The most challenging part of your academic career is writing a dissertation. It shares some similarities with term papers, for example. Writing a dissertation will be easier if you draw on your term paper writing experience. Term paper writing experience can be applied to dissertation writing. By bringing them to a level of consciousness, those abilities become more useful. As a term paper writer, you must write and read extensively and learn before and during the whole writing process. That also applies to dissertation writing, because you are the dissertation writer. During the writing of your dissertation, you’re learning and understanding of the topic you are studying will be greatly enhanced.
We will be able to get more information about dissertations if we examine just the title. Each dissertation title focuses on a single subject.
- By reading the title, we can determine the subject’s unique characteristics.
- Data is analyzed. (A special type of analysis will be reported; more specifically, a qualitative analysis will be reported.)
- The data source for the study is identified.
- The research report focuses on a specific issue.
In looking at the title, we have identified important elements of a dissertation. But rest assured, it isn’t the only source.
Writing a Term Paper V/s Dissertation
The main thing you did in your term papers followed the directions provided by your professor. Your professors monitored you. Your professor probably suggested most, if not all, of the sources you cited in your paper. Your professor set the topic and the deadline for your paper. The professor usually entered a grade with the registrar indicating your success in the course based on your term paper, which was usually one element of your grade. You may have been most concerned about whether you received an A or B. After completing that requirement, most people were relieved and satisfied. Most students did not concern themselves with making sense of the course in light of their other studies.
Now that we have enough information, we can identify differences and similarities between term papers and dissertations. Our comparison reveals several other issues related to our insights from these brief analyses.
- When writing a dissertation, you are expected to “break new ground.” It would help if you contributed to advancing the knowledge base of the chosen discipline. The goal of a term paper is to explore some areas in depth; previous works need not be examined. The topic may be the same for everyone in the class.
- You conduct an intensive data search in writing your dissertation, ensuring that the work you mount is different from previous work. You will add new perspectives. You will observe phenomena from a different perspective. It will add to the field literature. Term papers may contain biases of a professor, and you may need to deal with these in the writing process. The readership for your dissertation is much larger – potentially readers with different theoretical orientations. Discussing competing theories and ideas will help you resolve this potential conflict. Understanding multiple perspectives is key to understanding your data.
- You will demonstrate your resourcefulness in identifying relevant sources in your dissertation, which contrasts with your term papers in which you likely relied on sources that your professor recommended. Rather than relying on your professor’s knowledge when writing term papers, you become the expert when writing your dissertation. Students receive their term papers back, and the institution has no record of those documents. They aren’t available for public access either. For example, Dissertation Abstracts International and Interlibrary Loan will make your dissertation available to the entire academic community.
- You must recognize that the progress you make will be affected greatly by your relationships with your dissertation committee members. Your dissertation has no fixed completion date like a course. Term papers are usually one-time assignments. Your paper is read, evaluated, and perhaps graded or commented on upon submission. Most dissertations require numerous drafts. Passing grades or helpful comments are no longer acceptable. Those comments must be addressed. These comments and questions become guidelines for future drafts and subsequent sections of your dissertation and ways of improving your text. It is an ongoing process. By recommending changes, your committee seeks to enhance the possibility of achieving some level of perfection.