Thesis struggle

Decemberist0

I'm currently doing a masters in history, I won't say where or what my thesis is on in case this seen by a member of the department. I cannot find anything original on my topic or find a question. My supervisor has not been helpful and doesn't even seem interested in my topic, he just tells me what's wrong with it without offering any direction. I am considering switching to part time to either have more time to finish it or change my topic. My worry is that if I do go part time it may go against me in a job interview as they may feel I can't reach a deadline. I'm not sure what to do exactly and I wonder what is enough for a thesis to merely pass.

eoinzy2000

I found that if you hit the word count, made a decent attempt at a survey, if that relevant, and have an accurate and correct bibliography and reference and an honest and smart conclusion and show an honesty of effort, you will hit the pass mark. If pass is all you are looking, then it really is hard to miss. Get the word count up, edit and present as early draft. If you get the 'whats wrong with it' no edit response from supervisor, fire it in and get your masters. Dont worry so much bout it. Submit it to a plagiarism checkig software and get it down to acceptable levels. Find out what your college accepts and keep within that level.

ilovesmybrick

Hi Decemberist0. Is the problem that you're having difficulty coming up with your research question, or that you can't find source material? If it's the research question try sitting down with the broader topic, making bullet points of the areas that you particularly find interesting or that drew you to the topic in the first place. Often the research question won't really become clear until you start doing your secondary reading.
If your problem is finding source material start trawling through bibliographies from others!

Decemberist0

ilovesmybrick wrote: »

Hi Decemberist0. Is the problem that you're having difficulty coming up with your research question, or that you can't find source material? If it's the research question try sitting down with the broader topic, making bullet points of the areas that you particularly find interesting or that drew you to the topic in the first place. Often the research question won't really become clear until you start doing your secondary reading.
If your problem is finding source material start trawling through bibliographies from others!

I've figured out the research question (I think). The main issue is finding original sources. If I can't find anything that hasn't been used before is it likely to pass? I know I can write a good essay on my topic but if thesis turns out to be more or less unoriginal will it pass?

ilovesmybrick

Well in a history thesis it's not just about finding new sources. That's great when it happens, but when you go through the primary sources used by other historians in your field you will see the same archival collections coming up over and over again. A large part of it is using or interpreting these collections in a new way.

I did my thesis on a narrow field of Irish history, so my primary sources were broadly similar to other researchers. However, my interpretation of them was heavily influenced by my research question, so my use of them was entirely different. Identify the major collections used in your secondary sources and then see how you can use them to support your specific research questions.

What's your field of interest?