Starting a university thesis can be a bit complex, especially if you don't feel inspired, or organized enough to express your thoughts. Don't worry though, with a little planning, research, and hard work, you can start a variety of term papers in a flash. Each essay begins with an introduction that will specify your main points, involve the reader, and set out the topic that you will discuss in depth in the body of the essay. If you want to know how to start a university thesis, follow the steps below.
Steps
Method 1 of 4: Get started
Step 1. Try to have a very clear idea of the task to be performed
As much as the desire is to throw yourself headlong into writing the essay right away, you should know exactly what the requirements are before putting it down to paper. Read the instructions carefully and check the kind of thesis that the teacher wants you to write, how long it must be, and the research activity required for the thesis. Here are some things you need to be very clear about before starting:
- Word count. If the essay takes about 500 words, it will be very different from one that requires 500 or more. Be aware of the length requirement and roughly adhere to it. Of course, you don't want to bore your teacher with a term paper that is 10% longer, or much shorter, than required.
- The amount of searches required. In some courses you may be asked to write a document substantially based on external research you have done. In others, you may be asked to rely primarily on documents or materials used in the course, such as novels or textbooks, and to formulate your own conclusions. Most term papers, however, must be based on serious research.
- If you have any questions, ask your teacher to clarify any doubts, well before the day of the delivery.
Step 2. Get to know the different genres of term papers
There are many different kinds of term papers that you may have to write at university, and it is good to know them and know what is expected of you. Here are the basic genres to get to know in depth:
- The persuasive / argumentative thesis. This paper will ask you to persuade readers of your point of view on a controversial topic. For example, a paper explaining why self-defense weapons should be banned is of the persuasive kind.
- The analytical thesis. This genre is very common in literature courses. This essay will ask you to read a work and analyze its words, themes, characters, and meaning using your own ideas and other sources from the course on the subject.
- The exhibition essay. This genre will start from a procedure or a situation and will deepen important aspects of the subject, for example, describing the daily life of university students.
- The research paper. This essay will ask you to delve into a topic through research, and to inform readers of its history, usefulness or relevance.
- The essay of comparison and contrast. This genre will ask you to compare and contrast two arguments and to highlight similarities and differences. For example, any essay that analyzes similarities and differences between living in Rome and Milan is one of comparison and contrast.
Step 3. Get audience news
Will you write for the professor, for classmates, for experts on the subject of the thesis, or for people who are new to the subject? If you write for experts, you won't need to define basic terms and you can use more technical expressions, but if you write for people who don't know much about the subject, like, for example, analyzing a movie for readers who haven't seen it., you need to describe the basic details.
If you are writing a research paper on a subject that is obscure or little known to your readers, you need to explain the research you have done in great detail
Step 4. Define the purpose
What purpose do you set yourself with the thesis? Is it to inform, entertain, persuade, define, compare and contrast, analyze, summarize, or tell a story? Setting a purpose right away helps you compose the topic and direct it to the right people in the right way. For example, if your goal is to persuade people, you will need to develop a logical argument with compelling concepts to get readers to agree on your point of view.
- If your purpose is to analyze something, such as a poem or a play, you will need to provide compelling evidence in the text to support your ideas.
- If your purpose is to compare and contrast, you will need to be well informed about the differences and similarities of the two topics.
- If your purpose is to inform, you will need to study a topic thoroughly and help readers understand it better.
Step 5. Check the tone
Tone is another important aspect of writing a successful college dissertation. For most term papers, the tone should be professional, detached, and informative. If you use too biased language, you will not appear authoritative. If you use very informal language and lax expressions, you will not look professional. If you're writing a first-person essay instead (for a course on how to write a bio, for example), it's best to use informal language.
- The tone is the attitude towards the topic you are presenting. Is your tone detached, amused, a little cynical, suspicious, or enthusiastic? Whatever tone you use, it must be appropriate to the topic at hand.
- If you are writing a stem cell research paper, for example, the tone must be impartial and detached; if you're writing a lonely hearts essay online, you might have a more fun and playful tone.
Method 2 of 4: Formulate Your Thesis
Step 1. Do your research
While it can be fun to throw yourself into an essay without knowing what you're talking about, the best thing to do is do a research first so that you have a solid foundation for your reasoning. Get the texts you need, take notes, and reread them until you feel you are master of the subject and have enough information to write an essay or formulate an argument.
- Make sure the material you use is trustworthy and comes from authoritative sources. Don't do the research on Wikipedia.
- Take enough notes so that you feel comfortable with the topic.
- Learn the rules and conventions for citations so that you can use them in your essay.
Step 2. Learn what makes a statement appropriate for the essay
Once you have done your research, you will need to write a statement for discussion, which will become the central theme or concept to be developed in the document. Although I may sketch out some ideas or find different ones that may be fine, do not start writing the essay without a clear idea of the wording of your essay. An example of a statement is the following: "Rome is a better place to live than Milan, because it is more varied, has more opportunities, and a better climate". Here are the characteristics for the wording of the thesis:
- The clarity
- Accuracy
- The ability to be persuasive
- The ability to be demonstrative
- The details
- The use of the third person.
Step 3. Write a statement for the essay
Write a statement that makes a topic clear and precise and that can be discussed. You cannot write a thesis on the existence of unicorns because you cannot prove it, nor on how bad smoking is for your health because this cannot be questioned. Rather, choose an interesting and relevant topic for the content of the thesis, with two or three specific details that can help support the topic. Here are some examples of different statements:
- A statement for an analytical thesis: "The three central themes of the Great Gatsby are loneliness, the depravity of wealth and the loss of a great love".
- A sentence for an argumentative or persuasive thesis: "The school aptitude tests should not be used for admission to a university faculty because they do not accurately measure intelligence and because they are influenced by socio-economic aspects".
- A sentence for an explanatory essay: "Most high school students spend their time navigating homework, friends, and extra-curricular activities."
Step 4. Create a pattern
Once you have the wording for the thesis, create an outline that will serve as a guide for the rest of the document, and that will help you define the content of each paragraph. This will allow you to express your thoughts in a logical and coherent way, avoiding possible confusion and hesitation when writing the document. The outline should include the paragraph with the introduction, those of the body, and those of the conclusion, reporting as many testimonies as possible. Here is an example of an outline for an essay with the following sentence: "Rome is the best city for young professionals because of its attractions, the climate, and the job market".
- Introduction: 1) eyelet, 2) three main concepts, 3) statement of the thesis,
- Body of paragraph 1: attractions: 1) restaurants, 2) meeting places and bars, 3) museums,
- Body of paragraph 2: climate: 1) mild winters, 2) fascinating springs, 3) refreshing rains,
- Body of paragraph 3: labor market: 1) opportunities in the financial and business sector 2) opportunities for arts activities, 3) opportunities for networking,
- Conclusion: 1) re-proposition of the buttonhole, 2) summary formulation of the main concepts, 3) statement of the thesis.
Method 3 of 4: Write an Introduction
Step 1. Attract readers
The introduction includes three parts: the buttonhole, the main concepts, and the wording of the thesis. The buttonhole is used to seduce readers and induce them to read the rest of the essay. The buttonhole should refer to the main concept and attract readers to the end of the document. Here are some examples of eyelet:
- The rhetorical question. Asking a question about the main point of your dissertation captivates the reader and helps to get their attention. For example, a paper that supports gay marriage might start with the question, "Doesn't every person have to be able to marry the person they love?"
- A shocking statement or statistic. Starting with a statement or a statistic with effect, relevant to the topic, can help attract the attention of the reader. For example, if you are writing a paper on depression among college students, you might start with a statement (based on research) like: "Over 10% of college students now suffer from depression."
- An anecdote. Starting with a small anecdote, relevant to the essay, can be useful to attract the reader. For example, if you are writing a paper on the difficulties facing single mothers, you might start by saying, "Julia struggles to survive as she tries to take care of her son, Roberto."
Step 2. Explain the main concepts
Once you have attracted readers with a strong statement, you need to dedicate a sentence or two for each main concept, so that the reader gets an idea of the plot of the work. For example, if you are writing a paper with the following sentence: "The three central themes of the Great Gatsby are loneliness, the depravity of wealth, and the loss of a great love", you should dedicate a sentence to describe loneliness in the novel, one for depravity, and one for the loss of a great love.
Step 3. State your thesis
After you have attracted the reader and expressed the main concepts, you need to state your thesis. The wording is, as a rule, more effective if it is the last sentence of the introduction paragraph, although, sometimes, it may be useful to indicate it in the body of the introduction. The introduction paragraph together with the thesis must represent the guiding path for the rest of the document, so that the reader can anticipate its content. To recap, a winning start to a college thesis, or an introductory paragraph, should include:
- A "buttonhole" to seduce the reader,
- A brief presentation of the main concepts that will be developed in the body of the document,
- The statement.
Method 4 of 4: To Proceed
Step 1. Write a 3-5 paragraph body
At this point a lot of the hard work to write the essay is done. Now you just have to develop in the paragraphs of the body the main concepts and the statement of the thesis that you reported in the introduction. Paragraphs should be three to five, depending on the length of the thesis. Each paragraph should include:
- A sentence on the topic that will be discussed in the paragraph.
- Details, testimonials, facts, or statistics to develop the main point.
- A concluding sentence that summarizes the ideas of the paragraph and introduces the next one.
Step 2. Write a conclusion
At the end of the course, write a conclusion that summarizes the ideas you introduced and exposed in the essay. The conclusion should:
- Re-present the thesis,
- Remind the reader of the main points,
- Refer to the anecdote, statistics, or fact reported in the introduction buttonhole (optional),
- Leave the reader with something to ponder between the lines of the text.
Step 3. Remember to focus on the third person
Writing in the third person (unless you have been told not to) is a very important aspect of writing a winning university thesis. You must never use expressions such as "I think …" or "I think …" to prevent the topic from sounding too weak or inconsistent. Instead of saying, "I think abortion should remain legal in the country", you can say "Abortion should remain legal in the country" to give the argument more strength.
You should avoid the first and second person. Don't say "you" - rather use "one", "he or she", or an appropriate pronoun. Instead of saying, "You should study 3 to 5 hours a week to succeed in your college career", say, "College students should study 3 to 5 hours a week to succeed in their college career."
Step 4. Review the job
After writing the draft, review and revise the essay, and check for errors in the logic statement, unsupported concepts and weak arguments. You may also realize that not everything in the essay is relevant, that some ideas are repetitive, and that you may need to fine-tune the work - all of this is natural.
