Dissertation Writing Guide Simplified
Understanding Thesis and Dissertation
Dissertation or Thesis completion is an important requirement for doctoral, master’s and even undergraduate candidates. Some universities, especially in the United Kingdom, United States, Canada and Australia, require undergraduate students to complete dissertation projects. Dissertations and Theses are mandatory capstone projects for graduation. Dissertation help students to showcase their expertise in the areas of academic specialization and the ability to contribute to the existing knowledge. Dissertation writing starts with the topic selection. This is an important step since getting the research topic wrong could render the whole project wrong. It is important to select a topic that is researchable and whose data is obtainable and measurable to be able to conclude. Also, the research topic should align with the candidate’s area of contribution to knowledge and research interest (Aldarbag & Erdener, 2014). This guide will provide step-by-step dissertation writing instructions to help students write the best-quality dissertation projects. Dissertation writing services can help you complete your dissertation with a week.
Selecting the Research Topic
The University of Manchester Library provides the guidelines and questions that a candidate should ask to come up with the right and acceptable topics.
- Consider what has been covered in the course.
- Course topics that interested the student.
- Whether their research interest or topic has been done before
- Whether the research topic is relevant to research/practice/theory in their field.
- The existing information or understanding about the topic.
- Questions that have not been answered on the topic so far.
- Career ideas after completing your degree
- Whether there are any new or developing areas in the student’s subject
- Whether there is anything the student disagrees with.
Usually, students are guided by their professors and academic supervisors in selecting the research topic. Students are encouraged to submit dissertation topics to their professors with a description of what they intend to achieve and the research objectives.
Dissertation Writing Complete Step-by-Step Simplified Guide
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Completing the Research Proposal
The student can begin writing the research proposal once the topic has been approved. It is important to note that the research proposal marks an important phase of completing your dissertation. The research proposal details how the candidate intends to conduct the research. It mainly concentrates on the first three chapters: Introduction, Review of Related Literature/Literature Review and Methodology. It is important to note that the first three chapters in the research proposal are not as detailed as they are in the actual dissertation project. In addition to the three chapters, the research proposal also contains the timelines in the form of a Gantt Chart on the times allocated for different sections of the dissertation project.
Completing Dissertation or Thesis Project
The research proposal, through its three chapters, forms a MUST foundation for completing the dissertation project (Baron, 2020). The introduction chapter is divided into different sections.
Chapter 1: Introduction
Provides background information by introducing the study and stating the study’s focus. It provides readers with a brief description of the problem and literature related to the problem under investigation. The introduction forms a foundation for establishing the statement of the problem. The background of the problem can be part of the introduction, although it is not a must. The most important sections in the introduction include the Statement of the Problem, the Research Question and the Significance of the Study.
Statement of the Problem
Provides the direction of the study. This has been a challenging section for most of the candidates. It describes the problem under study and the purpose of the study. Below are three partials on how to approach this subsection:
The study investigates (state the problem related to your topic)
The purpose of the study is to determine (state the issue in relation to your topic)
The study compares, investigates, contrasts, determines, develops, clarifies, describes, examines or evaluates (state the problem as it relates to the research topic)
Research Question or Hypotheses
The problem statement forms the foundation for developing research questions or hypotheses. The two reflect the relationships and variables to be examined and reported. Research Questions or Hypotheses determine the methodology to be employed in the study.
Note:
1). Hypotheses are stated when the research design is experimental or quasi-experimental in nature
2). Research Questions are stated for the survey research and non-experimental research
3). Avoid Yes-No research questions
4). Research Questions are answered, while Hypotheses are tested.
Significance of Study
Identifies and describes the potential of the study findings to the student’s area of specialization. The candidate should identify the target audience of the study and how they will benefit.
Organization of the Study
Summarizes the content of each chapter to help the readers know the information contained in each chapter.
Chapter 2: Literature Research or Review
Provide the readers with a review of the literature related to the issue under examination. It is to extend great an expansion of Chapter One’s introduction and background information. Chapter 2 is lengthy and can be divided into different sections depending on the problem under investigation. For example, the student can divide the chapter into these subsections: history of the problem, importance of the issue, current practices concerning the issue and recommended practices.
Chapter 3: Methodology/Procedures (Resources and Procedures)
Discusses steps undertaken in the literature review and data collection. It begins by restating the research problem alongside the research questions or hypotheses. The main subsections include a review of Related/Selected Literature and/or Research, Population and Sample, Instrumentation, Data Collection, Data Analysis and Summary.
Review of Related/Selected Literature and/or Research
Describes the process used in the literature review. It describes the sources or databases used in the literature research.
Population and Sample
Describes the study population and the process used to select the sample. Since the sample should be used to draw conclusions, it should be representative of the entire target population. The sample represents the population if:
It was carefully selected
It was randomly selected from the population
It is large enough in relation to the population
It is appropriate for the instrument used to collect data
Instrumentation
Describes the procedures used to develop an instrument(s) for gathering data from your selected population/sample. For example, information from cohort or case studies, questionnaires and online surveys. Instrument reliability and validity data should be described if possible. Information on the advantages and limitations of the instrument should be provided.
Data Collection
Describes in detail how the data was obtained and the timelines involved in collecting the data. For example, how data was obtained from cohort studies, online surveys, questionnaires or interviews. The number of respondents and non-respondents.
Data Analysis
Details treatment and analysis of the collected data. The study methodologies are determined in this section. The research questions are answered, or hypotheses are tested. The section describes how data was gathered and its level (nominal, ordinal or interval). It is important to be specific in this section by describing the research question being answered or the hypothesis being tested. For example:
In response to research question one ( state the results)
A Null Hypothesis two that (state the null hypothesis), will be tested using (state the statistical tool used)
Summary (Optional)
It is optional and summarizes chapter three sections.
Chapter 4: Findings
It is limited to reporting findings and results. Conclusions or discussion of the findings are NOT reported at this point. The sections in this chapter include Response Rate, Demographic Data, and Reporting Findings.
Response Rate
Describes response rate based on the instrument distributed and response received.
Demographic Data
Describe the demographic composition of the study participants.
Reporting Findings
Reports findings obtained from the data analysis regarding answers to the research questions or tests from hypotheses.
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Chapter 5: Summary, Discussion, Conclusions, and Recommendations
Summary
Provides the entire study brief recap
Discussion
The research explores and explains the study findings. The student will attempt to interpret findings in relation to the problem statement, study focus and literature research review.
Conclusions
Provide a conclusion based on the data analysis findings and results. Provide answers to research questions or hypotheses.
Recommendations
Provide recommendations emerging from the study. Recommendations can be for practice/action or further study.
References
Aldarbag, A. M., & Erdener, M. A. (2014). The Dissertation Topic Selection of Doctoral Students Using Dynamic Network Analysis. International Journal of Doctoral Studies, 9, 85-107. http://ijds.org/Volume9/IJDSv9p085-107Olalere521.pdf
Baron, M. A. (2020). Guidelines for Writing Research Proposals and Dissertations. University of South Dakota. https://www.regent.edu/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/dissertation_guidelines.pdf
The University of Manchester Library. (n.d.). Choosing your dissertation topic. https://www.escholar.manchester.ac.uk/learning-objects/mle/dissertation-topic/story_content/external_files/cheat-sheet.pdf
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