2. Aims
Take control of the dissertation writing
process
Develop strategies to organise your
reading
Evaluate and apply organisational
systems
Describe how to use notes to build a
dissertation plan
4. Step One
Big Picture
What do you have to write?
Chapters/Sections
What goes in each section or
chapter?
5. Step Two - Refocus
• Review your aims and objectives
• Write an abstract
• Draft a contents list
• How could these strategies help you
use your reading effectively?
• Put your answers in the chat box.
6. Abstract
Overview of the
whole piece.
Sentence starters
This research explores...
This paper argues that..
The study was conducted...
This research contributes to the
debates on..
Write a prospective
abstract of your study,
using one or two
sentences to answer
each of these questions:
What is the problem or
question that the work
addresses?
Why is it important?
How was the
investigation
undertaken?
What did you find out? What does that mean?
7. Contents List
Detailed
Breakdown
Make a table of contents
Open a new document or take a sheet of paper. At the top, write:
INTRODUCTION
At the bottom, write:
CONCLUSION
The space in between is where you can ‘play around’ with possible
structures for your work. Within possible chapter headings, try also to
add subsection headings.
Try looking at other dissertations in your discipline. Can you recognise a
logic in their chapter structures?
Return to this sheet on a regular basis. Try to articulate how one chapter
follows on from another – or how one subsection follows from the
preceding one. Explain all this to a friend.
8. What do you think?
Which is better?
Why?
• 1.Introduction
• 1.1 Background
• 1.2 Definitions
• 2.Literature Review
• 2.1 Topic One
• Methodology
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion
9. • To use our research effectively we
have to get organised.
• This means managing our time and
using that time meaningfully.
• Do you do this?
• Any tips or ideas you can share in the
chat box?
• What stops you?
10. Time Blocking
• Thursday
• 6-7 Coffee/feed and walk dogs
• 8-9 Emails – 8-8.25/8.30-8.55
• 9-9.15 Coffee Meeting teams
• 9.30 -12.30 Feedforward
• 12-30 1.30 Shopping for Mum and Dad
• 1.30 -2.30 121Appointment
• 2.30- 2.35 Research for academic
writing webinar
11. Control Your Time
• “[My day] rarely goes exactly how I
planned, but it does… keep me on task,
and a lot less likely to go down the
Instagram rabbit hole, or get distracted
by something else because I know that if
I take too much time on this task, it
pushes the rest of my schedule back.”
12. Block and Control
• Thursday
• 8-9- Organize files on laptop
• 9-10 – Not Write Dissertation
• 11-12 – Finish notes on Journal paper
• Take few minutes to write a plan for tomorrow
• Remember to start with things you have to do outside university
work
Specific
Measurable
13. Pomodoro Technique
• Choose something you want to get done
• Set a timer for 25 minutes
• Try to minimize distractions
• When the timer rings take a break. For five
minutes
• Every four Pomadoroes take a longer break
18. Clean up Your
Electronic Files
• Use the same system as your
paper organisation.
• Use Word
• One Note
• One Drive
19.
20. What do you do?
Any top tips for organising your notes you can share?
Put them in the chat box.
How do you overcome procrastination?
21. Moving On
Which chapter to start with?
Review specific resources
Review your notes critically
Summarise lengthy notes use a reading grid to identify links
between your texts/links between your findings and literature.
Have you got enough information?
22. “We can better understand problems like attrition if we
know why people choose to undertake a PhD in the first
place, however scholars do not pay attention to the
reasons why students are motivated to enroll in a PhD.
Two notable exceptions are Humbug et al (2009) and
Mewburn (2012). Humbug et al noted that different
disciplines report very different reasons for beginning a
PhD. Mewburn further developed this work in her
studies of older students, claiming that gender further
complicated the picture of motivation.”
Key arguments highlighted and
compared in line with themes. Then
used in the writing.
23. Review
What have we
covered?
Time management strategy in place
Overview of the whole dissertation
Plan of each section
Notes organised to reflect this section plan
Reviewing notes critically to build a paragraph plan
