bachelorarbeit?

Veröffentlicht am 12. April 2017 von Luca Corrieri . Aktualisiert am 29. November 2021.

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Inhaltsverzeichnis

Halte die motivation der bachelorarbeit einfach, 1. eine persönliche erfahrung, 2. ein aktuelles ereignis, 3. ein ereignis bei deiner firma, der nächste teil der einleitung deiner bachelorarbeit, häufig gestellte fragen.

Beschreibe deine Motivation in Bezug auf deine Problemstellung, indem du auf das eingehst, was dich zum Schreiben deiner Bachelorarbeit gebracht hat. Generell gibt es drei verschiedene Arten von Gründen:

• Eine persönliche Erfahrung , die zu dem Problem geführt hat
• Ein aktuelles Ereignis im Zusammenhang mit dem Problem
• Ein Ereignis bei der Firma , für die du das Problem untersuchst

Jede Art von Motivation für eine Bachelorarbeit – sie kann auch Aufhänger, Grund oder einfach Idee der Bachelorarbeit genannt werden – besteht insgesamt aus drei Teilen:

• Beginn : Er zieht die Aufmerksamkeit des Lesers durch die Schilderung des Ereignisses auf sich, das zu dem Problem geführt hat.
• Hintergrundinformationen (Herstellung des Kontexts) : Gehe tiefer auf das Ereignis ein, indem du mehr Informationen über es vermittelst und dabei auch den Rahmen deiner Forschung skizzierst.
• Brücke zur Problemstellung : Erläutere, inwiefern es sich hierbei um ein Problem handelt, und schlage somit die Brücke zur Problemstellung, die deiner Untersuchung zu Grunde liegt.

Die Motivation der Bachelorarbeit sollte kurz und knackig sein. Es ist nicht nötig, mehrere Anlässe zu nennen. Wähle den besten und schreibe ihn auf.

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Wenn du eine eigene Erfahrung als Motivation der Bachelorarbeit beschreibst, solltest du sie erfrischend und anregend vortragen

Beispiel für eine Motivation der Bachelorarbeit aus eigener Erfahrung

Als ich im Mai auf einem Stuhl im Sommergarten saß, sah ich von einem Baum einen Apfel fallen. Dieses Ereignis brachte mich zu dem Thema ‚Fallen‘.

Als ich mich bei dem Versuch, das Phänomen zu definieren, tiefer mit dem ‚Fallen‘ beschäftigte, bemerkte ich, dass alle materiellen Dinge immer auf die Erde oder nach unten fallen.

Es war bis dahin noch nicht bekannt, was verursacht, dass alle materiellen Dinge immer auf die Erde fallen.

Wenn ein aktuelles Ereignis als Motivation deiner Bachelorarbeit diente, dann solltest du dieses Ereignis auch schildern, um deine Motivation zu verdeutlichen.

Beispiel für die Motivation der Bachelorarbeit durch ein aktuelles Ereignis

Am 7. September 2008 gewann die Finanzkrise mit der Verstaatlichung von Fannie Mae und Freddie Mac an Dynamik. Diese beiden Hypothekenbanken hatten zusammen einen Anteil von etwa der Hälfte am gesamten US-Hypothekenmarkt. Die steigenden Schulden in diesem Markt wurden eine Bedrohung für das Finanzsystem in der gesamten Welt. Viele Banken hatten verschiedene Finanzpositionen in unzähligen verschiedenen Finanzstrukturen, die auf einmal nichts wert waren. Das hatte die Ursache, dass viele Menschen in den USA wegen steigender Zinsen nicht mehr ihre Hypothek bezahlen konnten. Die Hypothekenblase kollabierte schließlich. Was folgte, war eine globale Bankenkrise. Dies führte dazu, dass viele Banken in Konkurs gingen und dass die Banken, die ‚too big to fail‘ waren, von den Regierungen unterstützt und verstaatlicht wurden.

Die gesamte Finanzkrise hatte nach IWF-Schätzungen bereits Ende 2009 8,4 Billionen Euro gekostet. Die Europäische Kommission schätzt, dass die verschiedenen Formen der finanziellen Unterstützung des europäischen Bankensektors bei etwa 16,5 % des europäischen BIP liegen. Dies hat die Debatte über die Frage befeuert, wie in Zukunft eine globale Finanzkrise verhindert werden könnte.

Seitdem sind bereits viele Vorschläge gemacht worden, von denen einige auch bereits umgesetzt worden sind. Obwohl also die globale Regulierung des Bankensektors in vollem Gange ist, wird zugleich deutlich, dass diese Regulierung nicht so einfach ist.

Die Kosten der Krise wurden von den Behörden und Bürger getragen, und der globale Trend ist, dass die Verursacher sie zurückzahlen sollen. Da das Bankensystem als Anstifter der globalen Wirtschaftskrise gesehen wird, wollen Regierungen diese Banken finanziell härter bestrafen. Dies hat auch eine Diskussion über die Einführung einer Bankensteuer eingeleitet.

Daher hat der Europäische Rat am Ende der Sitzung vom 17. Juni 2010, die anlässlich des G-20-Gipfels in Toronto stattfand, erklärt, dass die Europäische Union (EU) „[…] should lead efforts to set a global approach for introducing systems for levies and taxes on financial institutions with a view to maintaining a world-wide level playing field and will strongly defend this position with its G-20 partners. The introduction of a global financial transaction tax should be explored and developed further in that context.”

Der Europäische Rat ist daher der Auffassung, dass sie führend sein sollte bei der Suche nach einer globalen Lösung für die Einführung einer Bankensteuer. Nun wurde jedoch bald klar, dass eine Einigung auf globaler Ebene schwierig ist. Daher schlägt der Europäische Rat vor, zunächst eine europäische Lösung in Betracht zu ziehen.

Diese Arbeit beschäftigt sich mit der möglichen europäischen Bankensteuer.

Wenn du in deiner Bachelorarbeit ein Problem für ein Unternehmen untersucht hast, dann steht deine Motivation der Bachelorarbeit in Verbindung mit einem Ereignis, das einen Einfluss auf dieses Unternehmen hatte. Es kann sein, dass neue Möglichkeiten geschaffen worden sind, die die Firma nutzen möchte, oder dass es eine negative Entwicklung ist, sodass du prüfst, wie ein bestimmtes Problem gelöst werden könnte.

Beispiel für die Motivation der Bachelorarbeit durch ein Ereignis bei deiner Firma

Seit der Einführung des neuen Kundenmanagementsystems bei Unternehmen Y im November 2016 haben deutlich weniger Support-Mitarbeiter Freude an ihrer Arbeit.

So sind Mitarbeiter pro Monat um 15 % häufiger krank als im November 2016. Eine Umfrage, an der Mitarbeiter anonym teilnehmen konnten, zeigte, dass 6 der 17 Mitarbeiter hoffen, innerhalb eines Jahres einen neuen Job zu finden.

Dieser Rückgang der Zufriedenheit hat nicht nur negative Auswirkungen auf die Arbeitsumgebung, sondern auch auf den Umsatz. Es ist nicht klar, warum die Support-Mitarbeiter seit der Einführung des neuen Client-Management-Systems viel weniger zufrieden mit ihrer Arbeit sind.

Sobald du die Motivation verdeutlicht hast, gehst du an die Problemstellung der Bachelorarbeit. Diese beiden Komponenten sollten in der Einleitung logisch miteinander verbunden werden.

So schreibst du die Einleitung deiner Bachelorarbeit

Die Motivation gehört zu deiner Problemstellung.

Ja, die Motivation gehört in die Einleitung der Bachelorarbeit.

Mit dem Anlass oder der Motivation der Bachelorarbeit, die du schilderst, ermutigst du den Leser, deine Einleitung zu lesen, indem du bei ihm das Interesse an der Problemstellung (dem Thema der Arbeit) weckst.

In die Motivation deiner Bachelorarbeit gehören Informationen zu deiner Problemstellung, aus denen hervorgeht, was dich zum Schreiben deiner Bachelorarbeit gebracht hat. Generell gibt es drei verschiedene Arten von Gründen:

• Eine persönliche Erfahrung, die zu dem Problem geführt hat.
• Ein aktuelles Ereignis im Zusammenhang mit dem Problem.
• Ein Ereignis bei der Firma, für die du das Problem untersuchst.

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Corrieri, L. (2021, 29. November). Wie finde ich eine gute Motivation für die Bachelorarbeit?. Scribbr. Abgerufen am 3. September 2024, von https://www.scribbr.de/aufbau-und-gliederung/motivation-bachelorarbeit/

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Luca hat seinen Master an der Universität von Amsterdam abgeschlossen und ist seit 2014 für den deutschen Markt von Scribbr verantwortlich. Mit seinen Kenntnissen im Online-Marketing hat er sich zum Ziel gesetzt, Studierende während der Abschlussphase online zu unterstützen.

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Setting Goals & Staying Motivated 

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This vidcast talks about how to set goals and how to maintain motivation for long writing tasks. When setting goals for a writing project, it is important to think about goals for the entire project and also goals for specific writing times. These latter goals should be specific, measurable, and manageable within the time allotted for writing. The section on motivation shares ideas for boosting motivation over the course of a long writing project. The handouts on goal-setting and staying productive, as well as the scholarly writing inventory, complement the material in this vidcast and should be used in conjunction with it. 

Note: Closed-captioning and a full  transcript  are available for this vidcast. 

Handouts 

Goal-Setting for your Personal Intensive Writing Experience (IWE) | [PDF]

This handout guides writers through the important process of goal-setting for the personal Intensive Writing Experience. Specifically, it talks about how to (1) formulate specific, measurable, and reasonable writing goals, (2) set an overall IWE goal, (3) break up the overall goal into smaller, daily goals, and (4) break up daily goals into smaller goals for individual writing sessions. Writers are prompted to clear their head of distracting thoughts before each writing session and, after each session, to debrief on their progress and recalibrate goals as needed. 

Scholarly Writing Inventory (PDF) 

This questionnaire helps writers identify and inventory their personal strengths and weaknesses as scholarly writers. Specifically, writers are prompted to answer questions pertaining to (1) the emotional/psychological aspects of writing, (2) writing routines, (3) research, (4) organization, (5) citation, (6) mechanics, (7) social support, and (8) access to help. By completing this questionnaire, scholarly writers will find themselves in a better position to build upon their strengths and address their weaknesses. 

Stay ing Productive for Long Writing Tasks (PDF)

This resource offers some practical tips and tools to assist writers in staying productive for extended periods of time in the face of common challenges like procrastination. It discusses how the process of writing is more than putting words on a page and offers suggestions for addressing negative emotions towards writing, such as anxiety. The handout also lays out helpful methods for staying productive for long writing tasks: (1) time-based methods, (2) social-based methods, (3) output-based methods, (4) reward-based methods, and (5) mixed methods. 

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Dissertating Like a Distance Runner: Ten Tips for Finishing Your PhD

The above photo is of Sir Mo Farah running past Buckingham Palace into the home stretch of the London Marathon. I took the photo two days after my viva, in which I defended my PhD dissertation. Farah become a British hero when he and his training partner, Galen Rupp, won the gold and silver medals in the 10k at the London Olympic Games.

I had the honor of racing against Rupp at Nike’s Boarder Clash meet between the fastest high school distance runners in my home state of Washington and Rupp’s home state of Oregon. I’m happy to provide a link to the results and photos of our teenage selves since I beat Galen and Washington won the meet. (Note: In the results, ‘Owen’ is misspelled with the commonly added s , which I, as a fan of Jesse Owens, feel is an honor.) By the time we were running in college—Rupp for the University of Oregon and myself for the University of Washington—he was on an entirely different level. I never achieved anything close to the kind of running success Rupp has had. Yet, for most of us mortals, the real value in athletics is the character traits and principles that sports instill in us, and how those principles carry over to other aspects of life. Here I want to share ten principles that the sport of distance running teaches, which I found to be quite transferrable to writing my doctoral dissertation.

To provide some personal context, I began as a doctoral researcher at the University of Birmingham in 2014. At that time my grandparents, who helped my single father raise my sister and me, continued their ongoing struggle with my Grandfather’s Alzheimer’s. It was becoming increasingly apparent that they would benefit from having my wife and I nearby. So, in 2015 we moved to my hometown of Yakima, Washington. That fall I began a 2/2 teaching load at a small university on the Yakama Nation Reservation as I continued to write my dissertation. Since finishing my PhD four years ago, in 2018, I have published one book , five research articles , and two edited volume chapters related in various ways to my dissertation. As someone living in rural Eastern Washington, who is a first-gen college grad, I had to find ways to stay self-motivated and to keep chipping away at my academic work. I found the following principles that I learned through distance running very helpful.

(1) Establish community . There are various explanations, some of which border on superstitious, for why Kenyan distance runners have been so dominant. Yet one factor is certainly the running community great Kenyan distance runners benefit from at their elite training camps, as discussed in Train Hard, Win Easy: The Kenyan Way . Having a community that values distance running can compel each member of the community to pursue athletic excellence over a long period of time. The same can be said for academic work. Many doctoral researchers have built-in community in their university departments, but for various reasons this is not true for everyone. Thankfully, alternative ways to establish community have never been easier, predominantly due to technology.

Since my dissertation applied Aristotelian causation and neo-Thomistic hylomorphism to mental causation and neural correlates of consciousness, I found it immensely helpful to meet consistently with neuroscientist, Christof Koch, and philosopher of mind, Mihretu Guta. Mihretu does work on the philosophy of consciousness and Christof propelled the dawn of the neurobiology of consciousness with Francis Crick . Though Mihretu lives in Southern California, we met monthly through Skype, and I would drive over the Cascade Mountains once a month to meet with Christof in Seattle. As my dissertation examiner, Anna Marmodoro, once reminded me: the world is small—it’s easier than ever before to connect with other researchers.

It can also be helpful to keep in mind that your community can be large or small. As some athletes train in large camps consisting of many runners, others have small training groups, such as the three Ingebrigtsen brothers . Likewise, your community could be a whole philosophy department or several close friends. You can also mix it up. As an introvert, I enjoyed my relatively small consistent community, but I also benefitted from attending annual regional philosophy conferences where I could see the same folks each year. And I especially enjoyed developing relationships with other international researchers interested in Aristotelian philosophy of mind at a summer school hosted by the University of Oxford in Naples, which Marmodoro directed. For a brief period, we all stayed in a small villa and talked about hylomorphism all day, each day, while enjoying delicious Italian food.

Whatever your community looks like, whatever shape it takes, what matters is that you’re encouraged toward accomplishing your academic goal.

(2) Know your goal. Like writing a dissertation, becoming a good distance runner requires a lot of tedious and monotonous work. If you don’t have a clear goal of what you want to achieve, you won’t get up early, lace up your running shoes, and enter the frosty morning air as you take the first of many steps in your morning run. There are, after all, more enticing and perhaps even more pressing things to do. Similarly, if you don’t have a clear goal of when you want to finish your dissertation, it is easy to put off your daily writing for another day, which can easily become more distant into the future.

(3) Be realistic about your goal . While it is important to have a clear goal as a distance runner and as a doctoral researcher, it is important for your goal to be realistic. This means your goal should take into account the fact that you are human and therefore have both particular strengths and limitations. Everyone enters the sport of distance running with different strengths and weaknesses. When Diddy ran the city it would have been unrealistic for him to try to break the two-hour barrier in the marathon, as Eliud Kipchoge did . If Diddy made that his goal, he probably would have lost all hope in the first mile of the marathon and never finished. Because he set a more realistic goal of breaking four hours, not two hours, he paced himself accordingly and actually finished.

The parent of two young children who is teaching part-time can certainly finish a dissertation. But the parent will have a greater likelihood of doing so with a reasonable goal that fits that individual’s strengths and limitations. If the parent expects to finish on the same timescale as someone who is single with no children nor teaching responsibilities, this will likely lead to disappointment and less motivation in the middle of the process. Motivation will remain higher, and correspondingly so will productivity that is fueled by motivation, if one’s goal is realistic and achievable.

Another element of having a realistic goal is being willing to adapt the goal as your circumstances change. Sometimes a runner might enter a race expecting to place in the top five and midway through the race realize that she has a great chance of winning (consider, for example, Des Linden’s victory at the Boston Marathon ). At that point, it would be wise to revise one’s goal to be ‘win the race’ rather than simply placing in the top five. At other times, a runner might expect to win the race or be on the podium and midway realize that is no longer possible. Yet, if she is nevertheless within striking distance of placing in the top five, then she can make that her new goal, which is realistic given her current situation and will therefore sustain her motivation to the finish line. Sara Hall, who could have and wanted to crack the top three, held on for fifth at the World Championships marathon because she adjusted her goal midrace.

The PhD candidate who initially plans to finish her dissertation in three years but then finds herself in the midst of a pandemic or dealing with a medical issue or a family crisis may not need to give up on her goal of finishing her dissertation. Perhaps, she only needs to revise her goal so that it allows more time, so she finishes in five years rather than three. A PhD finished in five years is certainly more valuable than no PhD.

(4) Know why you want to achieve your goal . My high school cross-country coach, Mr. Steiner, once gave me a book about distance running entitled “Motivation is the Name of the Game.” It is one of those books you don’t really need to read because the main takeaway is in the title. Distance running requires much-delayed gratification—you must do many things that are not intrinsically enjoyable (such as running itself, ice baths, going to bed early, etc.) in order to achieve success. If you don’t have a solid reason for why you want to achieve your running goal, you won’t do the numerous things you do not want to do but must do to achieve your goal. The same is true for finishing a PhD. Therefore, it is important to know the reason(s) why you want to finish your dissertation and why you want a PhD.

As a side note, it can also be immensely helpful to choose a dissertation topic that you are personally very interested in, rather than a topic that will simply make you more employable. Of course, being employable is something many of us must consider. Yet, if you pick a topic that is so boring to you that you have significant difficulty finding the motivation to finish your dissertation, then picking an “employable dissertation topic” will be anything but employable.

(5) Prioritize your goal . “Be selfish” were the words of exhortation my college cross-country team heard from our coaches before we returned home for Christmas break. As someone who teaches ethics courses, I feel compelled to clarify that “be selfish” is not typically good advice. However, to be fair to my coaches, the realistic point they were trying to convey was that at home we would be surrounded by family and friends who may not fully understand our running goals and what it takes to accomplish them. For example, during my first Christmas break home from college, I was trying to run eighty miles per week. Because I was trying to fit these miles into my social schedule without much compromise, many of these miles were run in freezing temps, in the dark, on concrete sidewalks with streetlights, rather than dirt trails. After returning to campus following the holidays, I raced my first indoor track race with a terribly sore groin, which an MRI scan soon revealed was due to a stress fracture in my femur. I learned the hard way that I have limits to what I can do, which entails I must say “no thanks” to some invitations, even though that may appear selfish to some.

A PhD researcher writing a dissertation has a substantial goal before her. Yet, many people writing a dissertation have additional responsibilities, such as teaching, being a loving spouse, a faithful friend, or a present parent. As I was teaching while writing my dissertation, I often heard the mantra “put students first.” Yet, I knew if I prioritized my current students over and above finishing my dissertation, I would, like many, never finish my dissertation. However, I knew it would be best for my future students to be taught by an expert who has earned a PhD. So, I put my future students first by prioritizing finishing my PhD . This meant that I had to limit the teaching responsibilities I took on. Now, my current students are benefitting from my decision, as they are taught by an expert in my field.

While prioritizing your dissertation can mean putting it above some things in life, it also means putting it below other things. A friend once told me he would fail in a lot of areas in life before he fails as a father, which is often what it means to practically prioritize one goal above another. Prioritizing family and close friendships need not mean that you say ‘yes’ to every request, but that you intentionally build consistent time into your schedule to foster relationships with the people closest to you. For me, this practically meant not working past 6:00pm on weekdays and taking weekends off to hang out with family and friends. This relieved pressure, because I knew that if something went eschew with my plan to finish my PhD, I would still have the people in my life who I care most about. I could then work toward my goal without undue anxiety about the possibility of failing and the loss that would entail. I was positively motivated by the likely prospect that I would, in time, finish my PhD, and be able to celebrate it with others who supported me along the way.

(6) Just start writing . Yesterday morning, it was five degrees below freezing when I did my morning run. I wanted to skip my run and go straight to my heated office. So, I employed a veteran distance running trick to successfully finish my run. I went out the door and just started running. That is the hardest part, and once I do it, 99.9% of the time I finish my run.

You may not know what exactly you think about a specific topic in the chapter you need to write, nor what you are going to write each day. But perhaps the most simple and helpful dissertation advice I ever received was from David Horner, who earned his doctorate in philosophy from the University of Oxford. He told me: “just start writing.” Sometimes PhD researchers think they must have all their ideas solidified in their mind before they start writing their dissertation. In fact, writing your dissertation can actually help clarify what you think. So “just start writing” is not only simple but also sage advice.

(7) Never write a dissertation . No great marathoner focuses on running 26.2 miles. Great distance runners are masters of breaking up major goals into smaller goals and then focusing on accomplishing one small goal at a time, until they have achieved the major goal. Philosophers can understand this easily, as we take small, calculated steps through minor premises that support major premises to arrive at an overall conclusion in an argument.

Contained within each chapter of a dissertation is a premise(s) in an overall argument and individual sections can contain sub-premises supporting the major premise of each chapter. When you first start out as a doctoral researcher working on your dissertation, you have to construct an outline of your dissertation that maps out the various chapters and how they will relate to your overall conclusion. Once you have that outline in place, keep it in the back of your mind. But do not focus on writing the whole, which would be overwhelming and discouraging. Rather, focus on writing whichever chapter you are working on. The fastest American marathoner, Ryan Hall, wrote a book that sums up the only way to run long distances in the title Run the Mile You’re In . And Galen Rupp discusses in this interview how he mentally breaks up a marathon into segments and focuses on just finishing one segment at a time. Whatever chapter you’re writing, make it your goal to write that chapter. Once you’ve accomplished that goal, set a new goal: write the next chapter. Repeat that process several times and you will be halfway through your dissertation. Repeat the process a few more times, and you will be done.

By the time you have finished a master’s degree, you have written many chapter-length papers. To finish a dissertation, you essentially write about eight interconnected papers, one at a time, just as you have done many times before. If you just write the chapter (which you could call a “paper” if that feels like a lighter load) you’re writing, before you know it, you will have written a dissertation.

(8) Harness the power of habits . Becoming a great distance runner requires running an inordinate number of miles, which no one has the willpower to do. The best marathoners in the world regularly run well over one hundred miles a week, in addition to stretching, lifting weights, taking ice baths, and eating healthy. Not even the most tough-minded distance runner has the gumption to make all the individual decisions that would be required in order to get out the door for every run and climb into every ice bath apart from the development of habits. The most reliable way around each distance runner’s weakness of will, or akrasia , is developing and employing habits. The same can be true for writing.

If you simply try to write a little bit each weekday around the same time, you will develop a habit of writing at that time each day. Once you have that habit, the decision to write each weekday at that time will require less and less willpower over time. Eventually, it will take some willpower to not write at that time. I have found it helpful to develop the routine of freewriting for a few minutes just before starting my daily writing session of thirty minutes during which I write new content, before working on editing or revising existing content for about thirty minutes. My routine helped me develop the daily habit of writing, which removes the daily decision to write, as I “just do it” (to use Nike’s famous line) each day.

I have also found it helpful to divide my days up according to routines. As a morning person, I do well writing and researching in the morning, doing teaching prep and teaching during the middle of the day, and then doing mundane tasks such as email at the end of the day.

(9) Write for today and for tomorrow . Successful distance runners train for two reasons. One reason—to win upcoming races—is obvious. However, in addition to training for upcoming races, the successful distance runner trains today for the training that they want to be capable of months and years ahead. You cannot simply jump into running eighty, ninety, or one-hundred-mile weeks. It takes time to condition your body to sustain the stress of running high mileage weeks. A runner must have a long-term perspective and plan ahead as she works toward her immediate goals on the way to achieving her long-term goals. Similarly, for the PhD researcher, writing a dissertation lays the groundwork for future success.

For one, if the PhD candidate develops healthy, sustainable, productive habits while writing a dissertation, these habits can be continued once they land an academic job. It is no secret that the initial years on the job market, or in a new academic position, can be just as (or more) challenging than finishing a PhD. Effective habits developed while writing a dissertation can be invaluable during such seasons, allowing one to continue researching and writing even with more responsibilities and less time.

It is also worth noting that there is a sense in which research writing becomes easier, as one becomes accustomed to the work. A distance runner who has been running for decades, logging thousands of miles throughout their career, can run relatively fast without much effort. For example, my college roommate, Travis Boyd, decided to set the world record for running a half marathon pushing a baby stroller nearly a decade after we ran for the University of Washington. His training was no longer what it once was during our collegiate days. Nevertheless, his past training made it much easier for him to set the record, even though his focus had shifted to his full-time business career and being a present husband and father of two. I once asked my doctoral supervisors, Nikk Effingham and Jussi Suikkanen, how they were able to publish so much. They basically said it gets easier, as the work you have done in the past contributes to your future publications. Granted, not everyone is going to finish their PhD and then become a research super human like Liz Jackson , who finished her PhD in 2019, and published four articles that same year, three the next, and six the following year. Nevertheless, writing and publishing does become easier as you gain years of experience.

(10) Go running . As Cal Newport discusses in Deep Work , having solid boundaries around the time we work is conducive for highly effective academic work. And there is nothing more refreshing while dissertating than an athletic hobby with cognitive benefits . So, perhaps the best way to dissertate like a distance runner is to stop writing and go for a run.

Acknowledgments : Thanks are due to Aryn Owen and Jaden Anderson for their constructive feedback on a prior draft of this post.

• Matthew Owen

Matthew Owen (PhD, University of Birmingham) is a faculty member in the philosophy department at Yakima Valley College in Washington State. He is also an affiliate faculty member at the Center for Consciousness Science, University of Michigan. Matthew’s latest book is Measuring the Immeasurable Mind: Where Contemporary Neuroscience Meets the Aristotelian Tradition .

• Dissertating
• Finishing your PhD
• graduate students
• Sabrina D. MisirHiralall

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How To Write A Dissertation Or Thesis

8 straightforward steps to craft an a-grade dissertation.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) Expert Reviewed By: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | June 2020

Writing a dissertation or thesis is not a simple task. It takes time, energy and a lot of will power to get you across the finish line. It’s not easy – but it doesn’t necessarily need to be a painful process. If you understand the big-picture process of how to write a dissertation or thesis, your research journey will be a lot smoother.  

In this post, I’m going to outline the big-picture process of how to write a high-quality dissertation or thesis, without losing your mind along the way. If you’re just starting your research, this post is perfect for you. Alternatively, if you’ve already submitted your proposal, this article which covers how to structure a dissertation might be more helpful.

How To Write A Dissertation: 8 Steps

• Clearly understand what a dissertation (or thesis) is
• Find a unique and valuable research topic
• Craft a convincing research proposal
• Write up a strong introduction chapter
• Review the existing literature and compile a literature review
• Design a rigorous research strategy and undertake your own research
• Present the findings of your research
• Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications

Step 1: Understand exactly what a dissertation is

This probably sounds like a no-brainer, but all too often, students come to us for help with their research and the underlying issue is that they don’t fully understand what a dissertation (or thesis) actually is.

So, what is a dissertation?

At its simplest, a dissertation or thesis is a formal piece of research , reflecting the standard research process . But what is the standard research process, you ask? The research process involves 4 key steps:

• Ask a very specific, well-articulated question (s) (your research topic)
• See what other researchers have said about it (if they’ve already answered it)
• If they haven’t answered it adequately, undertake your own data collection and analysis in a scientifically rigorous fashion
• Answer your original question(s), based on your analysis findings

In short, the research process is simply about asking and answering questions in a systematic fashion . This probably sounds pretty obvious, but people often think they’ve done “research”, when in fact what they have done is:

• Started with a vague, poorly articulated question
• Not taken the time to see what research has already been done regarding the question
• Collected data and opinions that support their gut and undertaken a flimsy analysis
• Drawn a shaky conclusion, based on that analysis

If you want to see the perfect example of this in action, look out for the next Facebook post where someone claims they’ve done “research”… All too often, people consider reading a few blog posts to constitute research. Its no surprise then that what they end up with is an opinion piece, not research. Okay, okay – I’ll climb off my soapbox now.

The key takeaway here is that a dissertation (or thesis) is a formal piece of research, reflecting the research process. It’s not an opinion piece , nor a place to push your agenda or try to convince someone of your position. Writing a good dissertation involves asking a question and taking a systematic, rigorous approach to answering it.

If you understand this and are comfortable leaving your opinions or preconceived ideas at the door, you’re already off to a good start!

Step 2: Find a unique, valuable research topic

As we saw, the first step of the research process is to ask a specific, well-articulated question. In other words, you need to find a research topic that asks a specific question or set of questions (these are called research questions ). Sounds easy enough, right? All you’ve got to do is identify a question or two and you’ve got a winning research topic. Well, not quite…

A good dissertation or thesis topic has a few important attributes. Specifically, a solid research topic should be:

Let’s take a closer look at these:

Attribute #1: Clear

Your research topic needs to be crystal clear about what you’re planning to research, what you want to know, and within what context. There shouldn’t be any ambiguity or vagueness about what you’ll research.

Here’s an example of a clearly articulated research topic:

An analysis of consumer-based factors influencing organisational trust in British low-cost online equity brokerage firms.

As you can see in the example, its crystal clear what will be analysed (factors impacting organisational trust), amongst who (consumers) and in what context (British low-cost equity brokerage firms, based online).

Need a helping hand?

Attribute #2:   Unique

Your research should be asking a question(s) that hasn’t been asked before, or that hasn’t been asked in a specific context (for example, in a specific country or industry).

For example, sticking organisational trust topic above, it’s quite likely that organisational trust factors in the UK have been investigated before, but the context (online low-cost equity brokerages) could make this research unique. Therefore, the context makes this research original.

One caveat when using context as the basis for originality – you need to have a good reason to suspect that your findings in this context might be different from the existing research – otherwise, there’s no reason to warrant researching it.

Attribute #3: Important

Simply asking a unique or original question is not enough – the question needs to create value. In other words, successfully answering your research questions should provide some value to the field of research or the industry. You can’t research something just to satisfy your curiosity. It needs to make some form of contribution either to research or industry.

For example, researching the factors influencing consumer trust would create value by enabling businesses to tailor their operations and marketing to leverage factors that promote trust. In other words, it would have a clear benefit to industry.

So, how do you go about finding a unique and valuable research topic? We explain that in detail in this video post – How To Find A Research Topic . Yeah, we’ve got you covered 😊

Step 3: Write a convincing research proposal

Once you’ve pinned down a high-quality research topic, the next step is to convince your university to let you research it. No matter how awesome you think your topic is, it still needs to get the rubber stamp before you can move forward with your research. The research proposal is the tool you’ll use for this job.

So, what’s in a research proposal?

The main “job” of a research proposal is to convince your university, advisor or committee that your research topic is worthy of approval. But convince them of what? Well, this varies from university to university, but generally, they want to see that:

• You have a clearly articulated, unique and important topic (this might sound familiar…)
• You’ve done some initial reading of the existing literature relevant to your topic (i.e. a literature review)
• You have a provisional plan in terms of how you will collect data and analyse it (i.e. a methodology)

At the proposal stage, it’s (generally) not expected that you’ve extensively reviewed the existing literature , but you will need to show that you’ve done enough reading to identify a clear gap for original (unique) research. Similarly, they generally don’t expect that you have a rock-solid research methodology mapped out, but you should have an idea of whether you’ll be undertaking qualitative or quantitative analysis , and how you’ll collect your data (we’ll discuss this in more detail later).

Long story short – don’t stress about having every detail of your research meticulously thought out at the proposal stage – this will develop as you progress through your research. However, you do need to show that you’ve “done your homework” and that your research is worthy of approval .

So, how do you go about crafting a high-quality, convincing proposal? We cover that in detail in this video post – How To Write A Top-Class Research Proposal . We’ve also got a video walkthrough of two proposal examples here .

Step 4: Craft a strong introduction chapter

Once your proposal’s been approved, its time to get writing your actual dissertation or thesis! The good news is that if you put the time into crafting a high-quality proposal, you’ve already got a head start on your first three chapters – introduction, literature review and methodology – as you can use your proposal as the basis for these.

Handy sidenote – our free dissertation & thesis template is a great way to speed up your dissertation writing journey.

What’s the introduction chapter all about?

The purpose of the introduction chapter is to set the scene for your research (dare I say, to introduce it…) so that the reader understands what you’ll be researching and why it’s important. In other words, it covers the same ground as the research proposal in that it justifies your research topic.

What goes into the introduction chapter?

This can vary slightly between universities and degrees, but generally, the introduction chapter will include the following:

• A brief background to the study, explaining the overall area of research
• A problem statement , explaining what the problem is with the current state of research (in other words, where the knowledge gap exists)
• Your research questions – in other words, the specific questions your study will seek to answer (based on the knowledge gap)
• The significance of your study – in other words, why it’s important and how its findings will be useful in the world

As you can see, this all about explaining the “what” and the “why” of your research (as opposed to the “how”). So, your introduction chapter is basically the salesman of your study, “selling” your research to the first-time reader and (hopefully) getting them interested to read more.

How do I write the introduction chapter, you ask? We cover that in detail in this post .

Step 5: Undertake an in-depth literature review

As I mentioned earlier, you’ll need to do some initial review of the literature in Steps 2 and 3 to find your research gap and craft a convincing research proposal – but that’s just scratching the surface. Once you reach the literature review stage of your dissertation or thesis, you need to dig a lot deeper into the existing research and write up a comprehensive literature review chapter.

What’s the literature review all about?

There are two main stages in the literature review process:

Literature Review Step 1: Reading up

The first stage is for you to deep dive into the existing literature (journal articles, textbook chapters, industry reports, etc) to gain an in-depth understanding of the current state of research regarding your topic. While you don’t need to read every single article, you do need to ensure that you cover all literature that is related to your core research questions, and create a comprehensive catalogue of that literature , which you’ll use in the next step.

Reading and digesting all the relevant literature is a time consuming and intellectually demanding process. Many students underestimate just how much work goes into this step, so make sure that you allocate a good amount of time for this when planning out your research. Thankfully, there are ways to fast track the process – be sure to check out this article covering how to read journal articles quickly .

Literature Review Step 2: Writing up

Once you’ve worked through the literature and digested it all, you’ll need to write up your literature review chapter. Many students make the mistake of thinking that the literature review chapter is simply a summary of what other researchers have said. While this is partly true, a literature review is much more than just a summary. To pull off a good literature review chapter, you’ll need to achieve at least 3 things:

• You need to synthesise the existing research , not just summarise it. In other words, you need to show how different pieces of theory fit together, what’s agreed on by researchers, what’s not.
• You need to highlight a research gap that your research is going to fill. In other words, you’ve got to outline the problem so that your research topic can provide a solution.
• You need to use the existing research to inform your methodology and approach to your own research design. For example, you might use questions or Likert scales from previous studies in your your own survey design .

As you can see, a good literature review is more than just a summary of the published research. It’s the foundation on which your own research is built, so it deserves a lot of love and attention. Take the time to craft a comprehensive literature review with a suitable structure .

But, how do I actually write the literature review chapter, you ask? We cover that in detail in this video post .

Step 6: Carry out your own research

Once you’ve completed your literature review and have a sound understanding of the existing research, its time to develop your own research (finally!). You’ll design this research specifically so that you can find the answers to your unique research question.

There are two steps here – designing your research strategy and executing on it:

1 – Design your research strategy

The first step is to design your research strategy and craft a methodology chapter . I won’t get into the technicalities of the methodology chapter here, but in simple terms, this chapter is about explaining the “how” of your research. If you recall, the introduction and literature review chapters discussed the “what” and the “why”, so it makes sense that the next point to cover is the “how” –that’s what the methodology chapter is all about.

In this section, you’ll need to make firm decisions about your research design. This includes things like:

• Your research philosophy (e.g. positivism or interpretivism )
• Your overall methodology (e.g. qualitative , quantitative or mixed methods)
• Your data collection strategy (e.g. interviews , focus groups, surveys)
• Your data analysis strategy (e.g. content analysis , correlation analysis, regression)

If these words have got your head spinning, don’t worry! We’ll explain these in plain language in other posts. It’s not essential that you understand the intricacies of research design (yet!). The key takeaway here is that you’ll need to make decisions about how you’ll design your own research, and you’ll need to describe (and justify) your decisions in your methodology chapter.

2 – Execute: Collect and analyse your data

Once you’ve worked out your research design, you’ll put it into action and start collecting your data. This might mean undertaking interviews, hosting an online survey or any other data collection method. Data collection can take quite a bit of time (especially if you host in-person interviews), so be sure to factor sufficient time into your project plan for this. Oftentimes, things don’t go 100% to plan (for example, you don’t get as many survey responses as you hoped for), so bake a little extra time into your budget here.

Once you’ve collected your data, you’ll need to do some data preparation before you can sink your teeth into the analysis. For example:

• If you carry out interviews or focus groups, you’ll need to transcribe your audio data to text (i.e. a Word document).
• If you collect quantitative survey data, you’ll need to clean up your data and get it into the right format for whichever analysis software you use (for example, SPSS, R or STATA).

Once you’ve completed your data prep, you’ll undertake your analysis, using the techniques that you described in your methodology. Depending on what you find in your analysis, you might also do some additional forms of analysis that you hadn’t planned for. For example, you might see something in the data that raises new questions or that requires clarification with further analysis.

The type(s) of analysis that you’ll use depend entirely on the nature of your research and your research questions. For example:

• If your research if exploratory in nature, you’ll often use qualitative analysis techniques .
• If your research is confirmatory in nature, you’ll often use quantitative analysis techniques
• If your research involves a mix of both, you might use a mixed methods approach

Again, if these words have got your head spinning, don’t worry! We’ll explain these concepts and techniques in other posts. The key takeaway is simply that there’s no “one size fits all” for research design and methodology – it all depends on your topic, your research questions and your data. So, don’t be surprised if your study colleagues take a completely different approach to yours.

Step 7: Present your findings

Once you’ve completed your analysis, it’s time to present your findings (finally!). In a dissertation or thesis, you’ll typically present your findings in two chapters – the results chapter and the discussion chapter .

What’s the difference between the results chapter and the discussion chapter?

While these two chapters are similar, the results chapter generally just presents the processed data neatly and clearly without interpretation, while the discussion chapter explains the story the data are telling  – in other words, it provides your interpretation of the results.

For example, if you were researching the factors that influence consumer trust, you might have used a quantitative approach to identify the relationship between potential factors (e.g. perceived integrity and competence of the organisation) and consumer trust. In this case:

• Your results chapter would just present the results of the statistical tests. For example, correlation results or differences between groups. In other words, the processed numbers.
• Your discussion chapter would explain what the numbers mean in relation to your research question(s). For example, Factor 1 has a weak relationship with consumer trust, while Factor 2 has a strong relationship.

Depending on the university and degree, these two chapters (results and discussion) are sometimes merged into one , so be sure to check with your institution what their preference is. Regardless of the chapter structure, this section is about presenting the findings of your research in a clear, easy to understand fashion.

Importantly, your discussion here needs to link back to your research questions (which you outlined in the introduction or literature review chapter). In other words, it needs to answer the key questions you asked (or at least attempt to answer them).

For example, if we look at the sample research topic:

In this case, the discussion section would clearly outline which factors seem to have a noteworthy influence on organisational trust. By doing so, they are answering the overarching question and fulfilling the purpose of the research .

For more information about the results chapter , check out this post for qualitative studies and this post for quantitative studies .

Step 8: The Final Step Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications

Last but not least, you’ll need to wrap up your research with the conclusion chapter . In this chapter, you’ll bring your research full circle by highlighting the key findings of your study and explaining what the implications of these findings are.

What exactly are key findings? The key findings are those findings which directly relate to your original research questions and overall research objectives (which you discussed in your introduction chapter). The implications, on the other hand, explain what your findings mean for industry, or for research in your area.

Sticking with the consumer trust topic example, the conclusion might look something like this:

Key findings

This study set out to identify which factors influence consumer-based trust in British low-cost online equity brokerage firms. The results suggest that the following factors have a large impact on consumer trust:

While the following factors have a very limited impact on consumer trust:

Notably, within the 25-30 age groups, Factors E had a noticeably larger impact, which may be explained by…

Implications

The findings having noteworthy implications for British low-cost online equity brokers. Specifically:

The large impact of Factors X and Y implies that brokers need to consider….

The limited impact of Factor E implies that brokers need to…

As you can see, the conclusion chapter is basically explaining the “what” (what your study found) and the “so what?” (what the findings mean for the industry or research). This brings the study full circle and closes off the document.

Let’s recap – how to write a dissertation or thesis

You’re still with me? Impressive! I know that this post was a long one, but hopefully you’ve learnt a thing or two about how to write a dissertation or thesis, and are now better equipped to start your own research.

To recap, the 8 steps to writing a quality dissertation (or thesis) are as follows:

• Understand what a dissertation (or thesis) is – a research project that follows the research process.
• Find a unique (original) and important research topic
• Craft a convincing dissertation or thesis research proposal
• Write a clear, compelling introduction chapter
• Undertake a thorough review of the existing research and write up a literature review
• Undertake your own research
• Present and interpret your findings

Once you’ve wrapped up the core chapters, all that’s typically left is the abstract , reference list and appendices. As always, be sure to check with your university if they have any additional requirements in terms of structure or content.  

Psst... there’s more!

This post was based on one of our popular Research Bootcamps . If you're working on a research project, you'll definitely want to check this out ...

20 Comments

thankfull >>>this is very useful

Thank you, it was really helpful

unquestionably, this amazing simplified way of teaching. Really , I couldn’t find in the literature words that fully explicit my great thanks to you. However, I could only say thanks a-lot.

Great to hear that – thanks for the feedback. Good luck writing your dissertation/thesis.

This is the most comprehensive explanation of how to write a dissertation. Many thanks for sharing it free of charge.

Very rich presentation. Thank you

Thanks Derek Jansen|GRADCOACH, I find it very useful guide to arrange my activities and proceed to research!

Thank you so much for such a marvelous teaching .I am so convinced that am going to write a comprehensive and a distinct masters dissertation

It is an amazing comprehensive explanation

This was straightforward. Thank you!

I can say that your explanations are simple and enlightening – understanding what you have done here is easy for me. Could you write more about the different types of research methods specific to the three methodologies: quan, qual and MM. I look forward to interacting with this website more in the future.

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions 🙂

Hello, your write ups is quite educative. However, l have challenges in going about my research questions which is below; *Building the enablers of organisational growth through effective governance and purposeful leadership.*

Very educating.

Just listening to the name of the dissertation makes the student nervous. As writing a top-quality dissertation is a difficult task as it is a lengthy topic, requires a lot of research and understanding and is usually around 10,000 to 15000 words. Sometimes due to studies, unbalanced workload or lack of research and writing skill students look for dissertation submission from professional writers.

Thank you 💕😊 very much. I was confused but your comprehensive explanation has cleared my doubts of ever presenting a good thesis. Thank you.

thank you so much, that was so useful

Hi. Where is the excel spread sheet ark?

could you please help me look at your thesis paper to enable me to do the portion that has to do with the specification

my topic is “the impact of domestic revenue mobilization.

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What Is a Dissertation? | Guide, Examples, & Template

A dissertation is a long-form piece of academic writing based on original research conducted by you. It is usually submitted as the final step in order to finish a PhD program.

Your dissertation is probably the longest piece of writing you’ve ever completed. It requires solid research, writing, and analysis skills, and it can be intimidating to know where to begin.

Your department likely has guidelines related to how your dissertation should be structured. When in doubt, consult with your supervisor.

You can also download our full dissertation template in the format of your choice below. The template includes a ready-made table of contents with notes on what to include in each chapter, easily adaptable to your department’s requirements.

Download Word template Download Google Docs template

• In the US, a dissertation generally refers to the collection of research you conducted to obtain a PhD.
• In other countries (such as the UK), a dissertation often refers to the research you conduct to obtain your bachelor’s or master’s degree.

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Table of contents

Dissertation committee and prospectus process, how to write and structure a dissertation, acknowledgements or preface, list of figures and tables, list of abbreviations, introduction, literature review, methodology, reference list, proofreading and editing, defending your dissertation, free checklist and lecture slides.

When you’ve finished your coursework, as well as any comprehensive exams or other requirements, you advance to “ABD” (All But Dissertation) status. This means you’ve completed everything except your dissertation.

Prior to starting to write, you must form your committee and write your prospectus or proposal . Your committee comprises your adviser and a few other faculty members. They can be from your own department, or, if your work is more interdisciplinary, from other departments. Your committee will guide you through the dissertation process, and ultimately decide whether you pass your dissertation defense and receive your PhD.

Your prospectus is a formal document presented to your committee, usually orally in a defense, outlining your research aims and objectives and showing why your topic is relevant . After passing your prospectus defense, you’re ready to start your research and writing.

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The structure of your dissertation depends on a variety of factors, such as your discipline, topic, and approach. Dissertations in the humanities are often structured more like a long essay , building an overall argument to support a central thesis , with chapters organized around different themes or case studies.

However, hard science and social science dissertations typically include a review of existing works, a methodology section, an analysis of your original research, and a presentation of your results , presented in different chapters.

Dissertation examples

We’ve compiled a list of dissertation examples to help you get started.

• Example dissertation #1: Heat, Wildfire and Energy Demand: An Examination of Residential Buildings and Community Equity (a dissertation by C. A. Antonopoulos about the impact of extreme heat and wildfire on residential buildings and occupant exposure risks).
• Example dissertation #2: Exploring Income Volatility and Financial Health Among Middle-Income Households (a dissertation by M. Addo about income volatility and declining economic security among middle-income households).
• Example dissertation #3: The Use of Mindfulness Meditation to Increase the Efficacy of Mirror Visual Feedback for Reducing Phantom Limb Pain in Amputees (a dissertation by N. S. Mills about the effect of mindfulness-based interventions on the relationship between mirror visual feedback and the pain level in amputees with phantom limb pain).

The very first page of your document contains your dissertation title, your name, department, institution, degree program, and submission date. Sometimes it also includes your student number, your supervisor’s name, and the university’s logo.

Read more about title pages

The acknowledgements section is usually optional and gives space for you to thank everyone who helped you in writing your dissertation. This might include your supervisors, participants in your research, and friends or family who supported you. In some cases, your acknowledgements are part of a preface.

Read more about acknowledgements Read more about prefaces

The abstract is a short summary of your dissertation, usually about 150 to 300 words long. Though this may seem very short, it’s one of the most important parts of your dissertation, because it introduces your work to your audience.

Your abstract should:

• State your main topic and the aims of your research
• Describe your methods
• Summarize your main results
• State your conclusions

Read more about abstracts

The table of contents lists all of your chapters, along with corresponding subheadings and page numbers. This gives your reader an overview of your structure and helps them easily navigate your document.

Remember to include all main parts of your dissertation in your table of contents, even the appendices. It’s easy to generate a table automatically in Word if you used heading styles. Generally speaking, you only include level 2 and level 3 headings, not every subheading you included in your finished work.

Read more about tables of contents

While not usually mandatory, it’s nice to include a list of figures and tables to help guide your reader if you have used a lot of these in your dissertation. It’s easy to generate one of these in Word using the Insert Caption feature.

Read more about lists of figures and tables

Similarly, if you have used a lot of abbreviations (especially industry-specific ones) in your dissertation, you can include them in an alphabetized list of abbreviations so that the reader can easily look up their meanings.

Read more about lists of abbreviations

In addition to the list of abbreviations, if you find yourself using a lot of highly specialized terms that you worry will not be familiar to your reader, consider including a glossary. Here, alphabetize the terms and include a brief description or definition.

Read more about glossaries

The introduction serves to set up your dissertation’s topic, purpose, and relevance. It tells the reader what to expect in the rest of your dissertation. The introduction should:

• Establish your research topic , giving the background information needed to contextualize your work
• Narrow down the focus and define the scope of your research
• Discuss the state of existing research on the topic, showing your work’s relevance to a broader problem or debate
• Clearly state your research questions and objectives
• Outline the flow of the rest of your work

Everything in the introduction should be clear, engaging, and relevant. By the end, the reader should understand the what, why, and how of your research.

Read more about introductions

A formative part of your research is your literature review . This helps you gain a thorough understanding of the academic work that already exists on your topic.

Literature reviews encompass:

• Finding relevant sources (e.g., books and journal articles)
• Assessing the credibility of your sources
• Critically analyzing and evaluating each source
• Drawing connections between them (e.g., themes, patterns, conflicts, or gaps) to strengthen your overall point

A literature review is not merely a summary of existing sources. Your literature review should have a coherent structure and argument that leads to a clear justification for your own research. It may aim to:

• Address a gap in the literature or build on existing knowledge
• Take a new theoretical or methodological approach to your topic
• Propose a solution to an unresolved problem or advance one side of a theoretical debate

Read more about literature reviews

Theoretical framework

Your literature review can often form the basis for your theoretical framework. Here, you define and analyze the key theories, concepts, and models that frame your research.

Read more about theoretical frameworks

Your methodology chapter describes how you conducted your research, allowing your reader to critically assess its credibility. Your methodology section should accurately report what you did, as well as convince your reader that this was the best way to answer your research question.

A methodology section should generally include:

• The overall research approach ( quantitative vs. qualitative ) and research methods (e.g., a longitudinal study )
• Your data collection methods (e.g., interviews or a controlled experiment )
• Details of where, when, and with whom the research took place
• Any tools and materials you used (e.g., computer programs, lab equipment)
• Your data analysis methods (e.g., statistical analysis , discourse analysis )
• An evaluation or justification of your methods

Read more about methodology sections

Your results section should highlight what your methodology discovered. You can structure this section around sub-questions, hypotheses , or themes, but avoid including any subjective or speculative interpretation here.

Your results section should:

• Concisely state each relevant result together with relevant descriptive statistics (e.g., mean , standard deviation ) and inferential statistics (e.g., test statistics , p values )
• Briefly state how the result relates to the question or whether the hypothesis was supported
• Report all results that are relevant to your research questions , including any that did not meet your expectations.

Additional data (including raw numbers, full questionnaires, or interview transcripts) can be included as an appendix. You can include tables and figures, but only if they help the reader better understand your results. Read more about results sections

Your discussion section is your opportunity to explore the meaning and implications of your results in relation to your research question. Here, interpret your results in detail, discussing whether they met your expectations and how well they fit with the framework that you built in earlier chapters. Refer back to relevant source material to show how your results fit within existing research in your field.

Some guiding questions include:

• What do your results mean?
• Why do your results matter?
• What limitations do the results have?

If any of the results were unexpected, offer explanations for why this might be. It’s a good idea to consider alternative interpretations of your data.

Read more about discussion sections

Your dissertation’s conclusion should concisely answer your main research question, leaving your reader with a clear understanding of your central argument and emphasizing what your research has contributed to the field.

In some disciplines, the conclusion is just a short section preceding the discussion section, but in other contexts, it is the final chapter of your work. Here, you wrap up your dissertation with a final reflection on what you found, with recommendations for future research and concluding remarks.

It’s important to leave the reader with a clear impression of why your research matters. What have you added to what was already known? Why is your research necessary for the future of your field?

Read more about conclusions

It is crucial to include a reference list or list of works cited with the full details of all the sources that you used, in order to avoid plagiarism. Be sure to choose one citation style and follow it consistently throughout your dissertation. Each style has strict and specific formatting requirements.

Common styles include MLA , Chicago , and APA , but which style you use is often set by your department or your field.

Create APA citations Create MLA citations

Your dissertation should contain only essential information that directly contributes to answering your research question. Documents such as interview transcripts or survey questions can be added as appendices, rather than adding them to the main body.

Read more about appendices

Making sure that all of your sections are in the right place is only the first step to a well-written dissertation. Don’t forget to leave plenty of time for editing and proofreading, as grammar mistakes and sloppy spelling errors can really negatively impact your work.

Dissertations can take up to five years to write, so you will definitely want to make sure that everything is perfect before submitting. You may want to consider using a professional dissertation editing service , AI proofreader or grammar checker to make sure your final project is perfect prior to submitting.

After your written dissertation is approved, your committee will schedule a defense. Similarly to defending your prospectus, dissertation defenses are oral presentations of your work. You’ll present your dissertation, and your committee will ask you questions. Many departments allow family members, friends, and other people who are interested to join as well.

After your defense, your committee will meet, and then inform you whether you have passed. Keep in mind that defenses are usually just a formality; most committees will have resolved any serious issues with your work with you far prior to your defense, giving you ample time to fix any problems.

As you write your dissertation, you can use this simple checklist to make sure you’ve included all the essentials.

Checklist: Dissertation

My title page includes all information required by my university.

I have included acknowledgements thanking those who helped me.

My abstract provides a concise summary of the dissertation, giving the reader a clear idea of my key results or arguments.

I have created a table of contents to help the reader navigate my dissertation. It includes all chapter titles, but excludes the title page, acknowledgements, and abstract.

My introduction leads into my topic in an engaging way and shows the relevance of my research.

My introduction clearly defines the focus of my research, stating my research questions and research objectives .

My introduction includes an overview of the dissertation’s structure (reading guide).

I have conducted a literature review in which I (1) critically engage with sources, evaluating the strengths and weaknesses of existing research, (2) discuss patterns, themes, and debates in the literature, and (3) address a gap or show how my research contributes to existing research.

I have clearly outlined the theoretical framework of my research, explaining the theories and models that support my approach.

I have thoroughly described my methodology , explaining how I collected data and analyzed data.

I have concisely and objectively reported all relevant results .

I have (1) evaluated and interpreted the meaning of the results and (2) acknowledged any important limitations of the results in my discussion .

I have clearly stated the answer to my main research question in the conclusion .

I have clearly explained the implications of my conclusion, emphasizing what new insight my research has contributed.

I have provided relevant recommendations for further research or practice.

If relevant, I have included appendices with supplemental information.

I have included an in-text citation every time I use words, ideas, or information from a source.

I have listed every source in a reference list at the end of my dissertation.

I have consistently followed the rules of my chosen citation style .

I have followed all formatting guidelines provided by my university.

Congratulations!

The end is in sight—your dissertation is nearly ready to submit! Make sure it's perfectly polished with the help of a Scribbr editor.

If you’re an educator, feel free to download and adapt these slides to teach your students about structuring a dissertation.

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How do I Motivate Myself to Finish my Thesis or Dissertation? Tips for Getting Motivated When You Want to Quit

Some graduate or doctoral students who are in the incredibly challenging thesis or dissertation phase of their program have had thoughts about quitting. In particular, students who are moving into their third, fourth, or even tenth (yes, I’ve heard those stories too) year may begin to lose hope that they will ever finish. They may have aspired to a career as a researcher or professor, and now are on the precipice of reaching that goal, but their motivation is gone. Or, life has simply encroached upon their ability to finish the journey they embarked on so many years ago. If you are one of the many students who have had thoughts about quitting, do not despair because you are not alone.   

It may not even be that you are concretely thinking about quitting. Rather, it simply may be that life has slowed you down. It has become more and more difficult to close the deal as your family and work responsibilities grow. Your thesis or dissertation is hanging over you like a never-ending whisper. “You have to do it, it’s not done, do it…” You want to get it done, but you just cannot seem to find the time, and, yes, sometimes the motivation.

The director of the doctoral program at my school said that, generally, one-third of doctoral students never complete their dissertation, mainly because life has gotten in the way. I think about all the talented students I completed coursework with. It makes me sad that some of them will not get the recognition they deserve because they were no longer able to fit doctoral studies into their lives.

Another reason some students lose motivation is that they simply feel they no longer need the degree. Perhaps another professional opportunity has come along. They’ve found that it is something they have always wanted to do or is particularly promising in terms of career advancement and pay. These folks may say to themselves, “My new position is rewarding and does not require this degree, so why spend any more time pursuing it?”

There are many reasons why you may lack the motivation or ability to complete your thesis or dissertation. You might be experiencing burnout or losing interest in your topic. Perhaps you’ve realized that you do not need the degree or that you have too much on your plate. (Read more about these specific reasons below.) But there are things you can do to get back on track. You can rekindle your motivation and come to realize that it is worth it to round the final curve and graduate.

This post was written by Stephanie A. Bosco-Ruggiero (PhD candidate in Social Work at Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service) on behalf of Dave Maslach for the R3ciprocity project (Check out the  YouTube Channel  or the  writing feedback software ). R3ciprocity helps students, faculty, and research folk by providing a real and authentic look into doing research. It provides solutions and hope to researchers around the world.

The following are some reasons students lose their motivation to finish their thesis or dissertation and some tips for how they can get back on track.

Find a bit of time each day to work on your project

The first tip is less about motivation and more about simply finding the time to get started, keep moving forward, and to complete your thesis or dissertation. Find at least fifteen to twenty minutes a day reading, researching, outlining, or doing other small tasks that will help you move toward the critical task of writing your thesis or dissertation. There is so much to do before writing such as reviewing articles for your literature review, developing survey instruments, outlining your project, or collecting data, so try to get these tasks done in small increments.

Taking the time to do the smaller tasks of preparing to write your thesis or dissertation can be snuck in at odd times such as while waiting to see a doctor, while you are on hold with someone, while you are using public transportation, at the very end or beginning of each day, while the kids are finally amusing themselves for fifteen minutes, while you are waiting for the casserole to finish baking, etc. There are fifteen to twenty minutes in each day that you can find to do something to move your project forward.

Develop a plan

As you get more and more done with your fifteen to twenty minutes each day you will have broken the ice, the logjam, the writer’s block, the resistance -whatever you want to call it. You are THINKING and PLANNING and that makes whatever comes next easier. You will find yourself on a roll at times and spending more than your allotted fifteen to twenty minutes a day doing these smaller tasks or even writing. You may get less sleep a few nights due to the momentum you find yourself experiencing, but that is ok, it will not kill you. As you get more and more preparation for writing done, develop a plan for moving into the heavier writing phase. Think about whether you can take a day off her and there to work on your project. Having a straight 7 or 8 hours a day to write uninterrupted, here and there, will really get you going. Also, perhaps develop a goal for when you want to get each chapter of your project done by.

Do not catastrophize

Everyone gets stuck or stumped along the way of writing their thesis or dissertation. Do not make it into this insurmountable hurdle that you cannot get past. When you are feeling frustrated, do not know which direction to go in next, or feel that you have taken a wrong turn, put your work away for a few days. You will calm down; THEN contact your chair or a mentor and talk through what is challenging you. They will help you move forward productively.

Find supportive peers and ignore the naysayers

Talking to others in the same boat as you can help you feel like you are not alone in your lack of motivation, and as a group of colleagues, you can come up with ways to motivate each other. My doctoral program’s director setup a writing challenge where students work on their dissertation for half hour each day and share their accomplishments on a discussion board with others in the group. A group like this can help you keep a routine and find the inspiration and motivation to keep going.

The second part of this tip is to ignore the naysayers and those who would question why you are pursing this degree. Do not listen to those would urge you to quit. Quit only if you really want to, not because others want you to. If you do not have the strength to reject the negativity and naysayers, quitting may be the best thing for your to do, but most of you will keep going despite what others say because you truly care about your research, your field, and accomplishing what you set out to do. Listen to Dave talking for a few minutes about how easy it is, and important, to reject the negativity and keep going.  

Think about the money

You really should, because you have spent a lot of money on courses and you really should get the degree to make the investment worthwhile. Why spend so much money only to be ABD the rest of your life? Also, if you think you already have the promotion or career opportunity that you want and do not need the degree (especially a graduate degree) think twice. Down the line the degree could open even more doors, help you increase your earning, and gain more respect in the field. With a PhD you will be viewed as someone who can do research and who is an independent worker and thinker.

Think about how far you have come

This gets to some of the core principles of motivation. You have accomplished so much in completing your coursework and getting through the comprehensive exam process if your program has one. There is one more step toward earning your degree, and it is critical and important step toward earning that degree. Completing a thesis or dissertation shows that you can work independently on a major research project and contribute knowledge to your field. It is key display of your adherence to the scientific process and that you have master of specific research methods. Do not accept the attitude that completing a thesis or dissertation does not matter and that having the coursework on your resume is what counts. When you complete a thesis or dissertation you have then truly earned your degree, and people will respect you for the work you have put into your venture.   

Do it for the love of your discipline

If you truly find your area of study fascinating you should have a lot of the natural motivation to complete your degree. Some students in this phase may realize they are simply not that interested in their field of study, or specific research topic, anymore. That is a problem, but not insurmountable. If you have decided you want to completely abandon the field you are in because you are skeptical that it truly makes a difference or matters, talk to colleagues, mentors, and professors. Everyone has some doubt now and then about giving so much to such a narrow topic or field of study, but experienced professionals in the field can help you see the big picture of why your work matters. Also, remember that you are not wedded to your thesis or dissertation topic forever. Many graduates move away from the topic they studied for their capstone project towards a different area of study they are more interested in, after graduating, and do so with ease and satisfaction.

Choose a new research topic/question if you need to

If you are really not that into the research question you originally chose for your thesis or dissertation, choose a different one. It’s best to choose a new research question under the same general subject area so you can use some of your literature review, but by all means, go in a different direction with the research question. You are not too far along in the process if still in the proposal phase and choosing a new topic may be just the thing to help you get motivated again.

Get a writing coach

Others might call it tutoring, but what coaching or tutoring can do for you is provide you with the support you need to keep going. A good coach can help you through writing blocks and research problems. You may not have the spare change to meet with them as frequently as you would like to, but even a meeting here and there can help you gain clarity and get moving. Personally, I have helped several students who would have otherwise given up if not for the support I provided them. You can find writing tutors/coaches through tutoring website, freelancing sites, or by searching for writing/dissertation coaches.

Stay involved with the r3ciprocity community  

Dave has established a wonderful community where people can get writing support, share ideas, get motived, view informative videos, and read blogs like this one. The blog and vlog sites truly have a wealth of information and advice about academia, being a student, choosing the right direction, how to deal with challenges as a student, getting motivated, solving research challenges and obstacles, etc. Personally, I have benefited greatly from watching and viewing vlogs and blogs produced by Dave and his team of writers, and from writing some posts myself.

Stick with r3ciprocity community to get your motivation back. Check out these other short motivational vlogs Dave recorded for the community:

Today Is The Right Day. | #motivation To Get Started. – YouTube

The bottom line

There are many ways recapture the motivation you need to finish your thesis or dissertation. You may even want to talk to your committee about the challenges you are facing in making progress or finding motivation. They are not there to check in on you regularly and make sure you are making progress, but they do care and may be able to help you with creating a plan for moving forward. Some schools set deadlines for completing a thesis or dissertation, while others may let students take as much time as they need (one piece of advice – don’t take ten years). If you are charged for each semester that you are working on your dissertation, this could be a motivator to get it done as well!

The keys to motivation are to look at how far you have come and how much you have already invested in terms of time and money and to ask yourself if the benefits of quitting really outweigh the rewards of finishing. Also, seek the support and encouragement of peers if your program is not so competitive that people are hesitant to do so (quite unfortunate if that is the case). Also, stick with the r3ciprocity community for extra motivation and support!

If you enjoyed this blog, you may want to check out some of these other posts on blog.r3ciprocity.com  

R3ciprocity_Team

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Finding and Maintaining your Motivation during the Dissertation Process

25th August 2022

Most people writing a dissertation have heard the comparisons to a “marathon, not a sprint.” While that’s not wrong, sometimes that’s not entirely helpful, either. Yes, it is a test of perseverance and dedication, of endurance and prolonged concentration and effort. You might feel, at multiple points throughout the process, that you want to give up, that you just can’t do it anymore – and then somehow find the energy to keep moving forward. Consistently finding motivation can be tricky, though. Here at Thesis Editor , we know this, since we’ve all been there. All of us have completed a major thesis or dissertation, and know firsthand the struggles and triumphs of the dissertation process. We have dissertation coaches on our team who can assist you with writer’s block, help you organize your research and writing, and provide guidance if you’re stuck. We know what it’s like, and recognize that the struggle is, indeed, real. Here are five tried-and-true tips and tricks to stay motivated while writing your dissertation.

• Keep moving forward. When you go to bed every night, make sure your dissertation is longer than it was when you woke up that morning. Even if it’s a few sentences per day to start with, that adds up over time.
• Partner up. Find a classmate to hold you accountable, and agree to call or text each other every day with word count updates. If you don’t have a classmate you can buddy up with, tell your partner, a family member, or a trusted friend whom you KNOW will be a reliable person who will contact you every day for the writing update. Make your goals known to family and friends and encourage them to ask you specifics about your work. Having people to answer to will hold your feet to the flames and keep you going.
• There’s an app for that. Check out websites like com or Academic Writing Club , as well as apps like WriteChain, Write on Track, and WriteOMeter. These all let you see your progress, set writing and word count goals, and help to hold you accountable.
• Treat yourself. For each milestone you reach, do something nice for yourself, completely unrelated to your dissertation. A cupcake, going to see a movie, get a new book, take a day off – something to recharge you for the next hurdle.
• Get some sleep. Yes, sleep! It might feel like you need to pull a bunch of all-nighters or late nights to get everything done, but a lack of sleep can actually interfere with productivity . If you’ve been staying up late, caffeine might keep you awake during the day, but it’s no substitute for sleep and rest. Try taking a 20-minute power nap, or going to bed earlier.

Tagged under: Dissertation Writing   Dissertation Writing Tips   General Dissertation   academic writing   dissertation coaching   dissertation consultants   dissertation help   dissertation motivation   professional services   writer's block   writing coach   writing your dissertation  

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• GMS J Med Educ
• v.39(2); 2022

Language: English | German

Medical dissertation basics: analysis of a course of study for medical students

Basics zur medizinischen dissertation: analyse eines kursangebots für promovierende in der medizin, sophia griegel.

1 University of Ulm, Medical Faculty, Institute for Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Ulm, Germany

Michael Kühl

Achim schneider.

2 University of Ulm, Medical Faculty, Office of the Dean of Studies, Ulm, Germany

Susanne J. Kühl

Background:.

Although the majority of medical students in Germany pursue a doctorate, only a portion of them receive a standardized scientific training, which is reflected in the quality issues seen in medical doctoral theses. The course Medical Dissertation Basics was conceptualized and scientifically monitored in order to support medical doctoral students on the one hand and to improve the quality of their scientific work on the other.

Methodology:

The course consists of three modules. Module I, which is an introductory module, covers time and writing management and addresses how to approach literature and the principles of scientific work as well as the chapters required in a dissertation and the dissertation presentation and defense. In the practical module II, doctoral students write sections of their dissertation chapters and receive feedback via peer and expert reviews. Module III includes training on dissertation presentations and their defense. For objective analysis purposes, a multiple-choice test was administered before and after module I. Medical students from semesters 2 to 6 served as a control group. Questionnaires were used to subjectively analyze the training and support functions of modules I-III.

High participation rates and the fact that the modules were taught numerous times show that doctoral students accept the courses. The objective analysis of module I showed a highly significant knowledge acquisition of the course group (N=55) in contrast to the control group (N=34). The doctoral students rated the course modules I-III with grades between 1.0 and 1.25 (grade A+/A; N=20-65 SD=0-0.44), felt well supported and estimated their learning success as high.

Conclusion:

The study indicates knowledge acquisition in module I and a high doctoral student satisfaction with all modules. For an objective analysis of modules II-III, a comparison of completed doctoral theses (course participants vs. non-participants) would be appropriate but would only make sense in a few years. Based on the results of our study, we recommend that other faculties implement similar courses.

Zusammenfassung

Hintergrund:.

Obwohl die Mehrheit der Medizinstudierenden in Deutschland promoviert, erfährt nur eine Minderheit eine standardisierte wissenschaftliche Ausbildung, was sich an Qualitätsmängeln medizinischer Promotionsarbeiten äußert. Um Promovierenden der Medizin einerseits eine Unterstützung zu geben und andererseits die Qualität ihrer wissenschaftlichen Arbeiten zu verbessern, wurde das Kursangebot Basics zur medizinischen Dissertation konzeptioniert und wissenschaftlich begleitet.

Das Kursangebot besteht aus drei Modulen. Modul I als Grundlagenkurs behandelt neben dem Zeit- und Schreibmanagement, dem Umgang mit Literatur und den Grundsätzen des wissenschaftlichen Arbeitens auch die Kapitelinhalte einer Dissertationsschrift sowie die Präsentation und Verteidigung. Im praktischen Modul II verfassen Promovierende Auszüge von Dissertationskapiteln und erhalten über Peer- und Experten-Begutachtungen Feedback. Modul III umfasst das Training von Promotionsvorträgen und deren Verteidigung. Zur objektiven Analyse wurde ein Multiple Choice Test vor und nach Modul I durchgeführt. Medizinstudierende aus Fachsemester 2 bis 6 dienten als Kontrollgruppe. Anhand von Fragebögen wurden alle Kursmodule I-III hinsichtlich ihrer Ausbildungs- und Unterstützungsfunktion subjektiv analysiert.

Ergebnisse:

Hohe Teilnahmezahlen und die vielfache Durchführung der Kursmodule zeigen, dass Promovierende die Kurse akzeptieren. Die objektive Analyse von Modul I ergab einen hoch signifikanten Wissenserwerb der Kursgruppe (N=55) im Gegensatz zur Kontrollgruppe (N=34). Die Promovierenden bewerteten die Kursmodule I-III mit Schulnoten zwischen 1,0 und 1,25 (N=20-65 SD=0-0,44), fühlten sich gut unterstützt und schätzten ihren Lernerfolg als hoch ein.

Schlussfolgerung:

Die Studie zeigt eine hohe Promovierenden-Zufriedenheit mit allen Modulen und einen Wissenserwerb durch das Modul I. Zur objektiven Analyse von Modul II-III bietet sich ein Vergleich der fertiggestellten Promotionsarbeiten (Kurs Teilnehmende vs. Nicht-Teilnehmende) an, welcher erst in ein paar Jahren sinnvoll ist. Durch die Ergebnisse unserer Studie empfehlen wir anderen Fakultäten die Implementierung ähnlicher Angebote.

1. Introduction

1.1. the problem.

Between 54 to 70 percent of all medical students successfully complete their doctorates while about one-third of them do not [ 1 ], [ 2 ], [ 3 ], [ 4 ]. On the one hand, this indicates a very high willingness to do a doctorate, but on the other, that the doctoral students are often unsuccessful [ 5 ], [ 6 ]. What is special about the study of medicine is that the doctorate can be started while the medical degree is being pursued. This promises an initial motivation since it saves time, but it often leads to a double burden [ 5 ], [ 7 ], [ 8 ]. Another issue is an insufficient basic scientific education as well as a lack of supervision of doctoral candidates [ 9 ]. The quality of medical doctorates is also being criticized at the scientific and socio-political level. Thus, negative catch phrases such as title research and after-work research reflect the bad reputation of medical doctorates [ 8 ].

While there is a high demand for good scientific education by doctoral students and a high demand for quality from the scientific and societal side, there is often a lack of course offerings in this regard. In recent years, the global standards of medical education of the WFME (World Federation for Medical Education), the Medizinstudium 2020 (medical studies 2020) master plan and the Wissenschaftsrat (German council of science and humanities) have called for a strengthening of the scientific education. Individual German medical faculties have responded to this and implemented scientific course concepts [ 4 ], [ 8 ], [ 10 ], [ 11 ], [ 12 ], [ 13 ], [ 14 ], [ 15 ], [ 16 ] as well as quality assurance measures, which were documented in a study of the University Alliance for Young Scientists [ 17 ]. While subjective student evaluations are available, objective analyses of such doctoral courses are still lacking [ 16 ].

1.2. Initial situation at the medical faculty of the university of Ulm

The official curriculum of the medical faculty of the university of Ulm includes scientific content from the subjects of biometry and epidemiology (semester 7). In addition to evidence-based medicine, various types of research including the planning, methodology and implementation as well as the application of statistical tests are covered. Scientific content is also taught in other events that are included in a longitudinal mosaic curriculum (wise@ulm).

In addition, the University of Ulm offers electives for doctoral students: The experimental medicine course of study introduced in 2005, for example, is a doctoral program for medical students that requires an experimental dissertation. Each year, approximately 35 students are selected with the help of an application and selection process. The support provided consists of professional and scientific supervision, various scientific events, the completion of elective courses and ten months of financial support [ 18 ].

The course Fit für die diss MED (Fit for the medical dissertation), offered by the communication and information center, is a voluntary course made available to medical students at the university of Ulm. The course, which includes a total of eight hours and is mainly theoretical, covers successful publishing, the scientific framework and the use of computer programs. The content of the medical dissertation chapters is only marginally discussed.

There is no course offered for doctoral medical students that deals intensively with good scientific practice and the chapter content required for a doctoral thesis. Practical support during the writing process and in preparation for the presentation and defense of a dissertation has been limited as well. Thus, the course “medical dissertation basics: how to write scientific texts and present a doctoral thesis” with a total of three modules (MED I-III) was implemented in 2018, has been taught numerous times since then and has been monitored scientifically.

This raises the following questions:

• Is the Basics MED course with its three modules I-III accepted by students obtaining a doctorate in medicine?
• Can the participation in MED I (module I) result in an acquisition of knowledge by students obtaining a doctorate in medicine?
• How do students obtaining a doctorate in medicine rate the support provided and the scientific content learned during the three modules MED I-III?

2.1. Course concept

The course offering “Medical dissertation basics: How to write scientific texts and present a doctoral thesis” (MED I-III) was developed and introduced in 2018. Module I covers scientific fundamentals and teaches the content required for a medical doctoral thesis. Module II teaches students how to write high-quality text. Module III trains students on how to present and defend a doctoral thesis. The sequence of the modules (I → II → III) is based on the chronology of the medical doctoral process and permits students to apply the theoretical content learned (module I) to their own doctorate with the help of practical assignments (module II-III). The course content is based on the official guidelines of the medical faculty of the university of Ulm, observations gathered during the supervision of medical doctoral theses and courses that are already being offered at other universities [ 9 ], [ 11 ], [ 15 ], [ 16 ].

2.1.1. Participation information

The course is offered to doctoral students of human and dental medicine. In some cases, students from other degree programs may participate as well.

Students may take modules I and III as needed. Module I is a prerequisite for module II. The online courses are offered on the Ulm Moodle platform. Modules I and III are offered 3-5 times a year depending on demand while module II is offered throughout the year.

2.1.2. MED I (module I)

Module I is offered to students shortly before or at the beginning of the doctorate program as a one-week online course (nine hours in total). In order to structure the content, eight teaching phases (15 min to 2 hours each) have been defined as either independent study phases or classroom phases (online meetings).

In the (independent study) phase 1, students are introduced to scientific practice as well as time and writing management with the help of instructional videos, PDF files and worksheets. In the (classroom) phase 2, the instructor lectures on good scientific practice, the development of a comprehensible manuscript and its introduction. The remaining phases cover the legal framework, the scientific question or hypothesis, literature research and management (optional) and the remaining chapters of a dissertation as well as the presentation and defense of a dissertation (see figure 1 (Fig. 1) , part A).

A. Course organization (phases 1-8), content and materials of MED I, mandatory participation in pre-tests and post-tests (objective analysis), voluntary participation in evaluations (subjective analysis). B. Course organization, sequence and content (assignments with text length) of MED II, voluntary participation in evaluations. C. Course organization, sequence and content of MED III, voluntary participation in evaluations. Abbreviation: MED: Medical Experimental Dissertation Basics.

2.1.3. MED II (module II)

The online module II is designed for doctoral students who have already taken MED I and have started writing their dissertation. Students may participate individually or as a group of two. The assignments require students to write three to four sections of their own dissertation (see figure 1 (Fig. 1) , part B): Excerpt from the laboratory book (writing assignment 1), the materials and methods section (written assignment 2), excerpt of the introduction or discussion (written assignment 3) and excerpt of the results section (written assignment 4). These sections are first subjected to a peer review (feedback from another student) and then to an expert review (from the instructor). For both reviews, a semi-standardized feedback form is used, which was developed by two experts and reviewed by the academic staff members of our working group. If necessary, the doctoral students must submit a revised draft of a given section upon having received their feedback.

2.1.4. MED III (module III)

Module III trains students to present and defend their dissertations. In an individual preparation phase, students prepare a 7-minute presentation of their dissertation and are required to use a brief guideline. The students make their presentations in front of a small group (three to six doctoral students) during a first (online) class. Each presentation is followed by an approximately 30-minute feedback portion (feedback offered by the small group and the instructor) using a customized, semi-standardized feedback form, which was developed in the same manner as the feedback form used in module II. In a revision phase, the presentations are revised and presented again during a second (online) class. Students are provided with further feedback and collect and discuss potential questions such as those that an examination committee might present in order to practice the defense portion of the dissertation (see figure 1 (Fig. 1) , part C).

2.2. Study design for the analysis of the course offered (modules I-III)

The MED course study was divided into an objective analysis of the first module and subjective analyses of all modules (I-III).

For the objective analysis of the first module, a multiple choice (MC) knowledge test was developed and used as part of the courses offered from June to October 2020. Since module I was offered three times during this period, there were three test cycles. The test subjects consisted of the participants of module I (course group) and a control group. The selection of the individuals in the control group was subject to the following conditions: They had to be students of human medicine from the semesters 2-6 who had not yet started their doctoral thesis.

The subjective analysis of module I was based on the voluntary student evaluations from June 2020 to July 2021 (N=65). The subjective analyses of module II (N=20) and module III (N=20) were based on the evaluations from 2018 to 2021.

2.2.1. Objective analysis of the knowledge acquisition (module I)

To assess the knowledge acquired due to a participation in MED I (module I), 19 multiple choice questions were developed. In a second step, the test design was reviewed by two experts. Volunteers from our work group (N=7) performed a pretest in a third step [ 19 ], [ 20 ] and provided feedback about unclear or misleading wording and completion time.

The final test, consisting of eleven A positive type questions (choose one correct answer out of five possible answers) and eight K Prim type questions (choose multiple correct answers out of five possible answers), was administered via the Ulm learning platform Moodle. The knowledge test was administered three days before (pre-test) and three days after (post-test) the course (completion time: max. 20 minutes). Although the same questions were used for the pre-test and post-test, the order of the questions and answers was changed. Participants in the control group were asked to not research the content related to the questions over the course of the study.

With regard to eight K Prim type questions, the number of correct answer options varied (from 2 to 5). If an answer option was correctly selected, one point was awarded so that a maximum of 5 points could be achieved for each K Prim question. Points were deducted for incorrectly selected distractors. The point deduction principle was applied equally to all questions (type A positive and K Prim ). Consequently, a total score of minus 30 to plus 32 points was possible.

2.2.2. Subjective analysis through student evaluations (modules I-III).

For the subjective analysis, semi-standardized questionnaires were developed for all modules. In addition to the socio-demographic data of the participants, data on general and content-related course aspects was collected (e.g., the organization, structure and subjectively perceived learning success; see figure 2 (Fig. 2) , figure 3 (Fig. 3) and figure 4 (Fig. 4) ), which were assessed with a Likert-type response scale (1=do not agree at all to 6=agree completely). Participants were able to enter praise, criticism or suggestions for improvement in a free text field. The overall module was also evaluated by using a school grade (1=very good, 6=insufficient).

A. General questions about the course. B. Students' assessment of the individually perceived learning success; Likert scale: from 1= "strongly disagree" to 6= "strongly agree". N=65.

A. General questions about the course. B. Students‘ assessment of the individually perceived learning success; Likert scale: from 1= “strongly disagree” to 6= “strongly agree”. N=20.

2.3. Data analysis and statistics

All analyses were performed using the SPSS Statistics Version 26 software from the International Business Machines Corporation. For the knowledge test, the total scores of all three test cycles were calculated. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test did not show a normal distribution of the data, so the nonparametric Wilcoxon signed-rank test for connected samples was used for analysis purposes. An alpha level of 5% was applied. Free-text comments were categorized and quantified according to praise, criticism or suggestion for improvement, following Schneider et al., 2019 [ 21 ].

2.4. Ethics

The ethics committee of the University of Ulm did not consider an ethics vote necessary. The participation in the questionnaires and tests was voluntary, anonymous and free of charge. The participants' consent to data processing and data transfer was obtained.

3.1. Participation figures

A total of 171 doctoral students participated in MED I (which was offered six times between July 2020 and November 2021), 21 students participated in MED II (since 2018) and 25 students participated in MED III (which was offered nine times since 2018). The number of participants in the course-related studies was somewhat lower (see figure 1 (Fig. 1) and table 1 (Tab. 1) ).

3.2. Objective analysis of MED I

3.2.1. sociodemographic data of the course and control groups.

The socio-demographic data of the course group was obtained from the evaluation forms (section 2.2.2) and data of the control group was based on verbal information provided by the participants.

Of the module I participants, 89% studied human medicine (N=65, see table 1 (Tab. 1) ) compared to 100% of control group subjects (N=34). The majority of course participants were female (71%); in the control group, male subjects dominated with 62%. The course participants were on average in semester 7.67 (SD=1.66) while the subjects of the control group were in semester 4.76 (SD=1.35).

3.2.2. Results from the knowledge test

To test for knowledge acquisition in MED I, the results from the pre-test and post-test were compared (see figure 5 (Fig. 5) ). The result of the control group remained unchanged with a median of 10.5 points (Q1=5.75 Q3=13) in the pre-test and post-test. Only the dispersion decreased slightly in the post-test. In contrast, the course group showed a significant knowledge acquisition with a median of 13 points in the pre-test (Q1=11 Q3=17.5) and 22 points in the post-test (Q1=19.5 Q3=25) (p<0.001).

3.3. Subjective analyses of MED I-III

3.3.1. sociodemographic data.

The sociodemographic data of the participants (see table 1 (Tab. 1) ) shows that the age and semester of study increased from module I to III. Dental and human medical students who had not yet started or had already started their experimental/clinical/retrospective/teaching research participated in Module I. Module groups II and III included human medicine students who were primarily doing experimental work. A large proportion of doctoral students from the experimental medicine student track participated in all modules [ 18 ].

3.3.2. Subjective evaluation results

MED I was rated on average with the school grade 1.21 (N=58 SD=0.41), MED II with 1.28 (N=18 SD=0.46) and MED III with the grade 1.0 (N=20 SD=0.00). Additional questions tried to determine how students obtaining a doctorate in medicine assess the support and their learning success in the courses.

3.3.3. Evaluation results for module I

The communication of the general course information (MW=5.80, SD=0.44), the organization and overall structure, and the teaching by the instructor were rated particularly positively. The presentation of data and the literature research (MW=4.74, SD=1.02) scored somewhat worse. The teaching of scientific content such as literature management (MW=5.35, SD=1.16) and the teaching of the chapter content required for a dissertation, led to a subjectively perceived high learning success (see figure 2). Similar results were reflected by the praise expressed in the free text questions in which the course content, the commitment of the instructors and the teaching videos were positively emphasized (see table 2 (Tab. 2) ).

3.3.4. Evaluation results for module II

General aspects such as the basic structure, the assignments and the feedback by the instructor (MW=5.80, SD=0.41) were rated good to very good. The peer feedback by fellow students was rated somewhat lower (MW=3.91, SD=1.38). The participants indicated that their writing process had improved (MW=5.55, SD=0.89). Students rated the drafting of the materials and methods section, the introduction or discussion and the results section as particularly instructive and the lab journal entry as (somewhat) instructive (MW=4.60, SD=1.19) (see figure 3 (Fig. 3) ). Two students commented on being able to do without the lab book excerpt while others suggested the option of submitting more dissertation sections. The positive comments made up 60% of all comments and included references to the speedy correction and individual feedback provided by the instructor (see table 2 (Tab. 2) ).

3.3.5. Evaluation results for module III

MED III, which pertains to the presentation and defense of a dissertation, was characterized by very high student satisfaction. Organizational and structural aspects, the ability to present two times, the analyses and feedback by the instructor were rated very good (MW=6.00, SD=0.00). All students would take the course again (MW=6.00, SD=0.00). Participants rated the learning success pertaining to the general presentation, content and structure of a lecture and the use of media for visualization purposes very highly (see figure 4 (Fig. 4) ). In the free texts, the commitment of the instructors in the course design was rated positively. The participants felt that the module provided structure as well as new perspectives and well prepared them for the presentation and defense of their dissertation. Some participants would have liked more basic information on how to give a good presentation (see table 2 (Tab. 2) ).

4. Discussion

Our study shows that

• all modules of the Basics MED course are accepted by students obtaining a doctorate in medicine.
• participation in MED I (module I) leads to a knowledge acquisition by the students obtaining a doctorate in medicine.
• students obtaining a doctorate in medicine highly rate the support and learning success of scientific content provided in the course modules MED I-III.

4.1. Basics MED courses accepted by doctoral students in medicine

At the time the course was implemented, other doctoral programs had already been established at the University of Ulm [ 18 ]. Therefore, despite a high demand for doctoral programs throughout Germany, we were interested in whether the course would be accepted [ 9 ], [ 13 ]. We were able to confirm this based on the number of times the course has been conducted (several times a year) and high participation numbers. The participation figures for Modules II and III were somewhat lower. Possible reasons are that modules II-III become relevant in the later couese of the dissertation (possibly not until later) and the additional time required. For module II, students had to have first completed module I, and continuous texts had to be drafted. In contrast to a scientific term paper (doctoral program at the Charité Berlin), these continuous texts are only excerpts of the student's dissertation, which relativizes the additional effort [ 15 ].

4.2. Participation in MED I (Module I) results in knowledge acquisition

To test the degree to which students learned from module I, an MC test was designed and administered before and after the course (pre-test and post-test). It showed a significant knowledge acquisition by the course group compared to the control group. The purpose of the control group was to test for factors that might influence the test results, such as a practice effect due to the test being administered twice [ 22 ], and jeopardize their validity. We used identical questions in the pre-test and the post-test and only changed the order, which, according to Golda et al., has no significant influence on the level of difficulty [ 23 ].

Due to insignificant differences in the test scores of the control group, a practice effect can be largely ruled out, indicating an objective knowledge acquisition of the course group.

4.3. Doctoral students rate the support and learning success highly

Our subjective analyses show that students considered the basics MED modules I-III as helpful for their doctoral studies. The participants rated the learning gain relating to scientific content high. The learning gain relating to literature research (and management) was insignificantly lower. One reason could be the complexity of the topic, which is difficult to grasp in a 9-hour course. The ability to manage literature is often acquired over a longer period of time, such as the entire doctoral period [ 13 ]. In the evaluation of MED II, the feedback by the instructor was rated more helpful than the peer feedback provided by fellow students (see figure 3 (Fig. 3) ). Examples from the literature show that students can generally benefit from a feedback culture (including peer feedback) [ 24 ], [ 25 ]. Doctoral students are at the beginning of their academic career and have yet to develop a critical eye for academic texts. This process is positively supported by the involvement in peer feedback.

Individual participants rated the relevance of the laboratory book excerpt as low. The Wissenschaftsrat and the instructors believe that this portion of the module is very relevant for ensuring scientific standards [ 12 ].

Overall, however, the results at the subjective level are consistent with calls (by the Wissenschaftsrat, WFME, etc.) for more intensive support and scientific training [ 11 ], [ 12 ]. Studies evaluating other doctoral programs have resulted in similar conclusions [ 15 ], [ 16 ].

4.4. Limitations

The limiting factor of the knowledge test relating to module I is that only MC questions were used. Unlike open-ended question formats, it is possible that MC questions are answered correctly not due to sound knowledge but rather because students recognize key words [26]. On the other hand, this type of question is commonly used in exams and allows for a standardized and quantitative evaluation [ 26 ].

In addition, the course group included students who were on the perennial experimental medicine study track. It is possible, albeit unlikely, that the doctoral program may influence the test results, but this cannot be ruled out. Other limitations include differences in the test groups: The majority of the course participants had already started their doctorate while the control group had not (yet) started. Since many doctoral students of the Medical Faculty had already taken MED I, the number of doctoral students suitable for the control group was limited. Furthermore, there was a lack of data (e.g., e-mail addresses) for a targeted search for subjects. Therefore, we chose medical students from semesters 2-6 who were younger on average and were not yet pursuing their doctorate and with whom we had had contact in other courses. We received more feedback from male subjects, resulting in a different gender distribution between course and control subjects. In addition, the control group did not include any participants from the Experimental Medicine study track. This is due to the fact that almost all of the 35 participants who had just received funding during the study period took part in MED I because the Experimental Medicine study track accepts the MED modules as electives [18].

Another approach to determine whether the knowledge increase was due to the course would be to test content that was not covered in the course. However, additional questions would have led to an increase in processing time, which might have decreased the willingness to participate in the study.

In addition to uncertain objectivity and validity, another limitation of voluntary evaluations is that they are conducted online [ 27 ]. Online evaluations can be perceived as more anonymous than face-to-face surveys [ 28 ]. Without a tangible expectation from the instructors present, the response rate may have been lower. Advantages of more anonymous (online) surveys, however, are more honest expressions, especially of criticism, which are valuable for the further development of a course [ 28 ], [ 29 ].

5. Summary and outlook

Our study allows for both an objective and subjective analysis of a course designed to support students obtaining a doctorate in medicine. The MED I-III modules were accepted and evaluated very positively. MED I objectively increased the participants’ knowledge. For an objective analysis of MED II, a grade comparison of the completed dissertation would be conceivable (participants compared to non-participants). Analogously, the success of the presentation and defense of the dissertations could be compared for an objective analysis of MED III. It will take a few years, however, to conduct such case-control studies since there is often a time lag of several years between participation in the course and the completion of the doctorate [ 5 ].

Based on our results to date, we recommend that other universities develop similar courses.

Competing interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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8 Motivational Tips for Dissertation Writing

2020, Inside Higher Ed.

Writing a dissertation is a grueling process that does not just require academic prowess, an excellent writing style and mastery of a very specific area of knowledge. It also demands discipline (in setting a writing schedule), perseverance (in keeping that schedule) and motivation (to get the writing done and the project completed). The beginning of the academic year, with its array of looming deadlines, administrative procedures and mandatory adviser/graduate students/department meetings, can make it difficult to find motivation and hold on to it. The COVID-19 pandemic, with its utter disruption of normal operations, exacerbates this problem even further. So, if you need additional motivation in these trying times, maybe a practice I followed when writing my own dissertation can help. I call it Motivational Post-it: a series of brief slogans to write on Post-it notes and put all over your desk or workstation, so you can see them every time you sit down to work. Here are some of mine.

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How to explain things in the motivation section of a mathematical paper without proper definitions?

I want to start a chapter in my dissertation by motivating a mathematical operator by showing why it is interesting to look at it and what I can contribute to understand it better. However, I actually need to introduce some mathematical objects in order to correctly state everything.

I think it is a rather bad Idea to start first with a section of introducing the mathematical concepts (like measure theory) and then start the actual motivation. But if I do it opposite, then I am at a loss for words.

For example, in my motivation I would need to use a additive-finite measure space, a operator, the space of mu-integrable functions and a stochastic process.

How would you suggest to cope with such a situation?

• mathematics

• 3 As long as the terms are standard, you can probably safely use them without defining them in detail (especially in the introduction). –  Tobias Kildetoft Commented May 4, 2015 at 13:18
• 2 I know mathematicians don't like to hear that, but still: if you can't explain why it's interesting in natural language, you (probably) don't have a motivation (that appeals to non-experts) beyond curiosity . That's fair, but why pretend? –  Raphael Commented May 5, 2015 at 0:22

6 Answers 6

When I was a Ph.D. student working on my own dissertation, I went to the university writing center for help and had a revelatory experience. The person working with me sat down with the first page of my introduction and effectively dissected it to identify the problems without understanding any of my technical jargon. They did this by reading aloud as we discussed, substituting blank/nonsense words for every piece of jargon, e.g.:

Here we apply method X to determine whether adjective thingies can be made to wibble.

This type of substitution forces you to step back from the technical world that you have dedicated so much time and love to, and understand your narrative---or lack thereof.

In your motivation, you need to take a couple of steps back and ask: why does anybody care about additive-finite measure space ("frobs") and how it relates to the space of mu-integrable functions ("greebit-space") or a stochastic process ("wibbling").

You didn't pick these elements at random. There must be some reason why you picked them and how they relate to the bigger community. Are they intended to solve a puzzle that a lot of people care about? Or a small piece of such a puzzle? Do they unite two sets of concepts that people thought were different? Will they help understand string theory or give better tools for interpreting MRI imaging?

You want to be able to write something like this:

People have wondered about how to better understand frobs ever since Richard Feynman first used them to pick the locks in Los Alamos. Although X, Y, and Z attempts have been made, none of them got very far because they were all green-colored. In this dissertation, I examine an alternate path, reducing the problem of frobs to the simpler system of greebit-space by means of an innovative application of wibbling. These results bring us one step closer to solving the problem of frobs, and how they can be better used to quickly and cheaply pick locks.

Now, what I've written is pure gibberish, and your motivation will almost certainly be much longer. The point, however, is this: your goal in a motivation section is to motivate by explaining that there is a problem that people care about and that you have an approach that gives at least a piece of the solution. Explain it in a way that your jargon can just be placeholders in the reader's mind, and it will be fine to leave the complex definitions for later.

• 1 This is a concise and brilliant explanation of what an introductory chapter -- any introductory chapter -- should do. –  henning no longer feeds AI Commented May 5, 2015 at 10:27

When I encounter this problem, I write the introduction as if the readers knew the concepts that I mention, but I include a parenthetical comment or a footnote, after such a concept, along the lines of "This and other concepts used in the introduction will be defined in Section 2."

If you go deeply enough into measure theory and stochastic processes to actually write your dissertation about it, it is safe to assume that readers will be familiar with common concepts. So just assume that people understand what you write about. Do some handwaving if necessary ("we examine an interesting class of operators that are distinguished in that...").

Worry less about correctness than about telling a good story. After all, this is a motivational section. Don't include any definitions, or no more than one if it is utterly necessary. (And then, if you find that a definition is necessary in an introduction section, I'd argue that you probably need to revisit what you want to write in that section, until the definition is not necessary any more.)

Worry about correctness in the main body of your chapter.

In addition to other good points made in the other answers, I think too often people overlook the question of the actual, likely audience/readership for a piece of technical writing. For example, it is unlikely that anyone without at least a rudimentary knowledge of your general subject would look at your thesis at all, so you can safely use the standard, basic terminology to give an introduction and overview of a given chapter. That is, it is not useful to imagine that you are explaining "from scratch" to someone who's completely unacquainted with the topic under discussion, since the reality would be that they'd not instantly assimilate "definitions" in any case.

In other words, contrary to what we sometimes may imagine, there is a context in which we write, and that context is most often richer than we acknowledge. Thus, the work is not to re-establish the basic context, but to make larger points. That is, as in the other answers, I don't want to hear delicate (and possibly pointless) semantic distinctions about word-use, but, rather, about why you are doing what you're doing, etc.

Mathematicians have a tendency to train to hide away they tracks they used to take to get to their goal (apologies to Simon Singh). This means that motivation is the thing they have been trained not to give. As compensation, they give examples, ranging from trivial to realistic to absurd following the definitions.

This is the situation on the ground. The reason is that mathematical objects are often obtained by so many steps of abstraction of originally natural-world concepts that their real-world origin is often obscured or very difficult to intuit (think the - very compact - definition of topology).

Therefore, it is useful to the reader to "recreate" the bridge to reality (which is often possible) and explain which of reality's features are required and which ones are discarded. Measure theory is not so bad in that respect. Basically, you are talking about a kind of "volume". In "nice" spaces, such a vector spaces, you could consider n-forms as volumes (almost literally), but if the space gets nastier, without a concept of tangent spaces and the associated structure, you have to look at which permits you to extend this concept to suitably selected subsets of your space. My favourite to asking the question what you miss if you have no measure is to respond with the Banach-Tarski paradox.

Now the game can also be played on a higher level if you talk to mathematicians who know already a lot of things. You now need to explain how your concepts will fit into what they already know. So, a group theorist may be motivated to look at semigroups by explaining which axioms you drop (and why). Or which phenomenon motivated your definition of semigroup (for instance attempting to model non-invertible operations).

In short: the point is to explain and to motivate what concepts and phenomena in "the universe of the reader" corresponds to properties discarded or generalised (abstractions) or newly studied phenomena in your universe.

It's a delicate balance. You say:

...in order to correctly state everything.

But why are you correctly stating everything if its just a motiational discussion? So you see you have a balancing act whereby you need to give up a little bit of space on the side of correctly stating everything in order to gain some space on the side of being able to flexibly discuss the concepts, ideas, history etc.

This is actually really hard and usually takes much more experience than it did to solve the research problem in the first place. So I think its common for e.g. a graduating PhD student to have the technical knowledge to solve the problem but to find it difficult to articulate where the problem lies within a much bigger field of inquiry.

As you gain more experience you will know when and how to lie . And you will also know much better what counts as standard. When you've just spent years learning the basics of a research field you often feel like things need definitions that don't really. Other experienced mathematicians are probably more comfortable than you think with not fully understanding every detail/remembering every definition but kind of vaguely knowing what such and such an object X is and vaguely what it does and just more or less getting the idea until the later point at which you define everytihng.

To try to give one piece of practical advice: Look for ways to not tell too big a lie. Find places you can say that 'an object X is essentially an object Y together with a parameterization of its involutions' (or whatever) where object Y is something you a sure is more standard.

One example that comes to mind from my education is distributions. I heard both of the following vagueries:

• Distributions are generalized functions.("OK right so I should think of them like functions")
• Distributions are like the abstract dual to functions. You pair a distribution with a function to get a number.

This confused me when I was younger. But after some experience I guess you know the ways in which these are both true and you get that different contexts call for different lies .

The readers who don't know the stuff well will essentially have no choice but to just swallow the lies. Then you get worried about the readers who do know the stuff well. Because then when you tell a lie, they might get offended, like "gah this writer has oversimplified and left out the crucial essence of object X; how will anyone get the important content from watered down motivational discussion!?" So like I said, it's a balancing act.

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Finding and Maintaining your Motivation during the Dissertation Process

5th July 2018

Most people writing a dissertation have heard the comparisons to a “marathon, not a sprint.” While that’s not wrong, sometimes that’s not entirely helpful, either. Yes, it is a test of perseverance and dedication, of endurance and prolonged concentration and effort. You might feel, at multiple points throughout the process, that you want to give up, that you just can’t do it anymore – and then somehow find the energy to keep moving forward. Consistently finding motivation can be tricky, though. Here at Dissertation Editor , we know this, since we’ve all been there. All of us have completed a major thesis or dissertation, and know firsthand the struggles and triumphs of the dissertation process. We have dissertation coaches on our team who can assist you with writer’s block, help you organize your research and writing, and provide guidance if you’re stuck. We know what it’s like, and recognize that the struggle is, indeed, real. Here are five tried-and-true tips and tricks to stay motivated while writing your dissertation.

• Keep moving forward. When you go to bed every night, make sure your dissertation is longer than it was when you woke up that morning. Even if it’s a few sentences per day to start with, that adds up over time.
• Partner up. Find a classmate to hold you accountable, and agree to call or text each other every day with word count updates. If you don’t have a classmate you can buddy up with, tell your partner, a family member, or a trusted friend whom you KNOW will be a reliable person who will contact you every day for the writing update. Make your goals known to family and friends and encourage them to ask you specifics about your work. Having people to answer to will hold your feet to the flames and keep you going.
• There’s an app for that. Check out websites like com or Academic Writing Club , as well as apps like WriteChain, Write on Track, and WriteOMeter. These all let you see your progress, set writing and word count goals, and help to hold you accountable.
• Treat yourself. For each milestone you reach, do something nice for yourself, completely unrelated to your dissertation. A cupcake, going to see a movie, get a new book, take a day off – something to recharge you for the next hurdle.
• Get some sleep. Yes, sleep! It might feel like you need to pull a bunch of all-nighters or late nights to get everything done, but a lack of sleep can actually interfere with productivity . If you’ve been staying up late, caffeine might keep you awake during the day, but it’s no substitute for sleep and rest. Try taking a 20-minute power nap, or going to bed earlier.

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