Dissertation Project

You should examine the assessment criteria that are outlined in your module handbook. This will help guide your effort and act as a checklist that you have covered all the essential elements.

Dissertation Structure Template

This is a template for the structure of the Dissertation.The sections prior to and after the main body of the Dissertation are mandatory. Please go through this template to review the mandatory sections required in the Dissertation.

The main body of the Dissertation comprises the following chapters, i.e. Introduction, Literature Review, Methodology, Findings, Discussion, Analysis, Conclusions & Recommendations and Bibliography. The Example Proposal Writing Guide previously issued will also help with the structure of your Dissertation in terms of headings, sub-headings, etc.

Your Dissertation Project Report should be 15,000 words (+/- 10% andexcluding appendices) with an additional 1,500 words for your learning statement.

Your Dissertation should include the following elements:
- An Abstract
- Introduction and background to project (to include terms of reference and objectives) - a clearly defined change or innovation focus (NB include your Academic Project Proposal as an Appendix)
- Design of investigation - describe how you went about the investigation and why. What information was gathered and from what source - why? What approach to interpretation and analysis and why?
- Key models or frameworks that would help the organization/secotr understand how its practice might change in relation to your research area
- Detailed findings and discussion (comparisons with existing literature)
- Conclusions and clear recommendations.
- Appendices (as required) but to include Learning Statement and Academic Project Proposal. The Learning Statement should just refer to learning episodes relevant to the Dissertation Project

Indicative structure and content - based on assessment criteria and matking descriptors (module handbook, p. 36-

Chapter 1: Introduction

The Introduction to the dissertation should set out the background to the research study and address the following areas:

The context in which the research took place:
• What is the background, the context, in which the research took place?

• Why is this subject or issue important?

• Who are the key participants and/or ‘actors' in the area under investigation?

• Are there important trends or pivotal variables of which the reader needs to be made aware?

• A clear and succinct statement of the aims and objectives that the dissertation is going to address.

• The chapter should present a clear and unambiguous exposition of the research aim, the objectives to be addressed to meet this aim and the research questions.
The reasons why this study was carried out:
• Was this study undertaken for example in order to test some aspect of professional or business practice or theory or framework of analysis?

• Was the research carried out to fulfil the demands of a business organisation?

The short final section of the Introduction should tell the reader what topics are going to be discussed in each of the chapters and how the chapters are related to each other. In this way the student is providing the reader with a ‘road map' of the work ahead. Thus, at a glance, they can see:
(1) where they are starting from;
(2) the context in which the journey is taking place;
(3) where they are going to end up, and
(4) the route which they will take to reach their final destination.

Such a ‘map' will enable the reader to navigate their way through the work much more easily and appreciate to the maximum what the student has done.

Chapter 2: Literature Review

The main reasons for the inclusion, in a Masters dissertation, of a literature review section are: • To present and to analyse, in a critical manner, that part of the published literature which is relevant to the research topic and which acts as the basis for a fuller understanding of the context in which the student has conducted the research; thus helping the reader to a more rounded appreciation of what the student has completed.

The literature review is presented in the form of a précis, a classification, a comparison and a critical analysis of that material which is germane to a full understanding of the student's research study. Such published material may be drawn from all, or a combination of, textbooks, journal articles, conference papers, reports, case studies, the Internet, magazine features or newspaper articles. It should be remembered, however, that the most important source of academic literature are journal articles and the student should ensure that they are familiar with the most recent publications in journals relevant to their subject area.

The literature review should lead and justify the research objectives and questions of the dissertation. The literature review should not just be a catalogue of authors, frameworks and ideas but should attempt to introduce a critical evaluation of those authors' work.

Critical does not mean looking at the negatives but forming an evaluation:

• To act as a backdrop against which what the student has done in the remainder of the dissertation may be analysed and critically evaluated so as to give the reader the opportunity to assess the worth of the writing, analytical and research skills.

• To show that not only has the student discovered and reported what they have found to be relevant in the literature search, but that they have understood it and are able to analyse it in a critical manner.

• To show that the student's knowledge of the area of interest is detailed enough that they are able to identify gaps in the coverage of the topic; thus justifying the reason(s) for their research.

• To show that the student knows what the key variables, trends and ‘actors' are in the environment of their study, i.e. they show that they know what the important issues are that need to be investigated.

• To enable readers to be able to measure the validity of the student's choice(s) of research methodology, the appropriateness of the process by which they analyse their results, and whether or not their findings are congruent with the accepted research which has gone before.

The Introduction to the Review
• A definition or description of topic in general terms, or of the issues the student proposes to investigate - this will give the reader a context in which the literature may be viewed.

• The key trends in this sector of the literature, the main theories and areas of disagreement, and possibly, gaps in the literature.

• An explanation of why the student is conducting this literature review and the standpoint they will be adopting when conducting the critical analysis.

• The manner in which the review will be presented.

• An explanation as to why, if appropriate, some literature has not been included in the study.

The. Main Body of the Review
• A discussion of the main theories or models, which are appropriate to the study.

• Appropriate themes or trends and a discussion of them in detail.

• The discussion should begin in general terms and then narrow down to specific details, this applies to the entire literature review and to individual sections.

• An explanation of and, if possible, a resolution of conflicts in what is reported.

• A discussion of all the topics which are relevant to the dissertation that is comprehensive enough to act as a suitably firm foundation, such that it will support the research in the remainder of the dissertation.

The Conclusion of the Review
• The student should make explicit what exactly the research objectives of the research are, so that the reader is in no doubt as to what the student is about to investigate.

• Summarise the major points that the literature review has uncovered and remind the reader as to the specific conceptual/theoretical framework for the research.

• Point out the gap(s) in the literature, if there are any, and use these to emphasise the justification for carrying out the current research project.

• The literature review should lead and justify the research objectives and questions of the dissertation.

Questions to be Asked When Carrying Out a Literature Review
• Are the references included relevant to the topic(s) under investigation?

• Do the references support all the topics or themes that must be discussed to aid a full understanding of the context of the research and of the research objectives?

• Has the literature review discussed, to the appropriate level of detail, each of the topics?

• Have all the key authors been cited and discussed?

• Does the space given to each section of the literature review reflect its individual importance?

Chapter 3 - The Research Methodology chapter should begin by stating, again, the research objectives of the project. This will enable the reader to make an assessment as to the validity of the chosen research methodology. This chapter is that part of the dissertation where the student has the opportunity to justify to the reader the process by which the research questions, which were derived by an analysis of the relevant literature, were answered. It is not sufficient to say, for example, "suitable respondents were sampled using a quota sampling technique and then surveyed using a postal questionnaire" and then leave it at that.

It might well be the case that, given the problem(s) to be investigated, such a choice of research methods is entirely appropriate. However, if the student has not taken the opportunity to justify their research choices to a reader they could be correct in assuming that the student has, by chance, merely guessed at what would work and, more by luck than judgement, arrived at the ‘correct' solution to the problem.

The term ‘methodology', particularly when employed in the social sciences, does not just mean method, but also the governing philosophy behind the methods employed. The chapter on research methodology must painstakingly argue for and justify each decision that is taken when arriving at the way in which the research is to be organised. Every time that the student has to make a choice from a number of options, they must state what each of these are, why they made the choice they did, and why they rejected those not used.

The conclusion of this chapter should provide a summary of the main points that have been covered. The conclusion should also direct the reader as to how the contents of this chapter link in with the contents of the next chapter, the findings.
Primary and Secondary Research
The contribution of both forms to the research. This section might seem to be somewhat retrospective in that the student has already written a chapter, the Literature Review, using secondary data. However, the standard convention of dissertations is such that the justification for secondary data analysis is included in the Research Methodology chapter and not in the Literature Review.

Quantitative vs Qualitative
• Why did the student choose the one they did?
• Why did the student the other system?
• The student will need to justify the precise fieldwork method.

No ‘rule' says that a choice must be made between two or more choices, and this is so at any point when the student is faced with having to make a decision; this applies not just for the section currently under discussion. For example, there are many research projects, which employ both primary and secondary research, and/or qualitative and quantitative research methods. The student makes their choice, or choices, in the light of their unique research situation and context and the questions which need to be answered. But whatever choice, or choices, the student makes - they must justify what they have done.

Whether the student chose a qualitative or quantitative research technique or techniques, the methodology chapter must include a discussion as to the manner in which the results are to be analysed.

Chapter 4

This chapter presents the evidence and/or results of primary research which the student has undertaken. The main part of the chapter is the presentation of the data that the student obtained. Even projects of relatively moderate dimensions will generate a large amount of data which has to be considered. This data must be organised in a logical and coherently ordered whole so that the student's thought processes and interpretation are clear to the reader. Whatever form of data analysis has been undertaken, it must be accomplished with care and attention to detail, as should the way in which the results are presented.

The student should describe in an accessible manner what the research has uncovered and to include only the most pertinent figures as evidence of your findings. Dissertations which included detailed modelling or quantitative analysis will clearly need to show all relevant assumptions, relationships and methods. Your role is to advise on the level of detail required in the main body as opposed to that included in the Appendix. Graphs, diagrams, pie-charts etc. are all useful ways of presenting research results; they are an imaginative way of ‘breaking up' solid blocks of text - they let a little ‘light' into the body of the text as long as they are relevant and illustrate key points.

The review of methods should be restricted to those items which are relevant to the research questions and not just a generic discussion. There will be problems in the execution of any research project and their occurrence should be brought to the attention of the reader. Without stating them, one of the essential elements of the context in which the research took place will be missing.

In many situations, students will have made extensive use of qualitative research techniques such as focus groups and/or in-depth semi-structured interviews. While quantitative data lends itself to graphs, tables and so on, qualitative data, and the way it is presented, pose particular challenges for students. The objective should be based on the belief that the data must be presented in such a manner as to make it easy for the reader to follow the logic of the analysis. The analysis of qualitative data should be based on the research questions and issues that the student explored during the fieldwork. For instance, the student may have addressed six or seven critical questions in a series of interviews. Each of these questions should be examined separately, rather than describing each interview in turn. This provides a degree of logical flow and development to the analysis.

In addition, there should be focus on the points of agreement and disagreement that emerged during the interviews. This should be supported with relevant quotations from the transcripts of the interviews. Students should avoid lengthy quotations, unless they are of critical importance. However, short excerpts enrich the reader's understanding of the issues and provide the student with the opportunity to shed a clearer insight on the topic. Many students make the mistake of providing a very superficial, descriptive analysis of qualitative data. This does not allow them to demonstrate that the research they undertook was of a substantive nature.

Tables can also be included that reflect the respondent's overall attitudes, perceptions and views about the themes. Students are not required to include all the transcripts of interviews, surveys or data sheets. They should only include the summarised data in the main body of the dissertation. Appendixes should be restricted to no more than 10 pages.

Students can keep additional information in a folder for use by the markers if requested. In the case of company projects, the student may need to include some brief outline about the company and its activities. These comments should be focused on the topic area and not just a broad and general description of everything the student knows about the organisation.

Discussion
In the introduction to the dissertation the student should have described the context of the research. In the literature survey they analysed the work of previously published authors and derived a set of questions that needed to be answered to fulfil the objectives of the study. In the research methodology chapter, the student should have shown the reader what techniques were available, what their advantages and disadvantages were, and what guided the student to make the choice they did. In the results section, the student presents to the reader the outcome of the research exercise. The introduction of this chapter reminds the reader what, exactly, were the research objectives. The review of the literature and the evaluation of the various themes, issues and frameworks helped the student to develop a more specific set of research questions. In essence, the analysis of the data that collected from the fieldwork should provide answers to these questions.

The student should, as a matter of priority, focus attention on data that is directly relevant to the research questions. The student should avoid the mistake of including analysis that might be interesting in a general way, but is not linked to the original direction of the dissertation. Peripheral data can be included as an appendix. The introduction should also explain how the results are to be presented.

The findings/discussion is the heart of the dissertation and must be more than descriptive. This chapter develops analytic and critical thinking on primary results and analysis with reference to theoretical arguments grounded in the literature review. The student should try to highlight where there are major differences and similarities from the literature or between different groups. Where a model or framework of analysis has been used or is being developed the student should highlight the main relationships as well as explaining the reason and significance behind features or decisions being discussed.

Chapter 5: Conclusions and Recommendations:

Here the student should bring together the work of the dissertation by showing how the initial research plan has been addressed in such a way that conclusions may be formed from the evidence of the dissertation. No new material or references should be placed here. The conclusions should make a statement on the extent to which each of the aims and objectives has been met. The student should bring back their research questions and state clearly their understanding of those questions. They should be careful not to make claims that are not substantiated from the evidence they have presented in earlier chapters.

If the student is undertaking a company project based around a business issue, they should not confuse recommendations for the company with conclusions. If they want to include a list of recommendations, they should do so in a separate short section/chapter. The conclusions address the wider understanding of the issue the student has been studying. They should include a short sub section on any suggestions for further research for colleagues who might wish to undertake research in this area in the future. There should also be a short statement of the limitations of the research. Often as a single case study or limited range of companies the student cannot really claim that the research holds for all companies. However, by adopting a rigorous approach to the literature review and methods which have validity and can be repeated, the student can make a reasonable but limited claim that their conclusions should be taken seriously.

Presentation and Expression

References
All references used in writing the dissertation (whether direct quotations or paraphrasing) should be included in a reference list/bibliography, compiled in alphabetical order by author. The Harvard system for listing references should be used.

Appendices
Appendices may be used to provide relevant supporting evidence for reference but should only be used if necessary. Students may wish to include in appendices, evidence which confirms the originality of their work or illustrates points of principle set out in the main text, questionnaires, and interview guidelines. Only subsidiary material should be included in appendices. Students should not assume that Appendices will be read by Examiners in detail.