Do you aspire to have a Ph.D in medicine one day? Perhaps you want to be a doctor but of philosophy, instead of a medical doctor, or in addition to being a medical doctor. If you do, part of acquiring that degree will be to write a dissertation. This is a very long thesis about a specific topic you pick which is in your field of study. In this case, the dissertation would be on some area of medicine. Get ready for some long nights of research and then writing and lots of drafting and redrafting once you have written your initial piece.
Instructions
1. Make a list of all the topics or areas of study in medicine that you are remotely interested. Be sure to make them as specific as possible. Be sure to categorize into what field of medicine the topic falls under. For example, would it qualify under internal medicine, obstretics-gynecology, pediatrics, orthopedic or dermatology. Now narrow that list down to ten topics that really interest you the most. You want to pick a topic that peaks your interest since you will be spending so much time researching and writing about it.
2. Rank each topic according to how much you are interested in it from 1 to 10, with 1 being the most interested and 10 being the least interested. Make sure to pick the topic in the field of medicine you ultimately want to make your career in. For example, if you want to be a dermatologist you will want to write your dissertation on something that deals with skin whether it be cancer or plastic surgery.
3. Narrow your list to your top three areas of study that interest you. Research these areas finding one to two primary sources on the particular topic. Visit the local medical school library--this will have the most up-to-date medical journals. Also note how many sources, primary and secondary, are on this specific topic of medicine. You will need to pick an area of study ultimately that has a lot of research on it but not a lot of writing about the specific area you've cjpsem. Your dissertation needs to be a novel research project. Keeping this in mind will help you choose your dissertation topic. Now write your thesis---the main argument you will be researching or arguing.
4. Go to the public library as well as the medical library, using that initial cursory list of primary and secondary sources as a starting point for your research. Research as much as you can find on your particular argument or anything relevant to your chosen topic. You can also check if there are any health organizations in the area that might have libraries. For example, the National Institutes of Health has a very extensive library open to the public. The State health department will also have a library you might want to visit for additional research.
5. Go through each source you have found and on a notecard write down the title, author, date of publication, publisher and why you chose this source and how it helps your thesis. Be sure to note any page numbers with specific quotes or ideas you will use in your dissertation. Make any photocopies of medical journal articles because you most likely won't be able to check these out. Another resource is the Internet. Many medical journals have most of their archives online now and for a small user fee it is worth getting. The American Medical Association's website is another possible resource for getting medical-related information. It also has a list of doctors organized by field of medicine to help you locate local doctors if you have any additional questions
6. Outline the main arguments and organize the overall format of your dissertation. Now add to that skeleton outline with the specific medical journals and books and ideas supporting your thesis. Add any testimony from medical doctors you have as well as any medical studies or experiments to support your thesis.
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