My unhinged tricks that helped me get 91% in my dissertation/ final year project

My unhinged tricks that helped me get 91% in my dissertation/ final year project With psychological explanations Computer Sciene Grad 91.00 /100 Lovebomb your supervisor and marker Find out who your supervisor and second marker are. Set up calls, ask what they look for in an 85%+ dissertation, and lean into "I'm struggling" mode. Turn them from marker -> mentor. With your supervisor, keep sending rough drafts until they're invested in your win. After marking, ask, "How did I lose those marks?" They'll slip you secrets. !!Then shout them out in your acknowledgments. You've just tied your grade to their ego. Science says: The IKEA Effect shows people value things they helped build more — including your dissertation. Weaponise mistakes Everyone messes up. Use it. Midway through, reflect on an "error" (an assumption, incorrect reference, clunky code, bad design), then show how you fixed it: more analysis, more interviews, more code. Examiners read it as double the work. The trick: pre-plan these easy mistakes to "fix" later. No time lost, or stress, but because you have shown them the bad, they won't go looking for it. Science says: Research on self-regulated learning shows reflection on errors deepens mastery and boosts perceived competence. Care about the little things Become obsessive about polish: a clean LaTeX report, flawless referencing (Cite This For Me/Zotero), and error-free grammar (Grammarly Pro). Craft an abstract that reads like a movie trailer. All these signals subconsciously prime the examiner to expect quality, which makes them more relaxed and less critical when marking. Science says: The halo effect means when people see professionalism in one area (style, grammar, presentation), they assume overall excellence and judge more generously. Evidence overload Make your dissertation feel undeniable. Don't just present findings, document the entire journey. Use Miro boards to map themes, keep transcripts of every interview, justify even micro-decisions (why did you pick that colour or that author), and drop photos of your process (a picture can say a 1000 words). Overflow everything into appendices and reference them often. When an examiner sees layer after layer of supporting material, they stop hunting for flaws and start assuming rigour. Science says: The effort heuristic: people judge work as higher quality when they see more visible effort. Don't just ask ChatGPT Skip relying only on AI. It's obvious. Buy a cheap high-quality course and instantly unlock private polished code + project flow. Tweak it to your topic. Follow a free YouTube course. Get past First-Class dissertations, especially ones your marker graded, recycle their structure like a script. Use AI after you have the core for refinement, analysis and checks, not the core. Science says: Cognitive apprenticeship research proves learning from expert models boosts performance faster than trial-and-error alone. Hi [Supervisor's Name], I hope you're doing well. I wanted to reach out because I've been thinking carefully about how to shape my dissertation, and I'd really appreciate your insight. I know the marking criteria are clear, but from your perspective, what do you specifically look for when awarding 85%+ on a dissertation? I'd love to understand what separates a good piece from a great one in your eyes. I'll be honest, I'm finding parts of this process quite overwhelming, and I don't want to miss the mark by focusing on the wrong things. If you have time, would it be possible to schedule a short call to talk through what really stands out to you in top-level work? Your guidance has been really valuable so far, and I want to make sure I'm aligning with what matters most. Thank you so much for your time and support, it honestly makes a huge difference. Best, [Your Name]