Just handed in dissertation! So worried it's rubbish - did anyone worry they would fail but passed it?

[Ohmygodcantbelieveitsdone]

I cannot believe it's done but my Masters dissertation is handed in as of today. So fucking relieved and happy to be finished!

The only thing is I honestly am worried now it won't pass and OMFG I really don't want to leave with no degree after all this. I think if I fail though I can have another attempt for the minimum grade to pass?

Did anyone else get scared they failed, but actually did pass?

Or did anyone fail and pass on a second attempt, so it was all ok in the end?!

[Doggybiccys]

@Ohmygodcantbelieveitsdone - congratulations on submitting! Most people feel like you do - a mix of elation and fear! I’ve marked many many dissertations at honours, masters and PhD level and only failed a few and those were students who’d had no supervision ( as they hadn’t taken it up) and were predicted to fail. Failing a dissertation is a big deal and markers will generally look for the positives with a “has it done enough to pass” lens. It doesn’t need to be brilliant - just good enough. I hope you get a great grade!

[DontStandSoCloseToMe]

Did you not have a supervisor? Shelly you'd know by now if you were way off track?

[MadLad]

I handed mine in last week. Had that fear with my undergrad dissertation and got a first. You'll be fine. Do you have a no detriment policy?

[LisaSimpsonsbff]

Congratulations! I used to be a university lecturer and I had so many dissertation students (both UG and PG) who were convinced that their dissertations would fail who did very well - often these were some of my very best students. On the day of my PhD viva I remember lying in bed in the morning crying because I was so convinced that it would fail. It didn't.

[madnessitellyou]

I’m sure you’ll be fine! When I got home from handing my masters thesis in (masters by research - 60,000-word thesis) there was a p.34 on the dining table. I became convinced that I’d missed out that page. Of course I hadn’t - I’d checked and checked and checked again! I even showed up to my viva with an extra p.34 and fully expected them to start with “So madness, can you tell us why you missed out p.34?”. It’s funny how the mind works sometimes!

[sarahC40]

To be honest, I also convinced everyone around me I’d failed mine, so much so that when I asked my mum to open the envelope (was still registered at their house) she did so and exclaimed ‘fuck me, you passed’. She never swears.

[MrMagooInTheLoo]

Was allowed to submit UG dissertation chapters for supervisor to look over and everything I did she said 'this is part is OK but is it relevant to your question'.. I got so so stressed by it I ended up spending too much time trying to rewrite each bit that the week before it was due ii was way off the word count so I just included all the parts I knew she didn't want me to put in.. Well I ended up getting a 1st class honours so up hers

The stress and the worry is so awful but fingers crossed 🤞🤞🤞🤞

[Scarby9]

I was so convinced my PhD was a fail that I genuinely nearly didn't submit it, and only did so with less than half an hour to spare (after 5 years). I only submitted because I felt I would be letting my supervisor, friends and family down if I didn't give myself a chance. I rewrote the entire final chapter to take to my viva, and went prepared to plead, only to find that - bar a couple of errors in citations - they did not require any changes. Rereading it afterwards, it wasn't half bad! I really think that you are not the best judge of the quality of your writing by this stage in the process.

[Scarby9]

Oh, and I cried too at work and I NEVER cry. People still talk of it. Dissertations do odd things to you.

[terrelontane]

Immediately after submitting is the WORST time for self-doubt. It's normal. It's not because your work is poor, it's the letting go. Try not to worry, you'll be fine. And congratulations!

[KelpHelper]

Well, what feedback has your advisor/supervisor given on chapter drafts, and did you implement it?

[Popc0rn]

Yes, I left my dissertation till the very last minute for my BSc and managed to print off the draft version of my discussion by accident, which still had things like "need to cite reference this" etc typed in. There was no time to change it as I was already on the bus to get it bound when I realised my mistake and wouldn't have made the deadline if I went back. It was okay in the end and I got a 2.1. I was a lot more organised when I did my masters ten years later!

I'm sure you'll be fine and have done much better than you think you have, it's normal to doubt yourself but try not to worry about it. Plus, it's not in a university's interest to fail you, did you have much contact with your supervisor?

[BellsOfStClement]

Congratulations! Yes, I was convinced I’d failed mine. It was very last minute and a huge rush. I passed though and it was a huge relief! But yes, like you say - even if you do fail, you get a chance to resubmit. I was also clinging on to that idea but it turned out not to happen in the end. Well done, and good luck!

[Archibaldsmellysox]

When I was in uni I knew of a fella who was up all night the night before, started and finished his undergrad dissertation in one night, all references off google books etc. He got a first. A first!!! with no prep etc just winged it the night before!
You’ll be fine - it’s completely normal to panic about the work you submit because once submitted it’s out of your control! But you’ve worked hard, try (I know it’s difficult) to spend a few days doing something to take your mind of it and enjoy.

[DressesWithPocketsRockMyWorld]

Oh well done I'm so jealous!! Did you have lots of supervision? Mine isnt due until September so the only thing I've done is finish up my interviews and I'm going to start transcribing them.

Bet it feels amazing! Also I bet it passes 🙂

[namechanging2020]

I think this is normal. I felt the same with my masters and also with my PhD thesis and was sure I would fail my viva. I am sure you have done great.

[LisaSimpsonsbff]

When I was in uni I knew of a fella who was up all night the night before, started and finished his undergrad dissertation in one night, all references off google books etc. He got a first. A first!!! with no prep etc just winged it the night before!

Well, that's what he told people! I once heard one of my students tell people this and had to bite my lip - I'd read a full draft of his (excellent) dissertation several weeks before submission, he absolutely did not 'just crack it out the night before' as claimed...

[GreenLeafTurnip]

I'm currently in the re-writing stage of my masters thesis so I feel your pain! It's hard to fail, the University don't want you to! It'll all be fine. Good luck!

[KelpHelper]

I was about to say the same, @LisaSimpsonsbff. A significant minority of good students put a lot of effort into looking as If they’re making zero effort whatsoever, when in fact they’re burning the midnight oil. I remember working in the university library when I was an undergraduate and finding students in my year (English) hiding to study on the medicine floor of the library, and looking shifty when I came into sight reshelving pathology manuals, because it wasn’t just that they liked the view.

And being very amused when I switched to an elite overseas university to find the opposite was the case. Final year students would leave the lights on in their rooms all night to give the impression of frenzied work, when in fact they were peacefully asleep wearing an airline eye mask.

[wonkytonkwoman]

By the time I submitted mine I so very sick of it and knew I could've done a better job but I just wanted to pass by that point. I worried a bit, yes, but only because I was too exhausted to think about resubmission. I passed though and I've never read it since the day I submitted it (well over a decade ago!)
You'll be fine, it's like having a job interview and then picking apart all your responses to questions, entirely natural.

[BashandSparrow]

Well done and fingers crossed!

In most of my essays and assignments I had a rough idea of whether I had done well or not before I submitted it. I think there was only one time I got caught out and thought I had done really well and only got a low 2:2 which really threw me off. That was with a tutor who had very high standards and many of my classmates felt they had earned a better grade than she gave. Sometimes it’s literally down to the person who marks it.

Saying that, did you not hand in drafts or work on it with a supervisor? I had to submit three of four drafts of my dissertation for my Bachelors degree. Not only did it help me improve my content but it also gave me a rough indication of what I was going to be graded at current standard.

[KonTikki]

I got a 2:2 for my Honours degree.
30 years later, a Distinction on my Masters.

I still can't explain how, but thoroughly enjoyed all of it. Perhaps that's the key 😄

[nevermorelenore]

Everyone goes through a stage of thinking their dissertation is shit and they'll fail. But how many people actually get this far and fail? Surely if your tutor or supervisor thought it was awful then they would have pulled you up on it when you submitted a draft?

[Ohmygodcantbelieveitsdone]

Thank you all! I made the thread then poured a large gin and forgot to come back

It is reassuring to see this is a fairly typical response. My supervisor saw two drafts. She never said "oh this is terrible!" or "oh this is good, you've nothing to worry about" she gave quite a lot of advice which I implemented as best I could, hopefully I managed to make it passable. However, in following the advice I sort of feel I ended up going round and round in circles, but think part of that is when you're sick of it and sick of reading it. It kind of can feel like none of it makes sense anymore.

Apart from that, I think it may be ok

[Ohmygodcantbelieveitsdone]

Just checked and my uni doesn’t have a no detriment policy. Is that happening at many then?