Tag Archives: thesis

the downside of having a Big Book thesis

Posted on April 25, 2013 by

This is a guest post by Katie Wheat. Katie graduated with a PhD in Psychology from University of York and now works as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Cognitive Neuroscience at Maastricht University. She is currently using brain … Continue reading →

Posted in Big Book, doctoral research, early career researchers, Europe, PhD by publication, thesis | Tagged , , , , | 10 Comments

the PhD and publication/by publication – a very peculiar practice? part one

Posted on April 18, 2013 by

It is now increasingly common in parts of Europe for PhDs in the humanities and social sciences to be awarded on the basis of publication. The norm seems to be three, but sometimes four, papers in international peer reviewed journals. … Continue reading →

Posted in English language, Europe, monograph, parity, PhD, PhD by publication, publishing, thesis | Tagged , , , , | 22 Comments

keeping your thesis reader/examiner on track

Posted on March 21, 2013 by

I’m currently reading my fifth doctoral thesis for the year. I realized a while ago that I’ve now examined at least fifty doctorates. I guess that’s a lot. I recently decided to go back to my examination reports to see … Continue reading →

Posted in dissertation, doctoral research, examiner, reader, signposts, thesis | Tagged , , , , | 7 Comments

the discussion chapter – it’s about taking flight

Posted on February 28, 2013 by

A long time ago I visited the albatross sanctuary on the Otago Peninsula in New Zealand. I was there at a time when the fledglings were exercising their wings, but had not yet reached the point where they were able … Continue reading →

Posted in academic title, discussion, flying metaphor, metaphor, thesis | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

a metaphor for the thesis

Posted on January 7, 2013 by

I like a good metaphor. I like thinking about the metaphors that we use to describe academic work too. I particularly like thinking about how changing metaphors can help re-orient the actual doing of academic work. We all know, I’m … Continue reading →

Posted in academic writing, bricolage, metaphor, text, thesis | Tagged , , , | 16 Comments

what not to do in a thesis conclusion, part one: christmas present five

Posted on December 17, 2012 by

The conclusion is one of the most important sections of the thesis, yet it is often done quite badly. This is not good because the conclusion is a key part of the text and thesis writers really need to spend … Continue reading →

Posted in claims, conclusion, introduction, literature review, thesis | Tagged , , | 2 Comments

how not to fail the PhD: christmas present four

Posted on December 14, 2012 by

The most common way to fail a PhD is not to submit it. Or not to hand in the major revisions. It’s pretty rare for people to actually fail PhDs once they are submitted. The kinds of figures that get … Continue reading →

Posted in failing, passing, the good thesis, thesis | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

blank and blind spots in empirical research

Posted on July 27, 2012 by

It is important when writing about research to get clear about the difference between research that is inadequate and research that is partial. There are two concepts that are helpful in deciding which of these is the case. They are: … Continue reading →

Posted in blank spot, blind spot, claims, Jon Wagner, knowledge production, last chapter, research project, thesis | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

can you write about mess in your thesis and if so how? part two

Posted on July 16, 2012 by

Peter Matthews continues his post about writing about the messy bits of his research. In my previous post I reported the “positive story” of my fieldwork – reflecting on that feeling of “connection” with my research participants in the narrative … Continue reading →

Posted in crafting writing, Dr, informants, publishing, reflection, research methods, rules of engagement, snowball sample, thesis | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

can you write about mess in your thesis, and if so, how? part one

Posted on July 13, 2012 by

This post is written by Dr Peter Matthews who works in the School of the Built Environment at Herriott Watt. Peter’s blog is Urbanity…History and he tweets as @urbaneprofessor. I asked him to show and tell how he talked about … Continue reading →

Posted in academic writing, interview, mess, PhD, reflection, research methods, thesis | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments