Nonetheless, recent experience indicates that solid theses contain 150-300 footnotes. As an aside, my personal preference is for single-spaced footnotes with double spacing in between footnotes . Topic selection cannot be overemphasized. Choose a topic you care about, are interested in, and want your name associated with in the future. A good topic statement can be constructed on one page, but do not hesitate to use two or three pages if it helps you articulate your vision of where you are going.
More students experience difficulty because their topic is too broad.
Be sure to discuss your topic with Carol Grant for ideas on research. Do not begin writing without submitting an outline . Your outline should keep you focused on the topic and avoid delay and confusion from pursuing irrelevant side issues. I encourage you to regularly update both your outline and table of contents. If you choose to deviate from your table of contents with a new issue, think how it should be built into your table of contents and modify the table accordingly.