The UK Data Service offers resources and events for students embarking on their dissertation projects. Find out about available data and guidance that can help with planning and completing a dissertation project. Undergraduate students who use data from the UK Data Service in their dissertations can also enter the UK Data Service Dissertation Award.
UK Data Service student pages
Our student web pages in our Learning Hub bring our student resources together. On these pages, you can find information about the UK Data Service and our data collections.
If you’re unsure about why you might use existing data sources in your research project then watch our video Secondary analysis What and why?
You can find out more about using survey data in a dissertation or finding and accessing data for your project.
There are also guides on top surveys for dissertation projects, including the Quick start guide: British Social Attitudes (BSA) and Quick start guide: Health Survey for England (HSE).
Need help with data skills? Try our interactive data skills modules for users who want to get to grips with key aspects of survey, longitudinal or aggregate data.
Free workshop
We’re also hosting the following free workshop for dissertation students:
Dissertation projects: Introduction to secondary analysis for qualitative and quantitative data – 20 April 2023, 10:00 – 11:30.
This workshop will take you through the research process for a secondary analysis project, including an overview of methodological and ethical issues. Join us to learn how to access and get started with quantitative and qualitative data and discuss some key points to include in your dissertation write-up.
Interested but can’t attend? Our YouTube channel includes recordings of all our webinars and workshops. You can also find video tutorials such as our using SPSS playlist.
Dissertation Award
The UK Data Service Dissertation Award recognises students who use data from the UK Data Service in their undergraduate dissertations. Each year we give awards to the three best dissertations from the academic year, with winners receiving a prize of £300 and publicity about their work. The deadline for this year is midday on 28 June 2023. We will launch the award for 2023-24 in October.