I am stuck for ideas on what to do my dissertation on..any ideas?
Nutrition interests me more than Public health..But the subject is soo broad..i dont know where to start!
The first step is to choose a broad topic for your thesis. For example, if you are undertaking a PhD in History, the topic might be as broad as women’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War. You will refine and narrow this topic at a later stage. Choosing the topic for your thesis is an important step that requires a great deal of thoughtful consideration. Many factors need to be considered. Ask yourself these questions:
•What topic in my field interests me the most?
If you are writing an Honours thesis, you will need to maintain your interest in the topic you choose for at least one year. If you are completing a PhD, you will be researching this topic for three or more years! For this reason, it is important that you choose a topic that will hold your enthusiasm, interest and passion for an extended period. There is nothing worse than being locked in to studying a thesis topic that no longer interests you.
•Will I be able to find an appropriate supervisor for that topic?
Finding a supervisor is an important step in your postgraduate journey and it is something you need to consider when choosing your topic. There needs to be a balance between your interest in a topic and the ability of a specific supervisor to work in this area. It is not useful to choose a topic that is of immense interest to you if no one at your university has sufficient knowledge in the area to act as your supervisor. However, it is also not advisable to choose a supervisor first and then choose a topic based solely on their research interests, as you may end up studying something that is not of interest to you.
•Will I have access to the appropriate sources to research this topic?
Similarly, it is not useful to choose a topic that is immensely interesting to you if there is very little information on the subject. When choosing your topic, consider what types of sources you would need to be able to research it well, and find out if you will have access to these sources. If, as in the example above, you will be studying the Spanish Civil War, can you speak Spanish? Will you be able to travel to Spain to access sources? Does a wealth of material on your chosen subject exist?
The above answer was the first section of my article ‘How to Write a Thesis or Dissertation’, which can be found at the Elite Editing & Tutoring website http://www.eliteediting.com.au
If you would like more assistance writing your dissertation, please visit our website for more articles or become a follower of our blog at http://www.eliteediting.blogspot.com. Each week we publish another free article on essay, thesis and dissertation writing.
Once you’re finished, contact us and we can arrange for a professional academic editor to edit your dissertation for you!
Lisa L
October 31, 2009 at 3:07 pm
The first step is to choose a broad topic for your thesis. For example, if you are undertaking a PhD in History, the topic might be as broad as women’s involvement in the Spanish Civil War. You will refine and narrow this topic at a later stage. Choosing the topic for your thesis is an important step that requires a great deal of thoughtful consideration. Many factors need to be considered. Ask yourself these questions:
•What topic in my field interests me the most?
If you are writing an Honours thesis, you will need to maintain your interest in the topic you choose for at least one year. If you are completing a PhD, you will be researching this topic for three or more years! For this reason, it is important that you choose a topic that will hold your enthusiasm, interest and passion for an extended period. There is nothing worse than being locked in to studying a thesis topic that no longer interests you.
•Will I be able to find an appropriate supervisor for that topic?
Finding a supervisor is an important step in your postgraduate journey and it is something you need to consider when choosing your topic. There needs to be a balance between your interest in a topic and the ability of a specific supervisor to work in this area. It is not useful to choose a topic that is of immense interest to you if no one at your university has sufficient knowledge in the area to act as your supervisor. However, it is also not advisable to choose a supervisor first and then choose a topic based solely on their research interests, as you may end up studying something that is not of interest to you.
•Will I have access to the appropriate sources to research this topic?
Similarly, it is not useful to choose a topic that is immensely interesting to you if there is very little information on the subject. When choosing your topic, consider what types of sources you would need to be able to research it well, and find out if you will have access to these sources. If, as in the example above, you will be studying the Spanish Civil War, can you speak Spanish? Will you be able to travel to Spain to access sources? Does a wealth of material on your chosen subject exist?
The above answer was the first section of my article ‘How to Write a Thesis or Dissertation’, which can be found at the Elite Editing & Tutoring website http://www.eliteediting.com.au
If you would like more assistance writing your dissertation, please visit our website for more articles or become a follower of our blog at http://www.eliteediting.blogspot.com. Each week we publish another free article on essay, thesis and dissertation writing.
Once you’re finished, contact us and we can arrange for a professional academic editor to edit your dissertation for you!
References :
http://www.eliteediting.com.au/how-to-write-a-thesis.php
http://www.eliteediting.com.au