Have you ever wondered what defines your dissertation? What is it that increases the chances of success of your dissertation? Well, the answer is the abstract for dissertation. The abstract is essential to the dissertation as it documents your research findings.
Suppose you want to read a dissertation. You are short on time, as you have to submit your draft to your supervisor. You want to know what type of research is conducted in it. What will you do? Do you have enough time to read the whole dissertation? You will first read the topic and then the abstract to determine whether this dissertation covers what you are looking for, right?
Your abstract for the dissertation will let your readers know what your research findings are. That is why it is important to write an efficient abstract so that your readers can easily get the message you are trying to convey; if you want to find ways to improve your abstract, read this article until the end.
What is an Abstract?
An abstract is the summary of the key points of your dissertation. It intends to inform your readers of your work and to ease students in determining whether your work is relevant to their work. While writing an abstract for dissertation, you should consider the following key points:
- Briefly explain the salient features of your dissertation
- Your abstract should be two paragraphs, covering a word count of 150-300 words
- Abstracts should be readable, self-contained, concise and accurate.
- Try to summarise and paraphrase instead of quoting directly from the dissertation.
- Your abstract should be related to your dissertation to be assessed or presented.
- You should follow the proper structure of the abstract.
Why is there a Need to Write an Abstract?
There are many reasons why writing an abstract for dissertation is important.
- Indexing: Indexing the potential keywords in the abstract will let a searcher find your abstract from the library of most academic journals
- Selection: Writing an abstract will make it easy for your readers to determine whether your work covers their needs. On this basis, it will become easy for them to select your dissertation as a reference for their work.
- To submit dissertations in the journals for publication purposes
- To apply for research grants
- To complete and submit the dissertation
- To submit proposals for conferences
When to Write an Abstract:
As you know, the abstract is the summary of your findings. Despite being present at the top of your dissertation, write an abstract for dissertation at the end after completing your entire content. An abstract usually goes on a separate page after the table of content but before the introduction.
Structure of Abstract:
While writing an abstract for dissertation, it is important to follow its proper structure and requirements. Usually, an abstract covers the following points:
Purpose of writing:
You should state why your research is important and why your readers should read lengthy work.
Problem statement:
You should state what problem you are going to address in your study. What are your aims, objectives and arguments? Describe the scope of your study and state how you will solve these problems.
Methodology:
Your abstract should state the methodology, tools or equipment you will use in your study. What approach will you use to develop conceptual models or frameworks? You will mention the type of research you conducted, like an experiment or questionnaire, or any hypothesis you have made regarding your topic.
Results:
Briefly explain the main findings in 1-2 lines in your abstract that will justify your problem statement, aims, and objectives.
Conclusions and implications:
You should state what your study concludes in your abstract. Also, mention any future recommendations or implications regarding your study in the abstract.
How to write abstract, key features:
If you want to write an efficient abstract for a dissertation, you should follow the tips mentioned below.
First, complete writing your paper:
The abstract is the summary of the dissertation and is, therefore, very important as it states your whole research procedure. You can only write it efficiently if you have finished writing your dissertation. Only when you have completed your dissertation will you know the key aspects you should mention in the abstract. Therefore, wait until the end to write the abstract.
Read the guidelines and consider your target audience:
Before starting to write an abstract, you should read all the guidelines required for writing an abstract. Remember your target audience while you are writing the abstract. If you want to publish your dissertation in a specific journal, read all the guidelines. It will help improve the efficiency of your dissertation.
Provide the base of your work:
Start your abstract by providing your readers with the background information of your topic. Your readers should know what the topic of your study is and what it states. Background information creates the base for your readers, and they will know what your study holds, what its scope is and why there is a need for your study.
Describe your problem statement and methodology to solve it:
Clearly explain what issue or problem you intend to address in your study. It will clear the stance of your readers about your study. Then state what type of study it is: a cross-sectional survey, in-silico study, an experimental study or a review? Ensure you properly state the approach you will take to tackle that issue in the study.
Conclude by stating your key message and broader perspective of your findings:
Since the abstract is a summarized version of your dissertation, only mention those key aspects that directly justify your problem statements. It would help if you documented the key findings so your readers can easily get your message. Make sure to mention the broader aspect of your findings and study. State the future recommendations and implications of your study.
Read: Dissertation Structure: A Step-by-Step Complete Guide
Conclusion:
Your abstract for dissertation is the miniature of your study. It states the whole purpose and intent of the study. The abstract is written to let readers determine whether to use your dissertation as a reference for their study. It would help if you were careful while writing the abstract, as it determines whether your dissertation is worth reading. If your dissertation addresses a major social issue but cannot state it properly in your abstract, then what is all the point? Your readers will not bother to read the dissertation, and you will not be able to convey your message. Therefore, make sure to write the abstract as efficiently as possible because sometimes your work is ordinary, but reading your abstract creates curiosity in the readers to read your dissertation until the end. You can also contact dissertation writing services if you need help in your dissertation writing with an efficient abstract.
