How to write a good Dissertation or Thesis

How to write a good Dissertation or Thesis

The following is a step by step structure of how to write a good Dissertation or thesis and Guidance on the content to be included in every step;
The layout of your dissertation should typically follow this basic structure:-
? Title page
? Declaration
? Acknowledgements (optional)
? Abstract
? Table of Contents
? Introduction, including background to the research problem and context of the
research
? Literature Review
? Methodology
? Findings
? Discussion of Findings (this is where you relate your findings back to the review of
literature)
? Conclusions
? Recommendations
? Reference list
? Appendices (optional)
Your dissertation must conform to the style requirements.
When you submit your dissertation it must be accompanied by a completed
dissertation checklist sheet together with the Similarity Report produced by TurnItIn
Guidance on content:- Additional relevant details are provided in the appendices
? Title Page: you should use the prescribed format
? Declaration: A signed declaration page certifying your work.
? A copy of the TurnItIn Similarity Report Receipt
? Acknowledgements: It is polite to acknowledge help given by others at the beginning of
the dissertation in an Acknowledgements section. This could include the supervisor
and/or individuals and organisations that have supplied specific assistance, and should
be limited to no more than a single page.
? Abstract: An abstract describing the contents of the dissertation. This must be short
(probably in the region of about 300 words) providing details of the problem addressed,
main arguments, brief details of research design, conclusions and recommendations of
the dissertation. It must be designed to be read independently of the rest of the
dissertation and references to the dissertation and other literature will not normally be
included.
? Table of Contents: Your Table of Contents should include, as a minimum, a list of
chapter numbers, chapter titles and page numbers for each chapter, together with details
of any appendices you may be including. You may, if you wish, expand the detail given
to provide information on sections within chapters, but you must not obscure the clarity of
the Table of Contents with this additional material.
You should also normally include a list of the figures and tables in your dissertation
(unless you have only a small number of tables and figures).
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? Main Text and Chapter Organisation: The actual ordering of chapters will depend upon
the topic and your approach, but will normally be as suggested below:-
i. Introduction – Clearly state what problem you are tackling, your research question,
aims and objectives, and why the research is important and relevant to the study of
management. Outline how your dissertation is structured. Background and context
are normally included in the Introduction. For some topics it may be important to
outline the specific context for your research in some detail (e.g. in a case study
design).
ii. Literature Review This reveals what has already been found by previous
researchers in the subject area and/or the industry or sector. This chapter must
include comparison, synthesis and critical analysis as appropriate, together with a
summary of what has been learned, gaps in the literature, ambiguities, conflicting
theoretical perspectives etc. The literature review is not mere description or overview
of other authors work; you must exercise critical judgment and attempt to draw
knowledge and learning from the literature.
The form and content of the Literature Review is your responsibility; your supervisor
will give guidance but cannot write the review for you.
iii. Methodology – Explain in detail the design of your study and the methods employed
to gather data/information, so that the reader can evaluate the validity of your
findings, conclusions and recommendations. Many researchers find this the most
difficult chapter to write. The following is a possible format for the chapter:-
o Restate the problem you are investigating and your research question(s), aims
and objectives.
o Explain and justify the paradigm (ontology and epistemology).
o Leading from the definition of the problem, explain your data requirements, what
you would have needed ideally to address the research question, aims and
objectives and what was practically possible.
o Explain how you carried out your data collection, e.g. how and why you chose
your sample and/or conducted your interviews etc. Perhaps your analysed data
from a range of already published surveys etc.
o Explain how you analysed your data.
o Discuss the limitations of the research design and methods you employed.
iv. Findings – Detail the main arguments or results obtained from your research. Where
the results are quantitative, consider tabular presentation, either in the body of the
dissertation, or in a separate appendix. Where the findings are qualitative in nature,
remember to cite participants responses as directly and accurately as possible.
v. Discussion of Findings Demonstrate the significance of your arguments or results
and make appropriate linkages between your findings and the review of literature.
vi. Conclusions Briefly summarise what you have written from problem definition to
results and discussion. Indicate the extent to which the research question has been
answered and the research objectives met. Discuss how the investigation has
contributed to the advancement of management theory and practice.
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vii. Recommendations Consider the limitations of your research and make suggestions
for future investigations. In terms of recommendations, what action should be taken
based on your findings, by whom and when? Your recommendations must be
consistent with, and supported by, the evidence and arguments contained in your
dissertation. Normally recommendations for both future research and management
practice should be made.
Note: Both your conclusions and recommendations should follow logically from your review
of literature and the findings of your research.