
The following self-editing tips are not in anyway meant as a guarantee that a proposal or a dissertation will pass review. These tips are only meant as an aid to help doctoral learners and candidates and other graduate students become more aware of the quality of work they submit. The general rule regarding whether you need an editor follows: If your chair tells you to get an editor, you need to hire an editor. If your chair does not mention an editor, these tips could certainly help you produce a paper that will pass review without an editor.
Make Word Work for You
In Word, put your cursor where you want to start checking, then go to “Review” and select “ABC Spelling and Grammar” in the far-left corner. In Word365, click on the “Review” taskbar, then “Check Document” (top, far left). If you have Word set up correctly (I explain further down), Word will do a fair job of checking your work. This method does not replace Grammarly or WritePoint; this is just another method to help you ensure your work is at the level of the degree you are pursuing.
Another method
Select the text you wish to check, right-click, and then convert your paper to an audio file; this will allow you to open your paper in iTunes.
To set up Word for optimum efficiency go to “File,” then to “Options,” and then “Proofing.” Once in “Proofing,” at the bottom (“When correcting spelling and grammar in Word”), make certain all five boxes are checked and then select “Grammar and Style,” or it may be called “Grammar and More,” and click “Settings.” Once inside the Settings box, make certain all boxes are checked. Also check your spacing preference and parentheses inside quotations (for APA). Now, check that you want to recheck your document.
Use the Correct Words
When editing a paper, I begin by checking for common errors. I use the “Find” and “Replace” feature in Word to change certain words typically flagged by the formal editors:
“Additionally” is replaced with “In addition.”
“Due to” is replaced with “because” (due only refers to time).
“Lastly” is replaced with “finally.”
“Firstly” is replaced with “first.”
“Since” is usually replaced with “because.” Since only refers to time.
[Following is a cut and paste from one of the formal editors at Walden] “’Very’” is removed, and “’which’” versus “’that’” is checked. Remove subjective terms like, ‘key, important, critical, very, etc.’ because they are opinion-based, which does not belong in academic papers. Explain why it is important vs. that it is important. Using the word ‘which’ in a sentence is called a relative clause, which must be separated from the rest of the sentence with comma/s.”
Next, use the “Find” feature and look for all instances of “in order to do” and delete “in order,” which is a superfluous term (e.g., In order to do this, I must… vs To do this I must….). Look for all forms of the verb “say,” which is an error if used when writing about what an author wrote. Unless you hear the author give a speech, do not use any form of the verb say.
Check for accuracy with the Latin abbreviations i.e. and e.g.: i.e. stands for id est and means roughly "that is," e.g. stands for exempli gratia, which means “for example.” Use the “Find” feature to look for instances where the word data has the wrong verb (i.e., data—plural; datum—singular [also check for other terms such as media, which is plural; medium is singular]).
Agreement of Subject and Verb
In almost every proposal or dissertation that I have edited, the learner or candidate had a few issues with subject/verb agreement. “A verb must agree in number (i.e., singular or plural) with its subject, regardless of intervening phrases that begin with such words as together with, including, plus, and as well as (APA, 2010, p. 70).
Incorrect: The student in the band class together with their friends ….
Correct: The student in the band class together with his or her friends…..
Incorrect: The car in the car lot as well as the other cars are in my way.
Correct: The car in the car lot as well as the other cars is in my way.
Numbers and Percent Sign
Make certain numerals have a percent symbol (9%), and numbers that are spelled out use the word percent (nine percent). Do not write 9 percent or nine %. (Do not spell out any numbers 10 and above unless the number starts a sentence.) The APA manual lists when numbers below 10 are not to be spelled out. APA has specific rules for numbers (pp. 111-114). Do not guess.
Direct Quotes and Plagiarism
Some chairs and even some universities do not allow any direct quotes. Check on this early in your dissertation journey. (Also check to see if you can use books or dissertations.) When using a direct quote, use page or paragraph numbers with each one: (p. 24) or (para. 24). Count the words in each quote. If it is 40 words or more (use the “Review” tab, which has a word count) make certain block quotes are used. According to the APA Publication Manual (p. 171), “If the quotation comprises 40 or more words, display it in a freestanding block of text [indent 0.5 on the left only] and omit the quotation marks. Place the page or paragraph number outside (behind) the quote on the same line, if possible, with no period after the parentheses.”
Plagiarism is defined as not giving credit to all sources when copying/borrowing/using three of more consecutive words. You must include a citation with every statement of fact. Universities take plagiarism seriously. A university can expel you for plagiarizing. In case you have not thought of this, universities can review your dissertation up to 5 years after you graduate.
Remember, a citation must support every statement of fact. In my opinion and from my experience, you can get expelled more quickly by failure to give credit to another author than by anything else. This also applies to your pictures, charts, graphs, and figures. Unless a picture, chart, graph, or figure is public domain, you must contact the original author and obtain written permission for use. You must include this written permission in your appendices. While waiting for permission, write “Permission Pending” in the notes section directly under the picture, chart, graph, or figure.
Plagiarism has ruined many careers or cut short or severely damaged the reputation of many people. Following is a list of just a few people where plagiarism greatly tarnished their reputation and/or destroyed their career:
Over the years I have seen various methods used to resolve suspicion of an ethics violation. They might invite you to some sort of hearing wherein you will have to defend yourself. They might ask you to give the full cut and paste of information for every citation you used in your entire paper. They might force you to take an ethics course at your expense. In some cases, they simply send a letter that says the candidate has been removed from the university with no recourse. (Remember, you applied by giving your social security number. An ethical expulsion will follow you for the rest of your life.) Suspicion of plagiarism is the one issue that can be used like a hammer against you. Be careful.
References
Every citation in your paper must be in your reference list, spelled the exact same way, and with the same year. Every reference in your reference list must be in your paper. Delete all references in your reference list that are not in your text. I cannot begin to stress how important this is. I do not recommend any software to help you keep track of references. Many programs claim to take care of all APA issues; well, they make mistakes. Keep a list of your references on an Excel sheet or just on a Word doc. Email this list to yourself about once a month. However, I do recommend software to check your references, Recite Works: https://reciteworks.com/. Some universities have purchased an amazing reference program that can tell if there are any missing references, if they are spelled the same in all cases, if et al. is used appropriately, and if each reference actually supports what the writer claims it supports. Recite Works is the closest software I can find to what these universities use.
When I cross check references, I also look for proper use of “et al.” and past tense when writing what an author or authors wrote. Remember to use past tense: Jones (2016) credited, proposed, discussed, believed, etc.; not Jones (2016) credits, proposes, discusses, believes, etc. I also make certain the authors’ names are spelled the same in the text and in the reference list when I cross check references.
Click here to read part 1 of Self-editing Tips by Dr. Lyn Walden
Make Word Work for You
In Word, put your cursor where you want to start checking, then go to “Review” and select “ABC Spelling and Grammar” in the far-left corner. In Word365, click on the “Review” taskbar, then “Check Document” (top, far left). If you have Word set up correctly (I explain further down), Word will do a fair job of checking your work. This method does not replace Grammarly or WritePoint; this is just another method to help you ensure your work is at the level of the degree you are pursuing.
Another method
Select the text you wish to check, right-click, and then convert your paper to an audio file; this will allow you to open your paper in iTunes.
To set up Word for optimum efficiency go to “File,” then to “Options,” and then “Proofing.” Once in “Proofing,” at the bottom (“When correcting spelling and grammar in Word”), make certain all five boxes are checked and then select “Grammar and Style,” or it may be called “Grammar and More,” and click “Settings.” Once inside the Settings box, make certain all boxes are checked. Also check your spacing preference and parentheses inside quotations (for APA). Now, check that you want to recheck your document.
Use the Correct Words
When editing a paper, I begin by checking for common errors. I use the “Find” and “Replace” feature in Word to change certain words typically flagged by the formal editors:
“Additionally” is replaced with “In addition.”
“Due to” is replaced with “because” (due only refers to time).
“Lastly” is replaced with “finally.”
“Firstly” is replaced with “first.”
“Since” is usually replaced with “because.” Since only refers to time.
[Following is a cut and paste from one of the formal editors at Walden] “’Very’” is removed, and “’which’” versus “’that’” is checked. Remove subjective terms like, ‘key, important, critical, very, etc.’ because they are opinion-based, which does not belong in academic papers. Explain why it is important vs. that it is important. Using the word ‘which’ in a sentence is called a relative clause, which must be separated from the rest of the sentence with comma/s.”
Next, use the “Find” feature and look for all instances of “in order to do” and delete “in order,” which is a superfluous term (e.g., In order to do this, I must… vs To do this I must….). Look for all forms of the verb “say,” which is an error if used when writing about what an author wrote. Unless you hear the author give a speech, do not use any form of the verb say.
Check for accuracy with the Latin abbreviations i.e. and e.g.: i.e. stands for id est and means roughly "that is," e.g. stands for exempli gratia, which means “for example.” Use the “Find” feature to look for instances where the word data has the wrong verb (i.e., data—plural; datum—singular [also check for other terms such as media, which is plural; medium is singular]).
Agreement of Subject and Verb
In almost every proposal or dissertation that I have edited, the learner or candidate had a few issues with subject/verb agreement. “A verb must agree in number (i.e., singular or plural) with its subject, regardless of intervening phrases that begin with such words as together with, including, plus, and as well as (APA, 2010, p. 70).
Incorrect: The student in the band class together with their friends ….
Correct: The student in the band class together with his or her friends…..
Incorrect: The car in the car lot as well as the other cars are in my way.
Correct: The car in the car lot as well as the other cars is in my way.
Numbers and Percent Sign
Make certain numerals have a percent symbol (9%), and numbers that are spelled out use the word percent (nine percent). Do not write 9 percent or nine %. (Do not spell out any numbers 10 and above unless the number starts a sentence.) The APA manual lists when numbers below 10 are not to be spelled out. APA has specific rules for numbers (pp. 111-114). Do not guess.
Direct Quotes and Plagiarism
Some chairs and even some universities do not allow any direct quotes. Check on this early in your dissertation journey. (Also check to see if you can use books or dissertations.) When using a direct quote, use page or paragraph numbers with each one: (p. 24) or (para. 24). Count the words in each quote. If it is 40 words or more (use the “Review” tab, which has a word count) make certain block quotes are used. According to the APA Publication Manual (p. 171), “If the quotation comprises 40 or more words, display it in a freestanding block of text [indent 0.5 on the left only] and omit the quotation marks. Place the page or paragraph number outside (behind) the quote on the same line, if possible, with no period after the parentheses.”
Plagiarism is defined as not giving credit to all sources when copying/borrowing/using three of more consecutive words. You must include a citation with every statement of fact. Universities take plagiarism seriously. A university can expel you for plagiarizing. In case you have not thought of this, universities can review your dissertation up to 5 years after you graduate.
Remember, a citation must support every statement of fact. In my opinion and from my experience, you can get expelled more quickly by failure to give credit to another author than by anything else. This also applies to your pictures, charts, graphs, and figures. Unless a picture, chart, graph, or figure is public domain, you must contact the original author and obtain written permission for use. You must include this written permission in your appendices. While waiting for permission, write “Permission Pending” in the notes section directly under the picture, chart, graph, or figure.
Plagiarism has ruined many careers or cut short or severely damaged the reputation of many people. Following is a list of just a few people where plagiarism greatly tarnished their reputation and/or destroyed their career:
- Jane Goodall, primatologist
- Jotham Sederstrom, New York Daily News editor
- Vaughn Ward, Republican congressional hopeful
- Montana Senator John Walsh
- Jayson Thomas Blair, New York Times reporter
- Marie-Louise Gumuchian, CNN reporter
- Mustapha Marrouchi, University of Nevada English professor
- Lisa Rein, The Washington Post reporter
Over the years I have seen various methods used to resolve suspicion of an ethics violation. They might invite you to some sort of hearing wherein you will have to defend yourself. They might ask you to give the full cut and paste of information for every citation you used in your entire paper. They might force you to take an ethics course at your expense. In some cases, they simply send a letter that says the candidate has been removed from the university with no recourse. (Remember, you applied by giving your social security number. An ethical expulsion will follow you for the rest of your life.) Suspicion of plagiarism is the one issue that can be used like a hammer against you. Be careful.
References
Every citation in your paper must be in your reference list, spelled the exact same way, and with the same year. Every reference in your reference list must be in your paper. Delete all references in your reference list that are not in your text. I cannot begin to stress how important this is. I do not recommend any software to help you keep track of references. Many programs claim to take care of all APA issues; well, they make mistakes. Keep a list of your references on an Excel sheet or just on a Word doc. Email this list to yourself about once a month. However, I do recommend software to check your references, Recite Works: https://reciteworks.com/. Some universities have purchased an amazing reference program that can tell if there are any missing references, if they are spelled the same in all cases, if et al. is used appropriately, and if each reference actually supports what the writer claims it supports. Recite Works is the closest software I can find to what these universities use.
When I cross check references, I also look for proper use of “et al.” and past tense when writing what an author or authors wrote. Remember to use past tense: Jones (2016) credited, proposed, discussed, believed, etc.; not Jones (2016) credits, proposes, discusses, believes, etc. I also make certain the authors’ names are spelled the same in the text and in the reference list when I cross check references.
Click here to read part 1 of Self-editing Tips by Dr. Lyn Walden