The list of contents and chapter headings below
is appropriate for some thesis. In some cases, one or two
of them may be irrelevant. Results and Discussion are usually
combined in several chapters of a thesis. Think about the
plan of chapters and decide what is best to report your work.
Then make a list, in point form, of what will go in each chapter.
Try to make this rather detailed, so that you end up with
a list of points that corresponds to subsections or even to
the paragraphs of your thesis. At this stage, think hard about
the logic of the presentation: within chapters, it is often
possible to present the ideas in different order, and not
all arrangements will be equally easy to follow. If you make
a plan of each chapter and section before you sit down to
write, the result will probably be clearer and easier to read.
It will also be easier to write.
Your institution may have a form for this (UNSW does). In
any case, this standard page gives the university library
the right to publish the work, usually by microfilm. (At UNSW,
the Postgraduate Student Office will give you a thesis pack
with various guidelines and rules about thesis format. Make
sure that you consult that for its formal requirements, as
well as this rather informal guide.)
Check the wording required by your institution,
and whether there is a standard form. Many universities require
something like: "I hereby declare that this submission
is my own work and that, to the best of my knowledge and belief,
it contains no material previously published or written by
another person nor material which to a substantial extent
has been accepted for the award of any other degree or diploma
of the university or other institute of higher learning, except
where due acknowledgement has been made in the text. (signature/name/date)".
Of your entire thesis, this part will be the most widely published
and most read because it will be published in Dissertation
Abstracts International. It is best written towards the end,
but not at the very last minute because you will probably
need several drafts. It should be a distillation of the thesis:
a concise description of the problem(s) addressed, your method
of solving it/them, your results and conclusions.
An abstract must be self-contained. Usually
they do not contain references. When a reference is necessary,
its details should be included in the text of the abstract.
Check the word limit.
Most thesis authors put in a page of thanks
to those who have helped them in matters scientific, and also
indirectly by providing such essentials as food, education,
genes, money, help, advice, friendship etc. If any of your
work is collaborative, you should make it quite clear who
did which sections.
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