Congrats! You’ve decided to write a thesis! While that may seem daunting, I hope my little bits of advice will help you relieve some of the big paper jitters and set you up for success to tackle this monumental paper.
Picking a topic and sticking to it (or not).
Picking a topic for your paper can be one of the most exciting and simultaneously overwhelming aspects of starting your thesis. It is important to choose a topic that you are passionate about and have a genuine interest in. You will spend a lot of time diving deep into analyzing your topic, so you want to make sure that it is something you won’t get bored of and will offer an adequate amount of information.
With that being said, once you think you’ve narrowed down your topic to one that is succinct and researchable, don’t be afraid to tweak it to fit the data available to you or able to be collected. Halfway through writing my thesis, I realized that the data I was hoping to find didn’t exactly exist, and collecting my own data was outside of the scope of this research timeline. However, after a couple of minor changes suggested by my advisor, a complete thesis redo was not needed, and future headaches were avoided.
If you’re having doubts about the feasibility of your research topic, reach out to your advisor before completely scratching your topic. I’ll touch on this more later, but your thesis advisor will be your new best friend; from brainstorming ideas to making sure your data collection methods can be completed in the allotted time frame, your advisor will be very helpful to you.
Your advisor is your most valuable asset.
Initially, it can be extremely intimidating to reach out to your advisor with questions and concerns you might have regarding your thesis. I know I felt inferior during the first couple of meetings with my advisor simply because I was talking to someone with multiple degrees and years of research experience while I was just a little undergrad. However, that is the completely wrong mindset! Once I got over this hurdle, I felt like I unlocked a plethora of knowledge specific to my topic that was easily accessible and helpful.
There are many reasons why you shouldn’t feel nervous or anxious about reaching out to your advisor. Here are just a few:
- They are an expert in their field. While I thought I had a pretty deep understanding of the basic premise of my topic, I quickly realized how small my knowledge base was compared to that of my advisor. Their years of research and experience in their field allows them to direct you to different research articles, journals, and other experts if you are stuck or need some inspiration.
- They have a wide breadth of knowledge regarding research methods. Most professors do research for a living on top of teaching courses. This means that they understand the process you’re going through and have probably encountered the same problems you’re experiencing. If something isn’t going well, let them know and they will be more than happy to help.
- They work with students every day; it is literally their job to meet with you! Professors are used to answering questions and breaking down concepts into simpler terms if necessary. They are professors after all and their goal is to help students like you learn! Regardless, it can still be intimidating to meet with a professor one-on-one. Having a prepared list of questions and progress I made since the last meeting made me feel more prepared and relieved some nervousness. Additionally, I found it beneficial to have a weekly or biweekly recurring meeting time scheduled throughout the semester. This ensures that you are prioritized in your advisor’s schedule early on in the semester.
While I’ve only just scratched the surface of all the advice I could possibly give you on writing your thesis, I hope this helped in some way. Writing a thesis isn’t easy, but it is so rewarding when you can look back on it and think, “I wrote that!”. All the worries you might’ve had fade away, and you can finally enjoy the fruits of your labor. I wish you the best of luck!
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