Structuring Your Thesis for Reader Engagement and Time Management
Learn how to prioritize, format, and make it easy on your reader while managing your time effectively when structuring your thesis. Discover tips to avoid common pitfalls, streamline content, and optimize your writing process.
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Presentation Transcript
Overview What to prioritize? Formatting Making it easy on your reader Time management
Priorities Structure Order of thesis, clear intro, relevant ccl Structure Within each chapter Structure Paragraphs
Priorities (2) Things that might irritate your reader to the point of prejudicing them against you Strong statements insufficiently justified Don t eliminate them; but do work on justifying them Fights you don t need to pick up Pandora boxes
Priorities (3) Content: negative cases, nuance Line by line editing: not everywhere but for intro, ccl, and first few sentences of each chapter/section.
Formatting http://sociology.fas.harvard.edu/files/sociology/files/t hesis_guide_sept_2012.pdf from p.54 on Check for binding, font, margins, line spacing, page # Single-sided printing Abstract (takes time to write!) Table of contents Unbound, separate acknowledgement page
Make it easy on your reader List of figures Glossaries: abbreviations, foreign words, technical terms Few footnotes . My preference: no endnotes (but talk to your advisor) Headings and subheadings. Consistent citations Indent long quotes PROOFREAD
Time management Prime-time for the heavy lifting (re-structuring ) Plan informal chats to run your macro structure by someone (your advisor, me, or a friend ) Interstitial time for busy work: clean up your bibliography or make your list of figures while in the doctor s waiting room . But review that busy work at a time when you re fresh Don t leave to the last minute: Abstract! Getting feedback on revised intro/ccl
