Yesterday, I handed in my history dissertation, almost two weeks after completing my criminology one - PHEW. The experience of writing them both has been slightly traumatic, but also rewarding, and I'm just hoping now that my grades reflect the fact I worked so hard on them for at least 9 months...we shall see. To round it all off, I thought I would share a little of my experience with them, along with some tips I picked up along the way.
1. Make an Effort with Your Tutor
Seriously. The help, advice, and patience I received from my tutors was invaluable to the process. I think this was because I kept in regular contact with them, met the deadlines set, and openly took their advice on board. Writing a dissertation is a solo adventure, supposedly, so your tutor isn't going to chase you about it, you have to go to them, and from my experience whatever effort you put in, they will match.
2. Start Early
I started the reading for my dissertations last June. Considering one of my subjects is history there was a hell of a lot of literature to get through so it really was necessary for me start then, I most definitely see that now. I easily have 50,000 words of notes across the two of them, but that meant that it only took me a week to write the first drafts. Yes, they were definitely the first drafts, and I'm not recommending spending only 40 hours writing it, and then sending it straight to submission as some have, but gathering evidence is the most arduous bit, so give yourself time to do it all thoroughly.
3. You Will Have a Breakdown
Don't kid yourself that you're going to fly through the process no bother, I'm sorry but no one ever has and no one ever will. Accept that you will get very emotional about it all at some point, so when it does happen you can deal with it and move on, rather than overly freak out.
4. Enjoy Your Topics
My criminology dissertation was entitled: The Criminological Relevance of Stereotypical Cultural Representations of the Offender: the case of the Joker in the Batman Franchise, and my history was: Betty Shabazz and Coretta Scott King: An Examination of How Race, Religion and Gender Impacted Upon Their Lives'. This meant I spent a whole year looking into comic books and strong women - awesome. Even on bad days, I was ultimately enjoying what I was reading/writing and that is damn important.
5. Everything Else Still Goes On
I was at a baptism 3 days before I had my criminology dissertation in, and I have a 3,000 word essay due tomorrow aka 2 days after my history dissertation was due. You need to plan your time wisely, because yes, dissertation's are absolutely mega, but the world and life don't care enough to stop happening.
6. Look After Yourself
If you're the kind of person that stresses out a ridiculous amount, then do your best with your timings to reduce that, and be kind enough to yourself to allow any necessary outbursts. Though sugary snacks are really easy to reach for, and you're definitely entitled to indulge during this stressful time, in the long run it is actually fruit and vegetables that will keep your energy levels up, and your body healthy. Don't let the rest of your body down because your brain work is taking up so much time. In the same vein, don't let the rest of your brain down by allowing stress to seriously affect your mental health because you're brain's so busy being academic. As I've said, outbursts and being emotional is perfectly normal during this time, but if it gets too much, talk to a doctor and don't be afraid to ask for help and support.
7. Don't Compare Yourself to Anyone Else
In my case, I handed in my criminology dissertation 5 days early, and those who were struggling with theirs could easily have hated me for it, but guess what? I had a history dissertation due in 10 days after the criminology one, an essay due in 12 days after and an exam 3 weeks after. I needed to get that first dissertation done as soon as possible so I had a hope of completing the other things on time and well. Everyone has their own situations and motivations, so do yourself a favour and don't distract yourself with other people's work, focus on your own.
8. Take Pride in Your Work
This is probably the biggest piece of work you've ever taken on, right? When it's finished be incredibly proud of yourself that you got there! You did it!! Follow that pride through and make sure you present your work nicely, you don't want to let yourself down by the thing being amazing in content, but not put together well enough that you will be able to keep it and display it.
9. Learn From Your First OneIf, like me, you decide to do two dissertations and they have very different hand-in dates, then learn from your experience with the first one to better your experience with your second. In my case, I made changes to my criminology one within an hour of handing it in and panicked about, so when it came to my history one I accepted that might be normal, and removed the panic. I also found out that after handing in a dissertation your motivation to do anything borderline academic is zero, and my head and I had a complete falling out. Consequently, I wrote my notes for and planned tomorrow's essay while my dad was reading over my history dissertation and the weekend, so now only the 'easy' bit of actually writing the thing is left.
10. Celebrate the Hell Out of Finishing
YOU DID IT. WELL DONE. 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
1. Make an Effort with Your Tutor
Seriously. The help, advice, and patience I received from my tutors was invaluable to the process. I think this was because I kept in regular contact with them, met the deadlines set, and openly took their advice on board. Writing a dissertation is a solo adventure, supposedly, so your tutor isn't going to chase you about it, you have to go to them, and from my experience whatever effort you put in, they will match.
2. Start Early
I started the reading for my dissertations last June. Considering one of my subjects is history there was a hell of a lot of literature to get through so it really was necessary for me start then, I most definitely see that now. I easily have 50,000 words of notes across the two of them, but that meant that it only took me a week to write the first drafts. Yes, they were definitely the first drafts, and I'm not recommending spending only 40 hours writing it, and then sending it straight to submission as some have, but gathering evidence is the most arduous bit, so give yourself time to do it all thoroughly.
3. You Will Have a Breakdown
Don't kid yourself that you're going to fly through the process no bother, I'm sorry but no one ever has and no one ever will. Accept that you will get very emotional about it all at some point, so when it does happen you can deal with it and move on, rather than overly freak out.
4. Enjoy Your Topics
My criminology dissertation was entitled: The Criminological Relevance of Stereotypical Cultural Representations of the Offender: the case of the Joker in the Batman Franchise, and my history was: Betty Shabazz and Coretta Scott King: An Examination of How Race, Religion and Gender Impacted Upon Their Lives'. This meant I spent a whole year looking into comic books and strong women - awesome. Even on bad days, I was ultimately enjoying what I was reading/writing and that is damn important.
5. Everything Else Still Goes On
I was at a baptism 3 days before I had my criminology dissertation in, and I have a 3,000 word essay due tomorrow aka 2 days after my history dissertation was due. You need to plan your time wisely, because yes, dissertation's are absolutely mega, but the world and life don't care enough to stop happening.
6. Look After Yourself
If you're the kind of person that stresses out a ridiculous amount, then do your best with your timings to reduce that, and be kind enough to yourself to allow any necessary outbursts. Though sugary snacks are really easy to reach for, and you're definitely entitled to indulge during this stressful time, in the long run it is actually fruit and vegetables that will keep your energy levels up, and your body healthy. Don't let the rest of your body down because your brain work is taking up so much time. In the same vein, don't let the rest of your brain down by allowing stress to seriously affect your mental health because you're brain's so busy being academic. As I've said, outbursts and being emotional is perfectly normal during this time, but if it gets too much, talk to a doctor and don't be afraid to ask for help and support.
7. Don't Compare Yourself to Anyone Else
In my case, I handed in my criminology dissertation 5 days early, and those who were struggling with theirs could easily have hated me for it, but guess what? I had a history dissertation due in 10 days after the criminology one, an essay due in 12 days after and an exam 3 weeks after. I needed to get that first dissertation done as soon as possible so I had a hope of completing the other things on time and well. Everyone has their own situations and motivations, so do yourself a favour and don't distract yourself with other people's work, focus on your own.
8. Take Pride in Your Work
This is probably the biggest piece of work you've ever taken on, right? When it's finished be incredibly proud of yourself that you got there! You did it!! Follow that pride through and make sure you present your work nicely, you don't want to let yourself down by the thing being amazing in content, but not put together well enough that you will be able to keep it and display it.
9. Learn From Your First OneIf, like me, you decide to do two dissertations and they have very different hand-in dates, then learn from your experience with the first one to better your experience with your second. In my case, I made changes to my criminology one within an hour of handing it in and panicked about, so when it came to my history one I accepted that might be normal, and removed the panic. I also found out that after handing in a dissertation your motivation to do anything borderline academic is zero, and my head and I had a complete falling out. Consequently, I wrote my notes for and planned tomorrow's essay while my dad was reading over my history dissertation and the weekend, so now only the 'easy' bit of actually writing the thing is left.
10. Celebrate the Hell Out of Finishing
YOU DID IT. WELL DONE. 🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
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