Lecture
The process of writing a dissertation is important not only
from the standpoint of obtaining an academic degree. The process of writing a dissertation is a process of forming a scholar.
«... a dissertation is a scholarly work of a qualifying character. Its significance is very great, and not only in the sense of
academic attestation. It is also great for the scholar, especially a young one. The need to stop, look around, sum up, even if only
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intermediate, results, to reflect on what has been done, to look at the problem afresh, more broadly, perhaps to return to
an experiment in a different or more complete formulation, to turn
again to calculations, archives, to the library, the need to write a coherent and well-structured text possessing internal logical unity and carrying a single
idea through from start to finish - all this forms the scholar, makes him more mature and
wiser. As a rule, the degree candidate visibly grows as a specialist before the eyes of those around him as he writes the dissertation...» [17].
The technology of working on a dissertation has the following features compared with other types of research work:
1. The dissertation topic must be approved by the academic council of the organization.
2. Work on the dissertation is conducted by the degree candidate under the guidance of a scientific consultant (for a doctoral dissertation) or a scientific supervisor (for a candidate's dissertation), who are appointed by the academic council of the relevant organization.
3. The main scientific results of the dissertation must be published by the author in the form of scholarly monographs or articles in scientific professional publications of Ukraine or other countries.
4. Approbation of the dissertation materials at
scientific conferences, congresses, symposia, seminars, etc. is mandatory.
5. The formatting of the dissertation manuscript must comply with
the requirements of the Higher Attestation Commission (VAK) of Ukraine, which are published in the VAK Bulletin, as
well as with the requirements of the State Standard of Ukraine DSTU 3008-95 (Fig. 14.4).
6. The final stage of work on the dissertation is its
public defence at a meeting of the specialized academic council.
7. Preparation of the dissertation for defence involves the formatting
of a whole set of documents on the list established by the Higher Attestation Commission of Ukraine.
8. An important stage in preparing the dissertation for defence is the publication of the extended abstract (avtoreferat).
The extended abstract of a dissertation — is a scholarly publication in the form of a
brochure that contains a summary of the dissertation compiled by the author for the conferral of an academic degree.
A typical plan of work on a candidate's dissertation is presented
in Table 14.2.
Table 14.2 Typical plan of work on a candidate's dissertation
Continuation of Table 14.2
PRACTICAL COMPONENT
ANALYSIS OF THE STRUCTURAL ADEQUACY OF A DISSERTATION
Objective of the assignment:
- to learn to carry out a systematic analysis of the structural adequacy
of a dissertation.
Supporting material
One of the most important requirements for the structure of a dissertation text is its adequacy to the set objectives, as well as to the results obtained and published [13].
In this connection, the degree candidate is recommended to carry out a systematic
analysis of the adequacy of the dissertation by constructing a diagram of the content
of the dissertation following the example presented in Fig. 14.5.
Analysis of the structural adequacy of a dissertation makes it possible to reveal
inconsistencies between the objectives, sections, and points of novelty of the dissertation, as well as the existing publications. For example, unresolved tasks, unpublished results, superfluous or,
conversely, missing sections of the dissertation, etc. may be revealed.
Assignment
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1. Draw up a plan for the intended dissertation work on
the topic of your research. Formulate the objectives and expected results of the dissertation research.
2. Carry out an analysis of the structural adequacy of the intended
dissertation.
REVIEW QUESTIONS
1. What academic degrees are conferred within the system of certification
of scientific personnel in Ukraine?
2. Give a definition of a dissertation.
3. What does the abbreviation «VAK» stand for? What activities does the VAK of Ukraine carry out?
4. What activities do specialized academic
councils carry out? In what organizations are they established?
5. List the main features of working on a dissertation
compared with other types of research work.
6. List the main sections of the content of a dissertation.
7. What is the essence of a systematic analysis of the structural adequacy of a dissertation?
CONCLUSIONS
Having studied Chapter 14, you have learned the following:
A dissertation is a qualifying scholarly work that
represents a detailed treatment of a particular topic, claiming for its author the conferral of the academic degree of Candidate or Doctor
of the relevant sciences.
Candidate's and doctoral dissertations are subject to
different requirements. The purpose of writing a candidate's dissertation is
to show that its author has formed as a scholar who has mastered the methods of theoretical and empirical research and is capable of independently carrying out research work. The content
of a candidate's dissertation is the solution of a scientific problem. At the same
time, the content of a doctoral dissertation is the solution of an important
scientific problem, essentially – a scientific discovery.
The main governing body in the system for conferring the degrees of Candidate and Doctor of Sciences in Ukraine is the Higher Attestation Commission (VAK) of Ukraine. The VAK carries out the examination of dissertations and the issuing of diplomas of Candidate and Doctor of Sciences.
Work with degree candidates and the organization of the dissertation defence process locally is carried out by specialized academic councils, which are established under the guidance of the VAK at universities and research institutes.
The features of the technology of working on a dissertation are due to
the fact that a dissertation is a qualifying work for the conferral of an academic degree. In this connection, the integral elements of working on a dissertation are: publication and approbation of the research
materials, formatting of the dissertation manuscript in accordance with the requirements of the VAK, preparation of numerous documents and, finally, the defence of the dissertation at a specialized academic council.
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