writing thesis in a week

How to write a whole research paper in a week

Writing up a full research article in a single week? Maybe you think that’s impossible. Yet I have done it repeatedly, and so have students in my courses. This is an exceptionally joyful (even if demanding) experience: being so productive just feels great! You are not wasting any time, and a paper produced in one go is typically coherent and nice to read. Even if you are a slow writer, you can write a whole paper in a single week — if you follow my strategy. Read below about what you need to prepare and how to approach this project.

I wrote my first scientific research article in 7 days. It started as a desperate effort to stop my procrastination and “just do it”. But I was surprised what a positive experience it was: focused and efficient, I was making daily progress, feeling motivated and content. Finally, the fruits of my hard work were gaining shape — and they did it so quickly!

I realized it was highly effective to write up a paper like this: writing for the whole day, every day until the first draft was finished. My writing project was firmly present in my mind — I didn’t lose time catching up with what I have written in the last session. Since I was not doing anything else, my wandering mind settled in very fast, and I was getting into a routine. The daily progress was clearly visible and motivated me to continue. And the result was a coherent paper that was easy to revise.

Meanwhile, this paper-a-week approach is my favorite. That’s how I write my papers, and that’s what I teach to students. In on-site courses young scientists draft a whole paper in 5 days, writing one major section per day. At the beginning of the week, many participants have doubts. But at the end of the week, they are all excited to see how much they managed to write in just a single week.

If you would also like to try out this approach, then read on about the necessary preparations, the optimal setting, and a productive writing strategy.

If you would like to get support during the preparation, drafting and revising of your research article, check out my online course Write Up Your Paper .

Prepare well

• First, think about your audience and pick a suitable journal . This is an important step because the audience and journal determine the content & style of your paper. As a reference, pick two recent papers on a similar topic published in your target journal.
• Create a storyline for your paper. What is the main message you want to convey, and how are you going to present your results?
• Put together all the results that you need to present your story convincingly: collect the necessary data, finish analyses, and create figures and tables.
• Select and read the relevant background literature as well as studies you want to compare your work with. As you read, note down any point that comes to your mind as something to be mentioned in the Introduction or Discussion section.
• Draft a preliminary Abstract : it will help you keep the direction and not get distracted by secondary ideas as you write the individual sections.

Depending on how complete your results already are, you might need 2-4 weeks to finish all these preparations. To help you keep an overview, I created a checklist with detailed steps that you need to take before you attempt to write up your paper in a week. Subscribe to our Newsletter and get your copy of the checklist.

Reserve a whole week for writing

Now, writing a paper in a single week is a serious business. You can’t do it if you don’t focus solely on the writing and create good writing conditions. Therefore, I recommend the following settings:

• Find a place where you can write without distractions. I have written my first paper over the Easter holidays when there was nobody in the office. You might choose to write at home or in a library. Though if possible, the best is to go for a retreat: removing yourself from your everyday settings immensely helps focus on the writing.
• Cancel (all) social obligations for the week. While it’s crucial to relax in the evening, you want to avoid disturbances associated with social events. Anything that makes your thoughts drift away from your work because it requires planning, exchanging of messages with others, or simply because it’s too exciting is better left for some other week. On the other hand, a quiet meeting with a good friend over a glass of wine or beer might be just the perfect way to unwind and rest after a productive, yet exhausting day of writing.
• Get support from the partner, family or friends — if possible. It’s best when you don’t need to run errands, cook and clean during this week. If you live alone, you can probably easily arrange yourself for undisturbed work. If you live with other people, ask them for consideration and support.

What I described above are the *ideal* conditions for undisturbed writing. But don’t give up if you can’t create such conditions for yourself. Work with what is possible — maybe it will take you 7-8 instead of 5-6 days but that’s still a great result, right?

Do you need to revise & polish your manuscript or thesis but don’t know where to begin?

Get your Revision Checklist

Click here for an efficient step-by-step revision of your scientific texts.

Maybe you think that you can never ever draft a research article in a single week. Because you write so slowly, producing only few paragraphs per day. Well — I agree that if you don’t optimize your writing strategy, it would be hard to impossible to write up a whole paper in a week.

• Separate the processes of writing and revising. That’s the most important principle. Resist the urge to revise as you write the first draft. Moreover, don’t interrupt your writing to look up missing information. Work with placeholders instead. This allows you to get into the state of flow and proceed much faster than you can imagine.
• Start your writing day with 10 minutes of freewriting . Write without stopping about anything that comes to your mind. This helps you to warm up for writing, clear your head of any unrelated thoughts, and get into the mood of writing without editing.
• Take regular power breaks. I recommend to follow the Pomodoro technique : write for 25 minutes and then take a 5-minute break. After 3-4 such sessions take a longer break of 0.5-1 hour. During the breaks get up, walk a bit, stretch, look around, and breathe deeply. These breaks help you sustain high focus and productivity throughout the whole day.
• Eat and sleep well. What you are doing is similar to a professional athlete. So take care of your brain and body, and they will serve you well.
• Reward yourself. Every day celebrate the progress you have made. You have full right to be proud of you!

Write the individual sections in a reasonable order

If you have written a research paper before, you have probably realized that starting with the Introduction and finishing with the Discussion is not the ideal order in which to tackle the individual sections. Instead, I recommend the following procedure:

• Start with the Methods section. This is the easiest section to write, so it’s great as a warm-up, to get into writing without the need to think (and procrastinate ;)) too much. Look at your figures and tables: what methods did you use to create them? Then describe your methods, one after another.
• Results section: Writing the Methods section refreshes your memory about the research you have done. So writing the Results section next should not be too hard: Take one display object (figure or table) after another, and describe the results they contain. While you do so, you will come across points that need to be discussed in the Discussion section. Note them down so you don’t forget them.
• Introduction : When your results are fresh in your mind, you are in a great position to write the Introduction — because the Introduction should contain selected information that gives the reader context for your research project and allows them to understand your results and their implications.
• Discussion : When you have taken notes while writing the Results section, the Discussion section should be quite easy to draft. Don’t worry too early about the order in which you want to discuss the individual points. Write one paragraph for each point , and then see how you can logically arrange them.
• Abstract and title : On the last day, revise the preliminary Abstract or write a new one. You could also take a break of a few days before tackling the Abstract, to gain clarity and distance. Generate multiple titles (I recommend 6-10), so that you and your co-authors can choose the most appropriate one.

Just do it!

Once you have written the whole draft, let it sit for a week or two, and then revise it. Follow my tips for efficient revising and get your revision checklist that will guide you step-by-step through the whole process.

Now I am curious about your experience: Have you ever written up an academic article quickly? How did you do it? Please, share with us your tips & strategies!

Are you putting off the work on your manuscript? Writing a research paper doesn’t have to be a long and tedious process. Join our online program and get support & guidance to

Write Up Your Paper THIS SUMMER

Check it out This course is relevant for you if your research belongs to natural & life sciences, other STEM fields or quantitative social sciences. Registration deadline: July 01, 2024

7 thoughts on “ How to write a whole research paper in a week ”

Thank for your guide and suggestion. It gives to me very precious ways how to write a article. Now I am writing a article related to Buddhist studies. Thank you so much.

You are welcome!

excellent! it helped me a lot! wish you all best

Hi Parham, I’m happy to hear that!

I have never written any paper before. As I am from very old school.

But my writing skill is actually very good. Your help is definitely going to help me as this has inspired me alot. Will let you know, once done. I really like the outline that you have given. Basically you have made it so easy for me .

Hope fully will be in touch with you soon.

Thanks and ki d Regards, Shehla

Dear Shehla, that sounds great! I’m looking forward to hearing about your paper!

Comments are closed.

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Thesis Statements

What this handout is about.

This handout describes what a thesis statement is, how thesis statements work in your writing, and how you can craft or refine one for your draft.

Introduction

Writing in college often takes the form of persuasion—convincing others that you have an interesting, logical point of view on the subject you are studying. Persuasion is a skill you practice regularly in your daily life. You persuade your roommate to clean up, your parents to let you borrow the car, your friend to vote for your favorite candidate or policy. In college, course assignments often ask you to make a persuasive case in writing. You are asked to convince your reader of your point of view. This form of persuasion, often called academic argument, follows a predictable pattern in writing. After a brief introduction of your topic, you state your point of view on the topic directly and often in one sentence. This sentence is the thesis statement, and it serves as a summary of the argument you’ll make in the rest of your paper.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement:

• tells the reader how you will interpret the significance of the subject matter under discussion.
• is a road map for the paper; in other words, it tells the reader what to expect from the rest of the paper.
• directly answers the question asked of you. A thesis is an interpretation of a question or subject, not the subject itself. The subject, or topic, of an essay might be World War II or Moby Dick; a thesis must then offer a way to understand the war or the novel.
• makes a claim that others might dispute.
• is usually a single sentence near the beginning of your paper (most often, at the end of the first paragraph) that presents your argument to the reader. The rest of the paper, the body of the essay, gathers and organizes evidence that will persuade the reader of the logic of your interpretation.

If your assignment asks you to take a position or develop a claim about a subject, you may need to convey that position or claim in a thesis statement near the beginning of your draft. The assignment may not explicitly state that you need a thesis statement because your instructor may assume you will include one. When in doubt, ask your instructor if the assignment requires a thesis statement. When an assignment asks you to analyze, to interpret, to compare and contrast, to demonstrate cause and effect, or to take a stand on an issue, it is likely that you are being asked to develop a thesis and to support it persuasively. (Check out our handout on understanding assignments for more information.)

How do I create a thesis?

A thesis is the result of a lengthy thinking process. Formulating a thesis is not the first thing you do after reading an essay assignment. Before you develop an argument on any topic, you have to collect and organize evidence, look for possible relationships between known facts (such as surprising contrasts or similarities), and think about the significance of these relationships. Once you do this thinking, you will probably have a “working thesis” that presents a basic or main idea and an argument that you think you can support with evidence. Both the argument and your thesis are likely to need adjustment along the way.

Writers use all kinds of techniques to stimulate their thinking and to help them clarify relationships or comprehend the broader significance of a topic and arrive at a thesis statement. For more ideas on how to get started, see our handout on brainstorming .

How do I know if my thesis is strong?

If there’s time, run it by your instructor or make an appointment at the Writing Center to get some feedback. Even if you do not have time to get advice elsewhere, you can do some thesis evaluation of your own. When reviewing your first draft and its working thesis, ask yourself the following :

• Do I answer the question? Re-reading the question prompt after constructing a working thesis can help you fix an argument that misses the focus of the question. If the prompt isn’t phrased as a question, try to rephrase it. For example, “Discuss the effect of X on Y” can be rephrased as “What is the effect of X on Y?”
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? If your thesis simply states facts that no one would, or even could, disagree with, it’s possible that you are simply providing a summary, rather than making an argument.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? Thesis statements that are too vague often do not have a strong argument. If your thesis contains words like “good” or “successful,” see if you could be more specific: why is something “good”; what specifically makes something “successful”?
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? If a reader’s first response is likely to  be “So what?” then you need to clarify, to forge a relationship, or to connect to a larger issue.
• Does my essay support my thesis specifically and without wandering? If your thesis and the body of your essay do not seem to go together, one of them has to change. It’s okay to change your working thesis to reflect things you have figured out in the course of writing your paper. Remember, always reassess and revise your writing as necessary.
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? If a reader’s first response is “how?” or “why?” your thesis may be too open-ended and lack guidance for the reader. See what you can add to give the reader a better take on your position right from the beginning.

Suppose you are taking a course on contemporary communication, and the instructor hands out the following essay assignment: “Discuss the impact of social media on public awareness.” Looking back at your notes, you might start with this working thesis:

Social media impacts public awareness in both positive and negative ways.

You can use the questions above to help you revise this general statement into a stronger thesis.

• Do I answer the question? You can analyze this if you rephrase “discuss the impact” as “what is the impact?” This way, you can see that you’ve answered the question only very generally with the vague “positive and negative ways.”
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not likely. Only people who maintain that social media has a solely positive or solely negative impact could disagree.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? No. What are the positive effects? What are the negative effects?
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? No. Why are they positive? How are they positive? What are their causes? Why are they negative? How are they negative? What are their causes?
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? No. Why should anyone care about the positive and/or negative impact of social media?

After thinking about your answers to these questions, you decide to focus on the one impact you feel strongly about and have strong evidence for:

Because not every voice on social media is reliable, people have become much more critical consumers of information, and thus, more informed voters.

This version is a much stronger thesis! It answers the question, takes a specific position that others can challenge, and it gives a sense of why it matters.

Let’s try another. Suppose your literature professor hands out the following assignment in a class on the American novel: Write an analysis of some aspect of Mark Twain’s novel Huckleberry Finn. “This will be easy,” you think. “I loved Huckleberry Finn!” You grab a pad of paper and write:

Mark Twain’s Huckleberry Finn is a great American novel.

You begin to analyze your thesis:

• Do I answer the question? No. The prompt asks you to analyze some aspect of the novel. Your working thesis is a statement of general appreciation for the entire novel.

Think about aspects of the novel that are important to its structure or meaning—for example, the role of storytelling, the contrasting scenes between the shore and the river, or the relationships between adults and children. Now you write:

In Huckleberry Finn, Mark Twain develops a contrast between life on the river and life on the shore.

• Do I answer the question? Yes!
• Have I taken a position that others might challenge or oppose? Not really. This contrast is well-known and accepted.
• Is my thesis statement specific enough? It’s getting there–you have highlighted an important aspect of the novel for investigation. However, it’s still not clear what your analysis will reveal.
• Does my thesis pass the “how and why?” test? Not yet. Compare scenes from the book and see what you discover. Free write, make lists, jot down Huck’s actions and reactions and anything else that seems interesting.
• Does my thesis pass the “So what?” test? What’s the point of this contrast? What does it signify?”

After examining the evidence and considering your own insights, you write:

Through its contrasting river and shore scenes, Twain’s Huckleberry Finn suggests that to find the true expression of American democratic ideals, one must leave “civilized” society and go back to nature.

This final thesis statement presents an interpretation of a literary work based on an analysis of its content. Of course, for the essay itself to be successful, you must now present evidence from the novel that will convince the reader of your interpretation.

Works consulted

We consulted these works while writing this handout. This is not a comprehensive list of resources on the handout’s topic, and we encourage you to do your own research to find additional publications. Please do not use this list as a model for the format of your own reference list, as it may not match the citation style you are using. For guidance on formatting citations, please see the UNC Libraries citation tutorial . We revise these tips periodically and welcome feedback.

Anson, Chris M., and Robert A. Schwegler. 2010. The Longman Handbook for Writers and Readers , 6th ed. New York: Longman.

Lunsford, Andrea A. 2015. The St. Martin’s Handbook , 8th ed. Boston: Bedford/St Martin’s.

Ramage, John D., John C. Bean, and June Johnson. 2018. The Allyn & Bacon Guide to Writing , 8th ed. New York: Pearson.

Ruszkiewicz, John J., Christy Friend, Daniel Seward, and Maxine Hairston. 2010. The Scott, Foresman Handbook for Writers , 9th ed. Boston: Pearson Education.

You may reproduce it for non-commercial use if you use the entire handout and attribute the source: The Writing Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

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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 ...

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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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While Sandel argues that pursuing perfection through genetic engineering would decrease our sense of humility, he claims that the sense of solidarity we would lose is also important.

This thesis summarizes several points in Sandel’s argument, but it does not make a claim about how we should understand his argument. A reader who read Sandel’s argument would not also need to read an essay based on this descriptive thesis.  

Broad thesis (arguable, but difficult to support with evidence) 

Michael Sandel’s arguments about genetic engineering do not take into consideration all the relevant issues.

This is an arguable claim because it would be possible to argue against it by saying that Michael Sandel’s arguments do take all of the relevant issues into consideration. But the claim is too broad. Because the thesis does not specify which “issues” it is focused on—or why it matters if they are considered—readers won’t know what the rest of the essay will argue, and the writer won’t know what to focus on. If there is a particular issue that Sandel does not address, then a more specific version of the thesis would include that issue—hand an explanation of why it is important.  

Arguable thesis with analytical claim 

While Sandel argues persuasively that our instinct to “remake” (54) ourselves into something ever more perfect is a problem, his belief that we can always draw a line between what is medically necessary and what makes us simply “better than well” (51) is less convincing.

This is an arguable analytical claim. To argue for this claim, the essay writer will need to show how evidence from the article itself points to this interpretation. It’s also a reasonable scope for a thesis because it can be supported with evidence available in the text and is neither too broad nor too narrow.  

Arguable thesis with normative claim 

Given Sandel’s argument against genetic enhancement, we should not allow parents to decide on using Human Growth Hormone for their children.

This thesis tells us what we should do about a particular issue discussed in Sandel’s article, but it does not tell us how we should understand Sandel’s argument.  

Questions to ask about your thesis 

• Is the thesis truly arguable? Does it speak to a genuine dilemma in the source, or would most readers automatically agree with it?  
• Is the thesis too obvious? Again, would most or all readers agree with it without needing to see your argument?  
• Is the thesis complex enough to require a whole essay's worth of argument?  
• Is the thesis supportable with evidence from the text rather than with generalizations or outside research?  
• Would anyone want to read a paper in which this thesis was developed? That is, can you explain what this paper is adding to our understanding of a problem, question, or topic?
• picture_as_pdf Thesis

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Is it possible to write a masters thesis in 10 days? [closed]

Was it ever possible for anyone to finish writing a master thesis in 10 days? I've been struggling for a long time now to focus on my writing due to several personal problems and I'm running close to my deadline so I'm starting to freak out. I welcome any suggestions at this point.

• time-management

• 1 Can you push your deadline to next semester? –  HEITZ Commented Nov 30, 2016 at 22:43
• 4 I think that really depends on your field, how comprehensive the exact subject of your thesis is, how knowledgeable you are and how well skilled you are in academic writing. I wrote mine in a little over 25 hours in total, but this excludes reading literature and the time required for doing experiments. –  pbond Commented Nov 30, 2016 at 23:41
• 1 What @pbond said with the additional question of what the requirements of the actual thesis are. –  Raydot Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 0:44
• 1 I hope you are holed up somewhere working hard on your draft, instead of reading this comment. But if you are reading this comment, go get started! Promise yourself a little reward after a good day's work. After a few days, when you are really on a roll, THEN you may contact someone official to ask for an extension. –  aparente001 Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 2:18

4 Answers 4

If by "writing" you mean to do the research/experiments/studying and then write the thesis then no .

If by "writing" you mean transforming your well organized notes into one document, then yes , maybe if you have great discipline.

If by "writing" you mean to start to write-up from not-so well organized notes, then most probably not .

If you want to try to make it, stop hanging around on the internet and start working.

• 2 This made me laugh, which was much needed. –  NZKshatriya Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 1:28
• Concise yet precise. –  Ébe Isaac Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 4:05
• Great last sentence. –  Pere Commented Dec 22, 2016 at 19:51

It can be done, but I would be dubious of the quality. That said, I can't recall a Master's thesis that set the world on fire, so I suppose quality is a poor metric.

Here are some suggestions:

• Make sure you've got all the material you need to write because that's what you need to do -- write. Find a nest and keep all the distractions out.
• Set minimum targets for your writing. Then, meet and exceed it. I suggest setting targets that allow you to finish writing in eight days, not 10. This gives you some padding in case life gets in the way. To be clear, there are 192 hours in eight days. Allowing for a 12-hour work day, then you need to write 15,000 words in 96 hours or about 156 words an hour. Set a target of 400 words an hour.
• Make sure you have time to edit your work.

Good luck to you.

• 3 Just to nitpick: Shannon's masters thesis was actually quite groundbreaking, more so than his PhD. Apart from that, I agree with your advice. Start now. –  Captain Emacs Commented Nov 30, 2016 at 23:41
• I would love to read it. Do you have a link to the thesis or perhaps some papers that have been produced from it? –  user65587 Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 2:42
• I think it should be googleable, I do not know whether I can link it here. It is essentially how to use Boolean algebra to simplify circuits. Retrospectively obvious, it wasn't at its time. –  Captain Emacs Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 11:43
• @Captain Emacs: Although a bit old, there's the case of Luzin's Master's thesis: . . . he completed his thesis The integral and trigonometric series which he submitted in 1915. After his oral examination he was awarded a doctorate, despite having submitted his thesis for the Master's Degree. In fact, even for a Ph.D. thesis, Luzin's is one of the strongest ever written in mathematics --- probably in the top 10 to 20 of all-time for its influence on later developments. –  Dave L Renfro Commented Dec 1, 2016 at 14:48

Yes. You can write it in 10 days though the result won't be good. Make sure you write 1000 to 1500 words a day. So, rather than starting to freak out, you can start writing now

If it's an MFA thesis (average length: 2-3 pages) yes. If it's a science one where you're reporting on results and my impression is that the length isn't too terribly long, maybe. If it's a humanities one that's in the 100-150 page range, it's unlikely (I've written 10-15 pages in a day before, but I doubt I can keep that pace up for ten pages).

You should look into extending into next semester, even if it's just shooting off a quick email while continuing to work. If you have had a large number of personal problems that have negatively affected your ability to complete your school work (and are in the US, not sure how it would apply elsewhere), you should (a) speak with the counseling center on campus and (b) consider a withdrawal under extenuating circumstances (typically called a medical withdrawal, but at least at my school they are allowed for other reasons). If there's no penalty at all for extending into next semester, (b) might not even be necessary — it's super common for both master's and PhD students to miss their expected graduation date by a semester or two because of the thesis/dissertation.

But if you're running up against a hard time limit, the withdrawal would gain you an extra semester. If withdrawal isn't an option, at many schools you can also (c) petition the university to waive the time limit given your circumstances. I don't think I've ever really heard of those petitions being denied if the reason is even halfway reasonable.

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Developing a Thesis Statement

Many papers you write require developing a thesis statement. In this section you’ll learn what a thesis statement is and how to write one.

Keep in mind that not all papers require thesis statements . If in doubt, please consult your instructor for assistance.

What is a thesis statement?

A thesis statement . . .

• Makes an argumentative assertion about a topic; it states the conclusions that you have reached about your topic.
• Makes a promise to the reader about the scope, purpose, and direction of your paper.
• Is focused and specific enough to be “proven” within the boundaries of your paper.
• Is generally located near the end of the introduction ; sometimes, in a long paper, the thesis will be expressed in several sentences or in an entire paragraph.
• Identifies the relationships between the pieces of evidence that you are using to support your argument.

Not all papers require thesis statements! Ask your instructor if you’re in doubt whether you need one.

Identify a topic

Your topic is the subject about which you will write. Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic; or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper.

Consider what your assignment asks you to do

Inform yourself about your topic, focus on one aspect of your topic, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts, generate a topic from an assignment.

Below are some possible topics based on sample assignments.

Sample assignment 1

Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II.

Identified topic

Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis

This topic avoids generalities such as “Spain” and “World War II,” addressing instead on Franco’s role (a specific aspect of “Spain”) and the diplomatic relations between the Allies and Axis (a specific aspect of World War II).

Sample assignment 2

Analyze one of Homer’s epic similes in the Iliad.

The relationship between the portrayal of warfare and the epic simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64.

This topic focuses on a single simile and relates it to a single aspect of the Iliad ( warfare being a major theme in that work).

Developing a Thesis Statement–Additional information

Your assignment may suggest several ways of looking at a topic, or it may name a fairly general concept that you will explore or analyze in your paper. You’ll want to read your assignment carefully, looking for key terms that you can use to focus your topic.

Sample assignment: Analyze Spain’s neutrality in World War II Key terms: analyze, Spain’s neutrality, World War II

After you’ve identified the key words in your topic, the next step is to read about them in several sources, or generate as much information as possible through an analysis of your topic. Obviously, the more material or knowledge you have, the more possibilities will be available for a strong argument. For the sample assignment above, you’ll want to look at books and articles on World War II in general, and Spain’s neutrality in particular.

As you consider your options, you must decide to focus on one aspect of your topic. This means that you cannot include everything you’ve learned about your topic, nor should you go off in several directions. If you end up covering too many different aspects of a topic, your paper will sprawl and be unconvincing in its argument, and it most likely will not fulfull the assignment requirements.

For the sample assignment above, both Spain’s neutrality and World War II are topics far too broad to explore in a paper. You may instead decide to focus on Franco’s role in the diplomatic relationships between the Allies and the Axis , which narrows down what aspects of Spain’s neutrality and World War II you want to discuss, as well as establishes a specific link between those two aspects.

Before you go too far, however, ask yourself whether your topic is worthy of your efforts. Try to avoid topics that already have too much written about them (i.e., “eating disorders and body image among adolescent women”) or that simply are not important (i.e. “why I like ice cream”). These topics may lead to a thesis that is either dry fact or a weird claim that cannot be supported. A good thesis falls somewhere between the two extremes. To arrive at this point, ask yourself what is new, interesting, contestable, or controversial about your topic.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times . Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Derive a main point from topic

Once you have a topic, you will have to decide what the main point of your paper will be. This point, the “controlling idea,” becomes the core of your argument (thesis statement) and it is the unifying idea to which you will relate all your sub-theses. You can then turn this “controlling idea” into a purpose statement about what you intend to do in your paper.

Look for patterns in your evidence

Compose a purpose statement.

Consult the examples below for suggestions on how to look for patterns in your evidence and construct a purpose statement.

• Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis
• Franco turned to the Allies when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from the Axis

Possible conclusion:

Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: Franco’s desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power.

Purpose statement

This paper will analyze Franco’s diplomacy during World War II to see how it contributed to Spain’s neutrality.

• The simile compares Simoisius to a tree, which is a peaceful, natural image.
• The tree in the simile is chopped down to make wheels for a chariot, which is an object used in warfare.

At first, the simile seems to take the reader away from the world of warfare, but we end up back in that world by the end.

This paper will analyze the way the simile about Simoisius at 4.547-64 moves in and out of the world of warfare.

Derive purpose statement from topic

To find out what your “controlling idea” is, you have to examine and evaluate your evidence . As you consider your evidence, you may notice patterns emerging, data repeated in more than one source, or facts that favor one view more than another. These patterns or data may then lead you to some conclusions about your topic and suggest that you can successfully argue for one idea better than another.

For instance, you might find out that Franco first tried to negotiate with the Axis, but when he couldn’t get some concessions that he wanted from them, he turned to the Allies. As you read more about Franco’s decisions, you may conclude that Spain’s neutrality in WWII occurred for an entirely personal reason: his desire to preserve his own (and Spain’s) power. Based on this conclusion, you can then write a trial thesis statement to help you decide what material belongs in your paper.

Sometimes you won’t be able to find a focus or identify your “spin” or specific argument immediately. Like some writers, you might begin with a purpose statement just to get yourself going. A purpose statement is one or more sentences that announce your topic and indicate the structure of the paper but do not state the conclusions you have drawn . Thus, you might begin with something like this:

• This paper will look at modern language to see if it reflects male dominance or female oppression.
• I plan to analyze anger and derision in offensive language to see if they represent a challenge of society’s authority.

At some point, you can turn a purpose statement into a thesis statement. As you think and write about your topic, you can restrict, clarify, and refine your argument, crafting your thesis statement to reflect your thinking.

As you work on your thesis, remember to keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Sometimes your thesis needs to evolve as you develop new insights, find new evidence, or take a different approach to your topic.

Compose a draft thesis statement

If you are writing a paper that will have an argumentative thesis and are having trouble getting started, the techniques in the table below may help you develop a temporary or “working” thesis statement.

Begin with a purpose statement that you will later turn into a thesis statement.

Assignment: Discuss the history of the Reform Party and explain its influence on the 1990 presidential and Congressional election.

Purpose Statement: This paper briefly sketches the history of the grassroots, conservative, Perot-led Reform Party and analyzes how it influenced the economic and social ideologies of the two mainstream parties.

Question-to-Assertion

If your assignment asks a specific question(s), turn the question(s) into an assertion and give reasons why it is true or reasons for your opinion.

Assignment : What do Aylmer and Rappaccini have to be proud of? Why aren’t they satisfied with these things? How does pride, as demonstrated in “The Birthmark” and “Rappaccini’s Daughter,” lead to unexpected problems?

Beginning thesis statement: Alymer and Rappaccinni are proud of their great knowledge; however, they are also very greedy and are driven to use their knowledge to alter some aspect of nature as a test of their ability. Evil results when they try to “play God.”

Write a sentence that summarizes the main idea of the essay you plan to write.

Main idea: The reason some toys succeed in the market is that they appeal to the consumers’ sense of the ridiculous and their basic desire to laugh at themselves.

Make a list of the ideas that you want to include; consider the ideas and try to group them.

• nature = peaceful
• war matériel = violent (competes with 1?)
• need for time and space to mourn the dead
• war is inescapable (competes with 3?)

Use a formula to arrive at a working thesis statement (you will revise this later).

• although most readers of _______ have argued that _______, closer examination shows that _______.
• _______ uses _______ and _____ to prove that ________.
• phenomenon x is a result of the combination of __________, __________, and _________.

What to keep in mind as you draft an initial thesis statement

Beginning statements obtained through the methods illustrated above can serve as a framework for planning or drafting your paper, but remember they’re not yet the specific, argumentative thesis you want for the final version of your paper. In fact, in its first stages, a thesis statement usually is ill-formed or rough and serves only as a planning tool.

As you write, you may discover evidence that does not fit your temporary or “working” thesis. Or you may reach deeper insights about your topic as you do more research, and you will find that your thesis statement has to be more complicated to match the evidence that you want to use.

You must be willing to reject or omit some evidence in order to keep your paper cohesive and your reader focused. Or you may have to revise your thesis to match the evidence and insights that you want to discuss. Read your draft carefully, noting the conclusions you have drawn and the major ideas which support or prove those conclusions. These will be the elements of your final thesis statement.

Sometimes you will not be able to identify these elements in your early drafts, but as you consider how your argument is developing and how your evidence supports your main idea, ask yourself, “ What is the main point that I want to prove/discuss? ” and “ How will I convince the reader that this is true? ” When you can answer these questions, then you can begin to refine the thesis statement.

Refine and polish the thesis statement

To get to your final thesis, you’ll need to refine your draft thesis so that it’s specific and arguable.

• Ask if your draft thesis addresses the assignment
• Question each part of your draft thesis
• Clarify vague phrases and assertions
• Investigate alternatives to your draft thesis

Consult the example below for suggestions on how to refine your draft thesis statement.

Sample Assignment

Choose an activity and define it as a symbol of American culture. Your essay should cause the reader to think critically about the society which produces and enjoys that activity.

• Ask The phenomenon of drive-in facilities is an interesting symbol of american culture, and these facilities demonstrate significant characteristics of our society.This statement does not fulfill the assignment because it does not require the reader to think critically about society.

Drive-ins are an interesting symbol of American culture because they represent Americans’ significant creativity and business ingenuity.

Among the types of drive-in facilities familiar during the twentieth century, drive-in movie theaters best represent American creativity, not merely because they were the forerunner of later drive-ins and drive-throughs, but because of their impact on our culture: they changed our relationship to the automobile, changed the way people experienced movies, and changed movie-going into a family activity.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast-food establishments, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize America’s economic ingenuity, they also have affected our personal standards.

While drive-in facilities such as those at fast- food restaurants, banks, pharmacies, and dry cleaners symbolize (1) Americans’ business ingenuity, they also have contributed (2) to an increasing homogenization of our culture, (3) a willingness to depersonalize relationships with others, and (4) a tendency to sacrifice quality for convenience.

This statement is now specific and fulfills all parts of the assignment. This version, like any good thesis, is not self-evident; its points, 1-4, will have to be proven with evidence in the body of the paper. The numbers in this statement indicate the order in which the points will be presented. Depending on the length of the paper, there could be one paragraph for each numbered item or there could be blocks of paragraph for even pages for each one.

Complete the final thesis statement

The bottom line.

As you move through the process of crafting a thesis, you’ll need to remember four things:

• Context matters! Think about your course materials and lectures. Try to relate your thesis to the ideas your instructor is discussing.
• As you go through the process described in this section, always keep your assignment in mind . You will be more successful when your thesis (and paper) responds to the assignment than if it argues a semi-related idea.
• Your thesis statement should be precise, focused, and contestable ; it should predict the sub-theses or blocks of information that you will use to prove your argument.
• Make sure that you keep the rest of your paper in mind at all times. Change your thesis as your paper evolves, because you do not want your thesis to promise more than your paper actually delivers.

In the beginning, the thesis statement was a tool to help you sharpen your focus, limit material and establish the paper’s purpose. When your paper is finished, however, the thesis statement becomes a tool for your reader. It tells the reader what you have learned about your topic and what evidence led you to your conclusion. It keeps the reader on track–well able to understand and appreciate your argument.

Writing Process and Structure

This is an accordion element with a series of buttons that open and close related content panels.

Getting Started with Your Paper

Interpreting Writing Assignments from Your Courses

Generating Ideas for

Creating an Argument

Thesis vs. Purpose Statements

Architecture of Arguments

Working with Sources

Quoting and Paraphrasing Sources

Using Literary Quotations

Citing Sources in Your Paper

Drafting Your Paper

Generating Ideas for Your Paper

Introductions

Paragraphing

Developing Strategic Transitions

Conclusions

Revising Your Paper

Peer Reviews

Reverse Outlines

Revising an Argumentative Paper

Revision Strategies for Longer Projects

Finishing Your Paper

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist

How to Proofread your Paper

Writing Collaboratively

Collaborative and Group Writing

Ultimate Guide to Writing your thesis in 4 weeks

In this guide, we present a list of principles, activities, and steps that will help you to write your thesis at Bachelor’s or Master’s level in four weeks.

Can a thesis be realistically be written within 4 weeks?

Absolutely. It will probably not be an excellent thesis, but it will also not be a bad one, if you stick to the principles, activities, and steps below.

What I’ve learned supervising hundreds of theses and producing masses of scientific publications on my own is this: Parkinson’s law works—writing a thesis essentially takes as long as you think it should take.

In institutions, where students are given three semesters to work on their theses, the students take three semesters.

In institutions, where one semester is the norm, students need one semester.

If there is no time at all alotted to it, and students are assumed to write their thesis next to their full load of coursework, they just write it next to their other coursework.

So what if you decide to write in in four weeks, no matter what your institution says?

Principles for productive thesis writing

There are three essential principles to adhere to in order to write your thesis productively:

• Think 80:20
• The best thesis is a done thesis.
• Full accountability.

Principle 1: Think 80:20

In business, the 80:20 principle (the Pareto principle) is the theory that, for many events, roughly 80% of the effects come from 20% of the causes. The principle is named after Italian economist Vilfredo Pareto, who observed in 1906 that 80% of Italy’s land was owned by 20% of the population.

The 80/20 principle can be applied to almost anything. In fact, it’s been used to describe everything from how societies are organized to how people use their time. But what does it mean for you and your thesis?

Simply put, it means that 20% of your efforts will produce 80% of your results. You can even get more excited about that, because you could apply the principle on itself—that is, you could focus on the 20% of the 20% that will produce the greatest effect.

But, of course, there is a problem. How should you know what these 20% are, if you have no previous experience in doing research?

Principle 2: The best thesis is a done thesis

Thesis writing is like attend driving school. Completing it will not make you a competent research. Completing it will merely give you the license to learn more about it.

In that sense, the counter-intuitive truth is that you increase your learning potential by focusing on performance and speed. Even if you are set on an academic career, every week you unnecessarily spend on your thesis will keep you from making the learning experiences you need to have to build a solid foundation for your career.

So, for the (arguably very short) time of writing the thesis, put performance over learning. Because in the long term, this will be the actual key to learning.

What does this mean for you and your thesis?

Stick to the things you have some idea about. Do not engage with qualitative research if you have no previous background in qualitative research. It is a common mistake of students to believe that they can lead interviews because they have experience talking to people. Many underestimate the challenges that an explorative, very uncertain research project brings—and how impossible keeping deadlines suddenly is.

Go for standardization. Most research studies take incremental steps. That is perfectly fine and a feature of how science works. And yet, thesis students often try to do it differently. And fail. So take my word for it: use as much of existing procedures, methods, measurement instruments, etc. that you can. The less unknown variables, the better for you and your thesis project.

Principle 3: Full accountability

There’s a popular saying that goes, “actions speak louder than words.” If we want to be successful in anything, including our personal lives, we need to take seriously the reality of this statement. It’s easy to tell other people what we’re going to do and then not follow through with our plans. But if we truly want to achieve our goals, then we need to be personally accountable for our actions.

To be personally accountable means taking responsibility for what we do and putting ourselves in a position where we can actually see and feel the results of our decisions. It’s not enough to say, “I’ll make the effort.” If we want success in our lives, then we need to show that we’re willing to do what it takes.

Because it is one thing to know all the principles and activities presented here. It is an entirely different thing to actually do it. This is why we include accountability coaching with all our programs.

Bonus principles: Motivation & Well-being

Without mentioning two other factors that need to be considered, I think, the list cannot be complete. One is motivation. Basically, this is your gasoline for the thesis journey. So we want to make sure that you do not run out of it.

The other one is your personal well-being. We are in this for the long run. Even if you complete your thesis in a minimal amount of time, you do not want to burn out in the process of it—because in all likelihood, the thesis is not your end goal.

There are only three things you need to do in order to write an awesome thesis in a minimal amount of time:

Write daily

Get feedback on your work.

• Follow the guide

Why do academics write?

HInt: It’s not because we are super old-school and think that writing is the only valid form of communication.

Instead, academics acknowledge the fact that scientific thoughts are quite complex . Too complex to merely think about it without writing anything down. And this is why we write. We write to communicate our conclusions to others (your thesis), but we also write to communicate the idea to ourselves (everything you write before the final version of your thesis).

Hence, writing is probably the most important skill you need to master in order to be a good academic (and to produce a great thesis). Fortunately, it is also a fundamental life-skill; investing some more time here will allow you to reap the benefits also in other domains of work and life.

Therefore: Write.

Write, because writing is really the best way to learn writing.

Write, because writing is an excellent way to clarify your own thoughts. Often, it actually generates thoughts; it is a vital part of many creative processes.

Write, because in the end you will be forced to put all your work into a form that someone else needs to understand.

The only reliable way to achieve your goal of completing your thesis in minimal time is to write daily on or about your thesis: Write the next section of your thesis. Make a freewriting session about the relevance of your thesis. Write as part of the Research Question Workshop to clarify the importance of your research question for your life. Write a research diary about your thoughts and actions you undertook working on your thesis.

It really does not matter that much what you write. Just… write.

Without having experience in academic writing, the above may seem excessive.

Do you really need to write that much? Research papers are usually quite short, right?

Yes and no. They are short when it comes to communicating to the reader, typically less than 6,000 words—and this even includes the references. But as I have shared above, there is also substantial work that goes into explaining concepts to yourself or into trying to find the best wording for a definition. If we include these, you can easily 3x to 10x the word count.

So the excessive production of words is essential. Note that I focus exclusively on production here. As Ernest Hemingway allegedly said:

Write drunk, edit sober. Attributed to Ernest Hemingway

This is the state we aim for—in a metaphorical sense only.

For more inspiration about the different types of work you engage in when talking about (academic) writing, see my video here:

@drdominikfroehlich #1 scheduling mistake of students while writing their thesis #thesis #research #writingtips ♬ original sound – Dr. Dominik – Thesis Coach

In the first activity above, writing daily, I suggest to produce an excessive amount of words for your thesis. And that’s a great start. But you also need to have some understanding which of these words are really moving your project forward, and which ones have been necessary as a crutch at one point, but which may be discarded now.

And the easiest activity to find out about this is feedback.

Seek feedback often. Seek feeback from multiple people. Talk about your thesis and aspects of your thesis as much as possible. Note any reactions that your audience has. Note any reactions that you yourself have (any uncomfortable feelings of insecurity creeping up?). Work with this.

Always reflect back what the feedback means for the course of your thesis. You do want to produce “an excessive amount of words”, yes—but you also want to produce them into a certain, meaningful direction. So seek feedback often and ghet it from multiple viewpoints in order to steer your course.

It will cost you some time and resources to get the feedback and reflect on it. However, in my experience, you will easily make this up because you will also notice a bit quicker if you have been working in a wrong direction. Also, it creates a sense of accountability, which is of great importance.

Follow a guide

Doing research always means stepping out from what we know and trying to uncover something new. This can be a scary process.

Take any structure you can get. Apply a known structure of how to present research papers or specific research results. Do not reinvent the wheel. Apply a time-tested strategy to develop a sound research question. Follow an overall roadmap or tasklist that shows you what tasks are really necessary and which one are not (remember the 80:20 principle?).

“ What about my supervisor? “, you might ask. Of course, your assigned supervisor could be your guide. But in my experience—and listening to thousands of bits of feedback I have received about this talking to students around the globe and across disciplines—there is only a slim chance that your assigned supervisor can fulfill that role.

This is nothing personal, this is systemic. Thesis supervision is not a task that is usually appreciated; many need to do it “for free” or even if there is compensation, it practically never is enough to cover the supervisor’s costs. So this is why supervisors have all the reason to make minimal investments in your growth.

What is more, thesis supervision is a highly complex task. Realistically speaking, there are not many people around that can do it right. You need to be both a good researcher and a good teacher. And while both are available in heaps in higher education institutions, they often not to be found within a single person.

Steps & Milestones

Apply the principles and activities mentioned above along a process of six major steps:

• Ask a well-defined research question (Week 1)
• Prepare your measurement instruments (Week 1-2)
• Get data (Week 2-3)
• Interpret results (Week 2-3)
• Discuss results (Week 4)
• Edit your thesis (Week 4+)

Ask a well-defined research question

Your research question will be the fundament of everything you do. So you better make it right.

I frequently find it puzzling how overconfident students seem to be about their research questions. More often than not, the typical research question that I am presented with in coaching is less than perfect. Actually, they are not even mediocre, they are mostly not useful at all.

A research question is not about articulating some random idea that seems slightly interesting to you.

At the point where your interests and those of the field collide, a research question needs to be carefully positioned.

And this is hard to achieve by just thinking about different forms of questions. It needs a structured process. You can find all the knowledge I’ve gained from the beginning about formulating productive research questions and setting you up properly in this session. So, adhering to the core activities mentioned above, I advise you to follow this (totally free!) guide and do not further comment on the perfect research question here.

Action steps:

• Day 1: Start the Research Idea Journal provided as part of the Research Question Workshop .
• Day 1: Clarify your commitment to the thesis.
• Day 2: Complete the research topic part of the Research Question Workshop .
• Day 3: Complete the MINERVA part of Research Question Workshop .
• Day 4: Get Feedback on your preliminary research question.
• Day 5: For each major concept, write a paragraph to properly define it.

Milestone 1: You now should have a research question that you feel (moderately) confident with. You can explain it to others well (and it does make sense for others). All concepts are clearly defined and connected to existing literature.

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Mastering the Deadline: How to Write Your Thesis in Just 2 Weeks

Writing a thesis in two weeks is a challenging but achievable goal. It requires strategic planning, effective writing techniques, a comprehensive approach to research, and maintaining well-being. By focusing on these core areas, students can navigate the complexities of thesis writing and complete their work within the tight deadline. This article provides a structured guide to help students master their thesis deadlines with confidence and efficiency.

Key Takeaways

• Develop a clear, realistic timeline and prioritize tasks to ensure all key components of the thesis are addressed efficiently.
• Adopt a structured writing routine to maximize productivity and employ strategies to overcome writer's block and procrastination.
• Streamline the literature review process and choose research methods that are appropriate yet feasible within the limited timeframe.
• Balance intensive writing periods with self-care and stress management to maintain mental and physical well-being.
• Stay motivated and prepared to handle setbacks by setting milestones and celebrating small achievements throughout the writing process.

Strategic Planning for Accelerated Thesis Completion

Developing a realistic timeline.

When you're racing against the clock to complete your thesis, developing a realistic timeline is a cornerstone of success. Begin by breaking down your thesis into manageable sections and estimate the time required for each part. This approach allows you to set milestones that are achievable and keeps you on track. For instance, allocate specific weeks for your literature review, data collection, analysis, and writing each chapter.

Consider the following steps to create your timeline:

• Assess the total amount of work and divide it by the days available.
• Prioritize tasks based on their importance and the effort they require.
• Schedule writing times and stick to them rigorously.
• Allow for flexibility to accommodate unexpected delays or insights.

Remember, your timeline is not set in stone. It should be a living document that adapts to your progress and challenges. By setting realistic deadlines , you ensure that your work is organized, and you maintain a healthy work-life balance, which is crucial for sustaining motivation throughout this intensive period. As you move forward, keep in mind that after initial data analysis, often around 6-8 months into the process, you should begin drafting your thesis chapters .

Prioritizing Tasks and Setting Milestones

To master your thesis in a condensed timeframe, you must prioritize tasks and set clear milestones. Begin by breaking down your thesis into manageable sections and assign a deadline to each. Assign due dates to each chapter task based on your overall timeline, ensuring you stay on track and maintain momentum. Utilize tools like Todoist to organize your chapters as tasks, adding sub-tasks for finer details.

Develop a hierarchy of tasks, distinguishing between what is essential and what can be deferred. This will help you focus on the most critical aspects of your thesis first. For instance, your literature review and methodology may take precedence over perfecting your bibliography. Here's a simple way to visualize your priorities:

• High Priority : Core chapters, research, and analysis
• Medium Priority : Draft revisions, supplementary sections
• Low Priority: Formatting, references, appendices

Remember, strategies for successful thesis completion include setting clear goals and milestones. Seek guidance and support to ensure organized progress and quality research. By adhering to a structured plan, you can navigate the thesis-writing process with greater ease and efficiency.

Utilizing Academic Resources and Tools

In the race against the clock to complete your thesis, leveraging academic resources and tools is crucial. Maximize your efficiency by tapping into programs like the Dissertation House, which offers writing coaches and daily mini-lectures on time management. These structured programs can provide you with the guidance needed to streamline your writing process.

Consider creating a comprehensive document with your thesis details, as suggested by academic guidelines, to keep your work organized. This should include your project description, research questions, and methods. Tools such as the ' Thesis Action Plan ' can be instrumental in keeping you on track. Below is a list of resources that can aid in your accelerated thesis completion:

• Dissertation House: Writing coaching and time management lectures.
• Academic Project Planner: For organizing your research and writing.
• Literature Navigator: To streamline your literature review process.
• Writing Wizard's Template: For maintaining a consistent writing style.

Remember, consistent effort and discipline , coupled with the right tools, can significantly enhance your ability to meet thesis deadlines.

Effective Writing Techniques for Thesis Efficiency

Adopting a structured writing routine.

To write your thesis in a mere two weeks, you must adopt a structured writing routine . This involves setting specific times for writing each day and adhering to them religiously. Begin by formulating a clear thesis statement that answers a question about your topic and provides a reason to support your claim. This will serve as the foundation of your work and guide your writing process.

Incorporate a linear structure in your writing where each point logically builds upon the previous one, moving from general to more specific ideas. This approach ensures cohesion and clarity, making your arguments more compelling and easier to follow. Below is a suggested daily writing schedule to help you stay on track:

• 9:00 AM - 10:00 AM: Review yesterday's work and plan for today
• 10:00 AM - 1:00 PM: Write new content
• 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM: Lunch break
• 2:00 PM - 5:00 PM: Continue writing
• 5:00 PM - 6:00 PM: Edit and refine written content

Remember to take short breaks every hour to refresh your mind and avoid burnout. By maintaining this routine, you will make steady progress and be well on your way to completing your thesis within the ambitious timeframe.

Overcoming Writer's Block and Procrastination

Writer's block and procrastination are common challenges that can impede your thesis progress. To combat these obstacles, it's essential to establish a consistent writing schedule . Dedicate specific times of the day to writing, and adhere to these periods as non-negotiable appointments with your thesis. This routine not only fosters consistency but also helps in building momentum as you see your work evolve day by day.

Incorporate breaks and rewards into your schedule to maintain motivation. Techniques such as the Pomodoro Technique , which involves working for focused intervals followed by short breaks, can enhance productivity and prevent burnout. Below is a simple structure you can follow:

• Work for 25 minutes
• Take a 5-minute break
• Repeat four times
• After the fourth session, take a longer break (15-30 minutes)

Gathering research materials in advance and having them at your fingertips can save precious time and reduce the urge to procrastinate. When you hit a block, switch to a different section of your thesis or work on a less demanding task, such as formatting or referencing, to keep moving forward. Remember, preparation and time management are crucial for success in your accelerated thesis journey.

Enhancing Academic Writing Style and Clarity

To excel in thesis writing within a constrained timeframe, you must enhance your academic writing style and clarity. Efficient thesis writing is not just about the content but also the presentation. Utilize writing templates and automate formatting and referencing to ensure consistency and save time. Academic writing demands formality and precision. Write formally , with clarity, and avoid casual language, cliches, or colloquialisms. For example, instead of 'a lot', use 'many' or 'numerous'.

Adopt a structured approach to your writing. Begin with an outline that includes your thesis statement, main arguments, and a conclusion that ties everything together. This will serve as a roadmap, keeping your writing focused and coherent. Below is a list of steps to help you maintain a clear and academic style:

• Review guidelines from authoritative sources like the LibGuides at University of Reading .
• Avoid shortened forms and everyday words that detract from academic rigor.
• Use technology tools to track your progress and organize your work.

Remember, the goal is to communicate your research effectively. By prioritizing clarity and style, you elevate the quality of your work, making it more persuasive and readable.

Comprehensive Research Methodology in a Time Crunch

Streamlining the literature review process.

To expedite your literature review, begin by understanding and critically analyzing the background research . This foundational step, as suggested by the University of Reading LibGuides, is crucial for developing a context for your research. Next, select and source the necessary information to construct a solid framework for your study.

Incorporate tools designed for thesis writing and academic project planning to enhance efficiency. Websites offering these resources emphasize the importance of maintaining a social life , which is vital for your well-being during this intensive period. A structured approach to your literature review can be outlined as follows:

• Identify key themes and concepts from existing literature.
• Organize your findings into categories or a conceptual map.
• Synthesize the information to highlight gaps and connections.
• Draft a cohesive narrative that aligns with your research objectives.

Remember, a well-organized literature review sets the stage for a compelling thesis, so invest time in this critical component of your research.

Selecting Appropriate Research Methods

In the constrained timeframe of two weeks, selecting the right research methods is crucial to the success of your thesis. Begin by restating your research problem and then delineate the type of research you will use. Your choice between qualitative and quantitative methods should be dictated by the nature of your research question and the type of data you aim to collect. Qualitative methods are ideal for exploring complex issues in depth, while quantitative methods are best suited for testing hypotheses or examining relationships between variables.

To ensure a methodical approach, consider the following steps:

• Summarize your research question, data, and texts.
• Reflect on the amount of work completed to date.
• Identify any obstacles that may hinder your research.
• Email your methodology outline to your advisor for feedback.

By carefully selecting and justifying your research methods, you can streamline your data collection and analysis, making the most of the limited time available. Utilize available academic resources and tools to aid in this process, such as worksheets, templates, and guides that can help you structure your methodology and stay on track.

Data Collection and Analysis Under Tight Deadlines

When faced with tight deadlines, efficient data collection and analysis become paramount. Begin by streamlining your literature review process to identify gaps and align your research objectives accordingly. Focus on collecting data that directly impacts your research questions to avoid unnecessary breadth that can consume precious time. For qualitative studies, consider the advice from AthenaCheck, suggesting that qualitative data is more suitable for in-depth analysis of specific situations or understanding opinions and experiences.

In the realm of data analysis, remember that it is the most crucial part of any research, as highlighted by UP Library. Summarize and interpret your collected data with a clear and methodical approach. Tools like SPSS or R can expedite this process, but ensure you have a firm grasp of the necessary statistical methods to avoid misinterpretation.

To manage your time effectively, use the following table to track your progress:

By adhering to a structured schedule and utilizing academic resources, you can navigate the challenges of data collection and analysis even under the most pressing deadlines.

Maintaining Well-being and Motivation During Intensive Writing Periods

Balancing work and personal life.

In the whirlwind of thesis writing, it's crucial to maintain a healthy balance between your academic responsibilities and personal life. Effective time management is the linchpin to this equilibrium, allowing you to allocate time judiciously between research, writing, and moments of relaxation. Start by delineating your daily tasks, both academic and personal, and use time-blocking to dedicate specific hours to each activity. This method not only enhances productivity but also ensures you have time to recharge.

Communication with your support network is vital. Share your schedule with family and friends to help them understand your availability and needs during this intensive period. Additionally, consider delegating certain tasks or seeking assistance when necessary to lighten your load. Remember, it's about finding a sustainable pace that accommodates both your thesis goals and personal well-being.

Lastly, continuously evaluate your routine to identify what's working and what isn't. Adjustments may be needed as you progress, and being flexible with your plan will help you stay on track without compromising your well-being. Here's a simple list to keep in mind:

• Prioritize and schedule thesis-related tasks
• Block out time for personal activities and self-care
• Communicate your plan with your support network
• Delegate tasks when possible
• Regularly assess and adjust your schedule as needed

Stress Management and Self-Care Strategies

In the whirlwind of thesis writing, it's crucial to acknowledge the impact of stress on both your work and well-being. Effective stress management is not just about coping; it's about thriving under pressure. Break down the work into smaller, manageable tasks and set specific goals for each session. This approach not only makes the workload more manageable but also provides a sense of accomplishment as you tick off tasks from your list.

By prioritizing self-care , you create a buffer against the potential for burnout. Establish a balanced schedule that includes regular breaks, exercise, and leisure activities. These practices are not a diversion but a necessary component of a sustainable work rhythm. Self-care is the fuel that allows you to maintain the intensity required for accelerated thesis completion.

Remember, you're not alone in this journey. Leverage the support systems around you, whether it's a writing coach, academic resources, or peer groups. Sharing your experiences and challenges can lead to valuable insights and the emotional support necessary to stay motivated and overcome obstacles.

Staying Motivated and Dealing with Setbacks

Embarking on the final stretch of your thesis can be both exhilarating and exhausting. It's crucial to maintain your drive and navigate through inevitable setbacks. Celebrate your achievements , no matter how small, to remind yourself of the progress you've made. This positive reinforcement can be a powerful motivator.

Creating a supportive environment is also key to staying focused. Ensure you have a dedicated workspace and a structured routine to minimize distractions. Sharing your progress with peers or a writing coach can provide you with the necessary encouragement and accountability.

When faced with obstacles, it's important to identify the challenges and set realistic goals . Break down your tasks into manageable steps and adjust your timeline if necessary. Remember, setbacks are a natural part of the thesis journey, and overcoming them is part of your growth as a researcher.

Struggling to maintain your well-being and motivation during intensive writing periods can be daunting, but you're not alone. At Research Rebels, we've crafted a step-by-step Thesis Action Plan to guide you through the process with ease and confidence. Our proven methodologies, developed by experts and validated by students worldwide, are designed to alleviate your anxiety and help you write your thesis worry-free. Don't let stress hinder your academic journey. Visit our website now to claim your special offer and embark on a path to successful thesis writing with Research Rebels.

In the pursuit of academic excellence, the mastery of time management and efficient writing strategies is paramount, particularly when faced with the daunting task of thesis completion within a constrained two-week timeframe. This article has provided a structured approach to tackling such a challenge, emphasizing the importance of a well-crafted action plan, the utilization of targeted resources, and the adoption of a disciplined writing regimen. By synthesizing the insights and methodologies discussed, students can navigate the complexities of thesis writing with precision and confidence. It is our hope that the strategies outlined herein will serve as a beacon for those striving to conquer their academic goals under tight deadlines, and that the journey, though rigorous, will be marked by a sense of accomplishment and scholarly growth.

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it really possible to write a thesis in just 2 weeks.

While challenging, it is possible to write a thesis in 2 weeks if you have a clear plan, dedicated time, and focus intensely on the task. Prior research and a well-structured outline are crucial to achieving this goal.

How can I develop a realistic timeline for my thesis?

Start by breaking down your thesis into smaller tasks and estimate the time needed for each. Prioritize tasks, set milestones, and create a schedule that includes time for writing, research, and revision.

What strategies can help me overcome writer's block?

To overcome writer's block, try changing your environment, breaking down tasks into smaller pieces, setting short-term goals, and allowing yourself to write imperfectly in the first draft.

How can I streamline the literature review process?

Use academic databases to find relevant literature, create a synthesis matrix to organize your findings, and focus on the most significant studies that directly relate to your research question.

What are some effective stress management strategies during the thesis writing process?

Effective stress management strategies include regular breaks, physical exercise, mindfulness practices, setting realistic goals, and seeking support from peers, mentors, or a writing coach.

How can I stay motivated when facing setbacks in my thesis writing?

Stay motivated by reminding yourself of your end goal, celebrating small achievements, seeking feedback to improve, and maintaining a positive mindset. Adjust your plan as needed to overcome setbacks.

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Tips and Examples for Writing Thesis Statements

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Tips for Writing Your Thesis Statement

1. Determine what kind of paper you are writing:

• An analytical paper breaks down an issue or an idea into its component parts, evaluates the issue or idea, and presents this breakdown and evaluation to the audience.
• An expository (explanatory) paper explains something to the audience.
• An argumentative paper makes a claim about a topic and justifies this claim with specific evidence. The claim could be an opinion, a policy proposal, an evaluation, a cause-and-effect statement, or an interpretation. The goal of the argumentative paper is to convince the audience that the claim is true based on the evidence provided.

If you are writing a text that does not fall under these three categories (e.g., a narrative), a thesis statement somewhere in the first paragraph could still be helpful to your reader.

2. Your thesis statement should be specific—it should cover only what you will discuss in your paper and should be supported with specific evidence.

3. The thesis statement usually appears at the end of the first paragraph of a paper.

4. Your topic may change as you write, so you may need to revise your thesis statement to reflect exactly what you have discussed in the paper.

Thesis Statement Examples

Example of an analytical thesis statement:

The paper that follows should:

• Explain the analysis of the college admission process
• Explain the challenge facing admissions counselors

Example of an expository (explanatory) thesis statement:

• Explain how students spend their time studying, attending class, and socializing with peers

Example of an argumentative thesis statement:

• Present an argument and give evidence to support the claim that students should pursue community projects before entering college

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Home > ETD > Doctoral > 5736

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

Pastoral prose and civic engagement: crafting the call to the public square.

Christopher Ian Thoma , Liberty University Follow

Rawlings School of Divinity

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Lucien Fortier

activism, attitudinal shift, Christianity, church, communication, creative writing, culture, engagement, influence, newsletter, pastor, public square, state, trust, Two Kingdoms

Disciplines

Communication | Practical Theology

Recommended Citation

Thoma, Christopher Ian, "Pastoral Prose and Civic Engagement: Crafting the Call to the Public Square" (2024). Doctoral Dissertations and Projects . 5736. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/5736

This thesis explores the relationship between creative writing techniques employed by pastors and congregational engagement in the public square. The central thesis posits that if pastors incorporate creative writing methods in extended weekly communications with congregants, then the necessary factors for engagement in the public square will be fostered, leading to attitudinal shifts demonstrated by increased congregational interest or participation in civil affairs. Through an extensive literature review, the thesis fairly examines historical and contemporary views of church and state, the Two Kingdoms doctrine, concepts relative to public square participation, Christianity’s waning cultural influence, communication science, developmental theory, literature familiarity, theological foundations for creative communication, and the potential benefits and challenges of employing such writing techniques within a religious context. Built on best practices in research, the thesis then presents an intervention in which nine pastors from nine different congregations employed a uniquely crafted writing rubric once a week for twelve weeks. Prior to the writing effort, the congregations were surveyed to detect initial perceptions relative to public square engagement. The same survey was administered and synthesized at the study’s conclusion to detect attitudinal shifts. Prior to and throughout the intervention, participating pastors joined in four seminars designed to cultivate, enhance, and maintain their participation toward the effort’s goal. Overall, this study resulted in an attitudinal shift while simultaneously contributing to a deeper understanding of the importance of Christian engagement in the public square and the role of pastors in fostering such engagement. Residually, and practically, it provides insight for engendering trust between pastor and parishioner.

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Joe Burrow and Justin Jefferson Take Paris by Storm—then Walk in Vogue World 2024

By Leah Faye Cooper

For friends and former college teammates Joe Burrow and Justin Jefferson, first came a national championship with LSU, then NFL superstardom, and now an instantly viral trip to Paris Fashion Week Men’s—capped off by walking in Vogue World 2024 . “I’ve always loved clothes but never really understood the industry, so I wanted to learn more,” Burrow tells Vogue. The Cincinnati Bengals quarterback landed in Paris earlier this week, where he and Minnesota Vikings wideout Jefferson sat front row at Amiri , toured the Hermès atelier, and indulged in French cuisine.

Burrow at Vogue World

“The lobster and shrimp at L’Avenue is fiiire ,” says Jefferson, who is visiting the City of Light for the first time. “There’s a lot of traffic, and the way people drive is kinda crazy, but it’s a great city,” he says, adding that he hopes to be known “as more than just a football player” and was partial to the Amiri show. “I wear Amiri a lot. It’s my style—relaxed and chill.”

Following a whirlwind of shows and parties, Burrow and Jefferson both hit the Vogue World 2024 runway. “I wanted to get out of my comfort zone and grow as a person, [and] I think walking in the show is a great way to do that,” says Burrow, who was dressed in a backless black suit with satin lapels by Peter Do . “I think the crossover between fashion and sport is going to continue to grow.”

Jefferson getting fitted

Participating in the star-studded, fashion-filled night was just as appealing to Jefferson. “This is my first show,” he says, “and who wouldn’t want Vogue World to be their first?” Ahead, an exclusive look at Joe Burrow and Justin Jefferson’s trip to Paris.

“Night one in Paris. Dinner at Le Clarence. Hard to beat.” —Joe Burrow

“Getting dressed in the car right before the Amiri show. I would always see people on TV and social media having to do this and thought it was crazy. Now I realize between traffic and close show times, it’s just something you have to do sometimes.” —Justin Jefferson

“Out in the streets of Paris with the papz was crazzzy.” —J.J.

“Two sides of the same coin. Outside the Amiri show.” —J.B.

“Joe and me taking a tour of the Hermès métier factory. It was dope to see the history behind the brand and how everything is made. The thoughtfulness, attention to detail, craftsmanship, and ability to reuse and recycle are impressive.” —J.J.

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Methodology

• How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates

How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates

Published on January 2, 2023 by Shona McCombes . Revised on September 11, 2023.

What is a literature review? A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources on a specific topic. It provides an overview of current knowledge, allowing you to identify relevant theories, methods, and gaps in the existing research that you can later apply to your paper, thesis, or dissertation topic .

There are five key steps to writing a literature review:

• Search for relevant literature
• Evaluate sources
• Identify themes, debates, and gaps
• Outline the structure
• Write your literature review

A good literature review doesn’t just summarize sources—it analyzes, synthesizes , and critically evaluates to give a clear picture of the state of knowledge on the subject.

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Table of contents

What is the purpose of a literature review, examples of literature reviews, step 1 – search for relevant literature, step 2 – evaluate and select sources, step 3 – identify themes, debates, and gaps, step 4 – outline your literature review’s structure, step 5 – write your literature review, free lecture slides, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions, introduction.

• Quick Run-through
• Step 1 & 2

When you write a thesis , dissertation , or research paper , you will likely have to conduct a literature review to situate your research within existing knowledge. The literature review gives you a chance to:

• Demonstrate your familiarity with the topic and its scholarly context
• Develop a theoretical framework and methodology for your research
• Position your work in relation to other researchers and theorists
• Show how your research addresses a gap or contributes to a debate
• Evaluate the current state of research and demonstrate your knowledge of the scholarly debates around your topic.

Writing literature reviews is a particularly important skill if you want to apply for graduate school or pursue a career in research. We’ve written a step-by-step guide that you can follow below.

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Writing literature reviews can be quite challenging! A good starting point could be to look at some examples, depending on what kind of literature review you’d like to write.

• Example literature review #1: “Why Do People Migrate? A Review of the Theoretical Literature” ( Theoretical literature review about the development of economic migration theory from the 1950s to today.)
• Example literature review #2: “Literature review as a research methodology: An overview and guidelines” ( Methodological literature review about interdisciplinary knowledge acquisition and production.)
• Example literature review #3: “The Use of Technology in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Thematic literature review about the effects of technology on language acquisition.)
• Example literature review #4: “Learners’ Listening Comprehension Difficulties in English Language Learning: A Literature Review” ( Chronological literature review about how the concept of listening skills has changed over time.)

You can also check out our templates with literature review examples and sample outlines at the links below.

Download Word doc Download Google doc

Before you begin searching for literature, you need a clearly defined topic .

If you are writing the literature review section of a dissertation or research paper, you will search for literature related to your research problem and questions .

Make a list of keywords

Start by creating a list of keywords related to your research question. Include each of the key concepts or variables you’re interested in, and list any synonyms and related terms. You can add to this list as you discover new keywords in the process of your literature search.

• Social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Snapchat, TikTok
• Body image, self-perception, self-esteem, mental health
• Generation Z, teenagers, adolescents, youth

Search for relevant sources

Use your keywords to begin searching for sources. Some useful databases to search for journals and articles include:

• Your university’s library catalogue
• Google Scholar
• Project Muse (humanities and social sciences)
• Medline (life sciences and biomedicine)
• EconLit (economics)
• Inspec (physics, engineering and computer science)

You can also use boolean operators to help narrow down your search.

Make sure to read the abstract to find out whether an article is relevant to your question. When you find a useful book or article, you can check the bibliography to find other relevant sources.

You likely won’t be able to read absolutely everything that has been written on your topic, so it will be necessary to evaluate which sources are most relevant to your research question.

For each publication, ask yourself:

• What question or problem is the author addressing?
• What are the key concepts and how are they defined?
• What are the key theories, models, and methods?
• Does the research use established frameworks or take an innovative approach?
• What are the results and conclusions of the study?
• How does the publication relate to other literature in the field? Does it confirm, add to, or challenge established knowledge?
• What are the strengths and weaknesses of the research?

Make sure the sources you use are credible , and make sure you read any landmark studies and major theories in your field of research.

You can use our template to summarize and evaluate sources you’re thinking about using. Click on either button below to download.

Take notes and cite your sources

As you read, you should also begin the writing process. Take notes that you can later incorporate into the text of your literature review.

It is important to keep track of your sources with citations to avoid plagiarism . It can be helpful to make an annotated bibliography , where you compile full citation information and write a paragraph of summary and analysis for each source. This helps you remember what you read and saves time later in the process.

Prevent plagiarism. Run a free check.

To begin organizing your literature review’s argument and structure, be sure you understand the connections and relationships between the sources you’ve read. Based on your reading and notes, you can look for:

• Trends and patterns (in theory, method or results): do certain approaches become more or less popular over time?
• Themes: what questions or concepts recur across the literature?
• Debates, conflicts and contradictions: where do sources disagree?
• Pivotal publications: are there any influential theories or studies that changed the direction of the field?
• Gaps: what is missing from the literature? Are there weaknesses that need to be addressed?

This step will help you work out the structure of your literature review and (if applicable) show how your own research will contribute to existing knowledge.

• Most research has focused on young women.
• There is an increasing interest in the visual aspects of social media.
• But there is still a lack of robust research on highly visual platforms like Instagram and Snapchat—this is a gap that you could address in your own research.

There are various approaches to organizing the body of a literature review. Depending on the length of your literature review, you can combine several of these strategies (for example, your overall structure might be thematic, but each theme is discussed chronologically).

Chronological

The simplest approach is to trace the development of the topic over time. However, if you choose this strategy, be careful to avoid simply listing and summarizing sources in order.

Try to analyze patterns, turning points and key debates that have shaped the direction of the field. Give your interpretation of how and why certain developments occurred.

If you have found some recurring central themes, you can organize your literature review into subsections that address different aspects of the topic.

For example, if you are reviewing literature about inequalities in migrant health outcomes, key themes might include healthcare policy, language barriers, cultural attitudes, legal status, and economic access.

Methodological

If you draw your sources from different disciplines or fields that use a variety of research methods , you might want to compare the results and conclusions that emerge from different approaches. For example:

• Look at what results have emerged in qualitative versus quantitative research
• Discuss how the topic has been approached by empirical versus theoretical scholarship
• Divide the literature into sociological, historical, and cultural sources

Theoretical

A literature review is often the foundation for a theoretical framework . You can use it to discuss various theories, models, and definitions of key concepts.

You might argue for the relevance of a specific theoretical approach, or combine various theoretical concepts to create a framework for your research.

Like any other academic text , your literature review should have an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion . What you include in each depends on the objective of your literature review.

The introduction should clearly establish the focus and purpose of the literature review.

Depending on the length of your literature review, you might want to divide the body into subsections. You can use a subheading for each theme, time period, or methodological approach.

As you write, you can follow these tips:

• Summarize and synthesize: give an overview of the main points of each source and combine them into a coherent whole
• Analyze and interpret: don’t just paraphrase other researchers — add your own interpretations where possible, discussing the significance of findings in relation to the literature as a whole
• Critically evaluate: mention the strengths and weaknesses of your sources
• Write in well-structured paragraphs: use transition words and topic sentences to draw connections, comparisons and contrasts

In the conclusion, you should summarize the key findings you have taken from the literature and emphasize their significance.

When you’ve finished writing and revising your literature review, don’t forget to proofread thoroughly before submitting. Not a language expert? Check out Scribbr’s professional proofreading services !

This article has been adapted into lecture slides that you can use to teach your students about writing a literature review.

Scribbr slides are free to use, customize, and distribute for educational purposes.

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If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

A literature review is a survey of scholarly sources (such as books, journal articles, and theses) related to a specific topic or research question .

It is often written as part of a thesis, dissertation , or research paper , in order to situate your work in relation to existing knowledge.

There are several reasons to conduct a literature review at the beginning of a research project:

• To familiarize yourself with the current state of knowledge on your topic
• To ensure that you’re not just repeating what others have already done
• To identify gaps in knowledge and unresolved problems that your research can address
• To develop your theoretical framework and methodology
• To provide an overview of the key findings and debates on the topic

Writing the literature review shows your reader how your work relates to existing research and what new insights it will contribute.

The literature review usually comes near the beginning of your thesis or dissertation . After the introduction , it grounds your research in a scholarly field and leads directly to your theoretical framework or methodology .

A literature review is a survey of credible sources on a topic, often used in dissertations , theses, and research papers . Literature reviews give an overview of knowledge on a subject, helping you identify relevant theories and methods, as well as gaps in existing research. Literature reviews are set up similarly to other  academic texts , with an introduction , a main body, and a conclusion .

An  annotated bibliography is a list of  source references that has a short description (called an annotation ) for each of the sources. It is often assigned as part of the research process for a  paper .  

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McCombes, S. (2023, September 11). How to Write a Literature Review | Guide, Examples, & Templates. Scribbr. Retrieved June 24, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/dissertation/literature-review/

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Nvidia isn’t done soaring. BofA sees more upside with a $150 price target 

Can anything slow Nvidia’s ascent? That’s the question on the minds of most investors as the tech darling continues to break records . This week alone the company briefly passed mighty Microsoft to notch the title of the world’s most valuable company (though by Friday it had dipped back into 2nd place ). According to Fortune ‘s calculations, $1,000 invested in NVDA stock 10 years ago would be worth almost $300,000 today.

But the analysts at Bank of America believe there’s still plenty of room for NVDA to run. In a recently published note analysts Vivek Arya, Duksang Jang, and Lauren Guy write that while the stock’s steep climb make it “vulnerable” to profit-taking, any volatility is likely to be short-lived. (They note that Nvidia is already up 50% in Q2 vs. 4% for the S&P 500). They put a price target of $150 on the stock, which as of midday Friday was trading just above $126.

Nvidia stock forecast

What may drive Nvidia’s stock higher? The analysts write that GenAI hardware deployments are still only in the second year of what could be a three- to five-year deployment cycle, representing around $300 billion in long-term opportunity, and a three-times increase on the current year. They also believe NVDA’s “next-gen purpose-built Blackwell AI accelerator systems will start later this year, with solid demand/visibility across cloud customers.” The analysts write that Dr. Ian Buck, Nvidia’s VP of Hyperscale, recently presented at a BofA tech conference and they came away impressed. “Dr. Buck stressed NVDA’s moat in co-optimizing and consistently improving silicon, system and software,” they wrote.

As for valuation? The BofA teams calls it “compelling” at “only” a P/E of around 30, based on the bull case earnings scenario of $5 per share. They note that quarterly earnings per share have grown six times, well ahead of the the 4.5x stock move since the “seminal” Q1 of 2024. Bottom line: “ Unlike the ‘dotcom boom’ that was funded by risky debt-taking, genAI deployment is a mission-critical race between some of the best-funded (cloud) customers,” the analysts write.

But not everyone is convinced. As Shawn Tully wrote recently for Fortune , there’s a case to be made that Nvidia is a fabulous company with a bright future and an AI pioneer—but at these valuations is still destined to be an extremely poor investment. Tully spoke to David Trainer, founder and CEO of research firm New Constructs who told him: “ Nvidia’s valuation is ridiculous . It’s facing the same curse as  Tesla . But when Tesla got profitable, loads of competitors entered the EV space, cutting margins and slowing sales. The same will happen with Nvidia.”

Tully added that Trainer believes investors are awarding Nvidia such an inflated valuation “by extrapolating the competitive advantage it has today in perpetuity.” But margins as magical as Nvdia has posted don’t go unnoticed, he points out. As he told Tully, “Anytime a competitor sees margins like that, they jump in and make big investments to grab part of your business. For now, Nvidia can do what no one else can do, but the best competitors will find a way. It will become a race to the bottom.”

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