A good outline is half the battle. You can write along a frame with a storyline and you will avoid deadline issues. You are also more motivated because you see written pages faster, having a feeling of achievement. Therefore, beware of the following mistakes when structuring.
1. More than 7 subchapters in one chapter (even 5 is a lot)
Such a chapter is only a string of terms, some of which can be certainly summarized or clustered.
2. Chapter 2.1 without a chapter 2.2
That won't do. You must finish, what you start. The supervisor will immediately notice this mistake and your rating will reduce.
3. More than 8 chapters on 60 pages
There is no fixed rule as to how many chapters may be included in a Bachelor's or Master's Thesis. But the more chapters there are per fixed page number, the more unbalanced the chapters are likely to be. Acceptable are 5 to 6 chapters on 60 pages. For dissertations, there should also be no more than 10 chapters on 200 pages. The typical bachelor or master thesis has 6 chapters. In the Thesis Guide you can automatically create an outline template, even with page numbers per chapter.
4. One-word headings in the outline
Such headings often do not make it clear what exactly the chapter is about. But the supervisor wants to know this in advance. The chapter heading "Theory" shows that you did not make a special effort.
5. Headings longer than 2 lines are too long
The heading does not have to include the entire message of the chapter! Try a maximum of 2 lines. This also makes the table of contents more balanced.
6. Only formal words as headings in the outline
Formal words are e.g. theoretical part, empirical part, questioning, definitions, evaluation, final part, etc.
Headlines should always contain content-related elements such as the theory of customer loyalty or a survey on experiences with concept A. The heading “final part” also sounds like: I am sooooo happppppy that it's over... I have no more energy and can't think clearly. To prevent this from happening, you should definitely do the outline at the beginning.
7. Have only 0.5 pages or fewer in a chapter
An outline should structure the text and not shred it into the smallest parts... If there are less than 0.5 pages per chapter, you should only insert a bold subheading instead of a chapter heading.
8. Questions in chapter headings of the outline
Questions are often rhetorical and suggestive. In addition, someone may understand the question in a way other than what is meant. So better rephrase the question to an open group of words.
Example:
Not good: What are the characteristics of milk chocolate?
Better: Characteristics of milk chocolate
9. Verbs in headings of the outline
The heading describes the content of the chapter precisely. The content is static and therefore action using verbs is making it fuzzy. Therefore, do not write collect data but data collection.
10. Four or even five levels in only ONE chapter out of six chapters
If all chapters of the outline have only 2 levels it will look unbalanced to have one with 5 levels. Basically this is not wrong. But it looks unbalanced. Therefore, better summarize or cluster the content in the lower levels and stick to 2 or 3 levels. Bold subheadings without chapter number are also an option.
11. Four or even more levels in an outline for a 20 pages text
You can't even write that much inside a subchapter. With 20 pages, there should be no more than 2 levels.
12. One chapter has 40 pages and the remaining 4 chapters only 20 pages
Basically, this is not wrong either. But it looks unbalanced again. It is therefore better to avoid. Look at our sample for an outline.
13. Headings “numbered” by a mixture of A and B and 1 and 2 and i and ii and...
i and ii and a) and b) - all mixed up (except in law! There it's normal!) This kind of outline has a lot of disadvantages:
- Automatic numbering is difficult,
- Table of contents looks messy...
- This outline suggests a dubious hierarchy,
- Often it refers to only formal points like introduction, theory, empirical part, conclusion.
- Such a division does not help. Better use 1 and then 2 with 1.1 and 1.2 and 2.2 and 2.2.1 etc.
IMPORTANT:
As soon as your supervisor gives you guidelines on the outline of your bachelor or master thesis, you must of course follow these instructions. Of course the faculty requirements have priority!
With these tips you will also catch your supervisors attention. And you have much less work with your text.
Good luck with writing your text wish you
Silvio and the Team Aristolo
PS: Check out the Thesis-ABC and the Thesis Guide for writing a bachelor or master thesis in 31 days.
