Some Lesser Known Facts Of Writing A Quality Dissertation Proposal

A dissertation proposal is an article which is composed before the final Ph.D. thesis. This text will set the background for your final doctoral study. In your college days, you did not have to do anything strenuous, as you only had to take the necessary semester exams and achieve the required pass marks for obtaining the graduate degree. But upon joining your post-graduation, you realized that things were more stringent than you had expected, especially when you were required to write a dissertation proposal. Most postgraduate students face extreme difficulty in writing their dissertation proposal.
A dissertation proposal is an integral version of any dissertation project and hence should not be taken lightly. In order to craft a high-quality dissertation proposal, you need to develop a precise strategy to help you smoothly glide through this complex endeavor. Most students tend to confuse between a dissertation proposal and a research proposal. The former is not entirely based on research work and includes theories, practices, ideas, and opinions of the writer. They should learn to distinguish between the two so that they can develop a well-drafted dissertation proposal.
While most writers are made aware of the basic steps of writing a dissertation proposal there are some lesser known facts that can transform your proposal into a unique one. This includes –

The significance of the structure of the dissertation proposal

The structure of the dissertation proposal plays a significant role in strengthening the proposal. The points presented in the proposal should be in a hierarchical manner with the most important points being placed first and the lesser ones after that. The reader will be more interested to be aware of the contents of the project sooner than later so as to create a sense of eagerness in the mind as to what comes next. This sum up to the fact that the introductory passage must be succinct with all the significant points being presented in a nutshell, thereby, laying the foundation for an elaboration of each one of them in subsequent passages.

Identify the subject matter

While maintaining the hierarchical order, it is necessary to pin down the entire topic of discussion as soon as possible. This should be covered up in the opening passage itself. This essentially indicates addressing the central question or argument in the introductory passage itself. It is a common tendency for students to discuss the preliminaries in the introduction and saving the main topic for the later parts of the proposal. This deprives the proposal of its main purpose until the central topic is addressed. This ultimately leads to a substandard dissertation proposal resulting in lower grades in the academic coursework.

Main topic vs. subsidiary ones

Most students often do not pay heed to the subject matter under discussion and tend to mix up the content of the proposal by discussing the central question with the associated ones. In fact, a clear line should be drawn between the main question and the subsidiary ones so as to develop the contents of the proposal in a clear and organized manner. This will often help to formulate the central argument clearly assuring that the proposal is a workable hypothesis which can be documented. But in no way, it is a good idea to leave it to the professor to decide which one is the main question and which are the subsidiaries.

Communicate your intentions without ambiguity

You must realize that the primary intention of the reader is to find out the opinion and views of the writer rather than finding out the topic itself. It is a common tendency of the students to hold back their personal views and opinions about the topic and express anything upfront. Instead, they want the professor or the examiner to find out from the proposal what they intend to convey through their presentation. This is not at all a suitable approach as making statements in an active voice while keeping them compelling and concise at the same time makes it easier for the professor to make a judgment about the proposal. In fact, this will create a positive impact on the mind of the reader and develop a sense of eagerness to find out the opinion of the writer.

Stick to a single version

In order to impress the professors students always try to provide as much information as possible in their dissertation proposal. This often leads to presenting multiple versions of the topic that tends to contradict one another. This creates a sense of ambiguity in the mind of the reader and ultimately the main essence of the topic is lost. Once a clear and concise presentation is made at the beginning, there is no need to restate what the topic is all about. When further elaborations are made, refer to the main topic but never repeat any information which has been stated earlier in the write-up. Refrain from scattering the literature throughout the proposal so that the professor can have a complete grasp of your dissertation proposal.

Discuss the topic before identifying the missing links

Amateur dissertation proposal writers often try to identify the gaps present in the scholarly literature rather than going ahead with what is in hand. Instead, they should present what they can collect about the topic and then think of making further contributions to the field.

Do not give too much effort

You should know that dissertation proposal writing is not as tough as it is portrayed. Anyone having the basic knowledge and skill sets can easily accomplish such task without much effort. Therefore, devoting too much time or effort than what is needed won’t fetch you better results. So, instead of trying to do too much make yourself aware of the essentials of writing a dissertation proposal, work in close coordination with the dissertation advisor, take suggestions from your professors so that you can successfully overcome such difficult task. You need not present a definitive work on the subject. Developing a significant piece on a limited scope of the topic is sure to serve the purpose.

Conclusion

The dissertation proposal is the toughest challenge you have faced ever in your life. You might have written case studies, essays, book reviews, term papers or any other kind of coursework but this is the first time when you have encountered something so difficult in the form of a dissertation proposal. But fret not, as this is the hallmark to a brighter and better future, make it a memorable one.