Administrative Guidelines for the Dissertation
Each student should work out an acceptable modus operandi with her or his readers. Most find it very useful to submit chapters as they are completed. Some will wish to do a whole draft before submitting it, though the latter process entails certain obvious risks.
Drafts of the Dissertation
Preliminary Draft
The initial draft of the dissertation, or parts of the dissertation, is submitted to the first reader for guidance and suggestions on revision. These drafts should be fully legible, footnoted, and in proper English, but they need not meet the stylistic form requirements of a completed dissertation. Approval of such drafts is always subject to further revision when the reader sees the whole dissertation.
Official First Draft
This is the first formal draft of the complete dissertation, incorporating revisions and modifications recommended following the reading of the preliminary draft. This should be formatted, and include the title page, table of contents, and bibliography.
Examination Draft
Before the oral examination, a complete and formatted draft of the dissertation must be submitted to the defense committee three weeks before the oral defense.
Final Draft, Content and Format Guidelines
One model of a written thesis is as follows:
- The Problem and its Setting
- The Literature Review
- The Methodology
- Presentation of the Findings
- Analysis, Interpretation, Evaluation
- Discussion, Implications, Recommendations
- Conclusion
