8 tips to help support your dissertation year

Getting started on your dissertation

I've been supervising psychology undergraduate dissertation projects for over 10 years now.

Some of these projects have been in areas of cognitive psychology, such as looking at cognitive flexibility, working memory or eyewitness testimony, and long-term memory.

Other projects have been based on different areas of psychology. These have included areas of parental views of their child's behaviours, factors influencing academic achievement, personal and academic entitlement alongside many more.

Although I'm now a supervisor, I did complete a BSc Psychology degree and went through the process of completing the final year dissertation project myself.

It was the first time I'd completed an independent research project. It was something I was quite scared of, so I understand how current students may feel the same way.

Over the course of my teaching career, I usually sit down with my final-year dissertation students and offer guidance on the process.

Below are some things I chat to my own students about, in the hope that this makes the dissertation year a less stressful one.

I usually suggest these as hints and tips as each student may be different in what they can use.

1. Time management and deadlines

As a student about to undertake the dissertation, try and have some way of keeping track, managing your time, or keeping a note of when you'll complete different tasks.

When I was an undergraduate psychology student, I didn't do this at first, and I ended up asking my supervisor for advice.

You can set yourself weekly deadlines to ensure that you're keeping yourself on track with the work.

I'd say that this can apply to all areas of the dissertation process, from the planning stages to the final write-up stages.

2. Read academic papers

It's very difficult to know straight away whether an academic paper is relevant to your dissertation, but the only way you'll know is by reading the paper.

Sometimes only a sentence or two may be important, but by beginning the reading within the first few weeks of the dissertation, you'll get used to picking up an article and giving it a quick skim read.

3. Keep notes

As a supervisor, I often come across situations where students can't remember what we've discussed in meetings and may not even remember aspects of the project that they've been thinking about themselves.

The dissertation project is an independent project, and it's a student's responsibility to remember key information and make notes on things that are related to the dissertation.

As a supervisor, I could be supervising a large group of students, so it's a good thing for a student to be proactive in their note-taking. 

4. Take time out

Although the dissertation usually takes an academic year to complete, you don't want to run yourself down within the first semester.

I always advise my own students to take regular breaks, even just a weekend or two away from the project, so that they can have some time away from the busy days of project writing.

That way, you can be refreshed and come back to the dissertation with a clearer mind.

5. Write frequently

When writing the dissertation project, you'll become an expert in your own topic area. This can be a challenge when you need to (at first) write about psychology topics that you may not understand a great deal.

You can begin writing as soon as you know what your own topic will be.

My advice is to write in short 30-minute bursts rather than setting aside full days for writing. A 30-minute writing session will give you time to write what you can, but it won't overload your brain.

During my education, I'd frequently set aside a full writing day and then end up with a paragraph at the end.

6. Draft and redraft

The sections you write at the start of your dissertation year won't be the final versions.

You'll find that you'll look at a paragraph you've written, be really unsure of how it sounds and end up writing it again.

This is perfectly normal, and it's all part of the writing process.

Your writing style changes as you go through your final year; therefore, you may end up re-writing many sections.

Always remember that your supervisor will be there for draft advice, so have a check to see what sections they'll be able to look at when you draft them.

7. Use peer support

When you're going through the dissertation process, there will be hundreds of other students going through the same process.

It's often beneficial to form or be part of a peer support group related to the dissertation.

This could be in the form of an online peer support group or an in-person one at your university.

If your supervisor is supervising a group of students, make use of that, as you can communicate with students who are in a very similar situation to yourself.

8. Help and support

I think my main piece of advice is to ask for help and support if you need it.

If you're struggling with any part of the dissertation process (planning, data collection, write-up) you can go to your supervisor.

If you're struggling with aspects that are outside of the dissertation process, then your university will have resources in place to support you.

Find out more

If you'd like to find out more about what the dissertation year involves and how you can prepare for it, sign up for the How to make the most of your dissertation webinar which I'm giving for the BPS on 10 October 2023. 

Written by Dr Laura Jenkins, a Chartered Psychologist (CPsychol), a Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and a university teacher at Loughborough University.