Dissertation Proposal – First Step for Dissertation Writing

How to write a dissertation? Writing a dissertation proposal is the first step in preparing a Dissertation on a specific topic.  Postgraduate and Undergraduate students when asked to write dissertations for the first time face any issue in determining an appropriate way to write a proposal for a Dissertation. In this article, our dissertation writing professional is providing you with a complete guideline about how to plan your dissertation proposal?

What is a Dissertation Proposal?

The dissertation proposal is a plan to write a dissertation on specific research questions. It is the first step in preparing a Dissertation on a particular subject or topic. A dissertation proposal can also be referred to as a comprehensive statement that is written based on students’ level of interest. You need to prepare and submit a draft of the Dissertation before completing lengthy academic writing. It is a document that consists of information about research that you intend to perform. A proposal also consists of detail about the way you will perform the study and the reason for the same.  You are requiring writing Proposals before beginning to prepare the Dissertation.

Importance of Dissertation Proposal

As previously stated, the dissertation proposal is important in and of itself.

• It is beneficial to communicate your dissertation concept to your supervisor.
• Your supervisor will be impressed by your dissertation proposal.
• A dissertation proposal aids in the execution of a research study that is knowledgeable, comprehended, and effective.
• Dissertation proposals help you prepare for your dissertation.

What Is in a Dissertation Proposal?

When you’re working on your dissertation proposal, make sure to include the following:

• Why would someone want to conduct research?
• What does one already understand?
• What is it that you want to concentrate on in your studies?
• Where are you going to do your research?
• When will you be able to conduct your research?
• Who can you research?
• Who is eligible to read the dissertation?

Dissertation proposal’s structure

A good structure should be present in the dissertation proposal that you submit to your supervisor. Only with a proper structure will you be able to get your dissertation approved. The elements are essential to the structure of a dissertation proposal. Methods, literature review, expected outcomes, timeline, objectives, and bibliography are a few examples.
The following are some essential components of a dissertation proposal.

• Dissertation title: The dissertation title summarises all of the main points in your dissertation. It is the most crucial section of your dissertation. You should have a short and to-the-point title.
• Objectives: You should focus your research on a specific topic. The scope of your research becomes too broad if you have more than three goals.

What to include in the Dissertation Proposal?

The things which you are required to include at the time of writing the proposal for the dissertation are:

• For an introduction to the research topic, you also need to clearly state the aim of your research.
•  Existing literature relevant to the subject of Research.
• An outline of research methods you are going to use for performing research.
• A discussion related to the possible implication of the study.

Note: You to determine the length and structure of the Dissertation proposal need to review the University or College guidelines.

How to write a dissertation proposal?

The 6 steps which you need to follow for writing a proposal for the Dissertation are:

Step 1: Generation of Idea

Before starting to write a dissertation proposal, it is very much essential for you to develop a strong idea for the Dissertation. Without developing an idea you won’t be able to write a dissertation proposal. At the initial step of writing a Dissertation, you need to identify the field of interest. After analyzing your interest in the field you are required to do preliminary reading about that field, as these tactics will help you in the identification of a further area of research.

After a successful generation of ideas, you need to narrow down it. You need to ensure that you have chosen a specific and feasible topic. You are required to move from a broad field of interest to a specific niche.

For example:

British literature: 18 century British Literature: The novels of Tolstoy

Social Media: Effects of social media on the mental health of children

Step 2: Presentation of Ideas in Dissertation introduction Section.

In the academic context, you need to start a Dissertation proposal by first writing an introduction. It is a section in the Dissertation proposal you need to provide an overview of the research topic. You are requiring providing background information. It is very much important for you to present the aim, objectives, and research questions in the introductory part of the proposal for the dissertation.

a) Hook

You should directly introduce your research topic.  At the time of writing an introduction in the Dissertation proposal, you need to specify why your chosen topic is interesting and important. You should waste lots of time on generalizations.

Example:

It is agreed by Psychologists that social media has a significant influence on the mind of young people. However, the researcher can further perform study for analyzing the nature of the influence of social media on the mental health of youth.

b) Background information

Before starting to write a dissertation, you should perform preliminary research, as this strategy will help you in gaining in-depth knowledge that could be further beneficial in terms of writing background information. When beginning to write the background information in the Dissertation Proposal you need to consider the expectations of the reader, the present state of research, and the contribution of study in a particular field.

Note: If in case you are going to write Literature Review in a proposal for a dissertation then you need not provide background information in detail.

c) Aim

It is considered being as the most crucial part of the introduction. After writing the aim, objectives, and research question you need to make sure that they are easily identifiable by the reader. You can write the aim, objectives, and research Question in bullet points. You must include only specific research questions in your proposal written for the Dissertation. At the time of writing the dissertation proposal, you should keep in mind your objective which is to positively influence the reader for accepting that your study is valuable and feasible.

For example: What influence social media have on children suffering from general anxiety disorder?

Step 3:  Explore existing literature related to the topic

At this step of writing a proposal in the dissertation, you need to find existing literature related to similar ideas. It is very much important for you to address and demonstrate the knowledge gap in the existing literature on the same topic. This is a step, where you need to search and properly analyze sources for writing the Literature review part of the Dissertation proposal.

In this section, you need to provide a summary of the findings of the research that is performed by another researcher. You can utilize the paraphrasing technique to concisely write the Literature review section for the Dissertation.

Step 4: Describe Research Methodology

It is a step in the Dissertation proposal, where you need to define the methodology which you are going to use for performing research. You need to also include the structure that you are going to follow in your ain Dissertation. At the time of writing the Research method section in a proposal for a Dissertation, you need to keep your goal in mind which is to influence the reader or supervisor that the approach or technique you have utilized is appropriate for performing research on a particular topic.

In the context of empirical research, you should concentrate on the techniques you are going to use for the collection and analysis of information.  At the time of writing the research method part of the Dissertation proposal, you are required to provide the proper justification for making specific techniques for performing a particular research activity.

Step 5: Outline the implication of the study

You are required to conclude a proposal written for a dissertation by discussing your expectations related to research findings or results. Here, it is very much important for you to describe the implication of the Dissertation. You also need to demonstrate the contribution that your study will make in a particular field. At last, you are requiring providing the intended result of your research and the theoretical or practical impact it will have in the academic and social fields.

Step 6: Create a Reference List

Like any academic text, you need to include a reference to the sources in the Dissertation proposal. You need to do the proper formatting of references. References need to be put at the end of the dissertation proposal. It is very much essential for you to review University guidelines before doing references or citations.

By reviewing the guideline you will get an idea about which style to use. Every University and College has different guidelines for referencing. Some basic styles which you can use for doing references and citations in your dissertation Proposal are APA, Harvard, Vancouver, etc.   You should also maintain consistency in your referencing style. As it is the factor that has a significant influence on the quality of the Dissertation proposal you are writing.

Conclusion

It has been concluded from the above that the Dissertation proposal is an outline of the things you are going to include in your main Dissertation. Another fact that has been discovered is that the introduction section is a Dissertation proposal that is very much crucial as it provides the reader with an overview of the topic.