How to write a Dissertation

1. Suliman Al-Hawamdeh Division of Information Studies Nanyang Technological University How to write a Dissertation

2. I realize that you don’t know much about research and writing dissertations. But tell you what, we better start now before it is too late…

3. LOVE IT or Hate IT I love writing I love researching I learn to write and I write to learn

4. How shall I torture you today. Put you in boiling oil or …….. hmm…I think I make you write a dissertation..

5. Getting Started • Research Topic • Research Proposal • Literature Review • Method, Procedure and Analysis

6. Getting Started Avoid this type of Jargon • "bad", "good", "nice", "terrible", "stupid" A scientific dissertation does not make moral judgments • "perfect" Nothing is perfect. • "an ideal solution" You're judging again • "lots of, kind of, type of, something like” vague & colloquial • "actually, really" define terms precisely to eliminate the need to clarify

7. Style and Structure • It is recommended that you follow certain convention to facilitate the writing process and make your dissertation readable. • It is useful to look at other dissertation and get an idea about the approach that people adopt to present their findings and arguments. • Do not wait for your supervisor to tell you what fonts, size and spacing you should use. That is a a waste of time and it shows that you did not do your homework. • Sample dissertations are available from the ISLAB, you can check them out.

8. Font, Spacing and Length • The preferred typeface is Times Roman (11 or 12 points). • Other typefaces are acceptable (check with your supervisor). • Use 1.5 or double-line spacing for the dissertation text. • Each page must have a left margin of 3.7 cm to allow for binding. • The top, bottom and right margin shall all be 2.5 cm. • Justify all your text in the dissertation body.

9. Font, Spacing and Length • The dissertation must not exceed 15,000 words (excluding tables, figures and appendices). • Most dissertations are between 40 and 80 pages (double spaced). • Figures inserted in the dissertation should appear close to where they are referenced in the text. • The usual convention of the figure followed by the figure title shall be followed. • Use the Chapter/Figure number convention to label the figures in the dissertation. For example, Figure 1.2 refers to the second figure of chapter 1. • A List of Figures and Tables must be included after the content page of dissertation

10. Documentation Style • Select documentation style and apply it consistently and carefully throughout your dissertation. • For simplicity and consistency, we recommend APA style. Recommended manuals include : • American Psychological Association. Publication Manual. 4th ed. Washington, D.C.: APA, 1994. • Modern Language Association. MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers. 4th ed. New York: MLA, 1995. • Turabian, Kate. A Manual For Writers Of Term Papers, Theses And Dissertations. 6th ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1996. NTU Library Link http://www.ntu.edu.sg/library/index-s.htm

12. Order of Presentation • Title Page Follow exactly the NTU format. Acknowledgments A brief ‘thank you’ • Abstract • Table of Contents • List of Figures • List of Tables • Content of Dissertation • References • Appendices

13. Chapter 1: Introduction and Statement of the Problem • Introduce the subject area (Overview and definition) and explain the research topic. • State your research question(s) or research objective(s). • Scope and limitations of the study. • Importance of the topic you have selected. • This Chapter should be revised after writing Chapter 2 (Literature Review) • Keep introduction shorts and focused

14. Chapter 2: Review of the Literature • It is a review of what has been published on that topic so that you do not duplicate someone else’s work. • Conduct a thorough literature search before designing your methodology and collecting your data. • The literature review should provide context and clarify the relationship between your topic and previous work in that area. • When writing the literature review, present major themes, theories, and ideas that have been published in the area, and the findings of related studies. • Conclude the review of the literature with a short section that describes your topic, highlighting why it is important to address the problem you have investigated.

15. Chapter 3: Methodology • This chapter describes exactly the steps that you took to investigate your research problem. • Explains your research design • the methodology that you selected (survey, interviews, historical research, document analysis or extended literature review for example), • the instruments that you used and how they were developed, the sample that you selected, and the description of your data collection process. • Copies of correspondence, instruments if you used any (questionnaires or interview scripts), raw data if appropriate and other items relating to the methodology are included as appendices, with references from the appropriate place in this chapter.

16. Findings Chapter • It describes what you found in your research, without discussion, interpretation or reference to the literature. • Just the facts, presented as tables, figures, interview summaries and/or descriptions of what you found that is important and noteworthy. • The objective is to present a simple, clear and complete account of the results of your research.

17. Discussion Chapter • Relate your findings to your original statement of the problem and your literature review. • Begin by briefly summarizing the previous chapters, then discuss what you found. • Ask yourself why the results were what they were, and then try to provide meaningful answers to the question. • Feel free to interpret objectively and subjectively and to make references to what others have said on the subject. • Make sure that every conclusion you draw is defensible and not just your own personal opinion.

18. Conclusion and Recommendations Chapter • Summarize your conclusions from the discussion chapter. • Note the limitations of your study. • Show that you are aware of the methodological limitations of your study, for example the small size of your sample, or the fact that you set out to examine only one part of a bigger problem. Make recommendations relating to the problem that you investigated, for example by making practical suggestions on how to improve the situation in the organization in which your research took place. • Make recommendations for areas that require further study.

19. Final Remarks • The final dissertation (3 copies) should be hard-cover bounded using a Dark Blue cover with Gold lettering (not exceeding 16 pts). • The year (i.e MSc (19xx)) denotes the year when the dissertation is submitted. • The author's name is abbreviated on the spine in the order of: full surname and initials of middle and first names. • The title may need to be abbreviated if it is too long to fit the spine. Get the approval from your supervisor on the abbreviated title.

20. 100 points, you will pass your dissertation….”