Essential Tips For Composing An Art History Dissertation Proposal

It doesn’t matter how old you get, or how long you have been writing dissertations or proposals you usually still experience that all-encompassing sensation of dread at the prospect of having to submit it. With a proposal there is always the fear, the risk that your baby is going to get rejected and that you are going to have to go on back to the drawing board. So, in order to ensure that doesn’t happen to you here are some essential tips for composing an art history proposal:

Get an example

Before you do anything else, I would urge you to get your hands on an example proposal. There are several places that you can get one from. Here are a few basic suggestions:

• Family and friends
• Your tutor
• The internet
• Word of mouth

Know your topic

This isn’t exactly rocket science but you are not going to get very far without a topic. With something as specialist and niche as art history, it is also advisable to pick a topic that you are interested in and preferably already have some knowledge of. The last thing you want to do is choose a topic that bores you rigid or where you are going to fall into the trap of making glaringly obvious mistakes.

Make your case

You need to make your case in your thesis. There has to be a point to your dissertation. It can’t just be a jumble of random nothingness. You should make your case:

• Articulately
• Concisely
• Professionally and without unnecessary preamble.

Don’t worry about what your friends are doing

A lot of people seem to come unstuck when they revert back to sheep mentality and start panicking and stressing about what everyone else is doing. The key thing to remember here is that it doesn’t matter about anyone else. You have to start focusing on yourself. What might be right for them may be utterly wrong for you. Don’t make that mistake.

Stick to the established format

Don’t think that you are going to get extra brownie points by deviating from the format in an attempt to jazz it up. This is not an exercise in creativity. The proposals follow a set format for a reason. All that is required of you at this stage is that you demonstrate that you:

• Can follow the structure to the letter
• Have a solid idea and can justify the research that is going to be required for your dissertation.