Thesis Preparation

The academic thesis is the crowning achievement of study so don’t leave it to the last minute to consider what your thesis will be, how you intend to write it and where you will source your information. In fact it makes sense to begin a thesis file in order to begin documenting source material. To do that you will need a thesis. At this early stage you probably can’t, and shouldn’t, concretely name your thesis but that doesn’t mean you can’t begin forming an idea.

Depending on you major course of study and the classes you are taking this year you will be able to begin documenting data that you find particularly interesting or challenging within your course subjects. By retaining these bits of data while ideas form you will have a good foundation for developing one of these ideas into a thesis questions. If you also thoroughly reference your course data now you will find that later your reference list will appear like magic – that is especially true if you have the latest version of Microsoft Office!

Thesis topics

It will of course be up to you to decide what topic best suits your line of study and future aspirations but there are a few tips that may help you to decide on a thesis topic that will keep you keen and riveted.

• It may seem obvious but choose a thesis topic you are interested in studying for a long time. Even if you are undertaking your first undergraduate degree, if you find a fascinating field of study now it may be the very thing you continue to research and write well into your postgraduate study.
• Choose a thesis topic that is genuinely interesting to you AND one for which there is accessible research. It is well and good to choose a super fascinating subject but not so well and good if the only way to acquire data is to spend your college years in the bush of Papua New Guinea. While the internet provides a plethora of research options like never before, there are still some subjects for which finding data can be a challenge. If you choose one of these be aware that you may be looking at doubling the time and effort required to complete your thesis.
• Start categorizing as soon as you have a general idea. That is to say, for example, if you are taking French Renaissance painting you may not yet know what your thesis will be but you can begin cataloguing information about French Renaissance artists.
• Begin writing several months before the thesis is due for submission. As soon as you have approval for your thesis topic you should begin taking all of the data you’ve recorded and ordering it in a logical fashion. Begin with a thesis statement so that you are clear about your starting point. The statement may change as you go along but it will clarify for you the arguments for and against which you need to present.

It is never too soon to begin contemplating and planning for your thesis paper. Even now at the start of the year or semester (in the northern hemisphere) it is an excellent idea to begin formulating possible thesis questions in your mind.  For those students studying south of the equator you will hopefully have a well formed thesis at this stage. For you final due dates are on the horizon and now is the time, not to plan but to begin wrapping up and sewing together the thesis arguments you have been recording over the year.