A Useful Academic Manual For Beginners: A Thesis Vs A Dissertation


Are you wondering how to start writing your thesis for the master’s degree? Do you know the basic difference between a thesis and dissertation? Sometimes students use both the terms alternatively for their final year research project. However it even depends upon where you are based in. students and institutes in the UK refer to your advanced level research project as thesis while those in US name it as dissertation. Usually a thesis is written for a master degree while a dissertation is composed for the doctorate degree.

The other major difference between the two is that the thesis involves custom research and writing. You need to propose a new hypothesis and create your own research. You need to include your own unique ideas, research methodologies and even carry out experimentation to prove or disprove a certain theory or research you have made. However, in the dissertation, all you need to do is collect relevant material from the already existing literature and compose them together. You need to have a new conclusion based on the data that you gather. This does not involve custom research and experimentation at the students end.

A thesis is supposed to be your final project to get your high level degree. While the dissertation, is a small part of the entire degree obtaining process.

This really depends on your location whether you are writing a dissertation or a thesis. In the US students write doctoral dissertations and master thesis. Students in Hong Kong can write dissertations even for their graduation degrees. In china, students do not have different terms for dissertations and thesis and both are named the same. It would be better to conclude that both terms can be used for research work involved in advanced degrees but they do not specify the academic level.

When you are in your university or college you need to follow the specific guidelines and instructions that the officials in the university will specify. You need to prepare well for the interview that you will have when the dissertation committee members check your paper. A dissertation or thesis is one of the most critical assignments students need to complete during their academic careers. They need to be very careful and choose their subject wisely if they want to succeed in their paper. Usually the professors will give you all the instructions when they assign the task to you