Putting it together

It's certainly a good feeling to have so much 'in the bag'. But there is also a temptation now to think that it's just a matter of assembling it. However, your data are of no real use alone. Their value is only in how they can answer your research question, and demonstrate the significance of your work and the contribution it makes to knowledge in your discipline. So…..

The first thing is to revisit your initial research question. Then stand back and think what it is you've actually discovered (often it is useful to write a few paragraphs to pin this down) and start to think how you would answer this question using your data. Although you may have gathered your data in various ways at different times - for example, through different experiments, questionnaires, interviews, the literature - this is the place to combine and integrate it all in the best way to make your point and answer your question.

If you cannot see how the material you've gathered helps you to answer your question, then one way to see the thread is to tell yourself a story about it. For example:

Story of a Thesis

Once upon a time researchers believed that …………………….. (literature review).

But then I thought that maybe ……………………… (aims),

so, what I did was ………………………………………… (method),

and I've discovered that …………………………. (findings),

which changed the way we …………………. (contribution to knowledge).

Often your question now seems inadequate to express what it is you've found and, at the very least, you need to sharpen its focus. Or you may find you've only answered part of the original question. You need to decide whether you are going to answer the rest, i.e. gather more material, or whether you will reformulate and limit the question. Sometimes you need to process the data from many different angles to fully exploit the potential - there could be hidden surprises; but also sometimes it becomes apparent that some of your data are irrelevant and, even though it's painful, you may have to discard.

Once you have your sharpened research question, a clear picture of what it is you've found and its significance, you can put it together in a story, your next consideration is how best to present it to do justice to your thesis argument or overall theme.

How you are going to present your discoveries in detail (which may even involve tables, graphs, diagrams, photos) requires a lot of thought and some trial and error. Here your possible alternative ideas need to be discussed with your supervisor. It's mostly through face-to-face discussion that such things get resolved.

	How do I know if I have done enough or if my work is good enough for a PhD?
	Achieving unity in your thesis.
	Developing a picture of the thesis as a whole.
	Dealing with data.
	Taking stock of where you are.
	My topic is really interesting but it isn't something that can be squeezed easily into three years. How do I handle it?
	Keeping your research focused.