Thesis writing tips

Thesis Writing Tips

Format Requirements, Chicago Manual of Style
(we expect you to use the Chicago Style, 15th edition, click here for details)

Components of a Senior Research Project (Thesis)
(assignment for writing the first full SRP draft)

ARCHIVE OF EXEMPLARY WORK by Senior Sequence Students
(examples of abstracts, proposals and SRPs)

MIT Writing Center:
http://web.mit.edu/writing/
You may find these sections especially useful:
Revising for Style
Analyzing Your Own Style
Revising Modifiers
Avoiding the Naked This
Topic Sentences
Verbs

University Writing Center: George Mason University
http://writingcenter.gmu.edu/resources/virtualreference.html
You may find these sections especially useful:
Some Sample Thesis Statements
Revision and Editing
Revising for Conciseness
Revision Checklist and Editing Guidelines
Editing and Polishing Checklist
Questions for Revision
Exercises in Paraphrasing

Using Interview data in your proposal or thesis.

Here is an example (from Charlene Bredder) of how to use your interviews or fieldnotes.

Start wriitng memos on themes you see or trends or ideas you have. Then go back and fill in with your data or evidence to support those ideas (which is essentially an analysis). So for example, Jane Smith is Chief Environmental Officer and you interviewed her on 2.3.06. Here is an example of how you can use her interview:

Several officials mentioned the polticial climate of SD as influencing the city's ability to meet a certain target. Jane Smith, CEO ... stated "It has been really hard for us to try to get legislation through because the city council doesn't like to impose mandates. Instead, they like to go for voluntary compliance" (interview, 2.3.06). While voluntary compliance is one way of reducing waste, without the city's weight behind changing behaviors, businesses continued to produce the same amount. The city's participation and support can be an integral part to reducing waste, as was the case in LA, where they imposed fines on business.......

so: analysis of what I (Charlene) just did: I had an idea, introduced the idea, had a quote to back it up and then said what that quote meant for the theme. This type of thing is how you want to use your data. You can also have longer quotes, which you indent like you do quotes from a book, and then analyze them. You can also use observations, memos, etc. whatever your data is.