I Did Disappointingly Bad For My Undergraduate Thesis Should I Stay

How do I cope with the late realization that my thesis is not as strong as I thought? I’ve been working on my undergraduate thesis for just over a year now, and until recently, I felt proud of the progress we were making. Our topic in computational musicology was quite exploratory—we started with a few random ideas and just let the research unfold. Since it was our first experience with research, we didn’t grasp the vast scope a project like this could encompass. We often joke that some of the components could easily warrant their own thesis. While we conducted a fair amount of research to build a solid foundation, it turns out it wasn’t sufficient.

In the last few months, I’ve come to realize that our core methodology needs significant improvement. This realization has come from encountering better studies and implementations, as well as gaining a broader perspective that has illuminated the flaws in our approach. I still take pride in what we’ve accomplished, and my group members, adviser, and panelists have all been supportive of our work. However, I can’t shake the feeling that their views may stem from not exploring the literature as deeply as I have, making the issues more apparent to me. On the positive side, I now have a clearer vision for how to strengthen our thesis. But with graduation just a few months away, it’s disheartening to acknowledge the gaps and shortcomings.

I wish I could start over, but I understand that isn’t feasible. Stack Exchange network consists of 183 Q&A communities including Stack Overflow, the largest, most trusted online community for developers to learn, share their knowledge, and build their careers. Stack Overflow for Teams is now called Stack Internal. Bring the best of human thought and AI automation together at your work. Bring the best of human thought and AI automation together at your work. Learn more

Bring the best of human thought and AI automation together at your work. I'm an undergrad in a bachelor's of science. I am currently working on my thesis which the general thought is that I need to isolate a microbe before I can work on the experimental assays. Failing a dissertation can feel like the end of the world, but it’s important to remember that it’s not the end of your academic journey. Universities have policies in place to help students who struggle with their dissertations, and there are often options to recover from failure. In this post, we’ll break down what happens if you fail your dissertation, what your options are, and how you can move forward.

A dissertation is a major piece of independent research that demonstrates your ability to think critically, conduct thorough research, and present findings effectively. Failing a dissertation typically means one of the following: Universities have different policies on what constitutes a failure, so always check your institution’s guidelines. In most cases, students who fail their dissertation are given a chance to resubmit. This often involves reworking your research, improving your writing, or addressing feedback from examiners. However, resubmission might come with a capped grade, meaning the highest possible mark you can achieve is limited (often to a passing grade).

Some universities allow students to retake the dissertation module in the following academic year. This could mean starting over with a new topic or making significant changes to your existing work. by Tommy Keene · Published May 10, 2024 · Updated May 12, 2024 In honor of “paper-writing season” at universities and seminaries everywhere, I present to you a brief list of Bad Theses. But despair not; if your thesis falls under one of these categories, there’s (usually) an easy fix. For our purposes, I’ll be focusing on classic exegetical and theological examples, but of course you see these in any discipline.

The easiest mistake, and probably the hardest one to fix, is to simply not have a thesis. There are actually two ways of doing this, and for this first one, “the Void,” you don’t have a thesis because you don’t have anything you want to write about. This is sometimes called “writer’s block.” You need to write something, but either there’s too much going on in your head or, just as bad, too little. This one is not hard to spot. If there’s too little going on in your head, you will find yourself staring at a blank page, tapping your pencil, lost in the library, or staring into the middle distance. But maybe there’s actually a lot written down on the page?

Maybe you have dozens of library books sitting on your desk? You’ve done a ton of research and still have nothing that really grips you? You may have a dozen sentences that you could point to as the “thing your paper is about,” but no one of them actually fits or is exciting to you. Writing a thesis can feel like climbing a mountain. Many students find it tough and overwhelming. This article explores the common struggles faced during thesis writing and offers practical solutions to overcome them.

Writing a thesis can be a daunting task, often filled with various psychological barriers. These barriers can make the process feel overwhelming and insurmountable. Recognizing these barriers is the first step towards overcoming them. Procrastination is a common hurdle in thesis writing. You might find yourself delaying tasks, which can lead to a buildup of stress and a rushed final product. Mastering time management is crucial for meeting your thesis deadlines.

One effective method is timeboxing, where you set a timer for a short period, work, and then take a break. This can help you stay focused and reduce feelings of overwhelm. Setting realistic deadlines is essential for maintaining steady progress. Often, students underestimate the time required for tasks. To avoid this, track how long different tasks take and plan accordingly. This approach helps in setting achievable goals and prevents the frustration of unmet expectations.

Balancing your thesis work with other responsibilities can be challenging. It's important to create a schedule that allocates specific times for writing, while also considering other commitments. Consistent effort and discipline are key to successfully managing your time and ensuring that your thesis progresses steadily. You’ve probably heard it before—writing a thesis is a marathon, not a sprint. And let’s be honest, it’s a long and messy one. Somewhere between planning your chapters and formatting citations at 2 AM, it’s all too easy to fall into traps that cost you time, clarity, and sometimes even confidence.

But here’s the good news: most of these pitfalls are completely avoidable once you know what they are. That’s what this guide is for. I’m going to walk you through ten of the most common thesis writing mistakes—yes, the kind even the brightest students make—and show you how to sidestep them like a pro. Let’s dive in before you end up making the same errors that thousands of overwhelmed grad students have faced before you! You wouldn’t go on a road trip without a destination, right? That’s exactly what writing a thesis without a focused research question feels like—it’s a confusing ride, and you end up going in circles.

For many students at Harvard, whether or not to write a thesis is a question that comes up at least once during our four years. For some concentrations, thesising is mandatory – you know when you declare that you will write a senior thesis, and this often factors into the decision-making process when it comes to declaring that field. For other concentrations, thesising is pretty rare – sometimes slightly discouraged by the department, depending on how well the subject lends itself to independent undergraduate research. In my concentration, Neuroscience on the Neurobiology track, thesising is absolutely optional. If you want to do research and writing a thesis is something that interests you, you can totally go for it, if you like research but just don’t want to write a super long... Some Thesis Work From My Thesis That Wasn't Meant To Be

This is from back when I thought I was writing a thesis! Yay data! Claire Hoffman

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