common thesis mistakes

Top 6 Most Common Thesis Statement Mistakes

Writing a well-done thesis statement can often feel easier said than done. After all, this one sentence sets the tone for your entire paper and can make or break your assignment. To help with your next essay , we've put together a list of the most common thesis statement mistakes and tips to help you avoid them.

What is a Thesis Statement?

Just in case you need a refresher, here's a quick review:

A thesis statement, as defined by Dictionary.com , is: “a short statement, usually one sentence, that summarizes the main point or claim of an essay, research paper, etc., and is developed, supported, and explained in the text by means of examples and evidence.”

A thesis statement introduces your essay's main idea in the first paragraph of your assignment. It is the guiding factor that controls and organizes all other thoughts in your research paper.

How Do I Write a Thesis Statement?

It can take a long time to master the art of crafting a thesis statement. Luckily, there are some tools to help.

A good place to start is by checking out a thesis statement template. This will help ensure that you're including everything you're supposed to.

Here's a quick example:

You can also use an online thesis generator to organize your main idea and evidence. You enter the basic information about your argument and topic, and it helps you create a solid thesis statement.

It also helps to take time to explore some thesis statement examples (both good and bad) to clarify how to fix some of these common mistakes.

What are the Most Common Thesis Statement Mistakes?

Once you know the basics of how to write a thesis statement, there are certain mistakes to watch out for. Learning how to identify these common errors and understanding how to avoid them will help make your thesis statement a strong one.

1. The Statement is Unclear

Your reader needs to immediately understand your purpose. If it is vague or unclear, you've lost your audience from the start. Narrow down your focus and use straightforward language to state your main idea .

• Example thesis: The food in America is gross, unhealthy, and expensive, so we probably shouldn't be eating any of it.
• Improved thesis: Due to the obesity crisis in America, lawmakers should consider creating a plan to lower the prices of healthier foods so that everyone can afford to eat high-quality foods.

2. The Statement is Too Complicated

Making a statement that is too long or wordy generally confuses your reader. It also weakens the argument you are trying to make.

• Example thesis: Many athletes, such as those who play in colleges or for organizations like the NCAA, do not make any money, which is devastating because they deserve to make a substantial amount of money due to their efforts on the court and on the field and due to the fact that colleges earn a profit off of the sports that these athletes play.
• Improved thesis: NCAA athletes should receive compensation for their sports in college because they are generating revenue for universities and risking injury for themselves.

3. The Statement is Too Basic or Obvious

As you move up through school, your writing should mature as well. A successful thesis statement from junior high is not necessarily a strong thesis statement in high school or college. While being very basic and obvious in your younger writing might be fine, writing as an older student should be more precise and refined.

• Example thesis: In this paper, I will be discussing the importance of eating a healthy breakfast every day.
• Improved thesis: Eating a healthy breakfast is important to help your body function at its optimal level throughout the day.

4. The Statement has No Real Purpose

Your readers need to care about your topic in some way. Is this information helpful? Beneficial? Worth investigating? If not, choose a heartier topic that's worth discussing.

• Example thesis: I think these blue socks are the prettiest ones in the drawer.
• Improved thesis: Students should be allowed to express themselves as individuals by choosing any type of socks and shoes they want to wear to school.

5. The Statement Uses Poor Language Choices

Slang, abbreviations, and poor spelling have no place in a clear thesis statement. Use professional language to make your point.

• Example thesis: The best comedians should make you LOL 24-7.
• Improved thesis: To be a quality comedian, you must develop your craft in a way that inspires laughter and smiles at every performance.

6. The Statement Lacks Connection to the Rest of the Essay.

Even if you have a decent thesis statement, it will mean nothing if the rest of the essay strays from your main idea. Always connect your thoughts back to the thesis statement . The paper needs to be coherent and stay on target with your original argument.

Crafting a thorough thesis statement can feel like a difficult task, but it doesn't have to. If you are mindful of common mistakes that students make, you can avoid these errors and create a thesis statement that is clear, engaging, and purposeful.

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Tip 1: Break it into such small, discrete goals that you almost feel silly writing them down individually.

This is by far the most important skill on this list. I only started developing this skill while writing my thesis but have since honed it while working in industrial R&D.   Subscribe to our newsletter at the bottom of this page   for the next blog post “Why I left academia in search of self-development”.

The value of this skill cannot be understated and luckily can be easily learned by anyone. Here’s how I make it work: Set aside 15 minutes for planning out your next 10-20 hours of work on a project. Create a large to-do list for each project (there are a lot of great Excel templates online). You can list some big milestones further out but keep the tiny details within range of tasks you could finish in the next few days. Every morning, review your tasks, add new discrete tasks that are now within range. Add a number (1-10) to every task to denote the order you’re going to work through them for this specific day. Stick to the list and avoid jumping to topics off-list that pop up. If something important   and   urgent pops up, add it to your list and give it a number.

Some examples for your shortlist if you were writing a thesis:

• Send email to professor about feedback from Chapter 4
• Re-format figure captions from Chapter 4
• Write two paragraphs about results from experiments on October 4 th -12 th
• Create summary plot for above experiments
• Import and reformat data from experiments October 19 th -27 th
• Write rough outline for rest of Chapter 5
• Send outline of Chapter 5 to professor
• Review feedback from professor on Chapter 4
• Make list of changes in Chapter 4 based on professor’s feedback this morning

Are you the type of person that writes “Make List” on your to-do list just so you have something to cross off? Do you write down tasks you just finished just to cross them off?

If you are, you have a head start on this method! Creating and working through a list in this much discretized detail has a lot of secondary effects. You’ll be forced to plan out your work in greater detail (and prioritize better). You’ll be more likely to use small chunks of time effectively to make progress and free up more time for yourself. Most importantly,   you’ll finish your day with a sense of accomplishment and forward momentum because you got things done , instead of the feeling that you moved the needle from 23% to 24% complete after 10 hours of work. As ridiculous as this list may sound, I’ve found it has a profound psychological effect on my motivation and momentum for the rest of the day. The key is to have the discipline to spend those first 15 minutes of your day planning instead of reacting to every thought or email that comes in. Try it out for one week straight and make modifications based on what is working for you.

Tip 2: Write everything that comes to mind, then trim and re-organize later.

If it’s flowing in your mind, get it into the whitespace of your document   somewhere . I’ve found that most technical writing blocks come when a person doesn’t know how exactly to write the next thing or isn’t sure what exactly should come next, even though they have ideas and words in their head for later sections. Your brain can get stuck running in circles testing out different ways to present the information and become paralyzed by the endless possibilities coupled with the lack of a clear path.

How can you put a puzzle together if you don’t know what the pieces look like?

It’s much easier to decide on the best idea flow   after   you’ve put the bulk of each idea onto the paper. When you have all the information in place and pseudo-organized, pick through it with a fine-tooth comb to trim down superfluous sentences and smooth out the transitions between paragraphs. Then, send the section to your adviser and group members for feedback. Continue writing other sections while waiting for their feedback.

Tip 3: Recognize that you don’t have to close every single loose end.

The point of your thesis is to document your discoveries and progress so that a new person can carry the torch forward without starting from scratch. If you found something interesting but can’t explain it, just present the data and state the questions still to be answered. Include your ideas about what could be done next to get closer to the answers. If you’ve spent more than three hours banging your head against the table staring at one plot, it’s time to move on to the next section. You’ll be surprised how working on other parts can stimulate ideas that can help close the difficult section off later.

Tip 4: Set up your formatting correctly immediately when starting.

Hopefully you’re proficient in LaTeX. If not (I wasn’t), learn how to properly assign section and sub-section headings in Word and to keep consistent formatting between them. This will be critical for auto-updating your table of contents. It will also help you collapse sections and jump around in your 200+ page document from the sidebar “Navigation Pane”. Create actual captions for your figures and tables using the built-in functionality and link references in the text to those captions. Now, when you add a new image earlier in the document, the figure and all its references will be updated automatically. Make sure to also set up your citation editor right away using the recommended format and make sure it can auto-generate the reference list. You may have gotten away with manually formatting these for short journal article submissions, but you will have untold headaches clicking through the text and re-numbering each reference if you don’t do this from the start. Check with your Graduate Studies department to see if they have a pre-formatted document you can use.

Tip 5: Remember that this is a struggle for   everyone .

If you find yourself getting lost in self-deprecation, re-frame your thinking. Instead of “Why can’t I focus on this?” ask yourself “What factors are causing me to lose focus and how can I limit these or mitigate their effects?” Instead of asking “Why can’t I make sense of this data?”, re-frame it as “How can I present this data factually while pointing out the unknowns?”

Tip 6: Put your phone on airplane mode and out of arms’ reach.

You already know that your phone is the #1 distraction you have. Make the distraction less of a willpower issue and more of a practicality issue by putting your phone on airplane mode and putting it somewhere on the other side of the room, in a box, in another room, etc. The further away, the better. Now you’ll have to weigh the hassle of getting up and retrieving it to quickly check it for notifications.

Tip 7: Use an auto-responder on your email or put it in Do Not Disturb mode.

Once your phone is hidden, it’s time to take care of distractions on your computer. Both Gmail and Outlook have functions to turn off notifications or stop retrieving messages altogether for set periods of time. For instance, you could set your send/receive interval to once every 4 hours. Another trick is to turn on your auto-responder to say something along the lines of “Thanks for your message. In order to focus on my writing, I’m currently only checking email at noon and 6pm. I will get back to you as soon as possible.” Others will pick up on this and email you less often and only about real issues.

Tip 8: Set a visible timer for focused work periods.

I found it much easier to sustain a 45-minute focused session if I knew I had a planned break coming up soon. There are several apps available for setting timers and some that can also mute your notifications while running. If you schedule your breaks (and actually give yourself a break when the timer runs out), you’ll be less likely to want a break at the first sign of frustration.

Tip 9: Build in a short 5-10 minute exercise routine for your breaks.

After a few good hours of focus my biggest hurdle was feeling anxious or restless. Some nights I would decide it was a “workout” night and every 30 minutes or so, I would get on the floor and do a few minutes pushups, crunches, bicycle kicks, leg lifts or planks. After a few minutes of this I’d be tired enough that I would   want   to sit back down and settle in. The big advantage was getting my blood flowing, which can stimulate your brain and give a small energy boost.

Tip 10: Work in an environment around other people who are focused (leverage social pressure).

Do you feel like exercising at high intensity more in an empty gym or one where there are dozens of others giving it their all? For me, it’s the latter. There’s a subconscious social pressure I feel to not stick out as slacking. I found the same effect in the library or coffee shop.

For some ridiculous reason, I felt like people behind me would judge me if I had Facebook up on my screen or was playing a game on my phone.

Even if that judgement was an illusion, I harnessed it to stay on-task. I found this especially helpful after 11pm or so to know that there were others doing the same thing. If all your friends are going out to the bar, do you get FOMO (fear of missing out) more at a coffee shop around others who are studying or staying home in the dark by yourself?

Tip 11: Change scenery regularly until you find your ideal spots.

My favorite part about thesis writing is that   I could work from anywhere . This is a novelty you may never have again in your life, depending on your field. Take advantage of this and find those magical hangouts where you can find your flow and blaze through your work.

In three months of writing, I visited at least eight different coffee shops plus every library on campus.

There were two or three that really worked for me, depending on the time of day. Even after a half-day at one of your favorite spots, it can be reinvigorating to move to another later in the day.

Tip 12: Find your best writing jams and don’t listen to them unless you’re ready to get in the zone.

This is a proven psychological trick. Do you still have a throwback song you associate with middle school or high school sports? Something your team listened to in the locker room to get pumped up? You can manufacture these associations in your brain in a similar way. Find your best playlists, and make sure to pause them while you’re taking breaks or if you find yourself distracted. When the music is on, it’s time to work. Listening to your best playlists while doing other things will dilute the association in your brain, so stay disciplined with this one!

Tip 13: Take a mid-day break with some form of exercise or activity.

The most productive day you can hope for is 10-12 hours of focused effort. If you deprive yourself of breaks early in the day you’re likely to grind to a halt in the evening and lose the equivalent of your would-be break time in procrastination and distraction. Be proactive about scheduling in your down time to elevate your productivity later in the day. For me personally, my best days included several short breaks evenly spread throughout the day plus one mid-day break of ~2 hours. This larger break was usually some combination of exercise, cooking, eating or cleaning. Experiment and find what works best for you!

Tip 14: Set aside 10 minutes in the morning to honestly review what went well and what didn’t work the previous day.

An honest self-assessment will do wonders for improving your methods each day. Approach it like an athlete watching game tape to identify weaknesses. Where did your distractions come from? How did you feel throughout the day?

When was your most productive time and what factors lead to that productivity?

Make changes in your strategy for the upcoming day, and review again the following day to see if it was an improvement.

Tip 15: Add an expected time of completion (ETC) to every item on your to-do list for that day.

This follows Tip #1 to break down projects into tiny discrete and definitely conquerable tasks. Make a reasonable guess of how long each thing should take if it goes smoothly. If you do well and get ahead of schedule, reward yourself with an extra break. If you get behind schedule, you’ll start to feel a sense of urgency that will motivate you to catch up.

The alternative is giving yourself 3 months to complete thousands of micro-tasks, at which point you’ll always feel overwhelmed and unsure of your pace to completion.

Tip 16: Take care of your body.

This is a marathon, not a sprint. Monitor your caffeine intake, your hours of sleep, your periods of exercise and the types of foods you eat. Keep it balanced day-to-day with only the occasional late night push when you're really in the zone. 

Tip 17: Dedicate time to being social!

If you’re writing your thesis you are likely approaching the end of your time at your school. This may be the last few months you have to spend with all of the friends and colleagues you’ve made along your journey. Don’t forget to dedicate a few hours a week to be social and relish in the time you have left to all be together. This is a time of your life you’ll remember forever, so better mix in some great memories!

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Top 5 Common Mistakes To Avoid While Writing A Thesis

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Avoid thesis writing pitfalls!

Writing a thesis paper can be a daunting task, especially for students who are new to academic writing. While it is a great opportunity to demonstrate knowledge and expertise in a particular subject, the process of thesis writing can be fraught with challenges.  Students often make common writing mistakes, such as not developing a clear and concise thesis statement or improperly structuring a paper. Explore the top five common thesis writing mistakes in this blog post, and use these thesis writing tips and strategies to avoid these pitfalls and achieve academic success.

What is a Thesis Paper?

A thesis paper is an extended piece of academic writing that presents an original research argument on a particular topic or issue. It is typically required for students pursuing master's or doctoral degrees but may also be assigned at the undergraduate level.  Writing a thesis paper can be challenging, requiring a high level of research and critical analysis. However, it is also an opportunity for students to demonstrate their expertise in a particular field and to contribute new knowledge to their disciplines. When writing a thesis paper, it is crucial to avoid common writing mistakes, such as failing to develop a clear thesis statement or to structure the paper effectively. With these tips to avoid common writing mistakes, thesis writing can be a rewarding and successful experience.

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Top 5 Common Thesis Writing Mistakes

Here are common writing mistakes that students make when writing a thesis paper. Avoid these pitfalls and produce a high-quality thesis paper by understanding these mistakes and following the recommended thesis writing tips.

1. Unclear Thesis Statement

Writing a thesis that is clear is the foundation of a strong thesis paper. Without it, a paper lacks direction and purpose. Many students make the mistake of either writing a weak thesis statement or failing to include one at all. 

‍ Proposed solution: To avoid this mistake, take time to develop a strong thesis statement that clearly presents the argument and scope of the paper. Revise and refine it as you continue to research and write your paper. For assistance perfecting your thesis statement, consult a professional editing service .

2. Ineffective Organization and Structure

Writing a thesis that is well-organized and well-structured helps the reader follow the central argument and better understand the research. However, many students struggle due to ineffective organization and structure, leading to readers' confusion and disengagement. 

‍ Proposed solution: To avoid this mistake, start by outlining your paper and breaking it down into clear sections and subsections. Ensure that the sections flow logically from one to the next and that your argument is presented cohesively throughout the paper.

3. Lack of Clarity and Conciseness

Writing a thesis paper requires a high level of research and analysis , but it's important not to get bogged down in unnecessary details. Many students make the mistake of including too much information or using overly complex language. 

‍ Proposed solution: To avoid this mistake, focus on presenting your research and analysis clearly and concisely. Use simple language and avoid jargon or technical terms unless necessary.

4. Failure to Follow Citation Guidelines

Properly citing sources is critical when writing a thesis paper. Failure to do so can lead to plagiarism or a lack of credibility. Many students make the mistake of either not citing their sources correctly or failing to include citations altogether. 

‍ Proposed solution: To avoid this mistake, familiarize yourself with the citation guidelines of your institution or discipline. Use reputable sources, and ensure that all sources are properly cited.

5. Neglecting the Revision Process

While writing a thesis, the revision process is a crucial step but many students neglect it. They rush through the process or skip it altogether, leading to mistakes and inconsistencies in their papers. 

‍ Proposed solution: To avoid this mistake, set aside time to review and revise your paper. Seek feedback from peers or advisors, and make necessary revisions to improve the coherence of your argument.

If your peers or advisors are too busy to help with your thesis paper, consider consulting an expert thesis editor . 

Writing a thesis paper is a challenging task, but by avoiding common writing mistakes and following effective thesis writing tips, students can successfully complete their papers and achieve academic success.  Failing to develop a clear thesis statement, ineffective organization and structure, lack of clarity and conciseness, failure to follow citation guidelines, and neglecting the revision process are common writing mistakes that students should be aware of.  To avoid these mistakes while writing a thesis, take time to develop a strong thesis statement, outline the paper, use clear and concise language, properly cite sources, and set aside time for revision. To perfect your thesis, you can always get thesis paper editing and feedback from a vetted expert.

By following these tips and strategies while writing a thesis, students can produce a well-written and coherent thesis paper that demonstrates their expertise in their chosen field of study. Make sure you checkout our detailed blog on how to write thesis statement .

Frequently Asked Questions

Is it ok to leave mistakes while writing a thesis, what is the hardest aspect of writing a thesis, are there certain words i should avoid when writing a thesis, how do i write a thesis, how much time do i need to write my thesis.

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8 Major Mistakes to Avoid when Writing your Thesis or Dissertation

When you begin your thesis or dissertation process, you might feel overwhelmed at first, and then relieved to be able to put anything on paper at all. However, a few common missteps are worth keeping in mind, as failing to do so can severely impact the finished product. Here are some of the mistakes we see most often as academic editors.

1. Not doing “enough” research

The amount of research you’ll undertake for a master’s thesis will be substantially more than anything you’ve done before—even more so if you’re doing your doctoral dissertation. When you have enough research, you’ll have a rich trove of ideas to get your creative juices flowing. Only then can you generate original ideas that will form the crux of your work. When your arguments aren’t backed up with adequate references, it really shows. In fact, it can undermine all the other work you’ve put in.

It’s also a mistake to perform a lot of research, but only in a very narrow way. Read widely in your field. A variety of resources lends your work credibility and lessens any appearance of bias.

2. Putting things off until the last minute

The average dissertation is between 100 and 200 pages (although, depending on the topic, a dissertation could be even longer). In any case, that’s a lot of work to leave until the last minute.

You’ll have to submit several drafts and give your supervisors and other readers enough time to digest it. You’ll also require time act on their feedback. And these will have to happen on top of the classes and other responsibilities you and they already have. If you hurry your writing, you might make careless mistakes, but more importantly, you won’t have enough time to convey a truly unique insight in your work.

Plan well and then add more cushion to that plan than you think you’ll need.

3. Choosing the wrong topic

If you choose a topic that’s not interesting to anyone but yourself, or that you’re not particularly interested in, you might have a problem maintaining others’ or your own attention after working on it for several months or even years. That’s a bad position to find yourself in when you’re trying to finish.

There are other ways to choose poorly. Don’t pick a topic that’s stereotypically “academic” in order to impress others. You’ll bore yourself and also potentially not be up to the task. Also, consider whether your specific angle is outdated or has been written about hundreds of times before.

4. Being disorganized

This applies not only to your research methodology, particularly in the sciences, but also to the writing process itself. You must have a system in place so that you can keep track of your quotes, sources, and citations. And each part of your dissertation should display a clear structure and progression of ideas. Your work can be brilliant and groundbreaking, but a lack of organization will make it completely inaccessible.

5. Providing too much information

Yes, there is a such thing when it comes to staying focused on the central ideas in your work. Giving enough background and context is essential to write a credible document, and doing a great deal of research will give you a strong base. However, tangential thinking and irrelevant ideas are distracting. They also give the appearance of being “filler.”

6. Committing plagiarism

We’ve already talked about plagiarism , but it’s worth mentioning again. Avoiding it is tied into having an organized writing process, but even the most well-meaning writer can slip up if they aren’t careful. You will put your reputation and your work at serious risk if you plagiarize, even if it’s accidental. If it doubt, use a plagiarism checking service to make sure your work is all above board.

7. Choosing readers and editors who aren’t critical enough

The successful thesis or dissertation (fortunately or unfortunately) is not just up to you. You’ll need advisors, readers, and committees to evaluate your progress, challenge you, assist you, and ultimately grade your work.

We all need encouragement, especially with tasks that are as overwhelming as the capstone research that can define your academic career. However, if readers aren’t finding anything wrong with your work, they are doing you a disservice. Everyone makes mistakes, and everyone can improve their work. Be sure that the people you choose to be your readers during the various drafts give you positive feedback and constructive criticism that you can actually work with.

8. Checking the final product for grammar and spelling mistakes only

Proofreading and editing your dissertation or thesis is not just about grammar, spelling, punctuation, and typos. Whether you do it yourself or outsource this task to a professional editor , it’s essential that you check the flow and consistency of the writing as well as the coherence of your ideas. Your work should be well supported and well structured, with correct syntax and academic language. And don’t forget about formatting and citations, which vary from field to field.

Stickler Proofreading provides academic editing services for dissertations and theses, of any length and on any subject matter. Our editors are experienced with all major citation formats and formatting conventions, and will ensure your work follows your school’s style guidelines to the letter. We offer instant quotes, and no job is too big. Contact us today and get your dissertation or thesis into tip-top shape.

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How To Avoid The Most Common Mistakes

•  /  Complete Your Degree
•  /  Thesis and Dissertation Information
•  /  How To Avoid The Most Common Mistakes
• Get the name of your major absolutely correct (e.g., Psychology, not Clinical Psychology).
• The thesis/dissertation title must be in all CAPITAL letters and double-spaced, and the date must be the month and year of your graduation.
• Doctoral candidates: use “dissertation” instead of “thesis” throughout the document.

Front Matter (the section before the text of the thesis)

• Front matter must be numbered with lower case Roman numerals.
• In the table of contents, do not list the title page, committee page, abstract, or vita. Do include the list of tables, list of figures, acknowledgements, chapters, references or bibliography, and appendices (with titles).
• Chapter titles in the table of contents should match the actual chapter titles in the text. Number chapters consistently (e.g., Chapter I, Chapter One, or Chapter 1).
• No signatures should appear in the document (the committee page is not for signatures).
• The committee page should be an exact list of those entered on the eTD submission, but do not list any name twice even if a professor has two roles (e.g., advisor and department head).

Page Numbers

• The text must begin on page 1 and be numbered from beginning to end without breaking sequence.
• Do not use running headers, and do not embellish page numbers (e.g., -1-, Page 1, 125a).

General Advice

• There should be no blank pages in the thesis/dissertation.
• Submit the format review as early as possible, but do not submit a second format review (even if you don’t finish until the next semester, a second format review is not necessary).
• Carefully complete each step outlined in the format review.
• When naming your pdf file, do not use special characters (e.g., /, ?, &), and do not make the file name extremely lengthy by using the entire thesis title.
• Doctoral candidates: include a copy of the title page and abstract with the ProQuest/UMI Agreement.
• Remember that, after approval of the final eTD by the Office of Theses and Dissertations, no further changes can be made.
• Most importantly, carefully read and follow the Thesis and Dissertation Handbook .

Thesis and Dissertation Information

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5 Common Mistakes When Writing a Thesis or Dissertation

While composing a thesis or dissertation, a student must experience some predicted traps. Falling into these traps can affect one’s academic career. However, handling potential blunders and pitfalls wisely, while developing a thesis, can lead you to success. The process of writing may be frustrating but learning about the probable pitfalls may ease your stress. Here, we bring you the list of the most common mistakes we have noticed as a professional proofreading and editing service provider.

This guide discusses the common 5 mistakes when writing a thesis or dissertation. To give you an opportunity to practice proofreading, we have left a few spelling, punctuation, or grammatical errors in the text. See if you can spot them! If you spot the errors correctly, you will be entitled to a 10% discount.

Writing a thesis or dissertation is not just about collecting data and jotting it down. While writing, students need to organize the thesis statement and gather enough logical data to support the statement. Therefore, organizing all relevant information and maintaining the academic guidelines at the same time is no less than a struggle.

While composing a thesis or dissertation, a student must experience some predicted traps. Falling into these traps can affect one’s academic career. However, handling potential blunders and pitfalls wisely, while developing a thesis or dissertation, can lead you to success. The process of writing may be frustrating, but learning about the probable pitfalls may ease your stress. Here, we bring you the list of the most common mistakes when writing a thesis or dissertation.

Mistakes while writing a thesis/dissertation

Addressing all the mistakes is not an easy task. There are some common errors, but flaws vary from person to person. Lack of research while choosing the topic, lack of strength in the thesis statement, problems in formatting, writing bland information, mistakes in referencing and citation, failures in proofreading and editing, etc., are some common errors. However, Best Edit & Proof has drafted all these blunders into 5 sections for you.

1. Choosing the wrong thesis/dissertation topic

Choosing the wrong thesis/dissertation topic can weaken the entire plot of the thesis. Most of the time, it seems like students are in a hurry while choosing the topic. It leads them to choose the wrong thesis/dissertation topic. While picking up the topic, make sure to follow the following points:

Do proper background research .

Brainstorm different concepts. If the concept doesn’t interest you, the journey of writing will be boring.

You need to form your topic as a research question.

Research about the initial approaches to the chosen topic and think about the topic from different aspects of society and academics.

Dynamic research is always appreciated while choosing the thesis topic.

2. Failure to write an impactful thesis statement

Choosing the topic and developing a research question is not enough. A student needs to create a strong thesis statement. Students often make mistakes while forming this part. The process may be critical, but a student needs to avoid any mistakes while stating the viewpoint.

Take a note that the thesis statement must be precise, bold, and to the point. The statement must be reliable and attractive. A poorly written thesis statement disinterests readers to go through the thesis furthers.

Understand and analyze the thesis/dissertation topic.

The statement of the thesis/dissertation must give hints of further discussion.

Avoid grammatical and punctuation errors in this part.

Restrain yourself from writing anything that doesn’t have any concrete base or references.

3. Lack of rational association between thesis statement and written information

Making a logical connection between the chosen statement and supporting information is necessary to execute a successful thesis or dissertation. Due to a lack of research and brainstorming, many researchers often fail to build this connection. A well-versed research paper meets all the inquiries and fixes all the loopholes in it.

The initial explanation for this issue is the inability to discover supporting ideas or information that possess relevant resources. All the supporting statements must compliment your main topic. The entire paper should look like a photocopy where the thesis statement and supporting information are properly synchronized.

All the supporting information must be cited from trusted scholarly sources. Committing errors in citing references is not appreciated.

· 7 Tips to Write an Effective Research Paper

· How to Write the Best Theoretical Framework for Your Dissertation

· How to Structure a Dissertation: A Brief Guide

· How to Formulate Research Questions

4. Violating academic integrity

The study of academics holds strong integrity. Violating academic integrity is not entertained at all while preparing a thesis or dissertation. How can one break this integrity? Let’s have a look at them.

Violating university guidelines: Violating university guidelines while writing is nowhere allowed.

Plagiarizing content: Plagiarizing content from other sources is strictly prohibited.

False information: Making false claims is not a good practice for academics.

· What is Plagiarism | How to Avoid It

· How to Choose the Right Plagiarism Checker for Your Academic Works

· 5 Practical Ways to Avoid Plagiarism

5. Avoiding expert’s help for proofreading and editing

Proofreading and editing are an integral part of thesis writing. Committing mistakes refers to compromising the quality of a thesis/dissertation. Experienced proofreading and editing services check the entire thesis from beginning to end and make all the necessary changes in terms of grammar, punctuation, referencing, and even sentence construction. Especially, non-native English speakers make mistakes in terms of language and style.

However, irrespective of native or non-native speakers, they meet failures in formatting, referencing, and keeping the consistency of the thesis or dissertation from each aspect.

· 8 Reasons Why You Need Professional Proofreading and Editing Services

· How to Find a Reliable Proofreading Service: A Brief Guide

· Why Do You Need Academic Editing?

· How Much Do Proofreading and Editing Cost?

· 8 Things to Consider Before Hiring Online Editing or Proofreading Services

· Importance of Academic Referencing and Citing

6. Other common mistakes while writing a thesis or dissertation

The use of first or second person: Writing sentences in the first person and the second person is not an academic practice.

Fragment sentence: Using long and bland sentences can affect the tone of the article.

Grammatical errors: Mistakes in grammar and punctuation are considered substandard.

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You can also avail of our assistance if you are looking for editors who can format your manuscript, or just check on the  particular styles  for the formatting task as per the guidelines provided to you, e.g.,  APA,  MLA, or Chicago/Turabian styles. Best Edit & Proof editors and proofreaders provide all sorts of academic writing help, including editing and proofreading services, using our user-friendly website, and a streamlined ordering process.

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Preparing a research paper is the most painstaking and challenging task for many individuals. However, with rigorous practice, it would be much hassle-free for you to sum up entirely. Are you thinking of the best ways to write an impactful research paper? We are here to help you! We present an easy-to-follow rubric that will help you draft an impeccable research paper.

Being proficient in grammar takes years of practice and needs deep knowledge. Yet, you will still end up making grammatical mistakes, and that is understandable. However, when we are talking about academic writing, you need to be exceptionally careful that you do not end up making such mistakes. This article gives you 10 common grammatical mistakes in academic writing. If you are someone who tends to make such mistakes frequently, this article will be able to help you pinpoint those mistakes and fix them.

Track changes function in Microsoft Word 2021 for macOS is a very handy tool to track your revisions, corrections, changes, edits, and even suggestions and comments while you’re reviewing a document. When an editor or proofreader wants to return a revised document to a client with his/her all revisions visibly marked, and so clients can accept or reject, or the suggested changes appear in the margins of the returned document, he/she needs Track Changes function of Microsoft Word.

Twelve Common Errors

Download this Handout PDF

This list includes only brief examples and explanations intended for you to use as reminders while you are editing your papers. If you would like to learn more, consider the following options:

• Take one of the free grammar, style, and punctuation classes offered by the Writing Center.
• Set up an appointment for an individual conference in the Writing Center.
• Confer with your course instructor.
• Consult a handbook for additional examples and complete explanations

1. Sentence fragments

Make sure each word group you have punctuated as a sentence contains a grammatically complete and independent thought that can stand alone as an acceptable sentence.

Tests of the Shroud of Turin have produced some curious findings. For example, the pollen of forty-eight plants native to Europe and the Middle East.

[2nd sentence = fragment]

Tests of the Shroud of Turin have produced some curious findings. For example, the cloth contains the pollen of forty-eight plants native to Europe and the Middle East.

Scientists report no human deaths due to excessive caffeine consumption. Although caffeine does cause convulsions and death in certain animals.

Scientists report no human deaths due to excessive caffeine consumption, although caffeine does cause convulsions and death in certain animals.

2. Sentence sprawl

Too many equally weighted phrases and clauses produce tiresome sentences.

The hearing was planned for Monday, December 2, but not all of the witnesses could be available, so it was rescheduled for the following Friday, and then all the witnesses could attend.

[There are no grammatical errors here, but the sprawling sentence does not communicate clearly and concisely.]

The hearing, which had been planned for Monday, December 2, was rescheduled for the following Friday so that all witnesses would be able to attend.

3. Misplaced and dangling modifiers

Place modifiers near the words they describe; be sure the modified words actually appear in the sentence.

Not sure what a modifier is? Check our our FAQ.

When writing a proposal, an original task is set for research.

When writing a proposal, a scholar sets an original task for research.

Many tourists visit Arlington National Cemetery, where veterans and military personnel are buried every day from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m.

Every day from 9:00 a.m. until 5:00 p.m., many tourists visit Arlington National Cemetery, where veterans and military personnel are buried.

Still unsure? For more explanation and examples, see our grammar and style FAQ.

4. Faulty parallelism

Be sure you use grammatically equal sentence elements to express two or more matching ideas or items in a series.

The candidate’s goals include winning the election, a national health program, and the educational system.

The candidate’s goals include winning the election, enacting a national health program, and improving the educational system.

Some critics are not so much opposed to capital punishment as postponing it for so long.

Some critics are not so much opposed to capital punishment as they are to postponing it for so long.

5. Unclear pronoun reference

All pronouns must clearly refer to definite referents [nouns].

Use it, they, this, that, these, those, and which carefully to prevent confusion.

Einstein was a brilliant mathematician. This is how he was able to explain the universe.

Einstein, who was a brilliant mathematician, used his ability with numbers to explain the universe.

Because Senator Martin is less interested in the environment than in economic development, he sometimes neglects it.

Because of his interest in economic development, Senator Martin sometimes neglects the environment.

6. Incorrect pronoun case

Determine whether the pronoun is being used as a subject, or an object, or a possessive in the sentence, and select the pronoun form to match.

Castro’s communist principles inevitably led to an ideological conflict between he and President Kennedy.

Castro’s communist principles inevitably led to an ideological conflict between him and President Kennedy.

Because strict constructionists recommend fidelity to the Constitution as written, no one objects more than them to judicial reinterpretation.

Because strict constructionists recommend fidelity to the Constitution as written, no one objects more than they [do] to judicial reinterpretation.

7. Omitted commas

Use commas to signal nonrestrictive or nonessential material, to prevent confusion, and to indicate relationships among ideas and sentence parts.

When it comes to eating people differ in their tastes.

When it comes to eating, people differ in their tastes.

The Huns who were Mongolian invaded Gaul in 451.

The Huns, who were Mongolian, invaded Gaul in 451.

[“Who were Mongolian” adds information but does not change the core meaning of the sentence because Huns were a Mongolian people; this material is therefore nonrestrictive or nonessential.]

For more information on commas see Commas: Punctuating Restrictive and Non-restrictive Modifiers and Punctuating Coordinating Conjunctions and Sentence Adverbs , or take one of the free grammar, style, and punctuation workshops offered by the Writing Center.

8. Superfluous commas

Unnecessary commas make sentences difficult to read.

Field trips are required, in several courses, such as, botany and geology.

Field trips are required in several courses, such as botany and geology.

The term, “scientific illiteracy,” has become almost a cliche, in educational circles.

The term “scientific illiteracy” has become almost a cliche in educational circles.

9. Comma splices

Do not link two independent clauses with a comma (unless you also use a coordinating conjunction: and, or, but, for, nor, so, yet ).

Instead use a period or semicolon, or rewrite the sentence.

Comma splice:

In 1952 Japan’s gross national product was one third that of France, by the late 1970s it was larger than the GNPs of France and Britain combined.

In 1952 Japan’s gross national product was one third that of France. By the late 1970s it was larger than the GNPs of France and Britain combined.

Diseased coronary arteries are often surgically bypassed, however half of all bypass grafts fail within ten years.

Diseased coronary arteries are often surgically bypassed; however, half of all bypass grafts fail within ten years.

10. Apostrophe Errors

Apostrophes indicate possession for nouns ( “Jim’s hat,” “several years’ work” ) but not for personal pronouns (its, your, their, and whose).

Apostrophes also indicate omissions in contractions ( “it’s” = “it is” ).

In general, they are not used to indicate plurals.

In the current conflict its uncertain who’s borders their contesting.

In the current conflict it is [it’s] uncertain whose borders they are [they’re] contesting.

The Aztecs ritual’s of renewal increased in frequency over the course of time.

The Aztecs’ rituals of renewal increased in frequency over the course of time.

11. Words easily confused

“Effect” is most often a noun (the effect), and “affect” is almost always a verb.

Other pairs commonly confused: “lead”/”led” and “accept”/”except.”

Check a glossary of usage to find the right choice.

The recession had a negative affect on sales.

The recession had a negative effect on sales. (or) The recession affected sales negatively.

The laboratory instructor chose not to offer detailed advise.

The laboratory instructor chose not to offer detailed advice.

12. Misspellings

Spelling errors are usually perceived as a reflection of the writer’s careless attitude toward the whole project.

Don’t allow your hard work to be marred in this way!

In addition to comprehensive dictionaries, you may want to use electronic spell checks, spelling dictionaries, and lists of frequently misspelled words found in handbooks.

Grammar and Punctuation

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Using Dashes

Using Commas

Using Semicolons

Using Coordinating Conjunctions

Using Conjunctive Adverbs

Subject-Verb Agreement

Using Gender–Neutral Pronouns in Academic Writing

How to Proofread

Twelve Common Errors: An Editing Checklist

Clear, Concise Sentences

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• Common mistakes

English Mistakes Commonly Made in a Dissertation | Examples

Students tend to make the same language mistakes over and over again in academic writing . Taking a careful look at these lists of mistakes that we often encounter may help you to break these habits. Avoiding them will set your writing apart and give it a more polished feel.

If you want to make sure your dissertation doesn’t contain any language errors, you could consider using a dissertation editing service .

Fix common mistakes for free

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Table of contents

Spelling mistakes, word choice, capitalization, conjunctions and linking terms, nouns/noun phrases, prepositions/prepositional phrases, punctuating numbers, quantifiers, terms used in citations, verbs/phrasal verbs, words that are commonly confused.

Although spellcheck features catch many spelling mistakes, they cannot be relied on entirely. These words are still frequently misspelled in many theses.

Check for common mistakes

Use the best grammar checker available to check for common mistakes in your text.

Following these tips will help you to improve your written academic English in general. The next step is to fine-tune your writing depending on whether you are using American, British, or Australian English ! A grammar checker can also help you automatically fix mistakes you may have missed after proofreading.

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Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy Research: Skills and Strategies pp 407–422 Cite as

Research Writing: Tips and Common Errors

• Leonie Munro 2 &
• Aarthi Ramlaul 3  
• First Online: 24 March 2020

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Academic writing should be precise and objective. It should not include jargon, circumlocution, tautology, or clichés. Effective academic writing requires the use of good grammar, a logical structure, precise verb and word choice, and information. Each paragraph has a single theme that is developed in several connecting sentences. Punctuation is important in academic writing. Examples are provided to highlight what is required in academic writing.

• Punctuation
• Definite article
• Capitalization
• Reference system
• Circumlocution

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Ramlaul A. Good practice tips and pitfalls to avoid when writing up. In: Ramlaul A, editor. Medical imaging and radiotherapy research: skills and strategies. London: Churchill Livingstone; 2010. p. 265.

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Munro, L., Ramlaul, A. (2020). Research Writing: Tips and Common Errors. In: Ramlaul, A. (eds) Medical Imaging and Radiotherapy Research: Skills and Strategies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-37944-5_20

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The Most Common Mistakes when Writing a PhD Thesis

• February 23, 2022

You have got a chance to know about the most common mistakes that PhD candidates do while outlining a thesis writing or a PhD thesis writing format. As the thesis is already considered problematic, students want to make it simple and try to put fewer efforts into their doctoral program . Several Thesis examples should be observed while writing your own.

But they did not realise that by doing so they are doing great mistake since this makes their work complaint able and they need to write it again and again. So in such a situation, it is always better to take professional help if you find any difficulty in outlining a thesis writing.

One can quickly get confused because of the phrasing and sentence structure. But it is not rocket science; a well-written thesis requires good planning, time management and constructive writing skills.

PhD Thesis Writing is not a tough task if approached with proper planning and organization.

Mistake 1 – Not knowing what a PhD thesis is:

Understanding what a thesis is:.

Many students get their PhDs without ever having written a proper research paper . And we submit anything for publication, so they don’t know what they’re doing when it comes time to write a thesis . 

• So it may surprise you that writing a PhD thesis isn’t related to papers at all, but rather is an independent piece of work.
•  There are many different formats for a PhD thesis writing, including the so-called “ thesis proposal ” and the more traditional “thesis.” The first thesis writing format is usually used by students who are doing independent research , which is not part of a formal program of study or in collaboration with other students.

Mistake 2 – Not knowing what the task actually is :

Formulate your tasks accordingly:.

When you’re outlining a PhD thesis , you take on a huge task: to summarize your entire research career in one document. You have to be very thorough and well organized, and you need to be able to write clearly so others will understand what you’ve found.

• To do this, it’s important that you should refer to some thesis examples and especially the thesis writing format. If you’re not sure, talk to others who have been through the process. You should also read as many treatments of your field as possible, including those from other scholars who’ve written about the same topic.
• You should be able to explain what you’ve discovered by organizing your findings into a coherent argument. By doing this, you’ll be better prepared for any questions that might arise at the committee meeting, but first, make sure your ideas are clear on their own.

Mistake 3 – Using Ineffective or Inadequate Research Methods:

Use proper research methods:.

• You should be scrupulous about the quality of the methods you use for your research . This means finding a university library with an excellent research section and thesis writing format with reading every book on the subject matter. As well as doing countless hours of keyword searches and reviewing journal articles directly from reference websites. 
• When you write your thesis , it should be clear that you’ve done everything possible to get your information. So don’t make silly mistakes like writing “weasel words” in your conclusion like “were” and “were-not” or using confusing language in your introduction like “arguably”. You also need to use academic terminology correctly, which is a lot more complicated than it sounds in thesis examples.

Mistake 4 – Researching the Wrong Ideas:

You should be scrupulous about the quality of the methods you use for your research . The statement “ A PhD thesis is a research report ” is a common misconception. It implies that PhD thesis examples is simply a collection of facts or data. It’s not.

A PhD thesis writing is to convince the reader that what you’ve written is correct. In other words, outlining a PhD thesis is not just about collecting facts, it’s about communicating those facts in such a way that your reader accepts them as true.

But sometimes it’s hard to tell which ideas are correct and which aren’t. That’s where your advisor comes in handy — he or she will tell you if your ideas are sound and help you refine them until they’re right.

Mistake 5 – Starting too big, too soon:

Steps to propagate a thesis/dissertation:.

The major step in outlining a thesis is to decide what the topic is, and then outline the structure. You need to make sure that you cover all of the major points in your argument. If you can’t do it all in one paper, you have to pick a manageable amount.

It’s tempting to try to write everything right away, but this usually leads to having too much material in the first draft and not enough in the second. This makes it difficult for others to read through it and for you to remember everything that you’ve written.

If you want others to get an idea of what your dissertation will look like, you need to leave room for revisions and review.

Mistake 6 – Getting caught up in Methodology and Missing Deadlines:

In a PhD thesis , there is no fixed word count. The word count will depend on the amount of work and how much research you have to do for your topic. You should always keep this in mind and make sure you don’t forget about it.

• It’s not enough for you to think that your ideas are good; you also need to make sure that they are presented clearly and elegantly. 
• You need to practice writing as part of your graduate coursework and throughout your graduate studies so that you can master the art of writing.
• There’s no shortcut to learning how to write well; it takes time and effort and practice and not letting yourself panic. Organize and implement.

Mistake 7 – Failing to plan and Prepare Properly:

If you don’t plan thoroughly, you can run into trouble when writing your thesis . For example, if you’re doing an oral thesis presentation at the start of your PhD program , you need to ensure the material is well-rehearsed, otherwise, it becomes dry and difficult to deliver. If you don’t set out a clear outline of what you want to cover in your thesis examples and thesis writing format, it’s easy to become distracted by how many words you need to fit into that final page count. This can lead to a final product that doesn’t capture the reader’s attention and feels too rushed.

The most common mistakes are either a direct result of lack of planning or carelessness. We hope that the above list will serve as a checklist for students who are about to prepare or already working on their thesis examples. Then again, we all make mistakes once in a while and even the most experienced writer makes silly errors. But the trick is to minimize the appearance of mistakes overall, especially before deadlines.

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Most common undergraduate dissertation problems: how to deal with them.

BY SEBASTIAN MILLER

Ordinary homework and essays are difficult for an undergraduate. When the stakes are rising even higher with a dissertation, the challenge becomes more intense. Thus, experts have identified common dissertation writing mistakes and challenges that every undergraduate student should anticipate and find a way of overcoming.

• Not Understanding Or Getting Your Title/Research Question/Hypothesis/Aim Accurately

Starting off a paper is always a huge challenge for students. You have no idea whether the title is accurate, or whether you’ve chosen a thesis statement that will give you the results you desire. Some students will choose research questions that are ambiguous or a hypothesis that is erroneous. In other cases, translating the idea into a research question becomes a problem. That may delay the commencement of your paper to a great extent.

Avoid wasting time or starting off on the wrong foot by consulting your supervisor or teacher. The teacher will provide guidance on how to select a strong title, formulate the research question, and keep your work within researchable limits. Use proofread samples and examples to guide you when crafting these important sections of your paper. Discuss the examples with your teacher or supervisor to ensure that they meet the standards required.

• Managing Time and Meeting Deadlines

The deadline for submitting your dissertation appears to approach faster than you can complete the paper. It causes most students to rush through the paper at the last minute. The last-minute rush affects the quality of your paper and leaves you extremely stressed. It appears as though you do not have the time to handle your academics or enjoy a social life. Such lack of time will give you a terrible school experience.

Since time is limited, every student should invest in a homework planner. A planner is a notebook or application where you will enter all your assignments, their intensity or quantity, and due date. A homework planner helps you to keep track of all the work you are supposed to complete and, therefore, avoid missing the deadlines. Homework planner apps are among the helpful resources for students to make your school work easier. It will send you an alert when your paper is due to enable you to work faster or avoid missing the deadline.

• Getting Quality Reference Materials For Your Project

A dissertation is an academic paper that is supposed to show your thoughts about a particular subject. It has a chapter on literature review where you are supposed to present what other authors have said about the topic. You must also read sufficient, high-quality, and relevant materials on the subject to inform discussions on your paper. The use of poor quality reference materials will affect the strength of your ideas.

Consult your teacher to recommend high-quality reference materials. Your supervisor has come across different databases and will guide you on the best source of quality articles, books, and such other reference materials. You will never get it wrong when you get guidance from your teacher or supervisor.

• Citations And Referencing

Academic writing requires a student to acknowledge the source of his ideas. Each discipline has strict rules on how to cite your sources and make references to these sources. The rules can be confusing and also take a lot of time to execute. Unfortunately, failure to follow the rules attracts punitive penalties. The solution is to use citation and reference apps. The apps provide room to enter the details of these sources and with the click of a button, generate a citation, or reference. Use apps and platforms that are accurate.

• Straying From Your Purpose

A topic mutates in the course of research and drafting, almost pushing you to a different conclusion. Academic writing rules require consistency from the topic to the introduction, body, and conclusion of your paper. You should avoid straying from your main topic by developing an outline. The outline indicates your ideas from the introduction to the body and conclusion. Such a plan gives you a general view of your paper before you even commence drafting. Regularly consult your supervisor or teacher who will help you maintain focus on your main topic.

Each student will experience a unique challenge based on the topic and academic prowess. Consult your supervisor regularly and use the resources available to make academic writing easy. Such measures will make the completion of your dissertation easy and satisfying.

Sebastian Miller is a former Calling Lake School science teacher. After four years of teaching, he decided to become a freelance writer. In Sebastian’s opinion, math is the core of all science, and his goal is to enlighten as many scholars as possible through writing.

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4 Common Research Writing Mistakes (and How to Fix Them)

It is disappointing to see authors who, after putting in so much of time and effort into conducting their research, make peace with their work being judged based on styling or linguistic errors, rather than its scientific merit.

Successful researchers understand that communicating your research effectively is as important as conducting solid scientific research. You can also check out this article on top ten ways to improve technical writing , which helps you to eliminate the  most common problems in technical writing and provide tips on how to recognize and solve them.

If you are about to start writing an academic paper soon, here are a few common research writing mistakes you must keep in mind to avoid unnecessary rejections:

1. Not emphasising on “why” the problem you are trying to solve is important

The introduction sets the tone of the entire paper. Authors often utilize this section to talk about the objectives of the study and explain the problem they are addressing. But a lot of authors leave it up to the reviewer to understand ‘why’ the problem is so important and challenging, which is a big mistake.

Authors must take the responsibility of convincing the reviewer about the gravity of the problem to give a compelling start to their paper. Use data to state why the problem is so important, how the current solutions are falling short to solve it, and why it is a difficult problem to solve. Similarly, just stating the solution to the problem is not enough. Give detailed arguments to explain what makes your solution so compelling. Explaining the limitations of the current solution and the challenges faced in solving the problem are also good ways to intrigue the reviewer. For example, if you are optimizing a current solution, showing the impact of those optimizations on the outcome can certainly help make a good case for your solution.

2. Weak structuring of the paper

The longer the research paper, the more challenging it becomes to keep readers engaged until the end. It is easy to drift from one thought to another.

A strong research question is at the center of a good research paper. You might want to present some good ideas, but if it doesn’t relate directly to the answer to your research question, it’s best to keep it for another day. If a project allows you to explore several research questions, it is best to address each question in a different paper.

Unnecessary information like why you used a particular software to create pie charts, or explaining fundamentals of a topic when the majority of your readers are already well-versed with it are easy ways to make people lose their interest in your work.

In some domains, projects are undertaken for operational purposes and not necessarily to add anything to scientific knowledge. Papers that are written based on such projects should thus define their primary research question as the basis of the paper.

A good research question is specific, original, and expresses a strong perspective on one focused topic. It should either extend the conversation about the topic in the scientific community or refute existing knowledge. For example, ‘we examined if giving a checklist of vaccinations for a newborn makes couples come back to the same hospital for vaccinations,’ might make a good hypothesis. Authors must note that their question should be intriguing enough for those in the same field of study.

All supporting statements should in effect answer this primary research question and pose a sustained inquiry and an inspiring discussion around your research question. This helps maintain unity throughout the paper and lends a logic flow to your ideas. Although most journals recommend following IMRAD (Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion) to define the structure of a scientific paper, you must check specific requirements of the journal under the author’s guidelines section.

In the image below, you can see a great demarcation provided by OUP of the points to address under each section of IMRAD for a typical research paper:

Often when submitting manuscripts, authors do not mention the research question or the defined aim of the question is too vague. Mixing points between sections is another common issue that can make the paper lose its impact. The above image should work as a handy reference, in case you get confused. Besides structure, it is also important for authors to rightfully acknowledge the limitations of their study and make sure that their discussion is providing a convincing answer to the research question. Non-native speakers are highly recommended to get their papers proofread by a native speaker at least once before submission. The only time when it is probably okay to receive a paper rejection is when there is some grave loophole in your research you couldn’t have realized earlier and it warrants further deep dive into the subject. Getting your paper rejected due to linguistic errors, paper style errors, LaTeX errors or because you didn’t acknowledge the latest research, is a waste of your time as well as the reviewers and the journal where you submitted the paper.

3. Citing the sources incorrectly

There are several ways you can interpret this. Many scholars do not add relevant references that support their key arguments in the introduction and the discussion.

At other times, reviewers reject papers that cite references from a long time ago as it is unlikely that no scientific progress has been made in a particular field in a couple of years. Citing newer research thus is a great way to make sure that your manuscript is relevant and adds to the current conversation about the topic you are addressing. Add a few newer references from top journals to show how well aware you are about the recent developments to earn yourself some brownie points.

No one wants additional rounds of the stressful peer review process. It is common to spot authors conveniently skipping important research references (sometimes intentionally) or mentioning incorrect facts when citing previous references. For example, if you propose a revolutionary new algorithm to solve a problem but fail to recognize that it can be solved by an already existing solution, it might lead to rejection of your paper.

Each journal has specific guidelines on how to cite sources as well. Make sure you do not take these guidelines lightly and follow them correctly. Of course, if you are a SciSpace (Formerly Typeset) user, you do not have to worry about any of this as you can select the pre-set template of your journal on our platform and follow all citation and author guidelines 100% in a single click.

To understand all about citations, refer to The Fundamentals of Journal Citation

4. Not enriching your paper with appropriate figures and tables

Using text to describe everything can be boring and might not help you put your results/data across as effectively as a table or a figure. Adding figures and tables also help you flesh out your results section and give it the emphasis it deserves. Otherwise, it will probably be the shortest section of your manuscript. Authors often make a lot of mistakes in regards to basic formatting conventions in figures and tables. For example, figures and tables should be numbered in the same order in which they appear in your text and should be cited as (Figure 1) or (Fig. 1), and not (See Figure 1 attached). Same goes for tables as well. Also, your figures and tables should be self-explanatory.

If you are unable to decide what would be the best way to represent your data — tables or figures — the general rule is that tables present the experimental results, while figures offer a better visualization when comparing experimental results with theoretical/calculated values or previous works. Regardless of the choice you make, do not duplicate the information you’ve covered elsewhere in the manuscript.

Here are a few quick tips to present your figures and tables more clearly:

• Don’t use crowded plots. Limit to 3–4 sets of data per figure and choose your scales carefully
• Use the right size for axis labels
• Make sure your symbols are clear and it is easy to distinguish data sets
• Avoid including long boring tables and add them as supplementary material, if needed

Although the list of research writing mistakes can be pretty long-winding if you delve into the granularities of LaTeX errors or specific grammatical errors, those are probably appropriate subjects to take up in other posts. Are you a journal editor or perhaps a researcher yourself? What are the common errors you’ve observed in research papers? Share it with us.

Our recommendation, since you are looking for platforms that simplify research workflows, is SciSpace . All your research needs can be met through it, from literature searches to writing papers to publishing.

SciSpace is a platform that researchers, universities, and publishers worldwide trust for everything they need. An exhaustive repository with more than 200 million research papers from across disciplines with SEO-optimized summaries, public profiles to showcase your experience and expertise, a specifically-built collaborative text editor, 20,000+ journal templates that can be inserted in a click, and so much more.

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• How to increase citation count of your research paper?
• How to become good at academic research writing?
• 11 Reasons Why Research Papers Are Rejected

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Types of Essays in Academic Writing

Common Writing Mistakes

The writing of academic papers requires authors to comply with a number of conditions, one of which is strict adherence to an appropriate style. Research and scholarly articles differ from journalistic and artistic ones. They do not inherently include excessive creativity or the ornateness of lexical structures. On the contrary, the accuracy of facts and the clear sequence of specific data presentation characterize academic papers as high-quality, professional works. The non-observance of such stylistic principles questions the author’s capability in matters relating to the correctness of the compilation of scientific essays, literature reviews, critical reports, and other similar documents. Therefore, it is essential to study the guidelines and recommendations specifying the mistakes authors should avoid.

Recommendations

There are several stylistic mistakes that are often found in academic works, including issues of wordiness, redundancy, and unclear sentence constructions. These nuances, as a rule, do not completely distort the general meaning of the text but do provide evidence of an incorrect approach to the material presentation. As accuracy is one of the key criteria of a well-written academic paper, making the aforementioned errors is highly undesirable. For each category, it is possible to provide more detailed recommendations on how to avoid them.

How to Eliminate Wordiness

Problems of wordiness are a frequent phenomenon in the works of inexperienced authors who seek to emphasize their ideas at the expense of overly verbose lexical structures. The following mistakes can arise:

• Use of intensifiers

The application of intensifiers such as significantly, literally, actually, and other similar structures is a common technique in literary works. However, in academic writing accents that are placed through these lexical units are often unnecessary and undesirable. The ability to validate information through facts and figures is more valuable than using intensifiers.

• Nominalization and phrase complexity

Although academic texts are semantically complex, there is no need to overload them with complicated constructions that can be avoided. For instance, the phrase “to have an ability to do something” may be replaced easily by the modal verb “can.” The same applies to similar phrases that can be converted into one word (“to draw conclusions” – “to conclude,” “to take into consideration” – “to consider”).

Academic works are scholarly texts, and the use of the first-person and other elements of an artistic style are not welcome. Introductory constructions and clichés, which are permissible in everyday speech, are undesirable in research papers and essays. Examples of such phrases include: “as far as I am concerned” and “I am tempted to think that”.

How to Eliminate Redundancy

When offering recommendations to eliminate redundancy in an academic text, it is essential to consider the following:

• Implied meaning

Mixing semantically similar structures within a single phrase is a stylistic mistake. An example of such a construction is “to plan in advance”. “To plan” means drawing up a specific algorithm for future activities, which already suggests a sense that is identical to “in advance.” Therefore, the use of both elements next to each other is not required.

• Incomplete thoughts

Emphasizing a particular thought may be accompanied by a strong hypothesis or theory. Nevertheless, if there is no rationale for a specific proposal, such an assertion has no scientific value and cannot be considered a rationale for any intervention. For instance, the phrase “the task is significantly difficult” implies that the explanation of such a judgment is necessary so that a reader can have an idea of the reasons for the complexity. Otherwise, such incomplete hypotheses remain the authors’ personal and ambiguous ideas.

• Synonyms redundancy

In an effort to strengthen a certain statement, inexperienced authors often make stylistic mistakes associated with the redundancy of synonyms. Phrases become tautological, which is unacceptable in quality scholarly texts. An example of such a lexical structure is “various differences”; since both words have the same meaning, the construction is incorrect.

How to Eliminate Ambiguous Sentence Constructions

The problems associated with ambiguous sentence constructions can include:

• Excessive use of the passive voice

As a rule, the application of a passive voice is not prohibited. However, if a certain lexical construction becomes too passive due to this grammatical structure, it is better to avoid it. Moreover, an active voice makes it possible to convey a specific idea clearly, which is desirable in academic writing.

• The illogical separation of sentences

Although long sentences are usually harder to understand, information in individual phrases that тare too short can also sound awkward. In case there is an opportunity to combine two adjacent phrases into one, without violating the semantics of a specific text, this principle will help to avoid using unnecessary words and ensure clarity of ideas.

Recommendations regarding stylistic mistakes while writing academic works can aid authors in a number of areas. Wordiness, redundancy, and unclear sentence constructions are frequent issues. Inexperienced authors need to pay attention to the fact that their texts should not contain such errors. Quality scholarly works are distinguished by the observance of all the aforementioned norms of writing, a minimum occurrence of errors, and the clear presentation of ideas.

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7 Common Writing Mistakes to Avoid in Your Research Paper 

Common writing mistakes can negatively impact your manuscript’s chance of acceptance. With rejection rates in some top international publications as high as 97%, 1 this is something that researchers should worry about. Unlike general day-to-day writing, academic writing requires a special skill set that needs to be nurtured and developed. This requires authors to be objective, concise, and formal in their writing, which should ideally be devoid of common English grammar mistakes. However, an interesting statistic from the 2018 Global Survey Report by Editage reveals that 76% of research authors find it difficult to prepare a well-written, error-free manuscript for journal submission. 2 This is not surprising given that the manuscript writing process can be as challenging and time-consuming as conducting research. 

However, you can ensure that you deliver high-quality manuscripts that meet the stringent standards set by leading journals. Just make sure to check your work and avoid the most common writing mistakes that budding academics and researchers with English as a second language tend to make.

Here’s a quick list of the seven most common writing and grammar mistakes to look out for before submitting your manuscript. 

1. Language errors (word choice, phrasing)

Academic writing is meant to be professional and straightforward, on point but easy to understand, and precise, with no room for misinterpretation. One of the most common mistakes in writing is not using the appropriate tone and style to communicate your research. Keep in mind that language that is generally acceptable in informal writing, such as slang and irregular abbreviations, is considered inappropriate for academic writing.

Another common writing mistake is mixing up words that look or sound similar or not the right words and phrases to convey your meaning clearly and accurately. When using synonyms or rephrasing text, make sure you choose words and phrases that fit the context. Avoid using excessive technical terminology, jargon and cliches, such as “ think outside of the box”  and “ at the end of the day.”   

2. Poor grammar (voice, tenses, punctuation)

In academic writing it’s essential to check your work to eliminate common grammar mistakes. Using grammar and punctuation properly helps to emphasize pauses, thoughts, ideas, and even the accuracy of the text. Experts suggest the use of active voice instead of passive voice when writing, for example, “we carried out research”, rather than “research was carried out”. Although some sections of your paper will benefit from the use of passive voice. Similarly, consistency in verb tense usage within a paragraph or between adjacent paragraphs helps to ensure better flow of ideas.

The incorrect use of punctuation marks, such as commas, apostrophes, quotations, colons, and semi-colons, is among the most common grammar mistakes in English that can change the way a message is interpreted, so it is important to understand how to use punctuations properly. Other grammar mistake examples include the misuse of articles, sentence fragmentation, parallelism, and subject-verb agreement.  

3. Repetition of ideas (winding sentences)

While writing your thesis, dissertation, or research paper, you will need to keep within the recommended word count. However, academics often resort to describing established concepts or repeating ideas and arguments in different sections of their paper to meet this word count requirement. This common writing mistake shows a lack of proper research and a dearth of original perspectives and can make your research manuscript seem bloated and incoherent.

Academic writing is expected to be clear and concise, so it’s important to maintain a balance between restating key points to highlight critical messages for the reader and becoming overly repetitive to the extent of being irritating or boring. If you find yourself repeating phrases often, avoid this common mistake in writing by using contextual synonyms or rephrasing text differently to convey your research in the most effective way possible. 

4. Weak introductions

One of the most common writing mistakes made by early career researchers is that they do not pay sufficient attention to the introduction of the research manuscript. The introduction serves as the reader’s first impression of the article, influencing their decision to either continue reading or skip it. Ensuring that the introduction is captivating and concise is vital. A good introduction helps highlight your topic, main concepts, and background information, which sets the context for your research.

When writing the introduction, researchers must try and find answers to why they chose a specific topic for research – why it is important, why you adopted a particular method or approach, and why it is relevant today. Avoid this type of common writing mistake by striking a balance between being concise and engaging while providing a comprehensive overview of the major concepts in the introduction. 

5. Neglecting editing

Having spent long hours on research studies and academic writing, it is tempting to submit your research manuscript to your target journal as soon as it is completed. This is especially true if you are racing against tight deadlines. However, submitting your work without proper editing and final proofreading checks is one of the most common mistakes in writing. Identifying breaks in logic and flow, ensuring consistency in terms of fonts and formatting, eliminating spelling and grammatical mistakes, checking your references and citations, and ensuring that your submission is complete are all essential and critical checks for your manuscript to be accepted for publication.  

6. Ignoring recommended guidelines

Most universities and international journals have their own specific set of stringent author guidelines that include instructions about appropriate structure, word count, formatting, fonts, etc. However, a common writing mistake that some budding academics make is ignoring, missing out on, or misinterpreting these important guidelines; this may be seen as a lack of effort or an inability to follow instructions.

In such cases, even if your research may potentially offer a breakthrough in your field, you are likely to be rejected or asked to submit with major revisions. One way to avoid this common writing mistake is to carefully examine the specific guidelines and make notes or checklists on key aspects to include/keep in mind before you start writing to ensure your work is not desk rejection.  

7. Plagiarism

One of the most common writing mistakes is plagiarism, which is also the most frequently observed ethical offence. Plagiarism is when text, ideas, concepts, and images are used as is from previously published work without properly crediting the source. Writing that is presented as original, without proper citations is deemed unethical and is considered a copyright infringement by the journal.

Even if this was done inadvertently – failing to cite your sources, paraphrasing, or quoting someone without credit – plagiarism is considered a serious offence and could result in manuscript rejection, penalties, and sometimes even legal action. In fact, even quoting your own previous studies without proper attribution is deemed as plagiarism . To eliminate this common writing mistake and avoid any ethical misconduct, researchers must check their work and ensure that it has all the required citations and is an original piece of work. 

References:

• Ghost, M. 11 Reasons Why Research Papers Are Rejected. Scispace, October 2021. Available online at https://typeset.io/resources/11-reasons-why-research-papers-are-rejected/  
• Fernandes, A. Our secret recipe (with 5 key ingredients) for a winning manuscript. Editage Insights, December 2020. Available online at https://www.editage.com/insights/our-secret-recipe-with-5-key-ingredients-for-a-winning-manuscript  

Paperpal is a comprehensive AI writing toolkit that helps students and researchers achieve 2x the writing in half the time. It leverages 21+ years of STM experience and insights from millions of research articles to provide in-depth academic writing, language editing, and submission readiness support to help you write better, faster.  

Get accurate academic translations, rewriting support, grammar checks, vocabulary suggestions, and generative AI assistance that delivers human precision at machine speed. Try for free or upgrade to Paperpal Prime starting at US$19 a month to access premium features, including consistency, plagiarism, and 30+ submission readiness checks to help you succeed.  

Experience the future of academic writing – Sign up to Paperpal and start writing for free!  

Related Reads:

• How and When to Use Active or Passive Voice in Research Papers
• What does ‘et al.’ mean and How to Use ‘et al.’ in a Research Paper
• Know the Difference: Quoting, Paraphrasing and Summarizing 
• 3 Easy Ways for Researchers to Improve Their Academic Vocabulary

Safeguarding Research: How Paperpal Keeps Your Data Secure

Adsorption vs. absorption – a different letter can make all the difference , you may also like, publish research papers: 9 steps for successful publications , self-plagiarism in research: what it is and how..., 6 tips for post-doc researchers to take their..., 8 most effective ways to increase motivation for..., how to make your thesis supervision work for..., how to paraphrase research papers effectively, 4 types of transition words for research papers , paraphrasing in academic writing: answering top author queries, how to write a conclusion for research papers..., ethical research practices for research with human subjects.

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Common Mistakes in Academic Writing & How to Avoid Them

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Academic writing, while demanding, can be mastered with a good grasp of language rules and careful attention to common pitfalls. Mistakes ranging from structuring, style, to grammatical errors can distract from your argument and undermine the credibility of your work. Most of these common mistakes are avoidable, so it’s important to know which mistakes you’re likely to make. Explore our guide to transform these challenges into opportunities for improvement in your academic writing.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

• 1 Common Mistakes – In a Nutshell
• 2 Definition: Common mistakes
• 3 Common mistakes: British vs. American English
• 4 Common mistakes: Citation terms
• 5 Common mistakes: Quantifiers
• 6 Common mistakes: Nouns & plurals
• 7 Common mistakes: Punctuating numbers and dates
• 8 Common mistakes: Adjectives
• 9 Common mistakes: Verbs/phrasal verbs
• 10 Common mistakes: Words that are mixed up
• 11 Common mistakes: Conjunctions and prepositions

Common Mistakes – In a Nutshell

• There are many common mistakes in writing.
• Researchers can use British or American English in their work, although it must be consistent throughout.
• Students should ensure their work is free from any mistakes before submitting their work.

Definition: Common mistakes

Common mistakes are errors in academic writing that most students fail to notice in their research. There are different common mistakes ranging from inappropriate punctuation to improper sentence structure and more. Proofreading and editing your work is essential to correct language mistakes and other errors, as they can give you a lower score even if your research is well-structured.

Common mistakes: British vs. American English

British English and American English are the main languages used in academic writing by students and researchers. However, some words are spelled differently, and students should use the instructed language in their work to avoid common mistakes in language use.

Common mistakes: Citation terms

Terms used in a citation, including et al. are commonly miswritten as Et al or Et all. For example:

✘  The spread of the bubonic plague was largely influenced by trade and immigration (Gretel et all. , 1976)

✘  The spread of the bubonic plague was largely influenced by trade and immigration (Gretel et. al. , 1976)

✓  The spread of the bubonic plague was largely influenced by trade and immigration (Gretel et al. , 1976)

Common mistakes: Quantifiers

Common mistakes: nouns & plurals.

Some common mistakes in noun plurals include:

Common mistakes: Punctuating numbers and dates

Using commas correctly ensures proper punctuation of numbers, as follows:

Common mistakes: Adjectives

Students also make some common mistakes when using adjectives correctly. For instance:

Common mistakes: Verbs/phrasal verbs

Some common mistakes include:

Common mistakes: Words that are mixed up

It is common for students to mix up certain words, especially those that have similar pronunciations, such as:

• Effect – noun
• Affect – verb

The effect of the pandemic was widespread, it affected many people in the world.

• Personnel – noun
• Personal – adjective

The school’s personnel like to keep their personal items in their cars.

• Principal – adjective
• Principle – noun

The principal theme of the study draws on principles defined in the main source.

• Were – verb
• Where – adjective

They were found in the park where they like to play.

• Bear – verb
• Bare – adjective

The axle bears the load on a bare surface.

Common mistakes: Conjunctions and prepositions

Conjunctions and prepositions are used frequently in academic writing. Some common mistakes include the following:

What are the common mistakes in academic writing?

The most common mistakes in writing are grammatical errors from incorrect punctuation, spelling, and word groups. They also include misuse of phrases and confusing similar words.

How can you avoid common mistakes in your written work?

Proofreading and revising is the best way to find errors. Also, confirm the correct forms of words and spellings before using them.

What is the difference between American and British English?

There are different spellings for certain words in these forms of writing. For instance, the use of “s” and “z” may vary, such as analyse and analyze.

How do you punctuate numbers correctly?

Use a comma in the right place to show a number correctly. For instance 10,000 not 10.000.

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5 Common Essay Mistakes and How to Avoid Them

Athina hansen.

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Content Writer at Gradehacker

Updated January, 2023

How frustrating is it to hand in an essay you thought was good only to receive a low grade and a heap of corrections? That’s because you need to learn how to avoid essay common mistakes most students make!

Here at Gradehacker, we have years of experience helping students like you with custom-made essays for college students. We have come across many students who feel defeated as they keep receiving the same feedback on different essays. This can leave you feeling like you’re unable to fix the weaknesses in your writing to increase your grades and have a successful essay.  

Many of those corrections you might find spread throughout your essay are common mistakes in essay writing ! Though you may feel alone in repeating the same mistakes, this is not the case.

Excellent essay writing is a skill you need to complete college successfully . In this article, we share the five most common essay mistakes we have observed in essays and how to avoid them. 

This way, you can solve these essay mistakes and get that A+ essay you desire!

5 Common Essay Mistakes

Mistake #1: thesis statement problems.

A thesis statement is a sentence located at the end of your introduction paragraph that lays out the argument you will be making in your essay and the points that you will include to back this up.

Writing a Vague Thesis Statement

What makes a thesis statement vague and prevents you from making a meaningful essay is leaving out the points that will support why your argument is valid .

Let’s take a look at an example of a vague thesis statemen t:

Children should eat vegetables.

Does this thesis statement make the reader confident that children should eat their vegetables?

This thesis statement isn’t convincing because it presents an argument without any justification . It does not include why children should eat their vegetables.

How do I Make a Strong Thesis Statement?

When crafting a thesis statement, you have to remember to include the why aspect .

When you have an argument, ask yourself, “why is this so?” The answer to this question will be the points that will support your argument and must be included in the thesis statement.

Taking this into account, let’s tweak the previous thesis statement:

“Children should eat vegetables because they provide the necessary nutrients for growth, protect against diseases, and are an excellent fiber source.”

Compare the previous thesis statement to this one. This one sounds a lot more convincing, doesn’t it? This thesis statement was improved by simply including points that back up the claim.

We asked ourselves, why should children eat vegetables? And added on to the thesis statement by putting our answer after a ‘because.’

Thesis statements don’t always address a “why is this so?”. Sometimes, they address a “how did (any event) happen?”

That means that if asking yourself, “Why?” does not fit your thesis statement, ask yourself, “How?” When answering either a why or how, always include your answer as the supporting points.

Ensure you do not just include an empty statement, but you also make a complete sentence to justify your statement.

Choosing a Non-Justifiable Thesis Statement

Another mistake is choosing a thesis statement that you are not able to justify extensively . If you find that you chose a thesis statement but are struggling to find points that will support it, you are making this mistake!

You can end up with a non-justifiable thesis statement for two reasons:

• There aren't many facts out there to support the point you make in your thesis statement
• You chose a thesis statement before researching thoroughly and only based on your personal opinion

If you have a non-justifiable thesis statement, it will affect your entire essay! Your body paragraphs, which elaborate on the supporting points, will suffer as you end up justifying more with opinions instead of facts and information.

How do I Ensure my Thesis Statement Can be Justified?

Simply put, stick to the facts! And avoid:

• Choosing a thesis statement before researching a topic
• Picking an argument that has little evidence out there

Do not be afraid to change your thesis statement! Because you will end up losing more time and points on your grade if you stay put with a thesis statement that isn’t easy to justify.

Here’s a visual template you can follow to know if your thesis statement is appropriate for your paper o not. 

Don’t Forget About the Thesis Statement Throughout the Entire Essay

So, we pointed out that having a good thesis statement is a must-have , but is that it? No! 

A big mistake is including a thesis statement but not connecting back to it throughout your essay.

This common mistake occurs when we lose sight of it in the writing process. We may follow our essay plan and include the points we planned but forget to relate these back to the essay’s stance.

This error involves leaving the thesis statement in the introduction and forgetting about it in the rest of your essay.

How do Address The Thesis Statement Throughout The Entire Essay?

To avoid this, you must understand that each body paragraph(s) explores a separate point supporting your thesis statement.

Have your thesis statement in sight while writing , so you can always be reminded of your essay’s general argument. When you include evidence or facts within a body paragraph, always explain how this backs up your general thesis statement points.

Think of your thesis statement as a string to which each body paragraph is connected and ties back to.

 If you want to learn how to come up with an outstanding thesis statement in a few minutes, check out our video!

Mistake #2: Including Hard-to-Read Sentences

Have you ever had someone else read your essay and ask, what are you trying to say? 

Hard-to-read sentences are common errors found in essays. Many include fancy words and long sentences, thinking it will make them sound “academic.”

These sentences, you think, sound academic but will just be confusing to the reader if they are not concise and have superfluous words.

While academic writing does involve formal words and academic language, simple sentences that show clarity is one of the most important things!

How do I Make my Sentences Readable?

Nowadays you can use many online readers and grammar editors that will help you make your sentences easier to read and more accurate. 

Usually, online editors look like this:

Getting someone else to read your essay is a great way to avoid having hard-to-read sentences. Having another pair of eyes look over your essay will allow them to catch which sentences are difficult to understand.

You can also highlight lengthy sentences in your essay , review them, and ask yourself:

• Is this sentence difficult to read?
• Will this sentence be clearer if I shorten it?
• Will this sentence be more exact if I change the words?

Hemingway Editor is also a great online tool that points out confusing sentences that are hard to read and lengthy. You can learn more about it in our in-depth review .

Mistake #3 Disorganized Essay Structure

Sometimes, even though the ideas you brainstormed for your essay and the evidence you found are excellent, your essay’s structure is not great .

Having a clear and organized structure is what makes or breaks an essay. It facilitates getting your point across.

However, many students don’t pay much attention to the structure and end up with an essay with no apparent organization.

When you don’t have a good essay structure, your paragraphs will seem like they come from a different essay topic that does not relate to one another or flow effortlessly.

How do I Better Structure my Essay?

The only way to avoid this is to structure your essay before writing! This involves planning out each part of your essay, your introduction, body paragraphs, and conclusion .

You can make a bullet point list of what you will write in each section and remember each section is supposed to work together to illustrate a point. This point that each body paragraph needs to work together to present is the argument in your thesis statement.

When planning out what to write in each section, don’t forget to list out:

• The thesis statement in the introduction
• The evidence you will use in your body paragraphs to prove each point
• How each point relates to and backs up your thesis statement
• The significance of your argument in the conclusion

This is an example of a good essay structure you can follow so your writing can flow flawlessly. 

Make sure to limit each body paragraph to one idea so the structure isn’t confusing. Also, don’t forget to include transition words between paragraphs so that your essay flows nicely.

Always tie everything back to the thesis statement; this will make sure your paragraphs connect to one another.

Mistake #4: Rewording the Introduction for the Conclusion

There is a widespread misconception that all you need to do in a conclusion is reword the introduction. Yes, you cannot forget to revisit the points you make throughout the essay, but a conclusion is not the same as an introduction !

This is why students make the common mistake of not including the bigger picture of their academic essay.

Another mistake is beginning your conclusion with a generic term that marks finality, such as “in conclusion.”

How do I Make my Conclusion Better?

You should check whether your conclusion does these things:

• Revisit the points you made and how this supports the thesis statement
• Reflect on the argument you made and the "bigger picture"
• Mention any further implications of your argument

Try not to begin your conclusion with a generic phrase like ‘in conclusion,’ as these sound amateur. Also, a conclusion should be able to be identified without these introductory phrases .

If you want more tips on how to improve your essay conclusion , take a look at our quick video!

Mistake #5 Not Editing Your Essay Thoroughly

The biggest mistake you can make is not editing your essay thoroughly before handing it in .

By not rereading your essay, your silly mistakes will distract from what you are trying to say . Any mistakes, such as typos or punctuation mistakes, will make your essay harder to read for your professor and disrupt the point you are trying to make.

Skipping this final step in the essay-writing process will rid you of the chance of perfecting your essay and fixing any mistakes . This simple step has a significant impact on getting you from a C or B to an A!

How do I Revise my Essay Better?

Proofread your essay and pay attention to any:

• Grammatical mistakes
• Spelling mistakes
• Punctuation mistakes
• Not relating back to the overall message (thesis statement)
• Disorganized structure/flow

Asking someone other than yourself to read your essay is very helpful in the revision process. As they are in the reader’s position, they can see which areas are necessary to correct and give you suggestions.

Grammarly is an online tool you can use in the revision process to pick up any grammar and punctuation mistakes you did not catch. If you want more information about it, you can read our honest review to see its benefits, features, and costs!

Learning From Common Essay Mistakes

The best way to avoid making essay mistakes is to identify them in your work and learn from them. Keep these five common errors in essay writing in mind in the essay writing process . You will definitely see an improvement in your essay writing quality.

It is essential to complete each step of essay writing ( research, writing, editing ) precisely. Skipping one of these steps or completing one of these steps half-heartedly will impact your essay’s grade.

We know from personal experience and through our clients, that college essays are not a piece of cake! They involve skill not only in terms of content, but in terms of citing properly and finishing them in a timely manner.

But if you are in a rush or maybe you continue struggling with one essay or even a whole class , we can help you! Here at Gradehacker we have years of experience in the essay writing industry, and offer a variety of services to assist students like you achieve the grades they deserve!

If you need more tips on how to improve your essay writing skills, check out some of our related articles!

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Athina has worked with Gradehacker both as a content writer and a study consultant, where she assisted college students with nursing courses. Athina has a background of educating others and producing content, having tutored college students and produced articles for her school magazine. She brings her experience to her current role, where she writes content to empower and assist the non-traditional college student who is often overlooked. You can find her on LinkedIn

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Writing A Research Proposal

8 common (and costly) mistakes to avoid 🤦.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) & David Phair (PhD) . Reviewed By: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | June 2021

At Grad Coach, we review a lot of research proposals , including dissertation proposals and thesis proposals. Some are pretty good, while others are, well, not fantastic. Sadly, many students only approach us after their proposal has been rejected , meaning they’ve wasted a lot of time and effort.

We’ll look at 8 common mistakes and issues we see cropping up in research proposals so that you can craft your proposal with confidence and maximise the chances of it being approved.

Overview: 8 Research Proposal Killers

• The research topic is too broad (or just poorly articulated).
• The research aims, objectives and questions don’t align .
• The research topic is not well justified .
• The study has a weak theoretical foundation .
• The research design is not well articulated well enough.
• Poor writing and sloppy presentation.
• Poor project planning and risk management.
• Not following the university’s specific criteria .

#1: The research topic is too broad.

One of the most common issues we see in dissertation and thesis proposals is that the research topic is simply too broad . In other words, the focus of the research is not ringfenced tightly enough (or just not defined clearly enough), resulting in a proposal that has an unclear direction or attempts to take on too much.

For example, a research project that aims to “investigate trust in the workplace” would be considered very broad. This topic has no specific focus and leaves many questions unanswered, for example:

• What type(s) of trust?
• Between whom?
• Within what types of workplaces?
• Within what industry or industries?

As a general rule of thumb, you should aim for a fairly narrow focus when you craft your research topic. Doing this will allow you to go deep and investigate the topic in-depth , which is what the markers want to see. Quality beats quantity – or rather, depth beats breadth – when it comes to defining and refining your research topic.

A related problem is that oftentimes, students have a more refined topic within their mind, but they don’t articulate it well in their proposal. This often results in the proposal being rejected because the topic is perceived as being too broad. In other words, it’s important to ensure you not only have a clear, sharp focus for your research, but that you communicate that well in your dissertation or thesis proposal. Make sure that you address the who , what , were and when, so that your topic is well defined.

Let’s look at an example.

Sticking with the topic I mentioned earlier, a more refined and well-articulated research aim could be something along the lines of:

“To investigate the factors that cultivate organisational trust (i.e. a customer trusting an organisation) within the UK life insurance industry.”

As you can see, this is a lot more specific and ringfences the topic into a more manageable scope . So, when it comes to your research topic, remember to keep it tight .

#2: The research aims, objectives and questions don’t align.

Another common issue that we see with weaker research proposals is misalignment between the research aims and objectives , as well as with the research questions . Sometimes all three are misaligned , and sometimes there’s only one misfit. Whatever the case, it’s a problem that can lead to proposal rejection, as these three elements need to link together tightly.

Let’s look at an example of a misaligned trio.

Research Aim:

To identify factors that cultivate organisational trust in British insurance brokers.

Research Objectives:

To measure organisational trust levels across different demographic groups within the UK.

To investigate the causes of differences in organisational trust levels between groups.

Research Question:

What factors influence organisational trust between customers and insurance brokers within the UK?

As you can see, the research aim and research question are reasonably aligned (they are both focused on the factors that cultivate trust). However, the research objectives are misaligned, as they focus on measuring trust levels across different groups, rather than identifying what factors stimulate trust. This will result in a study that’s pulling in different directions – not good.

A related issue we see is that students don’t really understand the difference between research aims (the broader goal), research objectives (how you’ll achieve that goal) and research questions (the specific questions you’ll answer within your study). So, when you’re preparing your proposal, make sure that you clearly understand how these differ and make sure they’re all tightly aligned with each other.

#3: The research topic is not well justified.

A good research topic – in other words, a good set of research aims, research objectives and research questions – needs to be well justified to convince your university to approve your research. Poor justification of the research topic is a common reason for proposals to be rejected.

So, how do you justify your research?

For a research topic to be well justified, you need to demonstrate both originality and importance .

Originality means that your proposed research is novel , or at least that it’s novel within its context (for example, within a specific country or industry). While the extent of this novelty will vary depending on your institution, programme and level of study (e.g. Masters vs Doctorate), your research will always need to have some level of originality. In other words, you can’t research something that’s been researched ad nauseam before.

Simply put, your research needs to emerge from a gap in the existing literature . To do this, you need to figure out what’s missing from the current body of knowledge (by undertaking a review of the literature) and carve out your own research to fill that gap. We explain this process in more detail here .

Importance is the second factor. Just because a topic is unique doesn’t mean it’s important . You need to be able to explain what the benefits of undertaking your proposed research would be. Who would benefit? How would they benefit? How could the newly developed knowledge be used in the world, whether in academia or industry?

So, when you’re writing up your research proposal, make sure that you clearly articulate both the originality and importance of your proposed research, or you’ll risk submitting an unconvincing proposal.

#4: The study has a weak theoretical foundation.

As I mentioned in the previous point, your research topic needs to emerge from the existing research . In other words, your research needs to fill a clear gap in the literature – something that hasn’t been adequately researched, or that lacks research in a specific context.

To convince your university that your topic will fill a gap in the research, your proposal needs to have a strong theoretical foundation . In other words, you need to show that you’ve done the necessary reading and are familiar with the existing research. To do this, you need to provide an integrated summary of the existing research and highlight (very clearly) the theoretical gap that exists.

Some common signs of a weak theoretical foundation that we’ve encountered include:

• A general lack of sources and a reliance on personal opinion and anecdotes, rather than academic literature.
• Failing to acknowledge and discuss landmark studies and key literature in the topic area.
• Relying heavily on low-quality sources , such as blog posts, personal websites, opinion pieces, etc.
• Relying heavily on outdated sources and not incorporating more recent research that builds on the “classics”.

While it’s generally not expected that you undertake a comprehensive literature review at the proposal stage, you do still need to justify your topic by demonstrating a need for your study (i.e. the literature gap). So, make sure that you put in the time to develop a sound understanding of the current state of knowledge in your space, and make sure that you communicate that understanding in your proposal by building your topic justification on a solid base of credible literature.

#5: The research design is not articulated well enough (or is just impractical).

Once you’ve made a strong argument regarding the value of your research (i.e., you’ve justified it), the next matter that your research proposal needs to address is the “how” – in other words, your intended research design and methodology .

A common issue we see is that students don’t provide enough detail in this section. This is often because they don’t really know exactly what they’re going to do and plan to just “figure it out later” (which is not good enough). But sometimes it’s just a case of poor articulation – in other words, they have a clear design worked out in their minds, but they haven’t put their plan to paper.

Whatever the reason, a dissertation or thesis proposal that lacks detail regarding the research design runs a major risk of being rejected. This is because universities want to see that you have a clearly defined, practical plan to achieve your research aims and objectives and answer your research questions.

At a minimum, you should provide detail regarding the following:

• Research philosophy – the set of beliefs your research is based on (positivism, interpretivism, pragmatism)
• Research approach – the broader method you’ll use (inductive, deductive, qualitative and quantitative)
• Research strategy – how you’ll conduct the research (e.g., experimental, action, case study, etc.)
• Time horizon – the number of points in time at which you’ll collect your data (e.g. cross-sectional or longitudinal)
• Techniques and procedures – your intended data collection methods, data analysis techniques, sampling strategies , etc.

For more information about each of these design decisions, check out our post detailing the Research Onion.

Of course, your research design can (and most likely will) evolve along the way , but you still need a starting point. Also, your proposed research design needs to be practical, given your constraints. A brilliant design is pointless if you don’t have the resources (e.g. money, equipment, expertise, etc.) to pull it off. So, get detailed in this section of your proposal and keep it realistic to maximise your chances of approval.

Need a helping hand?

#6: Poor writing and sloppy presentation.

As with any document, poor writing and sloppy presentation can heavily detract from your research proposal, even if you tick all the other boxes. While poor writing and presentation alone probably won’t result in your proposal being rejected, it will definitely put you at a disadvantage , as it gives a negative impression regarding the overall quality of your work.

The main issues we see here are:

• Directionless or scattered writing – for example, writing that jumps from one point to another with poor flow and connectivity, disjointed points, etc.
• Poor argument formation – for example, a lack of premises and conclusions, disconnected conclusions and poor reasoning (you can learn more about argument development here ).
• Inappropriate language – for example, using a very informal or casual tone, slang, etc).
• Grammar and spelling issues, as well as inconsistent use of UK/US English.
• Referencing issues – for example, a lack of references or incorrectly formatted references.
• Table and figure captions – for example, a lack of captions, citations, figure and table numbers, etc.
• Low-quality visuals and diagrams.

The good news is that many of these can be resolved by editing and proofreading your proposal beforehand, so it’s always a good idea to take the time to do this. It’s also a good idea to ask a friend to review your document, as you will invariably suffer from blindspots when editing your own work. If your budget allows, having your work reviewed by an academic editor will ensure you cover all bases and submit a high-quality document.

#7: Poor project planning and risk management.

While different universities will have varying requirements, there is usually a requirement (or at least an expectation) for a project plan of sorts. As I mentioned earlier, a strong research proposal needs to be practical and manageable, given your constraints. Therefore, a well-articulated project plan that considers all the practicalities (and risks) is an important part of a strong research proposal.

We generally recommend that students draw up a fairly detailed Gantt chart , detailing each major task involved in the dissertation writing process. For example, you can break it down into the various chapters ( introduction , literature review, etc.) and the key tasks involved in completing each chapter (research, planning, writing, etc). What’s most important here is to be realistic – things almost always take longer than you expect, especially if you’re a first-time researcher.

We also recommend including some sort of risk management plan . For this, you could make use of a basic risk register , listing all the potential risks you foresee, as well as your mitigation and response actions, should they occur. For example, the risk of data collection taking longer than anticipated, the risk of not getting enough survey responses , etc.

What’s most important is to demonstrate that you have thought your research through and have a clear plan of action . Of course, as with your research design, plans can (and likely will) change – and that’s okay. However, you still need to have an initial plan, and that plan needs to be realistic and manageable, or you’ll risk your proposal getting rejected.

#8: Not following the university’s specific criteria.

While research proposals are fairly generic in terms of contents and style, and tend to follow a reasonably standardised structure, each university has its nuances in terms of what they want to be included in the dissertation or thesis proposal.

Some universities want more or less detail in certain sections, some want extra sections, and some want a very specific structure and format (down to the font type and size!). So, you need to pay very close attention to whatever institution-specific criteria your university has set out.

Typically, your university will provide some sort of brief or guidance document to direct your proposal efforts, so be sure to study this document thoroughly and ask the faculty for clarity if you’re uncertain about anything. Some universities will also provide a proposal template . Pay careful attention to any specific structure they recommend as well as formatting requirements (such as font, line spacing, margin sizes, referencing format, etc.).

If your university provides an assessment criteria matrix , you’ve hit the jackpot, as that document will detail exactly what you need to achieve in each section of the proposal. Study that matrix inside out and make sure that your research proposal tightly aligns with the assessment criteria.

Recap: 8 Research Proposal Mistakes

We’ve covered a lot here – let’s recap on the 8 common mistakes that can hurt your research proposal or even get it rejected:

• The research design is not articulated well enough.
• Not following the university’s specific criteria.

If you have any questions about these common mistakes, leave a comment below and we’ll do our best to answer. You may also want to have a look at some examples of successful proposals here . If you’d like to get 1-on-1 help with your research proposal , book a free initial consultation with a friendly coach to discuss how we can move you forward.

Psst… there’s more!

This post is an extract from our bestselling Udemy Course, Research Proposal Bootcamp . If you want to work smart, you don't want to miss this .

You Might Also Like:

Thanks a lot for sharing these tips, very usefull and help me a lot, Many thanks

I just want to express my sincere gratitude for everything you guys are doing. You held my hand when I was doing my dissertation. I successfully completed it and got good marks. I just got myself reviewing this so I could help others struggling. May God bless you. May he bless you abundantly.

Thank you so much, I got it very important, and your presentation is also very attractive.

I find the text very educative. I am just preparing to start work on my PhD thesis. I must admit that I have learnt so much about how to organize myself for the task ahead of me. Thank you so much for being there to support people like me.

I found this video highly educative, it gave me a full glance at what is ahead of me – starting my Ph.D. now! Thank you for these amazing facts.

Thanks a lot for such an insightful video and explanation on Research Proposal design. I’m a beginner and pursuing my B.ed , these tips are really helpful to get a good start.

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Prevent Tax Refund Delays by Dodging These 7 Mistakes in 2024

Check these simple tax errors now to avoid bigger problems down the road.

Double-checking your tax return for common mistakes is a quick step that could save you a lot of hassle.

For US taxpayers, if you haven't filed your taxes yet, you still have plenty of time. The  deadline for submitting your tax return is April 15. You can use  online tax software  to quickly file your taxes so you can get your refund back quickly. Whatever you do, don't rush through the steps as this can lead to mistakes on your tax return. Accidental errors made in haste can get your tax return rejected or your tax refund delayed, potentially for months.

If you want to receive your full tax refund on time, double-check our list of common tax return errors below. Mistakes aren't the end of the world -- if your tax return is rejected and you've filed your taxes on time, the IRS will give you five days to correct your information and refile.

Find out how to avoid the most common mistakes made when filing taxes. For more tax tips , here's how to file your taxes for free  and whether you should wait to file your taxes if you're claiming the  child tax credit .

Mistake No. 1: Filing your tax return late

The IRS estimates that about 20% of taxpayers wait until the week before the deadline to file their tax returns. If you owe the IRS money, that's not necessarily a bad tactic, but if you have a refund coming, that's playing with fire.

Procrastinating on your taxes leaves little wiggle room if problems arise, and not filing your return on time will complicate the status of your tax refund. If you owe the IRS money, you'll need to pay a late filing fee and other penalties will start to accrue.

It's free to file a six-month tax extension until Oct. 15, but you'll have to pay estimated taxes owed and you're losing money if you're expecting a refund.

Mistake No. 2: Typos in names or Social Security numbers

This mistake might seem ridiculous, but it's more common than you may think. Be sure to enter your full name exactly as it is spelled on your Social Security card, as well as the exact Social Security number. If either is not exactly the same, your tax return will be rejected. 

If your legal name has changed, you'll need to contact the Social Security Administration first to update it, and then file your taxes with your proper name.

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Mistake No. 3: Entering an incorrect AGI from last year

When you file your tax return electronically, the IRS uses your adjusted gross income, or AGI , from the prior year to verify your identity. That means you need your exact AGI from your 2022 tax return to file your 2023 taxes online. If you don't match last year's AGI, your tax return will be rejected and you'll have to file again.

If you've lost your tax return from last year, you can look up your AGI from 2022 by requesting an instant transcript on the IRS website, although you'll need to create a free online IRS account first. If you didn't file taxes last year, you should enter $0 for your 2022 AGI while filing this year's return. 

Mistake No. 4: Using the wrong filing status

US taxpayers can file their tax returns as Single, Married Filing Jointly, Married Filing Separately, Head of Household and Qualifying Widow(er) with Dependent Child. Your filing status determines your standard deduction, eligibility for tax credits and your overall tax burden. 

The IRS'  What Is My Filing Status? tool will help you determine your own situation and make the proper selection. If your filing status is incorrect, at best you'll need to file an amended return with Form 1040-X. At worst, the IRS may suspect tax fraud and investigate.

Mistake No. 5: Math errors on tax credits and deductions

Don't let arithmetic mistakes bring you down.

Child tax credit , earned income tax credit, mortgage interest deduction, child care deduction -- the worksheets and rules for many such tax items can be tricky to calculate on your own. A mistyped number or wrong calculation can result in an inaccurate tax refund, meaning you're either losing possible money or will have to pay an overage back with fees and penalties.

Quality tax software will nearly eliminate these sorts of errors, collecting and calculating all of the numbers you need to file your taxes correctly. All the top tax products offer accuracy guarantees that will pay for any losses or penalties if their software makes calculation errors. You'll still need to enter the correct information for tax software to work successfully, so be sure to double-check all your numbers before filing.

If you prefer to do your taxes yourself the old-fashioned way, the IRS' Interactive Tax Assistant can help with a wide range of credit and deduction calculations.

Mistake No. 6: Getting your bank account or routing numbers wrong

File electronically with direct deposit and you'll get your refund in about 21 days, according to the IRS. It won't work if you enter the wrong bank account or routing numbers when you file your tax return. Once the IRS has accepted your return, it's too late to change your banking info.

If the IRS cannot deposit your refund electronically into your bank account, it will send you a paper check at the mailing address listed on your tax return, which the IRS says will take six to eight weeks , although you can set up alerts with the Postal Service to know when it will arrive.

If you accidentally enter valid account and routing numbers that aren't yours on your tax return, the IRS may deposit your tax refund money into someone else's bank account. In that case, you'll need to contact the bank and likely visit an office in person to prove your identity and explain the situation with documentation. After you get the bank to return the money, you'll receive a paper check in the mail from the IRS.

Mistake No. 7: Forgetting to sign your tax return

Filing a paper tax return will slow down your tax refund considerably. Filing it without a signature will cause the IRS to reject your return and ask you to file again, making the process considerably slower.

If you're married and filing jointly, both partners need to sign the tax return. There are exceptions for active military members overseas and others needing to use a third party with power of attorney.

File electronically, sign your return digitally and you'll never have to worry about this mistake ever.

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Does the PCOS Diet Work?

Patients were told for years that cutting calories would ease the symptoms of polycystic ovary syndrome. Experts weigh in on how effective that really is.

By Alisha Haridasani Gupta

For years, people who had polycystic ovary syndrome and were also overweight were told that their symptoms would improve if they lost weight via a restrictive diet. In 2018, a leading group of PCOS experts recommended that overweight or obese women with the hormonal disorder consider reducing their caloric intake by up to 750 calories a day. That guidance helped to spawn questionable diet programs on social media, and reinforced an impression among people with PCOS that if only they could successfully alter their diets, they would feel better.

But the recommendations were not based on robust PCOS studies, and researchers now say that there is no solid evidence to suggest that a restrictive diet in the long-term has any significant impact on PCOS symptoms. Dieting rarely leads to sustained weight loss for anyone, and for people with PCOS, losing weight is particularly difficult. Beyond that, the link between sustained weight loss and improved symptoms is not very clear or well-established, said Julie Duffy Dillon, a registered dietitian specializing in PCOS care.

In 2023, the same group, called the International PCOS Network, revised its guidance based on a new analysis of the research and dropped all references to caloric restriction. The group now recommends that people with PCOS maintain an “overall balanced and healthy dietary composition” similar to the Mediterranean diet , which is associated with a reduced risk of the health issues that are linked to the disorder, like cardiovascular disease and diabetes. It’s not known whether eating this way might improve symptoms of PCOS.

The changes in the guidelines reflect “the PCOS literature and the lived experience of people with the condition,” said Dr. Helena Teede, an endocrinologist at Monash Health in Australia and lead author of the 2023 guidelines. “It’s no longer about blaming people or stigmatizing them, or suggesting that it’s their personal behavioral failure that they have higher weight.”

What is PCOS?

PCOS is a hormonal disorder that affects as many as five million women in the United States . It’s characterized by irregular periods, infertility, excessive facial hair growth, acne and scalp hair loss — symptoms that are common with other health conditions, too, making diagnosis tricky. People with PCOS usually ovulate less than once a month and often also have higher levels of androgens (male sex hormones) or multiple underdeveloped follicles on their ovaries (not, as the name suggests, cysts) or both.

Typically, when a woman is experiencing symptoms, a doctor will either scan the ovaries to look for those follicles or draw blood to test hormone levels. There is no cure for PCOS; the first line of treatment is often some form of birth control to help regulate the menstrual cycle.

Though PCOS is usually framed as a reproductive issue , it can also affect metabolic health — including blood sugar, blood pressure and cholesterol levels. People with PCOS often have chronic inflammation , which occurs when the immune system is overstimulated for extended periods of time. And they are at a higher risk of developing cardiovascular disease, endometrial cancer and diabetes, said Dr. Heather Huddleston, director of the PCOS Clinic and research program at the University of California, San Francisco.

The condition has also been associated with an increased risk of mental health issues, like depression , anxiety , suicide attempts and eating disorders .

The body-weight connection

The relationship between PCOS and weight is complex; the condition is strongly associated with obesity. Someone with PCOS is predisposed to gain weight and, as they do, their symptoms might worsen, said Dr. Anuja Dokras, director of the Penn Polycystic Ovary Syndrome Center at the University of Pennsylvania and a co-author of the 2023 guidelines. “It’s a bidirectional relationship,” she said, but “we don’t understand why it is that they tend to gain weight.”

The 2023 guidelines also noted that obesity rates among people with PCOS vary in different parts of the world. And, Dr. Dokras said, not everybody with obesity has PCOS.

Some studies have shown that weight loss via lifestyle changes might improve some hormonal and metabolic symptoms of PCOS, Dr. Teede said, but “the evidence around fertility is challenging.”

Very few studies have measured changes in ovulation and pregnancy rates. “One of our biggest research questions is how much weight loss, over how much time, and then how much stability of that weight we need for the body’s reproductive system to kick back in,” she added.

The most convincing sign that weight loss might be associated with improved ovulation and pregnancy rates comes from recent studies that have looked at the outcomes of bariatric surgery among obese women with and without PCOS, Dr. Dokras said. Those data show that, after surgical intervention and drastic weight reduction, those with PCOS “start having very regular periods and the male hormone levels also drop.” Research to study whether weight loss drugs like Ozempic can improve symptoms for PCOS patient is still ongoing .

But many women with PCOS have insulin resistance — when the body does not effectively use the insulin it creates, leading to elevated levels of blood sugar. This can exacerbate some symptoms, including weight gain, and also make weight loss particularly difficult, Dr. Huddleston said.

And Ms. Dillon said that the old advice to restrict calories in order to lose weight has been especially troubling given the higher rates of eating disorders among people with PCOS. Anecdotally, she said she has seen the lasting harm of the advice in many of her patients.

When people try diets “and inevitably fail because they don’t work for most people, then they take ownership of it, like, ‘Well, that’s my fault,’” Ms. Dillon said. “So then they don’t seek health care anymore. It’s not uncommon for people with PCOS to meet with me and tell me I’m the first person they’ve seen in 10 years.”

By that point, she added, “they have lots of different health concerns, like diabetes and high cholesterol, but they also are ashamed and depressed and anxious.”

Alisha Haridasani Gupta is a Times reporter covering women’s health and health inequities. More about Alisha Haridasani Gupta

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