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Dissertations

This guide highlights the help and resources available from the Library to support your dissertation or research project. It also directs you to other support teams that may be useful.

Always check that you are following the requirements provided by your School. 

You can explore the different topics using the left-hand navigation.

Get tips from previous students in Student Story.

Student Story

As you embark on your own dissertation, there is guidance from the Institute for Academic Development (IAD).

Institute for Academic Development

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  • Dissertation and Thesis Festival

The Library's Dissertation Festival brings together the support that the Library, Digital Skills and IAD provide for students undertaking their dissertations. Dissertation and Thesis Festival Dates for 2023 - 2024 

  • Semester 1: Monday 30th October - 10th November 2023 
  • Semester 2: Monday 11th - Friday 15th March 2024.

For the programme of events and previous event recordings visit the Dissertation and Thesis Festival webpage.  

For more information please get in touch 

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This main page relates to the course for 2022/23. For information regarding the 2023/24 MSc Dissertation, please see Open Course - DISS .

MSc Project Guide, 2022/23

Introduction.

The project is an essential component of the Masters courses. It is a substantial piece of full-time independent work starting in June. A dissertation describing the work must be submitted by a deadline in mid-August.

Students are expected to stay in Edinburgh for the duration of their degree programme. This includes during the writing of the MSc dissertation until the submission deadline. If you are on a Tier 4 visa and leave the country for an extended period of time, the School is obligated to contact Student Immigration Service who will notify UK Visa and Immigration (UKVI).) See MSc handbook .

The project involves both the application of skills learned in the past and the acquisition of new skills. It allows students to demonstrate their ability to organise and carry out a major piece of work according to sound scientific and engineering principles. The types of activity involved in each project will vary but all will typically share the following features:

  • Research the literature and gather background information
  • Analyse requirements, compare alternatives and specify a solution
  • Design and implement the solution
  • Experiment and evaluate the solution
  • Develop written and oral presentation skills

Supervision

Supervisors enable students to complete the taught module Informatics Project Proposal (IPP) during Semester 2, and to carry out MSc projects over the summer.

Over the summer, the supervisor gives appropriate technical advice and also assists the student in planning the project and working towards various targets during the period of work. Students should expect approximately weekly meetings with their supervisor at the start of the project but the frequency of these meetings will normally drop as the project progresses and as students become more self-sufficient. Backup supervisors may be allocated to cover periods of absence of the supervisor, if necessary.

Choosing a Project

There are several steps

  • Staff and (optionally) students propose MSc projects.
  • Students then express interest in projects and potential supervisors mark interested students as suitable/unsuitable for the projects in question. At the end, every student needs to be marked suitable for 5 projects .
  • Students rank their project choices in order of preference.
  • Students are assigned a project and MSc supervisor.

Details on how to propose a project and select your project preferences are given below.

Student-proposed projects

Students can submit their own project proposal via the DPMT system . However, they need to find an interested supervisor, typically well in advance of the project selection deadline .

Self-proposed project supervisors should be a member of Academic staff or Research staff . The School’s Institutes pages are useful for finding staff in particular research areas, and to browse the broad research areas represented in the School.

This procedure of self-proposal is intended for students who know at the beginning of semester 2 (or earlier) what specific project they wish to do. The student must discuss their idea with a member of academic staff and get them agree to act as supervisor for the project. The MSc project coordinator will take self-proposed projects into account when making the allocation between students and MSc supervisors, and allocate a self-proposed project whenever feasible.

Students are not expected to propose a project; the default is that students will be assigned a staff-proposed project which they will flesh out into a fuller MSc project as an outcome of the taught module Informatics Project Proposal (henceforth IPP).

If you do wish to propose a project however, you must discuss your ideas with a member of staff and get them to commit to supervising your project before submitting a proposal. This will cover aspects such as the suitability of its topic, the methods to be used, any facilities or systems required, the form the results would take, any difficulties that might arise (i.e., risks), the likelihood that it can be completed and written up by the August deadline, etc. It is up to you to find a supervisor who is willing to supervise your project. Having done this, submit the proposal as instructed in the DPMT system with all the relevant details filled in. The deadline for completing the whole process (discussion with staff and filling in the proposal webform) is in the timetable . This staff member will then register as potential supervisor for your project in the DPMT system. (Green button “Register…” at the bottom of the page.)

If you want to do your self-proposed project with an external industrial partner as supervisor, you’ll still need an internal co-supervisor (i.e., an Informatics staff member) in addition to your external supervisor. (If your supervisor is a staff member at a different School at the University of Edinburgh, then no co-supervisor is required.)

See the guide for external supervisors

As always, your project proposal must be filed before the deadline Both the internal and external supervisor need to register for it.

Even if you self-propose a project, you still need to register interest in other projects, until you are marked suitable for 5 projects (including your self-proposed one). You might not get your self-proposed project if the named supervisor ends up with too many projects to supervise. Thus you need fall-backs.

There is no guarantee that all proposed projects will be allocated. However, any pairings between staff and students that happen as a result of student self-proposed project development during these first 2 weeks of the semester will be taken into account when assigning staff their MSc students.

Projects with Industrial Collaborators

Students who are sponsored by, or have close contact with an industrial company may wish to undertake a project which relates to that company’s activities. This is encouraged. Such collaborations can take two different forms:

  • If the project is specific to a particular student, then the student should file a self-proposed project in DPMT and get both an internal supervisor (i.e., Informatics staff member) and an external supervisor (i.e., the industrial partner). These supervisors will need to register as supervisors for this particular project in DPMT. See the guide for external co-supervisors here .
  • External people (i.e., not staff at UoE) can also propose topics for MSc thesis. (provided that they have a staff member as co-supervisor). However, in this case the topic is open to all students , and not reserved for one particular student. Students can then bid for these topics during the normal project selection phase.
  • UoE staff from other departments (i.e., not Informatics) can also propose/supervise MSc projects. Unlike externals from industry, they do not necessarily need an internal Informatics co-supervisor. See the guide here .

Students doing a project with an industrial partner are still expected to spend a significant portion of their time at the University.

Selecting projects

Students can view the proposed projects from the DPMT system . The list of projects can be sorted by project title, number or supervisor name by clicking on the relevant columns. There is also a search facility (via project tags), so that you can find projects in specific areas.

Students must eventually be marked suitable (by the potential supervisor) for at least 5 MSc projects that they would like to do (this includes supervisors registering interest in any self-proposed projects, where relevant). To this end, students must register interest in projects via the DPMT system and must contact the project proposer. Before doing this, read project descriptions carefully: these often contain information about how to contact the proposer and what information to provide. This is so that the project proposer can provide feedback to the MSc project coordinator about the student's suitability for doing the project. The supervisor will then mark the student as either suitable or unsuitable for the project. Students who are marked unsuitable for some of their chosen projects must register interest in more projects until they are marked suitable for at least 5 projects.

See the timetable for when project selection phase ends. Students who lack five suitable projects by this date risk being assigned to one of the remaining un-allocated projects/supervisors. To be safe, please try to identify and register interest in an initial set of projects a week before this deadline.

Project selection step-by-step

Please follow all of the steps below, even if you proposed a self-proposed project and found a supervisor for it. We try to accommodate all self-proposed projects, but sometimes load-balancing constraints make it impossible. Thus you need fallback options.

Log into the DPMT system and take a detailed look through the list of proposed projects. You must be on campus or the School’s VPN to access DPMT.

Read the details of all projects that seem interesting, paying attention to “Essential Skills” and “Completion Criteria”. We try hard to make sure you get a project of your choice, but this is not always possible. Some projects are extremely popular, but many can only be allocated to one student. We also cannot guarantee that you will be assigned a project in your specialism area.

In the DPMT system you can register interest in projects. Start by registering interest in 5 projects. Try to do this before 3 February , as supervisors will be encouraged to review students for suitability at that point. Do not worry about your preference ranking at this stage. You may need to register interest in a few more projects later (see below).

If you register interest in a project, then you must contact the supervisor (and, ideally, the co-supervisor as well if there is one) and ask to discuss the project. Please see if there is guidance about how to do this in the project description. Just clicking a button in DPMT alone achieves nothing. This will give you a chance to learn more about the project and about the supervisor(s). It will also give the supervisor(s) a chance to assess if you have the right skills to do the project. Some supervisors may not be able to meet with you in person, in which case you will need to discuss the project via video chat or email. Some supervisors also hold pre-tests or group meetings to assess candidates.

The supervisor will then mark you as either “very suitable”, “suitable” or “unsuitable” for the project in the DPMT system. Normally, the only reason for being “unsuitable” is the student does not have the “Essential Skills” to undertake the project.

If you get marked “unsuitable” for some of your first 5 projects of interest, you need to register interest in a few more until you are “suitable” for 5. Please start doing this at least 4-5 days before the final selection deadline. Do not register interest in large numbers of projects, because you’d be wasting everybody’s time.

You can rank your projects in order of preference. We try to take these into account as far as possible, but remember that you might be assigned to any of your “suitable” projects, including your last choice. So choose carefully.

Getting the project you want

To maximise your chances of getting a project you want:

  • Look at the project list to see how many other students registered interest in a given project. If that number is high, and the project does not have capacity for several students, then you are unlikely to get it. Choose a different project instead.
  • Do not select all your projects from the same supervisor.
  • Do not select all your projects in a narrow subject area.
  • Consider interesting projects outside your specialism area.

If you do not register interest/attain “suitability” for 5 projects, you will be de-prioritized in the allocation. This means a significantly higher chance that you don’t get assigned to any project, and will have to choose from whatever projects are left over at the end.

See the timetable for the the deadline for the project selection phase. The final project allocation will be made shortly after that (see timetable).

If you have questions, the IPP/MSc project Piazza instance is a good venue for them.

When choosing projects, some issues you should consider are:

  • Do you genuinely possess the essential skills listed in the proposal?
  • Will you find the project interesting?
  • Does it suit your degree?
  • Are you up to the intellectual requirements of the project?

Project selection FAQ

Q: Does it help to register interest in a project early? A: There is no first-come first-serve for projects. It does not matter at all who registers interest in a project first; as long as you are marked suitable you will be a potential candidate for that project.

Q: Will I increase my odds of getting my top pick (or top 2 or 3) if I only register interest for that 1 (or 2 or 3) project(s)? A: No. It will decrease the odds. Our matchmaking system allocates students with five suitable projects first, so your preferences count for much less if you don’t have five.

Q: What if I do not meet the essential requirements but I am a quick learner and a hard worker? A: Many of our projects assume that you are both of those things in addition to meeting the essential requirements. Trying to bluff your way into a project is unlikely to be to your advantage.

Q: If I select an “Easy” project, does that mean I can’t get a high mark (e.g., 75+) on it? A: Generally, all projects can be expanded or executed in an unusually impressive way. If you worry a project that interests you might be an exception, ask the proposer.

Allocation of Projects and Supervisors to Students

The MSc project coordinator will allocate each student a project and MSc supervisor on the basis of the preferences expressed by students and the supervision load of individual supervisors. There will inevitably be difficulties when more than one student wishes to do the same project. Some supervisors’ proposals are much more popular than others. Students should not necessarily expect to get their first preference of project, or even (in rare cases) any of the preferences that they stated. This process of assigning students to supervisors and projects will be completed by a date given in the timetable .

These initial assignments of students to projects happens this early in the semester, so that the supervisors, together with the IPP tutors, can deliver to their MSc students the compulsory taught module IPP . However, there is flexibility in changing supervisors in at least two ways. First, a member of staff can, if they choose, delegate supervising duties to a member of research staff (with the researcher’s agreement). However, the staff member remains responsible for ensuring that the supervision meets acceptable standards. Secondly, a student can also choose to change supervisors, provided they get agreement from their existing supervisor and the proposed new supervisor. If there are problems between a student and supervisor that they can’t sort out themselves, then the student can consult with their Personal Tutor.

This flexibility for changing supervisor remains, until the deadline for changes to projects and supervisors given in the timetable . It is not possible to change supervisors after this date.

Plagiarism and other Academic Misconduct

Remember the good scholarly practice requirements of the University regarding work for credit. You can find guidance at the School page . This also has links to the relevant University pages.

See also the following general guide on how to avoid plagiarism .

Progress reports

Progress reports on your MSc projects are due in July; see the timetable for specifics.

The progress reports will NOT be graded. They are meant to be

  • informational, for your supervisor and second-marker to verify that you are progressing and that you understand what you are doing;
  • additional helpful practice with respect to the final report on your MSc projects, due in August.

The report should be 2-3 pages. It should specify:

  • The goal of your project
  • The methods you are using
  • What you have accomplished so far
  • What remains to be done to complete the project.

Submitting progress reports : Students submit their progress report on the LEARN page of DISS, menu item Assessment and then Progress Report on the page.

The Dissertation

The project is only assessed on the basis of a final written dissertation. Additional material, such as the code you submit, may be taken into account in case of doubt, but you should make sure that all the work you have done is carefully described in the dissertation document. All 60-credit MSc dissertations must conform to the following format: (The following limits on the length do not apply to EPCC, DSTI Dissertation (Distance Learning), Masters Dissertation (Design Informatics), and CDT thesis.)

The strict upper bound on the length is 40 pages for normal 60-credit MSc dissertations, excluding front matter (title, abstract, declaration) and bibliography. Theses should not be shorter than 20 pages. Where appropriate, the dissertation may additionally contain appendices in which relevant program listings, experimental data, circuit diagrams, formal proofs, etc. may be included. However, students should keep in mind that they are marked on the quality of the dissertation, not its length. The referees are not required to read any appendices.

The dissertation must be word-processed using LaTeX and must use the School of Informatics infthesis.cls style file according to the skeleton template provided. Any style changes to this LaTeX template (e.g., font size, page size, margins, or anything else) are strictly prohibited .

Additional points about building the thesis using LaTeX:

  • The required infthesis.cls style file is installed on all DICE machines. If you run LaTeX on your personal computer you will need to install the following two files found on DICE: /usr/share/texmf/tex/latex/informatics/infthesis/infthesis.cls and /usr/share/texmf/tex/latex/common/logos/eushield.sty.
  • Template files skeleton.tex, mybibfile.bib, skeleton.pdf can be downloaded here . The first two of these generate the skeleton thesis document with an example bibliography file, and illustrate correct use of the style. If you compile them yourself, you should get a document that looks like skeleton.pdf. Your dissertation must follow the example usage given in skeleton.tex.
  • Additional documentation about LaTeX and LaTeX use within the School can be found here .

On submission of their dissertation, students will be required to certify that their dissertation satsifies these requirements on the length and style.

The typical structure of an Informatics MSc thesis is as follows:

  • Title page with abstract.
  • Introduction : an introduction to the document, clearly stating the hypothesis or objective of the project, motivation for the work and the results achieved. The structure of the remainder of the document should also be outlined.
  • Background : background to the project, previous work, exposition of relevant literature, setting of the work in the proper context. This should contain sufficient information to allow the reader to appreciate the contribution you have made.
  • Description of the work undertaken : this may be divided into chapters describing the conceptual design work and the actual implementation separately. Any problems or difficulties and the suggested solutions should be mentioned. Alternative solutions and their evaluation should also be included.
  • Analysis or Evaluation : results and their critical analysis should be reported, whether the results conform to expectations or otherwise and how they compare with other related work. Where appropriate evaluation of the work against the original objectives should be presented.
  • Conclusion : concluding remarks and observations, unsolved problems, suggestions for further work.
  • Bibliography .

In addition, the dissertation must be accompanied by an ethics statement and an own-work declaration, as in the provided template. Your IPP should have planned for the projects ethics requirements, and review the academic conduct section above.

Writing a dissertation is time-consuming. Doing it well can take as long as four weeks of full-time work. You should write up explanations, results, and discussion as you go; this reduces the risk you will run out of time, and often clarifies and improves the research. Do not leave writing up until the last couple of weeks.

Some guidelines on the style of an MSc thesis.

  • Focus on your own work . If previous work is provides essential context, cite it and direct the reader to it. Never copy and paste material from elsewhere into your dissertation and edit it.
  • Keep the sections on Introduction and Background brief . Mention only background and related work that is necessary to understand and evaluate your work. (E.g., definitions what are used later in your theorems/proofs, or data on the performance of other methods so that you can compare it to your results.)
  • Apart from what is necessary (see item above), do not do a lengthy repetition/discussion of background and related work in your dissertation. You already received credit for planning and review in IPP. This material must not be repeated without correctly citing this prior work (see Academic Conduct section). Most students will not want to repeat material from their IPP, as they will have an improved and more focussed view of the subject matter by the time they write their final project.
  • Write your dissertation in a brief and concise style. Do not waste words. Do not repeat youself. Say it once, but clearly.
  • Pay attention to the bibliography. We recommend that you read the guidelines for bibliography entries - it's easy to get this right, and failure to do so is a sign of sloppiness that the reader may suspect extends to other aspects of your work.

Some links to lectures on writing:

  • Informatics Lecture 1. Getting started with writing your dissertation - July 2020 (21.11mins).
  • Informatics Lecture 2. Writing your dissertation: IMRaD - July 2020 (19.29mins)
  • Informatics Lecture 3. Writing Dissertations - Being Concise - July 2020 (27.33mins)

Computing Resources

The standard computing resource we provide is 24/7 access to communally used DICE machines; we cannot guarantee access to or a specific lab or specific machine, reliable constant remote access, or exclusive use of any machine.

By default, you and the project supervisor are responsible for providing any and all resources required to complete the project. If necessary, the supervisor should discuss any exceptional requirements with support and/or the ITO, and receive their approval before writing the proposal.

Technical problems during project work are only considered for resources we provide; no technical support, compensation for lost data, extensions for time lost due to technical problems with external hard- and software as provided will be given, except where this is explicitly stated as part of a project specification and adequately resourced at the start of the project.

Students must submit their project by the deadline (see the timetable of events ). Students need to submit an electronic copy and archive software as detailed below. Paper copies are not required.

Electronic Copy

Students must submit a PDF version of their thesis. These are included in an electronic archive that is accessible to future students. If there are good reasons why a thesis cannot be archived, ensure your supervisor knows the reasons and tick the appropriate box on the submission page.

Generating your thesis in pdf format should be straightforward, using LaTeX (or similar), or a “save to PDF” feature in most word processors. Take care to ensure that all figures, tables and listings are correctly incorporated into the pdf file you plan to submit.

Submit your PDF using this form .

When you submit the electronic copy of your thesis you will also be asked to provide an archive file (tar or zip) containing all the project materials. Students should use this to preserve any software they have generated, source, object and make files, together with any essential data. This material is not marked directly, but may be used to assess the accuracy of claims in the report. It should contain sufficient material for examiners to assess the completion of the project, the quality of the project, and the amount of work required to complete the project.

You should create a directory, for example named PROJECT , in your file space specifically for the purpose. Please follow the accepted practice of creating a README file which documents your files and their function. This directory should be compressed and then submitted, together with the electronic version of the thesis, via the submission webpage .

Your README should make clear where any data that you used came from, how it was processed, and how any outputs can be generated from the code that you have included. You do not normally need to include large datasets, model outputs, or model checkpoints in your archive. However, sometimes such data might be useful for follow-up projects in future years, or could be important for checking your work. Please discuss with your supervisor what to include.

Project Assessment

Projects are marked independently by the supervisor (1st marker) and the (centrally allocated) 2nd marker. The 1st and 2nd marker are not allowed to discuss marks until after both have filed their marking forms. Once both markers have filed their forms, they discuss the final mark, and one of them (usually the 1st marker) files the Agreed Mark Form. (If you fail to agree, then explain why on this form.) In certain circumstances the project will go to moderation (see below).

Projects are assessed in terms of a number of basic and other criteria. Only the dissertation is used for assessment. See also the common marking scheme . Knowledge of these criteria will help you to plan your project and also when writing up. They include:

  • Understanding of the problem
  • Completion of the work
  • Quality of the work
  • Quality of the dissertation
  • Knowledge of the literature
  • Critical evaluation of previous work
  • Critical evaluation of own work
  • Justification of design decisions
  • Solution of conceptual problems
  • Amount of work
  • Evidence of outstanding merit e.g. originality
  • Inclusion of material worthy of publication

Marks in the range of 45-49 allow a re-submission of the thesis by the student within 3 months, which will need to be re-marked (Taught Assessment Regulation 58). The marking guidelines can be found here and the policy on moderation can be found here .

Markers can find electronic copies of reports here . (Access problems? Contact Computing support to give you access.)

Marking is done via the webmark system . (Access problems? If you are UoE staff without an Informatics co-supervisor: Contact Computing support to give you access. If you are external and have an Informatics co-supervisor: Consult with your co-supervisor. It is his/her responsibility to file the marking form.)

Extensions are permitted and Extra Time Adjustments (ETA) for extensions are permitted. Please refer to Rule 3 here for further details. Please see Learn for the number of extension days that are permitted.

Important Dates

All the deadlines for the various tasks, including the deadline for submitting the thesis, can be found in the Timetable of Events .

While a demonstration is not a compulsory component of your MSc summer project, there are many circumstances in which providing your supervisor and your second marker with a demo will enable them to assess your achievements more accurately.

If you do decide to give them a demo, then your examiners will need to be convinced that:

  • you actually did something,
  • what you did was significant and
  • you understand what you did.

You should also try to educate the examiners by clearly presenting:

  • what was the problem you were trying to solve,
  • how you tried to solve it, and
  • what the results were.

As a guide to pitching the level of your explanations, assume that your examiners are ignorant of the particular problem you are investigating, but have a general background in the subject area. Often the second examiner is from outside your project area. So, be sure to introduce your project properly, don't just dive into the middle. What were the aims of the project, how did you go about achieving them, what results did you obtain, what difficulties did you have?

In a typical demo, you might:

  • lay down rules about when the audience can ask questions
  • explain what the project was about
  • explain what you're going to show
  • show it, but don't spend lots of time describing low-level implementation detail; stick at the `knowledge level' for the most part
  • try to cover as much of the functionality as you reasonably can, so in general don't dwell too long on just one or two aspects
  • say what else you might have done if you'd had a bit more time

Not all projects will follow this outline; modify it to suit your own particular project.

A demo should take about 20 minutes. You will probably find that this is quite a short time, but it is good practice to do it in this time because this is typically the time you will have to demo a system in other scenarios; e.g., at conferences. Given that 20 minutes is not long, you should:

  • Plan your demo carefully to cover the relevant details in the allotted time.
  • Make an outline of the demo including time to explain the problem, the solution and results.
  • Skip minor details if there isn't enough time.
  • Practise the demo beforehand, perhaps with another student.
  • Consult with your supervisor over your outline.
  • Make drawings, charts and tables to clarify the whole context and simplify presentation.
  • Pre-store results displays on the computer if it takes a long time to generate them. How long it takes the computer to go through a demo varies by the load; hence, it might be better to avoid too much on-line demonstration if possible.

Study Hub Blog

Structuring a dissertation  

Our post in Semester 1 ‘What makes a good dissertation?’ made it clear that markers believed structure and organisation was central to performing well in a dissertation.    

Below you will find a list of some of the structural elements you could use and some general guidance on what you should focus on in each section. Remember that different subjects may do things differently, so always check the guidelines for your discipline.    

  • Title : this tells the reader what your work is about. It should be succinct, specific and representative of your research. Check the style guides for your discipline to see if this page has to be formatted in a certain way.      
  • Abstract : this offers a brief summary of the dissertation. It should outline why you undertook your research, the methodological approach you adopted, the results of your dissertation and implications for policy or future research.     
  • Acknowledgements : this is where you mention individuals who have helped with your work. Reading other dissertations in the field will help you identify the kind of people you should be acknowledging and the way to do this.     
  • Contents list : this makes clear the structure of the dissertation. Any imbalance in space devoted to different sections of content will become clear here. This is a useful check on whether you need to join sections or create new ones.   
  • Introduction : you should use this section to expand the material summarised in the abstract and to signpost the rest of the dissertation.   
  • Literature review : in this section, you need to situate your dissertation in the existing body of research. To do this, you should summarise the current state of research related to your topic, critique it and identify the gap in the literature you are seeking to fill. More resources are available on the Study Hub Learning Resources Literature review pages and in this [link] Study Hub Blog post.   
  • Methodology : a detailed account of how you conducted the work. For example, if you did a statistical analysis on secondary data, did you weight the dataset? What were the statistical techniques you used? Why did you make your particular methodological choices?     
  • Results : it is useful to present your analysis in a way that is typical of journal articles in your field. You should also think about whether you want to move from the general to specific or vice versa when presenting your results. Giving equal weight, in terms of word count, to each of your hypotheses/research questions is important. Remember to link your work to the broader literature/context.   
  • Conclusion : here, you should present a brief summary of your research, make its limitations clear, explain its implications for theory/policy, and highlight avenues for future research.    
  • References/bibliography : this section must include at least all of the work you cited (check which one you need to produce), in the style required in your discipline. As you edit your text, you may remove some references and add others. Be sure to update this section as you do so and double check at the end to make sure everything is included.   
  • Appendices : include those things you want your reader to see, but which would interrupt the flow if placed in the main text. Reference the appendices in the main text and check if they are included in the word count.     

Remember to check your programme handbook or course materials for what is expected/required in your subject.   

Have a look at the Study Hub Learning Resources Dissertations and research projects page for more resources.    

Bibliography    

University of Leicester (n.d.) ‘Writing a dissertation.’ Available at: https://www2.le.ac.uk/offices/ld/all-resources/writing/writing-resources/writing-dissertation [Accessed 31st July, 2020]    

University of Sussex (n.d.) ‘Practical dissertation sections.’ Available at: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/skillshub/index.php?id=486 [Accessed 5th March, 2021]    

University of Sussex (n.d.) ‘Theoretical dissertation sections.’ Available at: http://www.sussex.ac.uk/skillshub/index.php?id=487 [Accessed 5th March, 2021]  

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Edinburgh Research Archive

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Historical thesis and dissertation collection

dissertation university of edinburgh

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This collection contains a selection of important historical manuscripts produced by scholars from the University of Edinburgh's past.

Recent Submissions

Emigration from the british isles, 1815-1921 , family formation in victorian scotland , artemis cult in sicily and southern italy in the archaic and classical periods , cultic centralization in the old testament , the first and second earls of rutland and their part in the central and local politics of mid-tudor england , navigating northumbria: mobility, allegory, and writing travel in early medieval northumbria , in the company of nurses: the history of the british army nursing service in the great war, edinburgh university press, october 2014 , scottish overseas trade, 1275/86-1597 , a study of poor relief administration in edinburgh city parish, between 1845-1894 , the making of the crofting community, 1746-1930 , study of the effects of soil compaction on pore size distribution and the availability of water to plants , africa's small population: its cause and remedy. , application of psychological tests to certain problems of native education in east africa , essay on the botanical and geographical distribution of algae (accompanied by a collection of 'seaweeds' from the firth of forth). , study in charcoal , treatment and rehabilitation of delinquent women , attitude of british travellers to north america between 1790 and 1850 , on a laboratory method of testing gas coals for yield of gas and illuminating power , dr. brown and john ruskin , some problems in variation and heredity .

dissertation university of edinburgh

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COMMENTS

  1. Theses

    Edinburgh Research Archive (ERA) Access Information: Freely available. Description: Full-text digital institutional repository of research published by the members of the University of Edinburgh. Includes theses and dissertations, book chapters, working papers, technical reports, journal pre-prints and peer-reviewed journal reprints.

  2. Theses and dissertations

    Making your thesis open access. Theses and dissertations from the University of Edinburgh are published online in the Edinburgh Research Archive (ERA). In 2020, UoE theses were downloaded 829,804 times from ERA (source IRUS-UK download report). The University has an expectation that a PhD thesis is a document available for public consultation.

  3. PDF Research Dissertation Guidelines

    Word limit. Your research dissertation should be around 10,000 words. There is an absolute maximum of 12,000 words. This includes everything apart from figure legends, tables, appendices and references. The marker will stop reading after 12,000 words, and anything after that will not be marked (except for your reference list).

  4. Home

    Dissertation and Thesis Festival Dates for 2023 - 2024 . Semester 1: Monday 30th October - 10th November 2023 ; ... The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336, VAT Registration Number GB 592 9507 00, and is ...

  5. Law thesis and dissertation collection

    Worldmaking powers of law and performance: queer politics beyond/against neoliberal legalism . Prado Fernandes, André (The University of Edinburgh, 2022-12-15) This thesis examines the worldmaking powers of the law and of performances, two crucial sites/strategies of historical importance for LGBT and queer activists and artists.

  6. Mathematics thesis and dissertation collection

    Quantitative finance informed machine learning . Sabate Vidales, Marc (The University of Edinburgh, 2023-10-13) This PhD thesis consists of two parts. In the first part, we develop and study deep learning-based methods for approximating high-dimensional parabolic (path-dependent) linear PDEs parametrised by the model parameters.

  7. PDF Taught MSc Student Dissertation Handbook 2021-22

    Dissertation Handbook 2021-22 18 January 2022 If you require this document (or any of the internal University of Edinburgh online resources mentioned in this document) in an alternative format e.g. large print, on coloured paper etc, please contact [email protected] and we will be happy to help.

  8. MSc Project Guide, 2022/23

    18-Aug-23. submission of dissertation. 11-Sep-23. First and second markers complete their project marking. 15-Sep-23. First and second markers agree a mark for the project, or fail to agree a mark, and the supervisor fills in the agreed (or failure to agree) mark form. 22-Sep-23. All project moderation complete.

  9. Informatics thesis and dissertation collection

    Analysis of visual SLAM for forest environments . Garforth, James (The University of Edinburgh, 2024-05-24) The objective of this dissertation is to investigate visual navigation for robotics in the forest domain. Visual Simultaneous Localisation and Mapping (SLAM) is a core technology for deployment of robotic systems in many ...

  10. Dissertations

    The dissertation for the MSc by Research takes the form of either a research proposal (for example, where a student is planning to progress to a PhD), or an independent research project. Further details on dissertation requirements for your programme can be found below. ... The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in ...

  11. Structuring a dissertation

    Our post in Semester 1 'What makes a good dissertation? ... The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336, VAT Registration Number GB 592 9507 00, and is acknowledged by the UK authorities as a " ...

  12. Engineering thesis and dissertation collection

    Using machine learning for long-term track bed behaviour analysis and maintenance scheduling optimisation . Popov, Konstantin; Pankaj (The University of Edinburgh, 2024-03-13) The purpose of this study is to present a novel approach for evaluating railway track quality using machine learning algorithms. The work will focus mainly on track ...

  13. Moment Bruce Springsteen handed dissertation about himself from student

    A Bruce Springsteen superfan who penned his university dissertation on the rock legend managed to hand him the thesis during a gig. Nathan Collett, 23, made the 186-mile trip from his home near Liverpool to the singer's gig at Murrayfield in Edinburgh last May.. Nathan's research paper was titled: 'Brilliant Disguises: An Analysis of Masculinity Through the Works and Life of Bruce Springsteen ...

  14. MSc Dissertations

    The School keeps copies of some dissertations from previous years that are available for you to view. ... CMS Login MyEd Schools & departments The University of Edinburgh College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. The University of Edinburgh is a charitable body, registered in Scotland, with registration number SC005336, VAT Registration ...

  15. PDF Taught MSc Student Dissertation Handbook 2023-24

    PART A: POLICIES AND REGULATIONS. 1. Dissertation deadline: Thursday 8th August 2024 at 23:59 (UK Time) The dissertation deadline is set by the Postgraduate Teaching Office and is the same for all MSc programme including MSc by Research programmes across the School of Social and Political Science.

  16. Historical thesis and dissertation collection

    Family formation in Victorian Scotland . Gilloran, Alan James (The University of Edinburgh, 1985) The thesis represents a micro-level study of the processes of family formation exhibited by iron and textile workers in the context of two Scottish towns during the second half of the nineteenth century.