masters - struggling to finish

skater_kat

I'm in the final year of my part time Masters. I just have my dissertation left to do (14,000words). After having some rejected proposals over the summer, i got approval in september to go ahead with my study (desktop based- no field work needed).

my schedule is for hand-in at easter, with first draft being done before christmas.

i am very behind and i am really struggling to find the motivation to get it done. i am currently working one day per week and also jobseeking (on JSA) and that takes up a lot of my energy and time. i also manage recieiving support services for my mental health.

basically - i can't see a way forward. i could leave uni now and come out with a postgraduate diploma. i wonder how that might 'look' to employers as opposed to having a MA.

not really money saving as i got full funding to do the masters so it is all paid for, but how do people manage to finish the last bit!

would appreciate some advice/support......

thanks

Froggitt

Same boat here. Dissertation proposal 3,000 words due in today!!!

IMHO finish the masters as it looks ten times better than a diploma. Diplomas to me are what you get for doing metalwork classes........

Break it up into manageable chunks and set targets for each eg lit review by end november, research completed end december, research analysis end january, write up end feb, etc.

MrsManda

Do you have any friends/family who can help give you a boost?
My OH did his Masters distance learning while working FT and found doing the dissertation really difficult in terms of motivation. He works best under pressure so the long deadline didn't help him.
In the end it was a case of writing a strict timetable so he had 'deadlines' every few days and had to hand over his work to me for him to discuss what he'd done so far and work out his next step. I didn't help with the content/writing - it was a subject well above my understanding but it helped him to vocalise his thoughts at me.

Even so he only completed about 2 days before the final deadline and had to do a mad dash to get it bound and handed in on time.

I agree with Froggitt that a Masters is better than a diploma if you can do it.

Idiophreak

I got a job after the last of my exams and was working full time while I did the dissertation and it was really tough. Who wants to work 8 hours, come home and be faced with a couple more hours' work.

In the end I took a week off (my employer gave me a couple of days' study leave, which was good) and locked myself in a room to do the write up.

So glad I did it in the end - my Masters has opened doors for me in my career that a diploma just wouldn't have done...

Froggitt

I quit my job in order to concentrate on completing year 2 and getting a head start on my dissertation......as well as an eight hour day I also was spending four hours a day on the motorway so not much time left for studying. Need to get a new job now the proposal is virtually done.....as well as the 3000 words Ive also trimmed another 1000 out that I can put back into the dissertation proper.

Loanranger

Try to focus on the reason why you started the MA. For career advancement? For career change? To improve your employability? This might help you to see the wood for the trees and get your mojo working again.

To give up now will not help your self esteem and would be such a pity after the work you have already invested.

The graduate job market is so competitive that for some years now people have been been trading up with a Masters degree to give themselves an edge.

A diploma on your CV will tell employers all they need to know... that, in the end, you couldn't or wouldn't stick it out to get the Masters degree. Sounds harsh but the job market is harsh.

I agree totally with others who have suggested a strict timetable of immovable targets, broken up into chunks.
How do you eat an elephant?
A bit at a time!

Voyager2002

A diploma is a lot better than nothing, but why settle for second-best when you are this close to the real thing?

For your dissertation, try to be interested in the question posed in your proposal. Gather ideas and evidence that help you to answer that question; follow your interest, but focus down. See if you can discuss where all this is taking you with an interested friend, or your dissertation supervisor.

From what you say, you are unlikely to have a draft by Christmas, but could still have a perfectly good final thesis by Easter. So don't beat yourself up if you miss the Christmas deadline, but ensure that you have made some real progress by then.

agrinnall

Froggitt wrote: »

IMHO finish the masters as it looks ten times better than a diploma. Diplomas to me are what you get for doing metalwork classes........

Break it up into manageable chunks and set targets for each eg lit review by end november, research completed end december, research analysis end january, write up end feb, etc.

I finished my Masters dissertation in September and I would say that Froggitt's suggested approach is absolutely right. Set targets but don't beat yourself up if you miss the early ones, you should find that as you get closer to the end you'll be more motivated to get it finished - I did all of my writing (22,000 words) in the last 5 weeks. As you're only working 1 day a week you've actually got loads of time, I wasn't working but did the whole thing in less than 4 months with plenty of days doing absolutely nothing on it!

melancholly

how about you aim for your first draft to be an outline..... so a clear indication of what the headings will be and what key references you'll discuss in each section. once you have that done, it's easier to write the sections one at a time, rather than thinking about it as one huge dissertation. you need to go through at the end and link it all up, plus you'll find more references as you go.

once you have an outline and a line of arguement, everything else will fall into place. i find that i need to spend 90% of my time reading and thinking until it falls into place, then the last 10% of time spent writing is quite quick. it's getting it clear in my head that i struggle with!

also, try scheduling meetings well ahead with your supervisor. the shame of turning up having not done anything was always too great for me, so it made me do something, as opposed to being frozen with indecison/fear!

what you're feeling isn't uncommon so don't worry about that, but a few changes in strategy should make it more than achievable to finish it.

good luck.

skater_kat

this is all really really good advice and feedback. very helpful ideas on the practical side of things.

i can see that breaking things into a schedule makes it less overwhelming. i will also try to set deadlines and goals...

also it is useful to hear views about the diploma option...i agree that it could look like poor effort to employers (i did do the MA to get better career prospects) and also i suspect i would end up resenting not finishing. it is true that 1 day a week work is not much when i hear about other people doing it on FT jobs. it helps to know that other people have made it under much more pressured circumstances.

thanks so much for all this input it has been so brilliant to hear words of suppot and advice..

mrsg26

I have no real words of wisdom as I am in a similar situation albeit writing my dissertation for my final honours year. However Im interested in knowing why a Masters is seen as the only way forward in gaining suitable employment? After my BA Hons I am planning on doing a PGDE to qualify as a primary teacher but in Scotland certainly a Postgraduate Diploma is a widely recognised qualification, is that not the case in the rest of the UK? Or does it depend on the intended occupation? I have been studying full time for the last 4 years whilst holding down a job in a bank and doing volunteer work in Primary schools, all whilst raising my 4 yr old daughter. It is worrying to think that an employer would think that I didn't have the motivation or drive to complete a Masters when the reality is entirely different. Sorry for jumping onto someone else's thread I was just curious as to why a Postgrad Diploma is not really seen as a viable option?