When students enter into the college life their academic research and writing skills are assessed through different assignments. They are given the task of essay writing, coursework writing, and other assignments at regular intervals. The most challenging among these assignments is the dissertation writing which is lengthy and much more difficult than any other assignment. So, it is natural for every student starting the college life to wonder what is dissertation. For this purpose they mostly look for the help from online dissertation writing services.
The focus of this blog is to discuss in detail what is dissertation and how students may get through this academic task professionally. In our previous blog we have already offered some dissertation definitions. To refresh our memories about the dissertation definition, dissertation may be explained as a lengthy piece of academic writing on a particular topic written for a university degree or diploma.
What is a dissertation and how is it different from an essay?
As said earlier, dissertation is a lengthy piece of academic writing as compared to essays and other academic assignments. The main difference between an essay and dissertation is that the essay is relatively short such as between 1500 to 2500 words while a dissertation may be between 8000 to 15000 words. Another difference between dissertation and essay is that the essay is on a specific topic given by someone else while the topic of dissertation is chosen by the student so as to conduct an independent research and come up with his/her own conclusions and recommendations.
History of Dissertation
The first usage of the word “dissertation” has been recorded as of 1651 in the English language which gives the definition of dissertation as “an extended written treatment of a subject” as Cited by Royal Literary Fund.
The roots of dissertation are found in the Latin word ‘dissertare’ which means “to debate”. As it is clear from the word ‘debate’ it is a discussion offering different points of view or ideas. So, from dissertation it means a discussion on a topic covering different points of views.
Another definition of dissertation cited by the Royal Literary Fund shows more important characteristics of a dissertation: “a substantial paper that is typically based on original research and that gives evidence of the candidate’s mastery both of her own subject and of scholarly method.”
Steps to write a dissertation
When the time to start writing a dissertation comes, you will be assigned a tutor or supervisor to guide you through the process of dissertation writing. The very first thing you will be asked is to generate a dissertation topic which you are interested in and confident to show your understanding. After getting your topic approved you will have to write a dissertation proposal and once it is approved you can start the research work on the topic. Here are some basic steps of dissertation writing as cited by the University of Leicester:
choosing a topic;
developing a research question;
effective planning of the research;
being organised and methodical while conducting your research; and
reporting the research.
These steps are explained in brief below:
Dissertation Topic
You should choose a dissertation topic which is viable for further research and unexplored yet. The dissertation topic should be specific and not broad so you may keep your attention focused on it. Our dissertation writers can help you in choosing a free dissertation topic so you may get help from them any time if you are unable to come up with a convincing topic yourself.
Dissertation Proposal
After the dissertation topic is approved, you will need to submit a dissertation proposal or the research proposal which may also be called as a synopsis of the research. In the proposal you need to clearly mention the research questions that you’d answer and a suitable research plan by giving a gantt chart. Finally, you will need to submit the dissertation following the dissertation plan to your superior and the dissertation committee will review it and approve or disapprove it.
