Dissertations and theses are perhaps the most important works academics produce in their careers. They demonstrate the author’s mastery of their chosen field and separate the students from the scholars.

As such, it is important that the language of such work is flawless. Ensuring this will mean that it is properly understood and coherent, and it could be the difference between grades.

Here, we’ll take a look at why language editing is a good choice for students and clear up any misconceptions around this service.

What does language editing involve?

Language editing specifically addresses issues with grammar, punctuation, spelling, and phrasing. Professional language editors are trained to make changes to the text without changing any of the meaning.

This is highly important to the process, especially when it comes to dissertations and theses. These works are meant to be the culmination of students’ academic careers, putting their own thoughts and findings on paper to demonstrate their proficiency. Editing the content would not lead to a fair representation of their studies.

The ultimate aim is to get a paper ready for submission, removing any language errors that could detract from the quality of the work.

First impressions matter

A paper that is poorly expressed will likely leave department faculty with a worse impression of its merit. With less experience of formal academic writing than scholars, students are more likely to make mistakes. As an experienced academic will be evaluating your work, they will expect a high standard of English in a thesis.

Everyone has different strengths and weaknesses, and editing services can help level the playing field. It is always beneficial to have a second pair of eyes look over your work, especially for students, who are less experienced at writing than academics.

Learning experience

Using a professional language editing service helps to improve the submitting author as a writer. The changes made highlight areas for improvement. Everyone has these, and there are many habits writers develop that they don’t know are grammatically incorrect.

By outlining these, the author is provided not only with the flaws in their writing, but how they can be rectified as well. These errors can then be avoided in future papers.

Transnational students

As discussed in a previous article, researchers whose first language isn’t English are at a significant disadvantage when it comes to publishing papers. The same is true for students writing in a second language. The time it takes these students to read and understand papers is nearly doubled. And, the writing process is much more arduous compared to their native counterparts.

Though the fact they are communicating in a second language will usually be taken into consideration, it is beneficial for these students to submit their work in its best form. It is also helpful for them to see the mistakes in their work, as there will likely be more grammatical rules and norms they are unaware of.

Should I get my thesis proofread?

Many students aren’t confident in their use of language. Whilst the content of their work may be impeccable, their grammar and syntax may require some attention.

It is thus beneficial to get a professional language editing to review your work for fundamental errors that could affect the way your work is perceived. Without altering the content, expert proofreading will help improve your work and call attention to any areas for you to work on.

MDPI Author Services is not just for scholars. We offer our Regular and Rapid Services to students completing their theses too. We provide a comprehensive language edit, correcting grammar, punctuation, and phrasing. Users of our Rapid Service will receive their edit within 1 working day.

Our team of highly skilled English editors have edited over 60,000 papers, with a 97% author satisfaction rate. Our services are available to both MDPI authors and those publishing with other journals. Visit the link above to get a free quote today.