Your thesis plays a very important role in your doctoral life, but it is not necessarily the only important thing. I know it took you years to complete this thesis and plan to submit it to your chair, but a rejected thesis does not mean that your life or academic career is at stake. As a researcher, I have also got rejected on my first attempt, but I came back strong to the committee and got my PhD on my second attempt.
Like me, here’s how to find out the possible reasons for your rejected thesis and come back to your chair with a bang:
Common reasons for rejection
The literature review it’s is the basis of research. If it is not spelled correctly and the main theorists are not cited, the research is skewed in the wrong direction and fails miserably.
Too many internet references such as e-books, blogs and websites have been used lately which does not work well with teachers. Primarily, examiners look at the student’s original contribution in the thesis and this should be mentioned briefly in the abstract to give an idea of the uniqueness of the work done.
Ambiguous research questions
If your research questions do not capture the reader’s interest, you may be rejected. The point of interesting research questions is not to be funny but to be relevant and interesting. Would you be interested in reading the next chapter of a book that doesn’t interest you? You probably wouldn’t mind. The same situation could have happened to your work if it had not attracted the attention of the jury.
Many think that the structure and format may not be affected, but this is the first thing a professor notices before even reading the thesis. Yes, first impressions are not always last impressions, but the situation is a little different here.
Start your preparations early
A thesis defense is not a 3 or 6 month exercise. Don’t wait until you’ve reached all of your research goals. Start your preparation well in advance and make sure you know all the intricacies of your thesis and the reasons for all the research experiments you have done.
Pay attention to open thesis defenses at your university. In fact, you can also attend open dissertation presentations at other universities. First, it will help you understand that defending a thesis is not a scary process. Second, you will discover the tips and hacks on how other scholars defend their thesis. Finally, you will understand why a thesis defense is necessary for the university, as well as for the scientific community.