How to Write Your Undergraduate Dissertation

Bryan Greetham was educated at the universities of Kent and Sussex, UK. He holds a PhD in moral philosophy from the University of Newcastle, Australia. He is currently engaged in research into moral thinking and the Holocaust, and teaches philosophy at the University of Maryland. He is the author of How to Write Better Essays, Thinking Skills for Professionals and Philosophy.

Preface.- Acknowledgements.- 1. Introduction.- PART I: EXAMINERS AND SUPERVISORS 2. Examiners – What Are They Looking For?.- 3. Working With Your Supervisor.- PART II: GENERATING AND DEVELOPING ORIGINAL IDEAS 4. What Activities Suit You Best?.- 5. Types of Research.- 6. What Interests You Most?.- 7. Generating Your Own Ideas 1: Using Trigger Questions.- 8. Generating Your Own Ideas 2: Perspectives and Levels.- 9. Developing Your Ideas 1: Causal Relations.- 10. Developing Your Ideas 2: Conceptual Relations.- 11. Original Questions and Hypotheses 1: Using Analogies.- 12. Original Questions and Hypotheses 2: Working With Your Structures.- PART III: DECIDING ON YOUR PROJECT 13. Searching the Literature 1: Knowing What to Look For.- 14. Searching the Literature 2: How to Search.- 15. Choosing the Topic.- PART IV: ORGANISING YOUR WORK 16. Planning Your Research.- 17. Managing Your Time.- 18. Your Retrieval System.- 19. Reading.- 20. Note-taking.- PART V: DOING YOUR RESEARCH 21. Qualitative and Quantitative Research.- 22. Secondary Sources.- 23. Primary Sources 1: Quantitative Research.- 24. Primary Sources 2: Designing and Distributing Your Questionnaire.- 25. Primary Sources 3: Qualitative Research – Interviews and Focus Groups.- 26. Primary Sources 4: Qualitative Research – Case Studies and Observations.- PART VI: PLANNING YOUR DISSERTATION 27. The Main Components and Introduction.- 28. The Literature Review.- 29. Research Methods, Findings, Conclusions and Appendices.- PART VII: ORGANISING YOUR THINKING 30. Developing Consistent Arguments 1: The Components.- 31. Developing Consistent Arguments 2: The Connections.- 32. Using Evidence 1: Describing It.- 33. Using Evidence 2: Drawing Inferences.- 34. Using Evidence 3: Creating Causal Connections.- 35. Using Language 1: Clarity Jargon.- 36. Using Language 2: Clarity Manipulative Words.- 37. Using Language 3: Consistency.- PART VIII: WRITING YOUR DISSERTATION 38. The First Draft.- 39. Style 1: Finding Your Own Voice.- 40. Style 2: Simplicity and Economy.- PART IX: PLAGIARISM, REFERENCING AND BIBLIOGRAPHIES 41. Plagiarism.- 42. Referencing and Bibliographies.- PART X: EDITING Revision 1: The Structure.- Revision 2: The Content.- Conclusion.