How to Write a Literature Review

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The literature review is the foundation of every research project at Australian universities. Whether you are writing an Honours thesis, a Masters by Research dissertation, a PhD thesis, or even an HDR research proposal — the quality of your literature review determines how seriously the rest of your work is taken.

A weak literature review summarises what others have said. A strong one synthesises the field, identifies a genuine gap, and positions your research as the answer. This guide walks you through the entire process — from your first database search to your final draft — with strategies that work at every Australian university.

What Is a Literature Review?

A literature review is a critical, structured synthesis of existing scholarly work on your research topic. It is not a list of summaries — it is an argument about the state of the field, organised to demonstrate what is known, what is contested, and what remains unknown.

At Australian universities, a good literature review accomplishes three things simultaneously:

Types of Literature Reviews

Not all literature reviews are the same. The type expected depends on your discipline and the kind of research you are conducting:

Unless your supervisor specifies otherwise, most Australian Honours and Masters by Coursework theses use a narrative literature review. PhD candidates in health and biomedical sciences are increasingly expected to use systematic or scoping review methodologies.

Literature Review Word Count by Degree Level

The expected length of your literature review depends on the total length of your thesis and your discipline. As a general guide:

The Step-by-Step Process

Writing a literature review is not a single task — it is a six-stage process. Skipping or rushing any stage usually shows up in the final draft.

Searching the Literature Effectively

A good literature search is structured, repeatable, and exhaustive. Avoid the trap of using only Google Scholar and stopping after the first ten results.

Build a search strategy

Apply inclusion and exclusion criteria

Before you start screening sources, define what counts as relevant. Common criteria include date range (e.g., past 10 years), publication type (peer-reviewed only), language (English), study type (empirical, theoretical), and geographic focus (Australian-relevant where appropriate).

Databases Australian Students Should Use

Your university library provides access to academic databases worth thousands of dollars in annual subscriptions. Use them. Here are the most valuable for Australian research:

For Australian-specific data, also check ABS, AIHW, AIATSIS, and government department research portals. These contain grey literature that does not appear in academic databases but is highly relevant for Australian-focused research.

Evaluating Sources Critically

Not every published source is worth citing. Apply the CRAAP test — or its equivalent — to every potential source:

How to Structure Your Literature Review

A literature review should never be organised source-by-source. Choose one of these proven organisational structures based on what best fits your research question:

Whichever structure you choose, your literature review should still have a clear introduction (orientation to the field, scope of the review, structure preview), body (organised by theme/period/etc.), and conclusion (synthesis of what is known, articulation of the gap, transition to your study).

Synthesise, Don't Summarise

The single biggest distinguisher of a HD-level literature review from a Credit-level one is synthesis. Markers can spot a summary-based review within two paragraphs — and they will mark it down.

Summary (weak)

Synthesis (strong)

Notice what the synthesis version does: it groups sources by common finding, identifies what they have in common, names the unresolved question they collectively raise, and points toward where research should go next.

Identifying the Research Gap

The whole point of your literature review is to set up your research gap — the specific question, population, methodology, or context that existing literature has not adequately addressed. This is where your literature review connects to your own research.

Common types of research gaps:

The closing paragraphs of your literature review should name your gap clearly and explain why filling it matters — both for the academic field and, where applicable, for Australian society, policy, or practice.

Common Literature Review Mistakes

These errors appear repeatedly in Australian Honours and HDR submissions:

Need Expert Help with Your Literature Review?

Writing a literature review takes 4–12 weeks for most Honours students and substantially longer at HDR level. It is the single most labour-intensive section of a thesis — and the section that most often determines the overall mark.

Premier Dissertations AU has produced literature reviews for over 15,000 Australian students since 2010. Our PhD-qualified academics work across every discipline and can produce a fully sourced, synthesised, gap-identifying literature review chapter formatted to your university's standards.

Literature review writing and editing from AUD $37/page.