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How to Create a Research Timeline for Your Thesis
5-minute read
- 21st May 2023
Beginning a dissertation can feel both thrilling and overwhelming. One of the best things you can do to prepare for the exciting journey of doing a dissertation is to design a comprehensive timeline as your guide. Here we will take you step by step through creating your thesis timeline and provide some example templates, so you’ll be well-prepared to begin your dissertation work.
Reasons for Creating a Timeline
There are many benefits to crafting a detailed dissertation timeline. In addition to helping with time management and meeting crucial deadlines, your timeline will also help you stay motivated by reviewing the tasks you have completed as you progress. A thorough timeline will be valuable during your dissertation proposal and useful if you are applying for grants or other additional funding.
Ste0ps for Creating a Timeline for Your Thesis:
- Research and record all requirements and deadlines.
Before you write out your timeline, ensure you know all of your program’s requirements and deadlines. Academic institutions often require you to complete your dissertation within a specified timeframe.
There are likely several recommended or mandatory deadlines for approval of certain items by your adviser (and possibly the rest of your committee members). Gather all these dates beforehand so you can allot an appropriate amount of time to meet your deadlines.
It will be beneficial to meet with your adviser to understand when you are expected to complete the major phases of your dissertation work and to confirm that there aren’t any other requirements or deadlines that you may not be aware of.
- List all of your tasks and bundle them into phases.
Now that you’ve assembled your dates, working backward from your deadlines is a good rule of thumb. List all of the required tasks that must be completed to meet each milestone, from coming up with your research questions to writing each chapter of your dissertation .
Even though your list will be unique to your research project, it can help to refer to a thesis checklist . It’s also helpful to assemble tasks into different phases (e.g., dissertation proposal, research recruitment). Grouping tasks into phases gives anyone looking at your timeline a quick overview of your research plan.
- Organize your tasks into a schedule and assign task deadlines.
Now it’s time to build your timeline. There are many different free templates available online, from straightforward lists of deliverables to colorful options with room for notes and customization.
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A popular organizational approach for thesis timelines is a Gantt chart , which is a type of bar chart often used in project management in which the length of the bar corresponds to the time the task will take. The best choice for you will depend on the specifics of your research study and personal preferences. Whichever option you select, make sure you can easily edit and revise it as need be.
Sanity-Saving Tips:
● Pay attention to your work style. Some people are more productive when writing in short bursts, while others write better after taking time to get into the zone. Some people choose to start writing parts of their thesis while still conducting research, while others prefer to focus on one phase at a time. Set yourself up for success by reflecting on what type of schedule will help you create the best quality work.
● Schedule breaks. Almost everyone will work better after a well-deserved break. Make sure to schedule regular breaks into your timeline, as well as provide enough time to sleep, eat well, and do anything else you need to do to safeguard your well-being.
● Always have a plan B. Your dissertation is an extensive endeavor with many moving parts. It’s impossible to anticipate and plan for every conceivable event, but it’s helpful to expect something may occur that will cause a deviation from your original timeline. Perhaps study recruitment takes longer than you expected, or one of your committee members gets sick and you have to postpone your dissertation proposal. After you draft your timeline, check that it is not so strict that any disruption will cause a total derailment of your plan. Aim to strike a balance between goals that will inspire you to progress steadfastly and have some leeway in your timeline for the inevitable curveball that life will throw at you somewhere along the way.
Following these three steps will help you draft a timeline to steer the course of your dissertation work: research and record all requirements and deadlines; work backward from your dissertation deadline and assemble your task lists; and organize your tasks into a timeline.
Don’t forget to include ample time for editing and proofreading your dissertation . And if you are interested in any help from us, you can try a sample of our services for free . Best of luck in writing your dissertation!
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Top 10 Thesis Timeline Templates with Samples and Examples
Madhusheel Arora
Authority figures. We all look up to them for guidance or for solutions to our worldly woes, as we go about our daily lives. Apart from political leaders and our family doctors, there is only one kind of doctor, globally, that can propound a thesis.
Once a thesis proposal passes muster through a select panel of distinguished experts and gets their approval, we have PhD doctor being gifted to the society.
A huge achievement for the individual who has earned a doctorate.
It is not at all child’s play to write a thesis. It takes time, patience, and lots of revisions before a thesis proposal can be submitted. It is essential to get your timelines right, as well as the milestones that will mark this long journey.
Meanwhile, at this stage, if you want to have a better idea of how timelines operate in a business lifecycle and how to record business history, please click here .
This blog takes you through thesis timelines templates that offer the best-in-class expertise on taking the first step towards a thesis. From Pre-Proposal Planning to the time when you publish the PhD defense date, everything needs to be marked on a timeline. Each of these thesis presentation ppt templates are content ready, 100% customizable, and editable.
Let’s take a tour of these templates where you just need to key in your information, and you have world-class resources at hand to ace your thesis work with a specified timeline, always in sync with the required scheduling.
Template 1: A Comprehensive Guide to Thesis Defense
This 13-slide complete deck is a treasure house for PhD students. Use this to create a five-year roadmap with the first year meant for preparation of PhD Proposal, selecting an advisor. The first three years require 40-hour weeks. Between the third and the fourth year, the scholar (you) will have their proposal preparation exam. In the 4th year, you start working on the PhD Thesis preparation. The defense is scheduled in the 5th year or could stretch beyond. The DOs and DON’Ts for thesis content are simple, but valuable techniques that one could forget in the heat of the moment. Use this template to also anticipate the questions that may be asked and the importance of a back-up plan. Download now!
DOWNLOAD NOW
Template 2: Five-Yearly Developing and Designing Guidelines for Thesis Roadmap
Use this pre-designed PPT Template to deliver the critical deliverable, steps involved, time frame and more into a five-year plan of action. You start with the problem statement and your motivation for the thesis. Then, you develop some guidelines, before researching what these mean in real-life and finally by giving closure to your problem statement. Use this presentation template as a beneficial communication tool that facilitates tasks and helps you achieve targets. Download now!
Template 3: Thesis Presentation Audience Research Analysis Structure Timeline
Writing your Thesis Defense Presentation can be unnerving, despite your age or academic experience. This 12-slide PPT Template offers you key solutions/suggestions to get this right. Getting started, how to add a bit of structure and getting adequate support to your ideas from books, all will help. Focus on the introduction and do not succumb to the temptation to rush through your thesis presentation is the best advice. Download now!
Template 4: Quarterly Thesis Subjectively Enrollment Roadmap
This PPT Template divides the longish process of earning a PhD into quarterly milestones that will help you research your subject better. After two quarters of subjective research, you may finally realign your point of view, if needed. Then, this template offers the option of finalizing your claim with the action being either of research completion or submission of thesis. Download now and pave the way for further training and events.
Template 5: Projected Research Proposal For Thesis Timeline Analysis
When working toward a PhD thesis, use this PPT Template to organize tasks like framing the thesis proposal; pre-proposal planning; proposal writing and revisions. Use this presentation template to map those tasks to a timeline in months with specific beginning and end dates as well. Download on and get on the highway to productivity in thesis timeline analysis.
Template 6: Projected Research Proposal for Thesis Timeline Analysis Presentation Model
Here, the presentation template, on the lines of the previous slide, allows you to divide your thesis into phases with the defined timelines being weeks. After reading and research, you have the option to present and interpret the topic (separate spheres). Use this template to showcase how mindful you are about time management. Download now!
Template 7: Projected Research Proposal for Thesis Timeline Analysis Elements PPT Portfolio
This PPT Template is meant to showcase how you can use a 30-60-90 Day plan to the thesis preparation stages. The categorization allows for each of these milestone periods to be divided into elements, comments, and actions. Major elements of the thesis like proposal review, preparing the research and progress report and scheduling and planning the thesis defense can get their timeline here. Get this presentation template now!
Template 8: Timeline for Thesis Research Paper Proposal
The five-year timeline thesis research proposal template is designed to offer you the freedom to punch in milestones. These are to give you an attractive backdrop. Please make sure you list these seven major components of work toward your theses in appropriate timelines. This will all come handy at the time of dissertation defense. The seven major chunks of milestones you need to place on this timeline are: Title Page; Introduction; Literature Review; Methodology; Results; Discussion and Conclusions. Make sure you get what you deserve. Download this template now.
Template 9: Quarterly Thesis Conclusion with Tutorial Workshop Roadmap
This PPT Template lists the thesis timeline into quarterly chunks, linking each with activities. From thesis initiation in a quarter, you move to submitting these to a research committee, where its composition and the members decide whether you can go ahead. Then, you get on with the PhD course work, ending with thesis submission. Attending training and events are also a major part of the research involved in this thesis timeline presentation template. Get it now!
Template 10: Six-month subject drafting and thesis completion roadmap
This PPT Template helps you excel at productive management of the thesis with its emphasis on processes. From completing your first draft on the thesis to final submission, you can use this presentation template to accelerate your move toward earning a PhD. Download now!
Knowledge meets action
It is imperative that there is some practical, everyday improvement in people’s lives with the applications of the knowledge outlined in a thesis. Even as this could take time, it is critical that you stay with your thesis timeline all the way for better long-term results. For instance, a number of theses on diversity and inclusion have proved its positive impact. If you want to conduct a comprehensive course on diversity and inclusion, SlideTeam has one for you. Click here to download our comprehensive guide to diversity and inclusion with training material included.
P.S. Another thing where time is of critical importance is your response to customer queries, experiences and service provided. Download our comprehensive training module on Customer Service, with hands-on activities and training material, with a click here .
FAQs on Thesis Timeline
What is thesis timeline.
A thesis allows you to put forward a subject or topic and back it up with a long piece of writing involving original study of the subject. A dissertation timeline is the map of how you will conduct this study over time. It is an original work, so there are a few milestones that contribute to its successful execution. Earning a thesis is, of course, an rigorous academic task, but it also requires people skills like regular meetings with your dissertation guide/advisor, preparing for dissertation defense. etc. Hence, time management is critical to earning a thesis.
Can you write a thesis in six months?
A tricky question this, especially if you are aware of the adage: ‘Work’ expands to fill the time you are given to complete it. Simply put, yes, a thesis can be written in six months, but for this to be done, the field research, accessing and reading good material, and the planning need to be there first. As you would expect, the above activities are all time-consuming. There can be no loose ends in the final dissertation thesis, hence, the writing can be done in six months. The key is to remember the saying, “It took me 20 years to become an overnight star.”
How many months does a thesis take?
For quality and originality, it is advisable that you draw up a thesis timeline and stick to it. Usually, the time to earn a thesis is more than a year. Yet, it pays to go back to first principles, when you want your thesis early or in months. The thesis is your highest academic achievement and universities around the world have varying expectations/rules on the time they grant it in. Ideally, getting that PhD degree in months is possible, but the key deliverables are the quality of research, its publication in a paper of international repute and real-life applications that the thesis spawns.
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Senior Thesis Timeline
Most students complete the thesis during their last two semesters of enrollment, but we encourage students to begin thinking about their thesis timeline as early as the sophomore year. Your Honors College advisor or a member of the thesis team are excellent resources for planning your thesis timeline.
The Honors Thesis in 10 Steps
It’s never too early to start thinking about the senior thesis. We recommend that students create a thesis file (physical or electronic) during their first college year. The file can be a repository for interesting papers or projects; musings on coursework, internship or volunteer experiences, education away opportunities or undergraduate research; and notes about favorite professors.
SCHC 390 is a pass/fail course typically taken in the junior year to prepare students to undertake the senior thesis paper or project. The course is designed to help students refine the question that will drive their thesis project and develop a proposal describing how they will answer the question and the significance of their project.
Pharmacy students and students in the College of Engineering and Computing are not required to enroll in SCHC 390 but must submit a thesis proposal at least one semester prior to completing their thesis project.
Each student (with the exception of those in Pharmacy and the College of Engineering and Computing) is required to form a thesis committee, consisting of a director and a second reader. The thesis director is a USC faculty member with expertise in the thesis topic area who will help shape the project parameters, offer guidance and evaluate the thesis project. The director also serves as the instructor of record for SCHC 499 (or approved thesis course equivalents) and assigns a letter grade for each semester a student takes thesis credits. As such, students should submit a signed director contract prior to beginning SCHC 499.
The second reader is an individual with knowledge and experience to support the project who will provide research or project development support, review drafts of the work and provide feedback. The second reader does not have to be affiliated with USC but cannot be an undergraduate student or a close friend or family member. The selection of the second reader should be made in concert with the thesis director. Students should identify a second reader and submit their contact information to the Honors College for approval by the midpoint of the semester in which they begin their thesis work.
Students develop a thesis proposal as part of SCHC 390 but should expect to refine that proposal as they begin SCHC 499, especially if their thesis director was not involved in drafting the initial plan. In addition to refining the research question or project purpose and method, students should work with their thesis committees to come up with a more detailed timeline for completing their thesis work, drafting and revising their paper and defending the project.
All Honors College students will complete a minimum of three credit hours of thesis preparation (i.e., SCHC 499 or an approved course equivalent). SCHC 499 is a letter-graded independent study. Students work with their thesis directors to determine “assignments,” due dates and evaluation criteria for a successful thesis project. We recommend that students and thesis directors develop a learning contract, especially during the first semester of thesis work, to ensure that expectations are clear.
Most students enroll in SCHC 499 in their final year at USC and split the credits across two semesters, taking 1 credit hour in the fall and 2 credit hours in the spring. Students should have an initial conversation about their thesis timeline with their Honors advisor late in their sophomore year. BARSC students can read more about the thesis requirements and timeline for their major here .
All thesis projects include a written component, though the paper accompanying a creative or applied thesis project is typically shorter than that associated with a research-based thesis. Students should consult with their thesis directors about specific writing guidelines, as length and format may vary considerably based on the discipline and the nature of the thesis project. More information about the required components for all thesis papers can be found here .
Students are expected to share a final draft of the thesis paper with their committees at least two weeks before the thesis defense.
The thesis defense (part presentation/part conversation) is an opportunity for students to demonstrate what they have learned throughout the thesis process. Students should focus on addressing three main points in the defense: (1) the primary answer to the question they set out to explore, (2) the evidence and interpretations that support that answer and (3) their response to possible objections or alternate answers.
The defense also allows the committee to offer further feedback and to engage in a dialog with the student about the project. Both the director and second reader must be present at the thesis defense, and students are welcome to invite friends, family members and interested others to participate as well.
The defense should take place at least one week before the end of the semester in which the student plans to submit the thesis at a time and place agreed upon by the student and committee members. Students must submit their thesis defense plans to the Honors College (available here ). Students are responsible for reserving a room for the defense. Rooms in HRH can be reserved by completing this online form .
The thesis defense requirement may also be met by participation in the Honors Thesis Symposium. More information about the symposium is available here .
Following the defense, students will make any edits requested by the thesis committee and have the director and second reader sign the thesis title page. The title page should include a space for the dean’s signature, but students are not required to obtain the signature prior to submission. The thesis submission should include the following items in a single Word or PDF document:
- Thesis title page (Use the template provided online.)
- Thesis summary or abstract
- Table of contents
- Body of thesis paper with pages numbered consecutively
In order to certify a student as an Honors College graduate, the thesis must be submitted by the last class day of the semester in which the student completes the project. The thesis is submitted via an online form . In addition to the thesis paper, students may upload one additional file (e.g., documentation of a creative or applied project, plan sets for engineering projects).
File size is limited. Large supplementary files should be stored on an accessible cloud server with a link included in the thesis paper. Students should contact Dr. Tracy Skipper if they encounter problems submitting their thesis.
We encourage students to publish their Honors thesis in Scholar Commons, an institutional repository established through Thomas Cooper Library providing open access to information. In some cases, another publishing venue may be more appropriate. Students should consult their thesis directors about other publishing opportunities prior to submitting their thesis to Scholar Commons.
Students may also elect to have copies of the thesis bound for their own use or for presentation to their thesis committee members. University Printing Services provides binding services , as does the HF Group via Thesis on Demand .
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