Thesis & Dissertation — Structure Guide

Help researchers design and write a coherent thesis. The unifying requirement is a clear, defensible central contribution that the whole document builds and demonstrates.

1. Choose the format (and check institutional rules)

• Monograph — one continuous book-length argument (traditional; common in some EU/UK contexts).
• Compilation / publication-based / "stapled" — a set of published/submitted papers framed by an overarching synthesis (the kappa in Nordic systems / introductory chapter). Common in engineering and increasingly the norm in AEC. Each paper is a chapter; the synthesis makes them one contribution.
• Hybrid — some chapters are papers, others are bespoke.

Format, length, paper-count and co-authorship rules are institution-specific — tell the user to confirm their university's regulations.