Writing a Thesis

Zosia Chrzanowska-Lightowlers

Postgraduate Tutor - IAH MRes – Curriculum Chair, Director for Admissions and Recruitment

Faculty of Medical SciencesNewcastle University

6th February, 2015

Where to start ?

Find the relevant guidelines for your thesis

Examination procedures and forms

Types of thesis

• Standard– Divided into chapters with results and interpretations

• By publication Only for staff candidates• Need to make a prima facie case for the submission A series of ≥4 related papers in period of registration

• All authors must agree you were the major contributor ≥10,000 word introduction

• Potentially publishable as a review Can be difficult to examine as papers have already satisfied

external referees! Please see:

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/regulations/docs/2003/rscdoctor.html

How to start ?

• Read the information

Read the information

1 page

READ these documents

do not ask

your supervisor

How do I write a book ?

One journey of a thousand miles ?

How to start ?

• Read the information • Talk to your supervisor – make a plan,

- structure your thesis

- plot completion dates

Preparation is key

• Read the information • Talk to your supervisor – make a plan,

- structure your thesis

- plot completion dates• Daunting prospect

• Divide your thesis into many smaller sections

• Many short journeys with each taking less time seems more achievable !

• This requires good planning or you will produce lots of small pieces of text that do not link together

• Read the information • Talk to your supervisor• Graduate School – long documents course

Preparation is key

Formatting a huge document…

these can be done on-line (ask Richy H)

Attend the courses

• Read the information • Talk to your supervisor• Graduate School – long documents course• Writing development centre

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/combined/current/help/writingdev.htm one to one sessions lectures and workshops throughout the academic year

Help is at hand

• Writing development centre http://www.ncl.ac.uk/combined/current/help/writingdev.htm lectures and workshops throughout the academic year

understanding assignment and examination questions planning, structuring and revising assignments using reading sources without plagiarism developing an argument writing critically using an appropriate authorial voice writing different types of assignment (e.g. essays, reports, reviews,

reflective pieces) writing theses and dissertations answering examination questions using grammar and punctuation accurately and effectively using appropriate vocabulary and style learning from feedback on previous assignments

Help is at hand

A word of caution

Be careful who you ask for advise• Former students / postdocs• Friends• Parents

• Read the information • Talk to your supervisor• Graduate School – long documents course

PlagiarismYou will submit an electronic form

of your thesis in parallel with the 2 paper copies

http://www.ncl.ac.uk/right-cite/http://mbbs-tutorials.ncl.ac.uk/plag/

A word of caution

Looking at other theses

• Your supervisor’s shelf– Often groups evolve a “house style” that may not suit you

• The library – Will have a wide range of theses similar to your field

• BE CAUTIOUS ! - it is your thesis– No one else has your project, your intro and discussions must be

tailored to your research– If you feel strongly about a particular format, discuss it with your

supervisor first and agree on the strategy before starting work

Another word of caution

A example of a typical thesis layout

• Title page (what is your title!)• Abstract (one page; 300 words)• Table of contents• List of Figures and Tables• Abbreviations• Acknowledgements

plans can vary by subject area

• Introduction• Materials + Methods• Results chapter(s)

– Typically have one per aim– Often have separate mini introductions and specific

discussions

• Concluding discussion chapter– Context with literature– Strengths, weaknesses, – How far through your original aims did you get ?– future work

• Bibliography

A example of a typical thesis layout

What is the point of a thesis ?

• Prove you have developed the skills to be an independent, competent scientist

What is the point of a thesis ?

• Prove you have developed the skills of an independent, competent scientist

• Criteria – all theses – Authentic– Scholarly– Professional– Well-structured, written and presented

MPhil candidates

• Should– Demonstrate advanced knowledge– Have good knowledge of literature

• Theses need not, but often do– Contain material worthy of publication

PhD/MD candidates

• Should – Provide evidence of adequate industry– Demonstrate training in the scientific process– Demonstrate ability for originality– Understand relationship with wider field– Thesis should contain material worthy of publication

Getting down to business

Most importantly

BEFRIEND YOUR READER

Getting down to business

BEFRIEND YOUR READER

First impressions are important

Plan, plan, plan

• What are your chapters?

• What is the story ?

• Do you have the data ?

• Get the flow right

How to BEFRIEND your reader

Plan, plan, plan

• Get your chapters in order – 3rd year report – but be flexible

• Follow the story NOT the calendar

• Make a time plan, what written by when

Table of contents

1 Introduction Page1.1 History of problem 11.2 First issue 1

1.2.1 sub issue 1 21.2.2 sub issue 2 4

1.3 Second issue1.3.1 sub issue 1 51.3.2 sub issue 2 71.3.3 sub issue 3 81.3.4 sub issue 4 12

1.4 Third issue1.4.1 sub issue 1 14

1.4.1.a sub sub issue 1 151.4.1.b sub sub issue 2 16

1.4.2 sub issue 2 181.5 Fourth issue 201.6 Fifth issue

1.6.1 25etc, etc…

Plan, plan, plan

• Get your chapters in order

What are the easy bits ?

•Abbreviations

•Materials and methods

• product code, source, concentration

• manufacturer’s protocol ? or modified ?

Plan, plan, plan

• Get the easier sections

• Abbreviations

• Materials and methodscan you reference, did you modify ?

Plan, plan, plan

• Get the easier sections

• Abbreviations

• Materials and methodsare they accurate ?

Volumes are NOT useful without

Stock concentrations !

Abstract

• Concise

• Comprehensive

• Clear

• Context

Plan, plan, plan

Introduction - What are you trying to do with this ?

General area

AIMS

Language

• Accurate

• Scientifically stringent

• Grammatically correct

• Avoid colloquial phrasing

Language

• Accurate

• Scientifically stringent

• Grammatically correct

• Avoid colloquial phrasing

• “In the technical sense, it was much easier to use cell extracts or isolated enzymes alone with RNA templates.”

• “We chose to use…….” • “It was significantly different……”• “Each and every primer…..”• “About 3ug RNA…”

Results chapters

• Introduction – more defined

• Methods – does it need a section ?

• Results – are the data good enough ?

• Discussion – conclude points from this section of work

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

- What form to present it ?

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

- What size to present it ?

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

- What form/size to present it ?

- Keep it near the relevant text !!!!!!!!

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

- What form to present it ?

- Keep it near the relevant text !!!!!!!!

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

- What form to present it ?

- Keep it near the relevant text !!!!!!!

- Make figures clear

How easy is this to understand ?

0.5 what ?

0.5 what ? And where ?

ng template

What are we to learn from this ?

ng template

ng template

What did we expect to see ?

Good figures should be a freestanding story

ng template

Title and legend

ng template

Figure 3.5. Fluorescent MPAT RNA14 products separated on a 10% denaturing gel.

Title and legend

ng template

Figure 3.5. Assessing various PCR conditions for the fluorescent MPAT.

Figure 3.5. Fluorescent MPAT RNA14 products separated on a 10% denaturing gel.

Results chapters

• Results – are the data good enough ?

- What form/size to present it ?

- Keep it near the relevant text !!!

- Have a discussion section

Final discussion chapter

Aims – how far did your work get in answering

the original questions ?

Results – bring a general overview and

connection between all the chapters

Future work – IF the project were to continue

what would be the key experiments

Finale – make a strong concluding statement

• The university recommends the “Harvard” format (and supplies an appropriate Endnote format!)– So, in the main text use:

• (Kirby et al., 2010)– rather than

• [278]

• Ask your supervisors for advice as Institutes might suggest alternatives

References

• Publications• In prep• Plasmid maps• Antibody tables (Company/cat. no./dilution) • Primer tables (name/seq/position/acc number)

Appendix

• Make sure you cite references as you go, or else you might forget which goes where

• Use text boxes for graphics – keep them in place

• Appendices – use them• Backup, Backup, Backup!

Tips

• Get friends and family to proofread• If English is not your first language, it can be helpful

to employ a proof-reader– Lists are available in the Student’s Union.– The cost is quite reasonable– The proof-reader will (must!) only alter English and not

the concept you are trying to express.• Remember – your supervisor will focus mainly on

your science rather than your English.

Finished ?

CHECKAre your figure and tables consecutively labelled ?

Are they referred to correctly in the text ?

Are your subsections in the right order ?Are they referred to correctly ?

Understand what you have writtenIf it is in there, the examiners can ask youBe sure you can defend the content

Finished ?

Do – make your life easier

• Make sure you do enough expt repeats at the time

• Make sure they are of good enough standard

• Save high resolution JPEG/TIFFS

• Try and make them into figures as you go along for your lab book

• Keep good records, (electronic images and lab books)

• Backup your data

• Backup your writing (save by date)

Do – make your life easier

• Make a bibliography as you goAdd notes to the Endnote entries

Good ref for assembly factors Contradicts Bloggs et al. Had primers for PCR

• The university recommends the “Harvard” format(and supplies an appropriate Endnote format!)

Remember, in the main text use: (Kirby et al., 2010)

• Make sure you know when to use which reference Seminal or most recent ?

Do NOT

• Repeat yourself !

• Waffle

• Keep changing tense

• Use different abbreviations or spelling options

• Use 10 µl, 10µl, 10ul

• Have section 1.2.2.3.4.5

• Have 8 panel figures

Write the lot before showing it to your supervisor !!

Do NOT

• Have figures you don’t refer to

• Put in data that you don’t believe

• Overextrapolate !!!!!!!!

• Say anything you cannot defend

• Use ‘significant’ if it is not statistically valid

• Put in things you don’t understand

• Tell them ‘because my supervisor said to’

• Tell them it was too hard

• Say it was too expensive

• Say I didn’t know how

Before you are Finished

• Liaise with your supervisors– nominate examiners well in advance of submission

• Liaise with your supervisors– nominate examiners well in advance of submission

FINAL Title – what is your title!

Abstract – 1 page, 300 words

Before you are Finished

Finished ?

• Liaise with your supervisors– nominate examiners well in advance of submission

• Final printing takes much longer than you think !– Colour toner? – Enough paper? – Correct quality paper ?

• Binding– Soft binding first (Library)

REMEMBER

This is a report of YOUR project

Every PhD project is different

So EVERY thesis is DIFFERENT

Good Luck!

Prepare well for your viva