Tag: PhD

What Exactly is a Dissertation?

By Shashikant Nishant Sharma

📘 Understanding the Dissertation: A Scholar’s Journey

For many doctoral students, the dissertation is the most significant milestone of their academic journey. Yet, there is often confusion about what a dissertation truly is—and what it is not. Let’s break it down.

Photo by Tanya Gupta on Pexels.com

🔹 Not Just a Term Paper or Personal Reflection
A dissertation is not a longer version of a term paper, nor is it an anecdotal record of professional achievements or a personal statement of beliefs. It is, instead, an objective, evidence-based, and detailed research document prepared for a scholarly audience. Its purpose is to demonstrate original thinking, methodological rigor, and a solid grounding in existing literature.

🔹 Length and Disciplinary Variations
On average, dissertations are about 200 pages long, though they typically range from 125 to 225 pages. Differences arise based on field and research methodology:

  • Dissertations in natural sciences are usually shorter, with a stronger emphasis on experimental results.
  • Dissertations in social sciences or ethnographic studies are often longer due to the need for contextual detail, participant narratives, and interpretive analysis.

The practical advice remains constant: write your dissertation so that it is long enough to tell your research story clearly, but not so long that it loses your reader’s interest.

🔹 Looking and Sounding Scholarly
A dissertation must not only present new research but also engage with existing scholarship. This means:

  • Citations & Literature Review: Your work must show that you understand the field, can cite relevant studies, and position your research in the broader academic conversation.
  • Tone & Style: The writing should be formal, precise, and objective. While recent years have seen a move away from overly complex and turgid prose, the expectation remains that dissertations must maintain a scholarly voice, avoiding colloquial or editorial-style writing.

🔹 Organisation and Structure
Although formats may vary, most dissertations continue to follow a well-established structure:

  1. Introduction – stating the problem and research objectives.
  2. Literature Review – situating the study within the existing body of knowledge.
  3. Methodology – explaining how the research was conducted.
  4. Results – presenting the findings systematically.
  5. Summary and Discussion – interpreting results, highlighting contributions, and suggesting future directions.

Even when deviations occur, dissertations generally follow a predictable order that ensures clarity and logical progression.

🔹 Adhering to Style Guides and Academic Rigor
Dissertations must comply with specific style manuals such as APA, MLA, Chicago, or university-specific guidelines. Unlike term papers where some flexibility may be allowed, dissertations demand strict consistency in formatting citations, references, tables, figures, and headings. This attention to detail not only reflects professionalism but also ensures that the work aligns with academic publishing standards.

✨ Why It Matters
A dissertation is more than just a degree requirement—it is a scholarly contribution that adds to the pool of academic knowledge. It reflects years of study, months of data collection and analysis, and countless hours of writing, editing, and refining. Most importantly, it showcases a researcher’s ability to think critically, engage with theory and evidence, and communicate ideas in a scholarly manner.

👉 In conclusion, think of your dissertation as your first book-length research project. It is not about filling pages but about building arguments, documenting evidence, and making a meaningful academic contribution.

References

Hofstee, E. (2006). Constructing a good dissertation. Johannesburg: EPE.

Borden, I. (2006). The dissertation. Routledge.

Lyons, P., & Doueck, H. J. (2010). The dissertation: From beginning to end. Oxford university press.

Rudestam, K. E., & Newton, R. R. (2014). Surviving your dissertation: A comprehensive guide to content and process. Sage publications.

Scipioni, E. P. (2000). Dissertation (Vol. 18). Edition Reichenberger.

PhD Supervisor and PhD work

PhD Students – How can you help your supervisors to give you the best supervision for your PhD?

In a PhD program, supervisor-supervisee relationship is very important.

Here are 10 things you can do on your part to get the best out of your PhD supervisors.

𝟏. 𝐒𝐡𝐨𝐰, 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥: Instead of telling your supervisor what you have worked on, show him/her the progress. For example, instead of saying that I have read 5 papers, you should say here are the critical summaries and 5 takeaways from these 5 papers that I think are useful for my research in these ways.

𝟐. 𝐓𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐥𝐲: If your supervisor criticizes you, actually he/she is not criticizing you but your work. This criticism is only for the purpose of improving your research and helping you to succeed.

𝟑. 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐞𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐭𝐞𝐬: Send upfront the points about which you want to talk about in the meeting. Similarly, share what has been discussed in the meeting. It will only take around 10 minutes of your time.

𝟒. 𝐀𝐬𝐤, 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐮𝐦𝐞: Do not assume outcomes from your supervisors. Instead, ask in a polite way. For example, do not assume that your supervisors will not allow you to apply for a research internship. Ask them.

𝟓. 𝐎𝐰𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐏𝐡𝐃: Your PhD is your project. After around 6 months, you are likely more expert on the topic than your supervisors. They are there to guide you through the process.

𝟔. 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦: Supervisors have many things on their plates. It’s possible that their minds skip something. Give them a soft reminder if they need to get back to you on something such as feedback on a paper.

𝟕. 𝐒𝐞𝐞𝐤 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐟𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤: Sending a paper draft to a supervisor one day before a submission deadline is a mistake on your end. Even if he/she provides the feedback, it might be shallow. Give them time.

𝟖. 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐜𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲: Communicate clearly to your supervisors about any obstacles you are facing and any expectations you have. They have the experience to guide you accordingly but first, they need to know.

𝟗. 𝐃𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐬: If your supervisors have corrected you about something, try not to repeat it. It will give them the impression that you did not value their feedback. If you don’t agree, discuss it with them.

𝟏𝟎. 𝐑𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭, 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐜𝐭: Doesn’t matter how good or bad your relationship is with your supervisor, always respect them. I have hardly seen anyone successful who does not respect his/her teachers and supervisors.