Common Dissertation Mistakes and how to avoid them

Writing a great dissertation is a challenging affair and most of us that have had the opportunity to successfully complete our papers can attest to this fact. You will be required to spend countless hours conducting research and reading numerous sources of information. To most individuals, this is not easy given that they need to work to earn a living and settle their bills. Most individuals have been known to give up when it comes to dissertation writing which is very unfortunate given the huge amounts of tuition fees that you have spent by the time you get to the level where you are writing your dissertation.

However, even the most proficient writers make some mistakes when it comes to writing their dissertations. No one ever really teaches you the best approach and you have to learn on your own how to come up with a good paper in this niche. This is a very important paper whether you are earning a Ph.D., DBA, or any other doctorate and you need to avoid making mistakes in order to become successful. Most of these mistakes are very avoidable despite the fact that they keep on being repeated over and over again in the creation of dissertations.

So what are the common mistakes and how can we avoid them? Let us discuss them in detail below and look at the best ways to bypass them as you are writing your dissertation.

1. Missing, incomplete, or indecorously ordered preliminary pages

Prior to writing the main text of your dissertation, you are always required to write your preliminary pages. Many individuals are always tempted to overlook the value of these pages and unfortunately, they always do which is a big blunder. The preliminary pages are meant to create a path for you and set a tone that will be utilized throughout the writing of your dissertation. In the reviewing process, they are the very first parts that your reviewers will read and it will be the first impression that they will have of you as the writer. It is, therefore, very important not to underestimate the value that they add to your paper and get them done correctly. Always ensure that your preliminary pages are well-formatted. It is also responsible to ensure that the pages are organized in the correct order. Find out how these pages ought to be organized from expert dissertation writers, for example, Peachy Essay. This will ensure that the quality of your dissertation is not compromised and that you will not lose marks because of this small and common mistake.

2. Abstract Page of your dissertation exceeds a page

It is quite exciting once you are done with the research phase of the dissertation writing process. You have spent so many sleepless nights gathering knowledge and you feel that your brain is full and you just need to share that gen with the rest of the world. All this knowledge and your excitement to get to the writing make it quite challenging to make a one-page summary of all this in form of a one-page abstract. Many people make the huge mistake of writing so much content in the abstract that they forget to follow the dissertation guidelines provided by their institutions. Most universities dictate that the dissertation abstract should never exceed a single page. Always make sure that you adhere to these guidelines. You may otherwise lose marks simply because of a mistake that you could easily avoid.

3. Failing to format work according to guidelines

This is the mother of all mistakes in dissertation writing. Many of us fail to understand the importance of the format. In a dissertation, the format you employ carries as much weight as the content you write. Any mistake in your format can have very negative effects on your dissertation. The way you present your ideas and even the way you write is ultimately influenced by the format that you use. Always have a look at the template to make sure that you obey all the rules when it comes to formatting. If you feel that you are not confident, you can always seek online help from dissertation writing gurus like Peachy Essay to help you with formatting. Make sure that you use the stipulated style, spacing, indentation, margins, and page numbering. This should always be consistent throughout your paper and you should ensure to check that it is before submitting your dissertation.

4. Using the same wording as the proposal

After years of research and months of staring at the same content, it can be very difficult to remember the changes intense that are needed in the process of preparing your dissertation. You already created a thoroughly-researched proposal and you feel that you can use the exact same wording in your dissertation, so you go ahead and do. Many individuals make this mistake and simply copy-paste parts of their proposal to their dissertation. This is a very common mistake that is very easy to avoid. First, you always need to go through your work after it is done and you should ensure that you always change the wording to meet the requirements of a completed study. Secondly, keep in mind that you are no longer proposing the study but instead, you are completing it and should therefore show this aspect in the dissertation.

5. Instances of plagiarism

Plagiarism is a very big violation of academic integrity and should be avoided at all costs. Many of us in the process of writing our dissertations overlook this offense and end up using other people’s ideas and not using proper citations. It is always very imperative to conduct a thorough check and review of your work before submitting it to ensure that you have not committed this offense. Your entire doctoral degree is on the line once you ignore this common mistake in dissertation writing. Plagiarized content is not only copied content, it is considered academic theft. It simply shows that you did not conduct your own detailed research and decided to use the research conducted by other people as your own. In dissertation writing, this is an unforgiven offense that will cause you to fail! To avoid this mistake, make use of plagiarism checkers that are recognized by your institution and that are trustworthy. Ensure that you make citations where they are needed and give credit to other authors in case you use their research.

Many of the points discussed seem very obvious after your many years of study but you should never ignore them! In many instances, the most proficient dissertation writers repeat the mistakes simply because they are too proud and comfortable to check their work. Always look at your work keenly and where possible, get a second opinion from an expert to ensure that your work does not contain any of the above-mentioned mistakes.