A dissertation is a body of work that a pupil writes to conclude a high-level of study and is most often written as part of a Ph.D. program. A student uses the report to pose a problem, research the problem, and draw conclusions based on his or her research. Some dissertations are built around a single question that the student has asked. Other reports are more general and philosophical. Dissertation writing, therefore, should be refined to meet the specific needs of the student as he or she addresses is or her research. ...

A term paper is an academic body of work that is used to share information derived from research. Such articles are generally one of the largest projects that students work on during a school semester and serve as the culmination of a particular course of study. Such articles are generally based on research that a student performs over the course of an entire semester and can be quite lengthy. ...

Thesis writing is a type of writing that requires a learner to prepare a lengthy body of work that is based on his or her research. In some cases, the word "thesis" is used synonymously with the word "dissertation," so it is important to understand exactly what is expected from the thesis prior to beginning work. In circumstances where there is a distinction between a thesis and a report, the writing process and format are still generally the same. ...

An essay is a written work that expresses an opinion or shares information. Such compositions are written for many purposes and are often used in academic settings so that students can communicate their research and opinions. An essay can follow many formats depending on the nature of the report, the level of academic study, the required format that a professor assigns, personal preference, and more. Therefore, an essay can be a rather flexible written work. ...

A literature review is an extensive survey of scholarly research on a single topic. A literature review may be one part of a larger text, such as a dissertation or journal article, or it may be a single text in itself. Though literature reviews are focused on presenting research, literature reviews should not be confused with research papers. A research paper presents scholarly studies to make a point or argument; a literary report objectively presents an overview of research on a particular topic in order to suggest the scope and depth of scholarly opinion on that topic. ...