For Master’s Students

A one-year master’s is a research sprint, not a marathon. CiteDash is built for that pace: literature reviews in days, not months, with citations you can actually defend.

The master’s timeline, in plain terms

Most one-year master’s programmes give you eight months of coursework and four months for the thesis. That four months has to cover proposal, literature review, methodology, data collection (or analysis), writing, and defence. Anyone who’s done it knows the literature review is where time goes to die: weeks of database searches, hundreds of papers skimmed, dozens read, a synthesis that always feels incomplete.

CiteDash compresses the search-and-synthesis phase by drafting the literature review structure for you, with verified citations from real academic databases. You still read the key papers. You still write the analysis. But the “cast a wide net and synthesize” step that used to take six weeks now takes one or two.

From proposal to defence

Proposal stage: Use the research question generator to refine your thesis question. Run a quick literature scan to confirm there’s an open question and identify the seminal work.
Literature review: Use the deep-research mode to draft a chapter-length lit review with verified citations. Read the top 30 papers it surfaces; revise the synthesis with your own analysis. Reuse our literature review matrix template to organise.
Methodology chapter: Search prior studies in your field for methodology comparisons (sample sizes, instruments, ethics approvals). CiteDash returns a synthesis of typical methodology choices you can build from.
Discussion & implications: Use the citation-aware research mode to surface counter-evidence and identify where your findings extend or challenge prior work. This is where examiners often probe in the viva.
Viva / defence prep: The Review Q&A feature generates likely examiner questions based on your draft. Run through them weeks before defence.

Citation styles for master’s programmes

We support 16 major styles including the ones master’s programmes most commonly require: APA 7, MLA 9, Chicago 17 (notes-bibliography and author-date), Harvard, Vancouver, IEEE, AMA, Bluebook, OSCOLA, Turabian, CSE, ACS, APSA, and ASA. Switching styles between drafts is one click — useful when your supervisor wants Chicago and your programme handbook says APA.

Templates designed for master’s timelines

Three templates are particularly useful for a master’s thesis:

Thesis outline template — chapter structure with word-count guidance for typical master’s lengths (15-30k words)
Literature review matrix — organise 50-100 papers across themes for the lit review chapter
Research proposal template — for the initial proposal stage, structured to match common programme requirements

Academic integrity — the non-negotiable

Using AI for your master’s thesis is allowed in nearly every programme as of 2026, with one condition: disclose it and verify it. Don’t use AI to fabricate data. Don’t cite papers you haven’t read. Read our guides on detecting AI hallucinations and citing AI in academic papers before you ship anything.

Frequently asked questions

Is CiteDash useful for a one-year master's?: Especially. The compressed timeline of a one-year master's means literature review work is the single biggest time sink. CiteDash can compress 4-6 weeks of literature review into 1-2 weeks of AI-assisted drafting plus your verification. The time saved is what gives you space to do good methodology and writing.
Will my supervisor know I used AI?: Your supervisor will know if you don't disclose it (because the writing patterns are detectable) and won't care if you do. The 2026 norm in most master's programmes is: AI is allowed for research and drafting; disclose how you used it; verify all citations. Read your programme's AI policy and follow it.
Does CiteDash help with the methodology chapter?: Indirectly. It helps you find and synthesise prior methodology choices in similar studies (which is what the methodology chapter draws on), but the actual decisions — sample size, recruitment, ethics, analysis plan — are yours. Use the research-question generator and qualitative-vs-quantitative guides under Tools.
What about systematic-review-style master's theses?: We support PRISMA-aware workflows on the Pro plan. The systematic review depth level surfaces inclusion/exclusion criteria and produces a draft synthesis you can edit into your final review. Cohort-effect note: medical and public-health master's students benefit most.
Is the master's-student plan different from undergrad pricing?: We don't have a separate master's tier. Most master's students use Starter ($9/mo) for coursework and step up to Pro ($29/mo) for the thesis term. You can downgrade after defence.

The master’s timeline, in plain terms

From proposal to defence

Proposal stage: Use the research question generator to refine your thesis question. Run a quick literature scan to confirm there’s an open question and identify the seminal work.

Literature review: Use the deep-research mode to draft a chapter-length lit review with verified citations. Read the top 30 papers it surfaces; revise the synthesis with your own analysis. Reuse our literature review matrix template to organise.

Methodology chapter: Search prior studies in your field for methodology comparisons (sample sizes, instruments, ethics approvals). CiteDash returns a synthesis of typical methodology choices you can build from.

Discussion & implications: Use the citation-aware research mode to surface counter-evidence and identify where your findings extend or challenge prior work. This is where examiners often probe in the viva.

Viva / defence prep: The Review Q&A feature generates likely examiner questions based on your draft. Run through them weeks before defence.

Citation styles for master’s programmes

Templates designed for master’s timelines

Three templates are particularly useful for a master’s thesis:

Thesis outline template — chapter structure with word-count guidance for typical master’s lengths (15-30k words)

Literature review matrix — organise 50-100 papers across themes for the lit review chapter

Research proposal template — for the initial proposal stage, structured to match common programme requirements

Academic integrity — the non-negotiable

Frequently asked questions

Is CiteDash useful for a one-year master's?

Especially. The compressed timeline of a one-year master's means literature review work is the single biggest time sink. CiteDash can compress 4-6 weeks of literature review into 1-2 weeks of AI-assisted drafting plus your verification. The time saved is what gives you space to do good methodology and writing.

Will my supervisor know I used AI?

Your supervisor will know if you don't disclose it (because the writing patterns are detectable) and won't care if you do. The 2026 norm in most master's programmes is: AI is allowed for research and drafting; disclose how you used it; verify all citations. Read your programme's AI policy and follow it.

Does CiteDash help with the methodology chapter?

Indirectly. It helps you find and synthesise prior methodology choices in similar studies (which is what the methodology chapter draws on), but the actual decisions — sample size, recruitment, ethics, analysis plan — are yours. Use the research-question generator and qualitative-vs-quantitative guides under Tools.

What about systematic-review-style master's theses?

We support PRISMA-aware workflows on the Pro plan. The systematic review depth level surfaces inclusion/exclusion criteria and produces a draft synthesis you can edit into your final review. Cohort-effect note: medical and public-health master's students benefit most.

Is the master's-student plan different from undergrad pricing?

We don't have a separate master's tier. Most master's students use Starter ($9/mo) for coursework and step up to Pro ($29/mo) for the thesis term. You can downgrade after defence.