A Simple Guide to Writing the Perfect Dissertation Proposal

A Simple Guide to Writing the Perfect Dissertation Proposal

Writing a dissertation is an uphill task. An individual need to have in-depth research and writing skills to produce a fine piece of this writing. Most of the time, university professors ask students to submit a dissertation proposal. Now, you might be thinking, what is a dissertation proposal?

A dissertation proposal is a very length research-based written document. In this document, students propose the idea of research they are going to carry out. The idea should be presented in a concise way. The format of the proposal is a little different from the thesis. Most of the time, students were delivered instructions concerning the word count of the proposal. Apart from this, the chapters and structure of the proposal are the same.

This article aims to discuss simple guidelines for writing a perfect proposal. So, let’s discuss in detail:

Simple Guidelines for Writing A Perfect Dissertation Proposal

1. Topic Selection:

An individual should select an interesting and unique topic for his research work. The question is how one can choose an interesting? The answer is simple, perform thorough literature research. A thorough study of the literature will help you identify the research gaps in your field. Following this way, you will come up with an interesting and unique topic. Another important that research should keep in mind is that the research topic should contribute to existing knowledge.

2.   Introduction:

  • The introduction is the first section of your dissertation proposal. A researcher typically explains the topic and its importance to its potential readers in this section. The researcher will also provide background information on the topic. Apart from this, he should explain the research rationale. The research questions also come under this section.
  • Along with questions, it is equally important to discuss the aims and objectives of the research. Another explanation that a researcher should include in this section is the study’s uniqueness. Explaining the points mentioned above will help a researcher write an outstanding introduction to his research.

3. Literature Review:

It is the second section of a dissertation proposal. This section demands utmost care and dedication from a writer. The researcher should access a wide range of literature sources to ace it. Moreover, as a researcher, you need to select only authentic and reliable sources. You can take help from existing studies, research articles and journals. You can also get help from different universities’ internet and digital libraries. The last thing is to ensure that all sources address the research issue. Thus, the key to devising a good literature review lies in following the points above.

4. Methodology:

It is another important section of the dissertation proposal. This section answers the question “how”. A researcher discusses the research methodology and a brief description of the methods. The formatting of the methodology’s chapter can be different. It depends on the type of research. The methods and methodology depend a lot on the subject of research. There are various methodologies for qualitative and quantitative research. In other words, your research methodology will depend on your research topic.

5. Ethical consideration and Limitations:

It is another important aspect of your dissertation proposal. Every research work has some ethical considerations and limitations. So, the researcher should describe this aspect before the reader identifies it. Ethical considerations and limitations will depend on your research topic. So, you should make sure to discuss them as per your research.

6. Time Frame:

Now, estimate the duration of the dissertation proposal based on the list of tasks on hand. Allocate each section a hypothetical time and calculate the total duration of the research. This process should be quick. The researcher doesn’t need to make it hard for him. Ultimately, it’s a rough guess.

7. Mini Conclusion:

It is the last section of your dissertation proposal. In this section, the researcher provides a summary of the whole research. Remember, you will only explain your research’s important ideas and significance. Also, as a researcher, make sure to repeat the introduction part a little bit. It will allow the reader to return and assist him in analysing the whole study. Repetition of the ideas is not allowed, so try to avoid it.

Conclusion:

Writing a dissertation proposal is not an easy task. A researcher must have complete knowledge of how he wants to conduct his research. This article provided a comprehensive guide for writing a proposal. An individual should follow these steps while writing a proposal.

Author

Ardella M Baez is a well-experienced dissertation editing services with a firm grip on complex languages and frameworks. She had graduated from the University of London with an excellent academic record.