Many people are confused what actually the difference between a dissertation and a thesis is. The features that distinct a dissertation from a thesis might are not completely indistinguishable. There are some crystal and clear parameters that set a part a thesis and dissertation like presentation, format, length etc.
Most of the Universities are also at fault in creating confusion about dissertation
& thesis. For e.g. in North America, majority of the universities call a PhD research paper a dissertation and a master’s degree research paper a thesis. But, majority of the universities in UK called the PhD’s research paper to be thesis and that of masters to be a di
ssertation.
Here follows the two big columns throwing light on dissertation & thesis separately:
Dissertation | Thesis |
Degree | |
A dissertation is a formal research paper requisite for obtaining a graduate or doctoral degree in any university. | A thesis is also a treatise but for the limited purpose of validating a hypothetical proposition as a result of research findings. A thesis has to be submitted for obtaining an advanced academic degree. |
Length | |
|
|
Period |
|
Dissertation normally takes longer time as compare to thesis | Master's thesis is usually written in a relatively brief period of time – mostly under a year, whereas a PhD dissertation takes much longer. |
Nature of Research | |
PhD dissertations are based on first hand original research and it is written more in the form of book than a formal research paper. | A Master’s thesis most often involves synthesis or analysis of research data on the basis of the interpretation made by the thesis writer. It is also permissible for a Master Dissertation to be written based on the research of other writers and scholars. |