Hello Honours students! Are you seeking tips on how to start on your honours dissertation? Here are a few articles to help incorporate thesis-writing into your semester ~before~ you even start writing!
American Historical Association’s guide: Offers eight practical tips for steps you can take to better incorporate thesis writing into your daily schedule. Here are some of the pointers mentioned in the article:
- Create a writing schedule–set aside specific hours in the day dedicated to writing
- Find/create a conducive working environment
- Have a thesis journal–to capture your thoughts and issues encountered when writing
- Condense your argument into ONE sentence–this forces you to simplify complex ideas for clarity.
- Lead a healthy lifestyle–get adequate sleep and nutrition
- Bounce ideas off your friends–have friends read and peer-review your work
Harvard College Writing Centre’s guide: Points out important things to note and consider when writing a thesis. Below are some of the key points from the post:
- A thesis comes from an analysis of primary sources. What do the sources say? What are some of the gaps in current literature?
- Write down your working thesis. Don’t expect or wait to have a fully coherent, defensible thesis. Write down your working thesis and refine it as you research.
- Be prepared to defend your thesis against counter-arguments. If your thesis does not have any counter-arguments, it could be that you are not presenting an argument, but an opinion.
- Keep your thesis clear and definable. Set the parameters for your work and make sure your terms are defined.
NUS Scholarbank: Bachelor’s Theses: Offers a repository of theses submitted by NUS History seniors for reference.
- Scholarbank allows NUS students to take a look at their seniors’ theses if they would like to have a reference.
- To access history specific theses, head to the “Browse” section and click “Department,” then choose “Department of History.”
I hope you found these tips useful! Remember that writing a thesis is a journey and not a destination–it requires consistent effort over a long period, so be sure to plan ahead 🙂