Research Methods

A thesis is a large report written to describe the process and outcomes of a research project.

Theses are written by higher education students and are often a major (or sole) assessable component for admission to a higher degree. Theses are often written for PhDs, but can also be for honours, master's and other degrees.This guide shows you how to find Masters and PhD theses, online from Australian and overseas.

Thesis vs. Dissertation in Australia: Understanding the Distinction 

In the Australian academic scene, the terms 'thesis' and 'dissertation' are often confused. While both are crucial research projects, they serve different purposes and are linked to different levels of study. Let’s break it down for clarity:

Key Differences:
Thesis: Typically associated with a master's degree. It's shorter and aims to demonstrate your understanding of a specific topic through a comprehensive literature review and possibly some original research.
Dissertation: Pertains to a doctoral degree. It requires a greater depth of original research aimed at contributing new knowledge to your field. It involves extensive data collection and analysis.

Length & Structure:
Master's Thesis: Generally between 20,000 and 40,000 words.
Doctoral Thesis/Dissertation: Ranges from 60,000-100,000 words, depending on the university.

Both documents share similar structural components:
Introduction: Establishes your research question.
Literature Review: Surveys existing research.
Methodology: Describes your research approach.
Results: Present your findings.
Discussion: Interprets your results.
Conclusion: Summarises your findings and suggests future research.

Why use theses?

Theses can be a valuable source of information, especially for topics where there are fewer published works available.

The references or works cited in a thesis can also be useful to find further published sources on a topic.

If you are currently writing a thesis (Honours, Masters or PhD) you may want to:

• check if anyone has recently completed a PhD thesis in your area of research internationally
• look at PhD theses from your faculty to get an idea of how to format your thesis and/or liaise with your lecturer to be sure.

You can search international theses across all Australian libraries via this Worldcat link. This search has been limite to teh last five years, Open Access and Thesis format. Add a topic to further narrow the search.

eg masters thesis and engineering 

For information on writing your thesis chapters, we ercommend the Monash University page in the link below

Excel at Writing (Monash University)