Time and tide waits for none. Time management is essential skills required in almost every arena of your personal life, academic life and career. But it becomes a must when you are writing your dissertation.A dissertation is termed as a huge research project requiring efficient planning to write the first draft and good time management skills is a prerequisite for it. As a dissertation consumes significant time in preparation, it may be accounted with discrepancies such as distraction and spending excess time on lower priority tasks. Following are a few tips that you may follow for effective time management while writing a dissertation-
1. Write as you explore
In my experience, it is never too late to start writing. As you start gathering ideas and confirm evidence of your research, start writing your dissertation. You will save much time as well as condition your writing skills. Even if you are uncertain of your argument or not sure of the correct vocabulary to use, you shall be able to determine the degree of problems that require more reading if you are left with adequate time later. Therefore, start writing your dissertation right now.
2. Keep your advisor in a loop
Feel free to interact with your professors or reviewers. Advisor is the most important person to support you and your dissertation while writing. Generating feedback from your advisor is crucial after submitting rough draft. The advisor shall provide suggestion about how he or she wants your final draft to be. Fixing your thoughts on the paper and awkward sentences shall be possible in subsequent drafts.
3. Save sufficient time for proofreading, formatting and referencing
It takes months to prepare a dissertation. It is necessary to proofread your dissertation to avoid spelling and grammar errors. For example, if you have used a mix of British and American English spellings, it must be fixed during proofreading. You shall be able to gain consistency in your writing piece. The punctuation marks and other formatting options such as Bold, Italics and Indentation shall add to the polishing of your dissertation. Keep referencing your content to avoid risking plagiarism so that you don’t have to dig into the sources later. If you leave the referencing at the end, it will consume more time when you try searching the sources again.
4. Plan your milestones
Few people spend an hour or two on their dissertation while there are some who make sure to write four pages. You are suggested to set milestones while you collect relevant information or proceed with writing. A Gantt chart shall be helpful in completing your work within the given deadline. The different steps must be scheduled and it must be strictly followed even if you have to turn down people for movie or outing.
5. Prioritize your components
Your dissertation must be divided in a manner that shall add to organization of activities. The high-priority tasks such as conducting literature review must be given more time than preparing the introduction or conclusion. For example, a quick library search for the dissertation topic may be conducted where recommended books must be reviewed. Also, the tasks that consume less time must be finished in the first place.
Nevertheless, it is important to take breaks to aid your productivity. You must stay energized and motivated so that you are in good shape throughout your dissertation preparation. Do not be afraid to seek guidance for time management issues and prepare the dissertation within the stipulated time.