My master's courses are taking over and my thesis hasn't started
Keep your thesis moving through a heavy course load by starting small, starting early and linking it to your courses.
In short
Start here, today. List this term's assignments. Next to each one, write one line on how it could connect to your thesis topic, even loosely. Circle the one with the strongest link and ask the instructor this week whether you can take it in that direction. This takes about 20 minutes.
After that, work through these steps. Choose one to jump to it.
Step by step
Tick each step as you finish it. Open a step for the how.
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Protect two small thesis blocks a week
Choose two sessions of 60 to 90 minutes at fixed times, for thesis work only. Keep them small enough to survive a week with three deadlines. The aim is never to go more than a week without touching the project.
Give those blocks work that can start cold
Keep a short list of thesis tasks you can pick up without warming up: summarizing one key paper, adding to a list of possible research questions, drafting a paragraph on why the topic matters. Before you stop, write down exactly where you'll start next time. That note saves you the first 20 minutes of the next session.
Point assignments at your topic
When an assignment has an open topic, choose one that builds towards your thesis, such as a short review of one strand of the literature or a critique of a method you might use. Ask the instructor early, not the week before it's due. Check your program's rules on reusing course work in a thesis, and ask before you submit overlapping material twice.
Meet your supervisor during term, not after it
Even a 30-minute meeting every three or four weeks keeps the thesis in view. Bring something each time: a list of possible questions, a one-page summary of three papers or a rough plan. Short, regular meetings in your first year make the second year much smoother.
Set first-year thesis milestones
Agree with your supervisor on two or three things that should exist by the end of your first year, such as an agreed research question, a proposal draft and an ethics application if you need one. Put them in Milestone Map with dates. When courses crowd everything else out, you'll know what can't slip.
Words you can use
Is this you? Signs to look for
- Every week goes on readings, problem sets and assignments, and the thesis is always next week's job.
- Your supervisor asks about your topic and you end up talking about your courses.
- You're halfway through your first year and still don't have a research question.
- You worry that the whole thesis will have to be squeezed into the last few months.
Why this happens
Courses come with deadlines, grades and an instructor waiting for the work. Your thesis has none of those in the first year, so it loses every time. That isn't a lack of discipline. It's what happens to attention when one kind of work is enforced from outside and the other isn't.
In a master's program this matters even more than in a PhD, because there's so little slack. If your program is two years long, the first year is usually when the topic, the relationship with your supervisor, the proposal and often the ethics application need to come together. UBC's sample timeline for one master's program, for example, expects students to have a rough topic and a supervisory committee in place by the end of April in their first year. Students who leave all of that until courses finish often lose a term.
Courses can also help. A course paper can test a topic, a methods course can be a rehearsal for your analysis, and a seminar can introduce the literature you'll later cite. A master's student writing on the London School of Economics student blog described using her courses to see whether a topic held her interest and whether a research idea was feasible, well before the dissertation began.
Worth a look (6)
- Ideal timeline for RES master's students, UBC Institute for Resources, Environment and SustainabilityA sample two-year timeline that shows what needs to happen on the thesis during the first year of courses.
- How not to let your dissertation defeat you: 5 essential tips, Students@LSE blogA master's student's advice on starting dissertation thinking early, including using coursework as a trial run.
- Graduate Supervision Guidelines for Students, University of Toronto School of Graduate StudiesSets out what students and supervisors are each responsible for, including preparing a realistic timeline.
- List of Resources for Finding ETDsThis directory lists national and regional thesis collections around the world, from Theses Canada to Shodhganga. It's handy for finding past theses to see how others shaped theirs.
- ProQuest Dissertations & Theses GlobalThis very large database of dissertations and theses is strongest for North American universities, and many records include full text. It's usually available through your university library.
- The Thesis WhispererInger Mewburn's long-running blog about doing a PhD covers thesis writing, supervision, productivity and life after the degree. It's warm and practical, with plenty of readers' stories.
When to bring someone in
Talk to your supervisor if you're more than a term into your program without an agreed research question, because they can help you narrow it down quickly. Your graduate coordinator can tell you which thesis milestones have formal deadlines and whether your course load can be spread differently. If the workload is affecting your sleep or health, contact your counselling service as well.
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