There are many struggles that students at a tertiary level will find themselves having to face as they try to finish their degrees successfully. Some are social such as finding new friends if none of your high school acquaintances have moved on to the same college as you. Others are more practical such as how to write a paper of the quality that your professor demands.
One reason that many students fail in creating the right type of work is that they are not aware of what is expected of them. At times there may be a requirement for submissions to be written in accordance with an unfamiliar academic writing format or with references listed in a way that is not likely to be guessed. Here are a few ingredients that you should aim to include in all of your written assignments to ensure that they are successful:
Although this stage tends to be the last one engaged in, it is important not to omit it under any circumstances. This is what makes your work appear more professionally done.
The selection of a topic that lends itself to good research can make the rest of your assignment much simpler to complete. If you are also wise enough to pick something that you enjoy investigating you will have no problem spending more time on it than you originally budgeted if the project requires it.
Writing at the college level is somewhat less forgiving in the sense that any gaps in your knowledge of the things you are describing will be glaringly apparent to your professor. You definitely will not be able to get away with presenting anecdotal evidence that is eloquently phrased. Make sure you have devoted enough time to research and been thorough at all points.
Before you begin writing anything you should have an idea of how you intend to proceed. Planning helps you to get a sense for what problems might arise later on if you continue on a particular path. There is, of course, no way for you to anticipate every possible challenge but you will be much better off for having formed at least some sort of rudimentary plan at the start of the process.
These steps can be useful when applied to many different types of papers in addition to dissertations.