How to Write a Better Thesis

Editorial Reviews
Product Description
This concise guide emphasizes clear and logical structure as the key to a well-written thesis. Offering concrete examples of common structural problems, and numerous devices, tricks, and tests by which to avoid them, in a direct and conversational tone, it proves that the astute researcher must no longer regard writing as the last chore but rather as a crucial part of the research process. This updated edition reflects the changes in research style brought about by the Internet.


About the Author
David Evans, senior associate of the Faculty of Architecture, Building and Planning at the University of Melbourne, is coeditor of Restoring the Land. Paul Gruba is based at the Center for Communication Skills and English as a Second Language at the University of Melbourne.

Review : By Graeme C. Simsion (Melbourne, Australia)

Over the four years I spent working on my PhD, I must have read hundreds of papers and substantial parts of many books. In terms of the quality of the finished thesis, this little book was probably the most important. Lots of good, practical advice, even for an experienced writer: schedule a full re-read before giving it to the supervisor for review (they'll add more value if they're not fixing things you could fix yourself); re-write the introduction every six weeks; advice on how examiners read theses (and hence where to put the extra effort). The section on writing the conclusions was a big help in getting the job finished. The section devoted to effective use of word processors is probably redundant for most of us: but there are enough nuggets in the rest of the book to more than compensate. My only regret is that I didn't purchase it at the beginning instead of half-way through when a fellow student recommended it.