Creating a well written dissertation is a difficult as well as testing part of academic writing. It is a mandatory requirement for successfully completing a degree program. It is needed to gauge the different skills of the student. It is imperative to state that the dissertation must follow the guidelines and rules, which are set by an educational institute. Every institute issues their own dissertation guide and students must get familiar with it.
Regardless of their type, all dissertations are written using double space. Headings, title page, notes, quotations and approval page may be written using single space. The font size, which generally is size 11, remains same throughout the document. However, it is advised to refer to the guide for determining the proper font size and face. The left side margin for each paper is set at 1.5 inches and for the remaining three sides it is set at 1 inch. The dissertations are normally printed on one side of the A4 size white paper.
Title Page: All the text on the title page of a written dissertation like work title, author name, university name, and degree program is placed in the center with usually 2-3 spaces between them. Every first letter of the words in the work title should be capitalized.
Acknowledgement: This page highlights the contribution and support made by individuals and organizations in writing the dissertation. The acknowledgement page is usually half a page in length.
Abstract: The abstract consists of single short paragraph of about 300-350 words summarizing the contents of the document.
Table of Content: This part of a well written dissertation includes a chapter-wise list of all the important headings, figures, tables, and appendices. Using Roman numerals in lower-case for numbering the front matter is essential. The body is numbered using Arabic numerals. English alphabets in upper-case such as A, B, C, D and so on are used for numbering the appendices.
Body: The dissertation’s body usually consists of five chapters covering all the important aspects like introduction, review, methodology, analysis, arguments and conclusion. All the sections should contain their own sub headings, which, along with in-text citations and quotations, are formatted as per the instructions specified in the dissertation guide.
References: The list of all the sources used to collect the information is cited in reference section of the document. It is important to mention every source using the right format.
Appendix: All the extra information not included in the main body of the dissertation is listed in the appendix section.
A well written dissertation paper conforms to all the rules and regulations that are there in the guide. However, just following the dissertation guide will not be enough. The content, analysis and findings in the dissertation need to be of the highest quality. Students who find it difficult to follow a particular formatting style or have concerns about the content of their dissertation should contact a professional advisor.
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