Differences Between A Thesis And A Dissertation

Most times we make the mistake of mostly the word thesis and dissertation interchangeable, most people do not even know the difference between a thesis and a dissertation and they ask about your thesis when you are writing a dissertation. Even some institutions make use of this term wrongly which makes it more confusing.

You can definitely be sure that a thesis and a dissertation are not the same thing from this angle. There are lots of online writing paper services that help people with their writing needs. If you have visited any of such sites like wiseessays.com, you will notice that among the numerous writing services they often include term paper, book review, research paper, etc. A thesis and dissertation also falls into this category.

This article tries to distinguish the differences between a thesis and a dissertation, but before going into their definition, let us look at the roots of these words and their origin to have a better understanding.

The roots of the words: The word "thesis" generally has its origin from a Latin word which means to place a proposition which is coined from the Greek word "Titenai". "Titenai" means to place in Greek.

Dissertation gets its name from the Latin Word "dissertare" which means to continue to discuss and the Latin word "disserrere" which means to examine and discuss. From the roots, thesis means to place a proportion or place while dissertation thesis means to continue to discuss or examine.

Let us discuss the definition of these words and what they actually mean as we start noting and unveiling the differences between the words.

WHAT IS A THESIS? A thesis is a piece of writing that people graduating from a master's program are usually expected to write. It showcases the knowledge of such students within the subject matter they have been studying. From the definition it therefore means that at the end of a master's program such a student in it. Write a thesis before they graduate.

WHAT IS A DISSERTATION? Dissertation is associated with a doctoral program to earn a PHD. During a doctoral program students carry out lots of personal research and at the end of their program they produce a dissertation. So a dissertation is a lengthy piece of work which includes original research or expanded research on a new or existing topic. Doctoral students often choose a field or area of study that they wish to explore or carry out this research on.

MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN A THESIS AND A DISSERTATION

We can start by saying one of the main big differences between a thesis and a dissertation is that a thesis is based on existing research while on the other hand, a dissertation requires the doctoral student to conduct his/her own research and then perform analysis on it. Another major standout difference is that a thesis is for master's students while a dissertation is for PHD students.

STRUCTURAL DIFFERENCE BETWEEN A THESIS AND A DISSERTATION

The structural composition of both piece of writing showcases clear differences which include:

• A thesis has a length of about 100 pages
• A dissertation is 2-3x of that length is 200 pages to 300 pages
• A thesis is based on existing research which the writer expands on it.
• For a dissertation the student is usually attributed as the author of such research work.

PRESENTATION AND RESEARCH CONTENT

Both programs when completed require them to make an oral presentation to a panel but the difference there is a thesis only takes about an hour to present while dissertation which composes of more written contents takes a longer time.

CONTEXTUAL DIFFERENCES: LOCATION MATTERS

The United States: In the US, everything concerning a thesis and a dissertation remain the same. i.e. a thesis is performed by a master's student and a dissertation is written by a doctoral student who wants to bag a PHD degree.

Europe: In Europe, the difference between a thesis and a dissertation becomes a little cloudier as a thesis in Europe or UK is an original research work that helps obtain a PHD degree which a dissertation is part of a master's degree program which involves a broader research project.

Regardless of the differences which have been clearly stated at the end of a master's degree or doctoral degree program. You will likely have to complete a thesis or dissertation.