How to Create a Storyboard for a Thesis

Originally designed for visual displays, such as a short film or video, storyboards have made their way into academic writing. This tool, comprised of a number of panels on a page, helps you sort out ideas and configure a logical sequence for your thesis. It also serves as a record of completed work. Creating a storyboard simplifies the process of writing a thesis by giving you a snap-shot image of what your 200-page document will look like. No matter the area of study, a thesis constitutes an extensive writing project and a storyboard helps organize the process.

Instructions

    • 1

      Download a free storyboard template or design your own. Print a few copies so that you can cut and paste your ideas. To use a storyboard properly you have to be able to move things around and change them to suit your ideas as they evolve.

    • 2

      Place the easy elements into one panel: title page, acknowledgments, contents page(s). Elements such as a working title may change, but are easy to amend in your storyboard.

    • 3

      Create a separate section with an asterisk or star for your abstract. Of all the parts of a thesis, the abstract is the most important because you have to provide a succinct overview of the entire study. Like an article in a professional journal, future readers won't get further than the abstract if it isn't good.

    • 4

      List the other sections of your thesis in separate panels. Put the introduction, methodology (may be a separate section or part of different chapters), theme chapters, results and discussion or findings in individual panels. Use sub-titles or headings to help you flesh out each section.

    • 5

      Place the conclusion in a separate section away from the other panels. Like the abstract, the conclusion requires you to sum up the entire thesis and give a sense of closure to your topic. In the panel, list all the other elements you have to cover in your thesis, then check them off as you write them.

    • 6

      Combine your review of the literature and references in one panel. You are going to have to work back and forth between the two, so it is a good idea to keep them together. Be sure to keep an ongoing list of your references so that you don't forget any.

    • 7

      Put your appendices panel next to your conclusion. The appendices -- if applicable -- are the final stage of the thesis process, so locating them near the conclusion in your storyboard will remind you to include them.

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