A Guide To Dissertation Editing: The Main Do's And Don'ts

Well done! Your PhD dissertation is finished. After all the heavy work, you have finally deserved to get some rest. But wait! Something’s not right. You have some major concerns and they are associated with the quality of your thesis. Writing this enormous work took time and you aren’t certain that you’ve corrected all the errors. The time for editing has come.

It’s natural to feel anxiety of this kind. The good, motivational part of this condition is associated with the final value of your work. Only a meticulous analysis will be able to create a great scientist inside you. The bad part of anxiety comes out when you overdo certain things. If you take your work for granted, you won’t be able to refine it in a good way. In the end, you’ll change almost everything and find yourself at the very beginning of the process.

We have come up with some advice that concern the do's and don’ts when it comes to a dissertation editing.

• You should thoroughly review your dissertation. Start by doing the basic things.
• Make sure that the title of the work is placed in the right spot and that you’ve typed everything in the desired font.


• Check for composition flaws. If you need to change a segment by placing it on some other location inside the text, then do so.


• Pay attention to the additional forms (header and footer) of the text.


• Check page numbers.


• Arrange the bibliography and the table of content.


• Ask for a second opinion. Friends or colleagues could be able to spot something that you have missed.


• Hire professional editing help as a final step on the way.
• You should never make certain mistakes that could jeopardize the concept of an entire project.
• Everything needs to be done according to the right amount of measure. Philistinism is a dangerous flaw and a destructive activity.


• Keep in mind the fact that you may be forced to pay a costly price in the pursuit of perfection. Changing a single chapter is a minor intervention, but that kind of alteration could produce a serious consequence. If you start to change everything, you’ll discard your entire work in a matter of minutes. Don’t be so hard on yourself - we’re all bound to make mistakes. Changing every single flaw might cause additional stress that could be avoided.