The end is nigh (hopefully)...tips for thesis submission

Dear Reader,

As I mentioned in my previous post, it has been a busy few months! 

Following my return to the UK from The University of Sydney, I worked really hard to finalise my thesis ready for submission.  I think that putting my thesis to one side whilst I was in Sydney was beneficial as when I read it again my eyes and brain were fresher and somewhat invigorated.  I won't lie, it was difficult to "let go" of my thesis and allow myself to submit it.  However, I knew that I had to because I am eager to prepare for my viva and pursue other research within the topic of music and gambling, and other areas of music psychology.  

For those of you who are about to submit I thought you might find it useful if I shared some tips for what to check, double-check and triple-check before submission.  In turn I hope that those of you are now "Dr." could give me a few tips about how to prepare for my viva.

Things to check before submitting your thesis:

1. Run a spellcheck! Read your thesis closely to check for obvious spelling mistakes too - I had a habit of typing "manger" instead of "manager"!
2. Be consistent with your use of tense.
3. Use of apostrophes - ensure that they show possession or omission.
4. Ensure that none of your sentences start with a number (e.g. 56) - either write the number (i.e. Fifty-six) in full or re-phrase the sentence.
5. Make sure that in press and et al. are italicised.
6. Be consistent with your use of quotation marks, hyphens, brackets, terminology (if more than one phrase can describe a certain phenomena) and words which you have capitalised.
7. Be aware of phrases you repeat (e.g. little is known", "more research is needed", "it is important") and take action to alter your expression.  
8. If you have referred to hyperlinks within your thesis, make sure that they are still active.
9. Check all of your in text references.   Be systematic - go through your thesis and find the first mention of a reference to check that it is presented in the correct format, then find subsequent mentioned to ensure that they have been suitably shortened (e.g. X et al., 2001).  
10. If you have multiple in text references (e.g. X et al., 2001; X et al., 2003; X et al., 1999) - check how you should present them - alphabetically or chronologically.
11. Check that the titles of your tables and figures in text correspond with those within your Lists of Tables/Figures.  Similarly check the same within the headings you have used in text and with your Table of Contents and Appendices.  
12. Check your References list.  Make sure that each one appears in your thesis and again ensure that they are presented in the correct format according to APA/Harvard guidelines.
13. Check that your Table of Contents, Appendices and List of Tables/Figures show the correct page numbers.
14. Finally, make sure that you have read your institution's Code of Practice or Guidance for Submission document.  This document will have important information about margins, page setup, font size, how many copies of your thesis to submit and whether you need to complete any additional forms when submitting your thesis.

I do hope these tips are useful, feel free to share other tips in the comments below. 

Best wishes,

Steph