Thesis Writing - A Detailed Guide, Examples & Topics

You may have come across the phrase "thesis writing" many times in your academic life. But, do you know what it actually is? Well, let us tell you that a thesis paper requires students to use multiple methods for collecting relevant data and conducting research - all of which are based on original ideas and credible sources!

The writing process for a thesis can be a tedious task.

It is easy to get bogged down by how much information you need?

Or what your professor will want, but all of that becomes irrelevant when you have an outline in place and know where everything should go.

There are two main reasons why developing an outline of a thesis aids in its completion:

• it provides clarity with regards to content needs
• it helps people stay focused during frustrating times such as brainstorming sessions

Therefore, it is considered good practice to start your thesis or research paper after developing an outline.

Thesis Writing Definition

Thesis writing is high-level writing that requires original ideas, detailed research, and credible sources. It also demands the student use multiple methods for collecting relevant data. Teachers usually assign such papers as an assignment in several graduate-level studies while it becomes a degree requirement for many Masters or PhD degrees.

Students are often required to provide good grades and a strong argumentative thesis statement to earn their degree.

How Long Should a Thesis Be?

We often hear that the length of a thesis varies from project to project. However, it also largely depends on your university department and field of study.

A bachelor's degree typically includes 40-60 pages, while a Master’s degree will include 60-100 pages. However, a PhD thesis should be written in less than 80,000 words which are roughly 250-200 pages long.

For the sake of brevity, it is necessary to avoid including unnecessary and repetitive information. Remember that these pages contain all the text and referencing lists except appendices.

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Thesis Writing Format

The thesis writing format is designed like other research and term papers. Here are the four main sections of a thesis format.

Section 1 - Preliminary Pages

• Title page (required)
• Dedication (optional)
• Acknowledgment (optional)
• Abstract (required)
• Table of contents (required)
• List of tables (required)
• List of figures (required)
• List of abbreviations (optional)

Section 2 - Text

• Introduction (referred to as Chapter 1)
• Body of Thesis

Section 3 - References/ Bibliography (required)

Section 4 - Appendices (optional)

Check out the following template to understand better.

Thesis Writing Template

Writing a Thesis Proposal

A proposal is a detailed summary of the thesis research work that you plan to do. It also includes an outline and layout of your study's methods, questions, and problem statement.

Following are the sections of proposal thesis writing:

• Introduction
• Literature review
• Theoretical framework
• Research question
• Methodological designs
• References

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How to Start a Thesis Writing?

Following are the steps in thesis writing that need to be ensured when starting to write:

• Start by choosing an interesting topic, and create a good thesis statement
• You will need to research reliable sources to support your claims; you can find these online or in books and journals
• Collect relevant information on scientific studies or statistics that relate to your topic
• After you have collected all this information, you should outline the paper and list all of the sources in the references section at the end
• In the end, check whether there is any mistake to correct and proofread it thoroughly

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How to Write a Thesis?

Before writing the complete thesis, the instructor asks students to provide them with a thesis proposal first. First, let us explore the major sections of thesis proposals, and then we’ll move towards a proper thesis.

Following are the sections that a major thesis must include:

• Title Page

The first page of a thesis includes the following:

• Title
• Subtitle
• Student Name
• Supervisor Name
• Institution
• Department
• Date of Submission
• Acknowledgment

You can include this optional page in your paper. Thank the people who helped you with the research, financially and intellectually.

• Abstract

An abstract is a short summary of the paper. It should be 250 words long, and it does not include citations.

An excellent abstract answers the following questions:

• Why did you do this research?
• What question were you trying to answer?
• What methods did you use to do this research?
• What are your findings?
• How will your research contribute to the field area?
• Table of Contents

This section has headings and subheadings with page numbers. It also includes a list of figures and tables. But you should mention the title for each figure or table.

• Thesis Introduction

You must have a strong thesis statement to answer the research questions. This is called the introduction. It should be divided into logical segments with subheads. The introduction should include background information and problems in order to explain your research findings fully.

• Research Significance

This section explains why the research has been conducted—basically describing the importance of the topic selected for research and how it contributes to the specific field.

• Literature Review

This section has to elicit the gathered information from books, journals, and other research publications. Then, identify any gaps in the current research by comparing them to your findings.

Analyze what methods other scholars used to gain their results so that you can replicate them or find alternative ways of getting similar outcomes.

• Research Methodology

State the methods of research you have used to conduct your research. There are two types of research methodologies, i.e., quantitative and qualitative. In contrast with scientific fields, which rely heavily on practical approaches such as quantitative ones, humanities will use theoretical approaches such as those in qualitative studies instead.

• Search Limitations

There are so many limitations when conducting research, but it is important to be aware of them and know the scope of your experiment before starting.

Some common ones include:

• Lack of funding and subjects
• Time constraints
• Availability issues
• Quality of data
• Findings

In this section, you have to elaborate your finding according to the hypothesis and thesis statement provided. Then, explain to the reader about the hypothesis and whether it was true or not.

• Discussion

Discuss the research outcomes and elaborate your results. If there is a certain deviation of result from the expected one, also explain its reason here.

• Thesis Conclusion

The paper should conclude with a concise statement of the research findings and an overview of directions for future work.

It is important to keep these sections short as they will provide valuable feedback to the reader and help leave them interested in other ideas that can be researched.

• References

When writing a thesis or research paper, it is crucial to list all sources used so that they may be cited correctly. The order of the sources should correspond with their alphabetical placement and this format.

All the sources are listed in this section. This section also justifies that your work is original and you have no plagiarism in your thesis.

• Appendices

The appendix should contain all of the necessary calculations, references, and procedures. It should not be more than one or two pages long because it will make viewing easier for those reading through them after submitting your work.

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Thesis Writing Example

Here is a sample of thesis writing for your consideration:

Complete Thesis Writing Sample

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Thesis Writing Topics

Below are some ideas for a thesis paper:

• Discuss the cultural and economic approaches in the practical world.
• Discuss how demographic change in urban areas has influenced things
• Talk about multinational firms investing in Third World countries and what that does to Third World countries
• Discuss the conflicts in Africa and their causes, effects, and solutions.
• Elaborate on the role of women in rural development
• Discuss how they contribute to it as well as what they can do to improve their lives there?
• Discuss how regional trade agreements have affected South Asia's economy on SAARC members?
• Relationship between migration and crime
• What are the causes and consequences of long-term unemployment?
• Impact of regional trade agreements on SAARC

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Thesis Writing Tips

To write a well-researched thesis, you need to do the following things.

• A thesis is often for an audience, so figure out what they expect from the paper before you start writing
• You should organize your paper as a logical argument with sections that make sense together
• It is also important to include figures and tables in your work so that people can easily read it
• Write introduction and conclusion side by side to ensure you have not missed any point
• You will also need to review the literature review carefully
• Proofread everything before submitting it in order to ensure that it is accurate and authentic
• Collect feedback from your peers after completing your thesis and make changes accordingly

Thesis writing is the most critical work of any academic life. Thus, if you are not sure about doing it successfully, do not take the risk!

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CollegeEssay.org is a service that offers students the opportunity to get a custom college essay, thesis, and much more at affordable rates.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What is the most important part of thesis writing?

An abstract is the most important part of a thesis. It includes what you are researching, why it matters to society, and how your work will contribute to solving that problem.

What are the 5 chapters of a thesis?

The main five chapters of the thesis are:

• Introduction
• Literature review
• Methods
• Result
• Discussion