Are you in the middle of writing your dissertation but you’re lacking motivation or you just find the whole process over-whelming to the point you just want to curl up into a ball and hide or failing that, pay someone to write it for you?
If so, take deep breaths and don’t panic because everybody who has been to university will be able to relate and today’s article is going to give you 10 realistic tips on how the majority of those graduates ploughed through this lengthy essay.
You need to treasure your close ones because your uni friends or even your friends from home will be your solid rocks through this tough time; they will pick you up when you’re having mental breakdowns because you’ve read through the same paragraph 100000000000x and it just won’t go in. Most importantly they will remind you that you’ve got this; it’s just an essay which you’ve written on many occasions for your degree but it’s just on a larger scale.
Your friends are going to read through your dissertation, even though it bores them to tears every time and just be there for you until you can celebrate together and have a well deserved pint of wine and maybe a cheeky jäger.
Talking of friends, say hello to Caffeine… your new bestest friend. Caffeine will help you through those looooong evenings you’re spending in your university library whilst you search through the aisles looking for that seemingly invisible book that you desperately need.
It’ll also stand by you when that alarm that you had to force yourself to set goes off at 7am so you can get an early start on your dreaded research.
These will probably make a common occurrence during the preparation, writing and proof-reading of your dissertation and you just need to let it all out. Those tears are very much justified because your dissertation is a big deal; it’ll probably be worth over half of your overall grade so you’ll continuously tell yourself it’s not good enough when it’s probably spot on.
Not only that but you’re shattered and sleep equals happiness so you’re allowed to get a little emosh over not being able to have a day in bed for a while.
This is a given but having a structure to your planning for your dissertation is a great way to stay organised and less stressed. You’ll know exactly what you need to cover and after your meetings with your tutor, you can stay on top of what else you need to add.
And just to make the planning a little more fun, why not introduce what makes you happy and use your fave stationary to draw out a mind-map or table.
What helps with your emotions? Food. What helps your concentration? Food. What makes you happy the most? Food. So, what better time to eat your feelings than when you’re writing a 10,000 word essay? There isn’t one, that’s the answer.
You can obviously still eat healthier snacks if that’s what you enjoy, as long as that’s what you enjoy. It’s a lot that you’re spending all your free time writing so having your favourite snacks by your side can make it slightly more bearable.
Many of you probably love listening to music when you’re doing your uni work so why stop when you’re writing your dissertation! Except, you need the right playlist that’ll keep you sane but help you concentrate. This is very important because you don’t want songs with too many words in like Bohemian Rhapsody because you’ll most likely end up including words such as “Scaramouche” in a sentence without even noticing.
You also want a beat that’s motivating but not too repetitive… and a voice that’s upbeat but not annoying. Bet you’re going to rethink your whole Spotify studying playlist now.
This is one that your fellow friend Mr.Snack may come in handy for. Why not set yourself targets like write 100 words or find a certain reference and then when you do, treat yo’self. Whether that’s munching on a Minstrel or watching an episode of Friends giving yourself incentive to do your work will be motivating and rewarding.
Make sure that when you’re deciding on a topic for your dissertation that it’s something you’re genuinely interested in and have a passion for. Make sure that you know there’ll be enough to write about and enough existent material on the matter so you can reference more than one book or website. Be creative with this and you’ll see results.
Using an online thesaurus or even a hard copy will be a lifesaver when you’re writing your dissertation. Getting bored of using the word ‘therefore’? Thesaurus it. Is ‘however’ becoming the most used word in your whole essay? Thesaurus it. You will never look back.
This is probably the most important tip. You need to believe in yourself; at the end of the day your dissertation is just an essay and during your three years at uni you have written many essays so why worry now? You will get through this and probably do a lot better than you expected. So stop worrying and get typing.
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