Editing dissertations, professional academic editor

Of course you should edit your own work to the utmost of your ability. But after that, a professional academic editor can still improve it enormously. A dissertation that has been professionally edited contains far fewer mistakes. The language, referencing, layout, and all the formalities will be correct. The work will make a professional impression, and consequently stand out from the crowd. That means higher marks.

All Exactica's editors are accredited by SATI (South African Translators Institute). During a first edit, they:

Make sure all heading levels, captions and paragraph styles are correct and consistent and of DTP standards throughout the dissertation
Ensure that the table of contents is complete, consistent and matches the actual headings and page numbers in the document
Ensure that the spelling is consistent and correct
Check for grammatical errors
Make sure that punctuation is correctly used throughout
Check and correct the formatting of numbers and units of measure
Check tables in the dissertation for both the layout and totals
Ensure that totals are the same way everywhere they are given
Check the list of abbreviations with the abbreviations in the text
Check and correct references and cross-references
Check the bibliography for consistency and style
Ensure that all references in the text appear in the bibliography

Very importantly, Exactica's editors check the logical consistency and flow of your dissertation. The ideas, research and evidence in your dissertation may all be good but, unless you get them across effectively to your reader, your dissertation will get (and deserve) a low mark.

All editing work is done with track changes in Microsoft Word switched on, so you can see and accept every improvement made to your dissertation. A good editor will nearly always have questions about your dissertation. Exactica's editors insert them as bold orange text or as comments (your preference).

After the edit, the dissertation is then returned for your approval. Any changes or additions that you make as a result of the editor's questions and suggestions can, upon request, also be checked.

All this adds up to the same work, but transformed. Good editing can make the difference between a passing and failing dissertation, and a good solid dissertation and a cum laude. If you want the highest possible mark for your work, if your home language is not English, or if formal academic writing is not your strength, professional editing is the way to go.

Exactica's editors can improve just about anything, but note that they work with what you submit to us; they will not add or remove any discipline-related content to or from the work! Please read Exactica's standard editing agreement that applies to all editing work. You can download a copy here. When you submit your work to Exactica for editing you are assured of professional and ethical service.

There's more about Exactica's academic editing service in the Editing FAQs. For pricing and related matters, click here. If that doesn't answer your questions, send an .

Dissertation Editing

Overview