Doing your undergraduate dissertation using qualitative research: Tutor reflections.

Completing your undergraduate dissertation using qualitative research can be a very rewarding task and presents a number of challenges which are different to those faced by those choosing a quantitative approach In this short article, I am going to take a reflective approach informed by some of the experiences I have had supervising dis-sertation students in three different universities over fourteen years Having complet-ed a number of research projects myself using various forms of qualitative research such as thematic analysis, textual analysis, content analysis and grounded theory; I have faced some of the dilemmas and anxieties you are also likely to experience when working with qualitative data These might include, struggling to find a focus, wondering whether you are following the right sort of procedure and trying to make sense of a lot of information My main purpose in this paper is to highlight what I feel are some of the key issues to consider when you undertake your qualitative project General advice on completing dissertations There is a substantial body of literature within the academic social science research community to support students in preparing and writing academic dissertations, re