1:1 research mentoring for your thesis or dissertation: a discipline-matched expert guides your topic, proposal, methodology, and data analysis across a phased journey, while you research and write every word yourself.
What it is
Academic Mentoring pairs you with a senior expert in your discipline who guides a major research project from the first idea to work your supervisor will accept. The engagement moves through clear phases: locking your topic and research question, building the proposal or exposé your university requires, then structuring your chapters and analysing your data. You do the research and the writing; your mentor sets the direction, reviews each draft you submit, and gives you the methodology and data support that turns a rough plan into a defensible study.
Three roles stay distinct throughout. Your supervisor approves your topic, proposal, and final thesis. Your mentor guides, gives feedback, and reviews, but never writes the thesis for you. You remain the sole author of everything you submit.
This is Group B · Advisory. Outcomes owned by third parties, such as your supervisor's decision or your defense panel, sit outside MAAS's control, but MAAS commits to expert calibre and process quality at every phase.
Who it's for
- Master's, MBA, PhD, and DBA candidates writing a thesis, dissertation, or capstone over several months
- Students who need to lock a topic and a proposal their supervisor will approve, rather than receive a finished draft
- Researchers who want hands-on methodology and data support — SPSS, R, public datasets, modelling — not only general writing advice
- Candidates preparing, in time, for viva, defense, or comprehensive exams
What you get
- A discipline-matched expert who guides your project phase by phase
- Concrete deliverables you author at each phase: a locked topic and research question, a proposal or exposé on your university's template, a chapter outline, and analysed data
- Methodology coaching across quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods
- Hands-on data support where your study needs it: data-collection strategy, statistical analysis, and model building
- A guided literature search to your school's standard, plus structured feedback on every draft you submit
- A recording of each session, with cameras off for privacy, sent to you afterwards to revisit at any time
- Support that continues into chapter writing (literature review, methodology, findings, discussion, and conclusion), with finalisation and viva rehearsal when you reach that stage, and every draft reviewed before it goes to your supervisor
How it works
- Complimentary kick-off — meet your expert, map your supervisor's requirements and your university's template, and agree the meeting schedule. This onboarding session is free and is not counted as a paid meeting.
- Phase 1 · Topic and research direction — test the feasibility of your candidate topics, decide your data strategy (supervisor-provided data, a public dataset, or your own collection), and shape your preliminary research question and method.
- Phase 2 · Proposal or exposé — sharpen the research gap, formalise your research questions and methodological framework, and build the proposal on your university's template. Your mentor reviews each draft before it reaches your supervisor.
- Phase 3 · Outline and data analysis — structure your chapters, then work hands-on through your data: statistical analysis, modelling, and the results that anchor your argument.
- Writing your chapters — write your literature review, methodology, findings, discussion, and conclusion. Your mentor coaches the critical depth and justification examiners look for, and reviews each draft before it reaches your supervisor.
- Finalisation and submission — referencing and formatting, an originality self-check before you submit, and the required appendices, so your manuscript is submission-ready.
- Viva and defense — a mock viva with anticipated questions and rehearsing how you present your contribution; for doctoral work, post-viva corrections and publication support follow.
Between meetings you work on focused tasks set by your mentor and submit each one for review first, so your supervisor only ever sees work the two of you have refined together. The cadence is flexible and agreed at the kick-off, because a topic phase and a data phase rarely move at the same speed. Each stage after your proposal is engaged as you reach it, so the journey scales to where you are.
Reschedule policy
- 1 reschedule allowed for packages of 5–9 sessions
- 2 reschedules for packages of 10–14 sessions
- 3 reschedules for packages of 15+ sessions
- Notifications must be 8+ hours before the session
What MAAS commits to
- Discipline-matched experts verified through the three-stage MAAS vetting process
- On-time attendance and structured, high-quality guidance at every phase
- Confidentiality of all materials and conversations, with your identity protected on every call
- A recording of every session, retained and shared for your reference
What MAAS does **not** commit to
- Specific grade outcomes on assignments or exams you take separately
- Acceptance by your supervisor of any specific approach we coach — your supervisor remains the decision-maker
Deep dive
For a longer narrative on how dissertation mentoring works at MAAS — including the supervisor-feedback translation workflow, viva preparation cycle, and three-tier outcome guarantee — see our Dissertation Mentoring resource hub.
Want a mentor in your discipline? Book a free 15-minute discovery — support@maasedtech.com or +84 979 422 393 (Zalo / WhatsApp).
Frequently asked questions
What does a mentoring engagement include?
A discipline-matched expert who guides your research project through clear phases: topic and research question, proposal or exposé, then outline and data analysis. Each phase produces a deliverable you author, your mentor reviews every draft, and you receive a recording of each session. You drive the work; the mentor advises.
How is mentoring different from Academic Support?
The delivery model is the opposite. Academic Support (Group A) follows an outline-to-draft-to-final pipeline and delivers a structured model draft, with a grade-committed tier. Mentoring (Group B) is phased advisory for master's and PhD-level research: you research and write every word yourself while your expert guides the direction, reviews your drafts, and supports your methodology and data. One hands you a draft to learn from; the other coaches you to produce your own.
Will the mentor write my dissertation?
No. Your mentor coaches methodology, structure, and argument, and reviews what you write, but you remain the sole author of every chapter. Any example wording shared in a session is illustrative only and must be rewritten in your own words, in line with your university's rules.
Do you provide hands-on data analysis?
Yes, where your study calls for it. Mentoring covers data-collection strategy, statistical analysis in tools such as SPSS or R, and model building — for example a cost-effectiveness model with sensitivity analysis. Your mentor guides the method and helps you interpret the output; you run and own the analysis in your thesis.
Does mentoring continue through the whole dissertation, including writing and the viva?
Yes. Mentoring can run the full journey. After your topic, proposal, and data analysis, your expert guides each chapter you write (literature review, methodology, findings, discussion, and conclusion), then finalisation: referencing, formatting, and an originality self-check before submission, followed by viva or defense rehearsal. You write every chapter yourself; your mentor reviews each draft and coaches the critical depth and justification that examiners look for. Later stages are arranged as add-on phases as you reach them.
Can I prepare for my viva with MAAS?
Yes. Viva and defense rehearsal with mock questions is part of the mentoring journey once you reach that stage.
Do you mentor Vietnamese international students studying in the UK?
Yes. MAAS runs remote one-on-one academic mentoring for Vietnamese and international students in the UK, in English and Vietnamese, matched to your discipline. We coach structure, critical argument, and academic English so you build the skill — you stay the author of your work.
Do you offer academic mentoring for international students in Singapore?
Yes. MAAS provides remote academic mentoring for international students in Singapore, working around NUS, NTU, and SMU assessment calendars. Sessions run in English and Vietnamese; we coach structure, methodology, and academic English while you remain the author and submitter of your own work.
Is academic mentoring the same as an essay-writing service?
No. Mentoring coaches you on structure, argument, methodology, and academic English while you research and write your own work. A service that writes the assignment for you is an integrity risk and teaches you nothing — MAAS does not do that.