dissertation of bcps

Frequently Asked Questions

dissertation of bcps

A certificate program is used to train or educate a person in specific knowledge or skills.

A certification program  is an independent assessment used to recognize professionals who meet standardized criteria and possess practice-based skills, knowledge, abilities, and experiences.

Some regard a certificate program an opportunity to obtain education and/or training, and a certification program as a way to validate mastery and application of competencies.

The Council on Credentialing in Pharmacy (CCP) defines a certificate program as:

A non-degree-granting program that provides instruction and training to aid participants in acquiring specific knowledge, skills, and/or competencies associated with intended outcomes. When the certificate program includes an assessment of learning, it is known as an assessment-based certificate program.

Examples include: American Pharmacists Association Pharmacy-Based Immunization Administration by Pharmacy Technicians; the I.C.E. Certificate Program for the Credentialing Specialist; and the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists Telehealth Certificate Program.

And defines a certification program as:

A voluntary, nongovernmental process by which an individual is determined by a certification body (an independent third party that handles a certification process) to have successfully completed the requirements of a certification program and who may be identified to the public and other stakeholders as a certificant. Some regulatory bodies use voluntary certification programs to meet licensure or registration requirements.

Examples include: BPS Board Certifications such as Board-Certified Ambulatory Pharmacist (BCACP) or Board-Certified Pharmacotherapy Specialist (BCPS).

More information on the differences between a certificate program and a certification program can be found here: https://www.credentialingexcellence.org/Accreditation/New-to-Accreditation/Certificate-vs-Certification

To create a new MyBPS account, a candidate should go to the BPS Website, upper right-hand corner, and visit: http://www.cyzap.com/portal/bps/ .

Eligibility criteria varies among specialty areas. BPS Certifications typically follow this framework: four years of practice experience; two years of practice experience and a PGY1 in that specialty area; or a PGY2 in that specialty area.

For practice experience, you must spend at least 50% of your practice time in the specialty area.  The BPS Content Outline for that s pecialty holds more information on what may count for practice experience in that area.

Your application requires you to list, in 12-month time periods, the breakdown of time you spent in each of the domains of the content outline for your specialty area. You are required to provide employer contact information for each year reported.

The requirements for practice experience differ between specialty certification programs. Please view the eligibility criteria and content outline for your specialty for more information.

No, the number of years of practice experience required for each specialty area represents a minimum requirement. For example, for BCOP certification, 4 years of practice experience with at least 50% of that time each year spent in Oncology pharmacy activities is required. Even if you spend 100% of your time in Oncology pharmacy activities, four years of practice experience is required.

BPS partners with Prometric to provide the examination. BPS does not have any other partnerships for the certification or recertification application process. 

BPS partners with professional development program (PDP) providers to provide continuing pharmacy education (CPE) for recertification and the relationship is noted here . 

Any organization claiming a relationship with BPS for the application process or providing CPE labeled ‘BPS-approved’ outside of the organizations listed should be reported to BPS immediately.

The fee for all first-time applicants for specialty certification is $600 USD.

More information on fees can be found here .

The processing time for approving applications may take up to 30 calendar days from the day that you applied. If your application is approved, you will receive an Authorization to Test (ATT) email with instructions on how to schedule your examination.

To submit a name change request, you must log in to your MyBPS profile and select the “Name Change” link from the menu section of your home page. You will be required to complete the name change form as well as upload a photocopy of a state or government-issued ID or marriage certificate showing the new name for your request to be processed. You can request a certificate showing the new name after your name change request has been officially processed.

Candidates are permitted to request testing accommodations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and must be requested as part of the application.

Candidates must include verification of the disabling condition from a professional specialist with their application. Candidates must also describe the accommodation they are requesting. If the proper request and documentation is not included in the application, the availability of the accommodation cannot be guaranteed.

More information about applying for ADA accommodations can be found here .

BPS holds specialty certification and recertification examinations both windowed testing format and continuous testing format examinations. Examinations offered in the windowed testing format are available in two windows per year, either in April/May or August/September. For examinations offered in the continuous testing format, a candidate has the opportunity to register throughout the year and take a certification or recertification examination at any point in the year.

All BPS Examinations will consist of 150 items. For examinations in the continuous format, among the 150 items, the examination includes 25 unscored pretest items that are embedded within the test and represent new items that are being trialed before use as a scored item in subsequent forms of the examination.

BPS examinations are in forward-only format, meaning that all items must be answered in the order they are presented, and a candidate is not able to skip items. Once a candidate confirms an answer choice and moves to the next item, the candidate will not be able to go back and change the response.  There is no penalty for guessing and it is in the best interest of the candidate to answer every question. The forward-only exam navigation serves as a security measure for BPS Examinations and aligns with the best practices of several pharmacy examinations.

For candidates testing in a test center, they will be provided a dry-erase board or paper and writing utensil. This paper will be destroyed after the examination.

For candidates testing through live report proctoring (LRP), they will have access to virtual scratch paper. Any answers or work recorded on the virtual paper will not be scored. More details on BPS testing policies can be found in the BPS Candidate’s Guide .

BPS uses Prometric to administer our exams. Prometric has approximately 1,000 test center locations worldwide. To search for available test locations please visit the following Prometric webpage: https://www.prometric.com/en-us/BPS/Pages/landing.aspx .

BPS has partnered with Prometric to provide live remote proctored (LRP) testing. Live Remote Proctoring (LRP) is an option for eligible candidates in the U.S., Australia, or Canada. LRP allows candidates to test in a place of their choosing (i.e., in their home) using their own computer, rather than at a brick-and-mortar Prometric testing center, while being monitored via webcam by offsite proctors. To be eligible, candidates must reside in the U.S., Australia, or Canada.

All exams are computer-based.

If an examinee fails to achieve a passing score on the examination, retaking the examination is permitted. 

Upcoming Policy Change (Effective January 1, 2025): For authorizations to test (ATT) issued before January 1, 2025: Examinees who fail their first examination attempt may apply for a retake examination and pay the discounted fee of $300 USD. Examinees will be allowed up to two retake examinations (three attempts total), with a minimum of 90 calendar days and a maximum of 365 calendar days between each attempt. If a passing score is not achieved after the third attempt, the examinee must wait 12 months from the date of their final attempt to submit a new application, pay the application fee of $600 USD, and begin the process again.

For authorizations to test (ATT) issued after January 1, 2025: Examinees who fail their first examination attempt may apply for a retake examination and pay the discounted fee of $300 USD. Examinees will be allowed up to two retake examinations (three attempts total), with a minimum of 90 calendar days  and a maximum of 200 calendar days between each attempt. If a passing score is not achieved after the third attempt, the examinee must wait 12 months from the date of their final attempt to submit a new application, pay the application fee of $600 USD, and begin the process again.

For information on certification exams, please review the Candidate’s Guide .

A pharmacist can only sit for one specialty exam in each testing cycle. Additionally, it would be difficult for a pharmacist to hold more than a few certifications because of the requirement to have practiced for at least 3 to 4 years in that specialty. We do have pharmacists that hold more than one certification.

All BPS specialty certification examinations reflect current, best practice guidelines. Examinations are assembled months prior to the administration date, so they may not always reflect all the changes that may have occurred in pharmacy practice during that time. Furthermore, great care is taken to exclude from the examination any content associated with rapidly evolving or emerging practice changes. When in doubt, refer to pharmacy practice guidelines as they were about 6 to 12 months prior to the examination administration date.

In MyBPS , a candidate’s profile will remain in the ‘exam pending’ status until their examination score report is uploaded. Once the score report is uploaded to their profile, the status will change to reflect if they received a passing score or not.

Board certified pharmacists are required to pay a $125 annual maintenance fee during years 1-6 of their recertification cycle. Notifications will be sent out via email during the first week of May each year, with payment due within 45 days of the notice.

Board certified pharmacists who are due to recertify do not pay the annual maintenance fee in their recertification year. This includes candidates who hold two or more BPS certifications. Instead, pharmacists due to recertify should submit the recertification application and pay the recertification fee.

No, pharmacists holding more than one BPS certification are assessed only one annual fee.

If you delist a credential in a recertification year but wish to maintain other credential(s), you will be assessed the annual certification maintenance fee.

Board Certified pharmacists’ names are removed from the board certified pharmacist search when they are overdue on payment of the annual certification maintenance fee, and therefore not in good standing. To rectify the situation, please login to your MyBPS account to pay all past due annual maintenance fees (plus $5 penalty fee). Once these fees have been paid, your name will come up on the board certified pharmacist search.

To change your MyBPS password, login to your MyBPS account and click “Change Password” on the left-hand side of the screen.

To update your contact information, log in to your MyBPS account and click on “Update Profile” on the left-hand side of the screen.

Please note, changing your email address will not automatically update your Username. To update your username, click “Change Username” on the left-hand side of the homepage of your MyBPS account.

Logon to your MyBPS account. On the left-hand side of the screen, under “Other Requests”, click “Name Change”. This will bring you to the Name Change Application. Please note, you will need to upload a PDF or JPG of your government issued documentation (driver’s license, passport, etc.) with your updated name listed.

Employers can verify certification by using the Board Certified Pharmacist Search on the BPS website, which lists all BPS pharmacists in good standing. For further information, they can contact BPS directly using the Contact Us form on the BPS website.

Board-certified pharmacists can submit the recertification application and fee as early as January 1 of their recertification year.

The recertification application deadline is in August of the recertification year.

For more information review the upcoming deadlines, dates, and fees webpage.

BPS holds specialty recertification examinations in windowed testing format and continuous testing format.

Examinations offered in the windowed testing format are available in two windows per year, either March/April or September/October. For examinations offered in the continuous testing format, a candidate must sit for the exam by October 15.

Please review the BPS Recertification Guide for details.

Once receiving a passing score, a candidate’s certification becomes active on the first day of the following month. However, a newly certified pharmacist must wait until January 1 of the following calendar year to begin earning CPE units.

(E.g., candidates certified Jan. 1 – Dec. 31, 2023 will not be able to receive CPE units until Jan. 1, 2024)

Specialties in windowed examinations: candidates must schedule an examination appointment within the registration window.

Specialties in continuous testing: candidates must schedule an examination appointment at any time during the recertification year but no later than October 15. 

An authorization to test (ATT) is required to schedule an exam appointment with Prometric.

Candidates must achieve a passing score by December 31 of their recertification year.

Specialties in windowed testing can test twice in a year (March/April or September/October). BPS recommends registering early in the year. If a passing score is not achieved, there may be an opportunity to retest within the recertification year.

Specialties in continuous testing must test by October 15 in their recertification year.

If an examinee fails to achieve a passing score on the examination, retaking the examination is permitted within the recertification year and/or in an approved extension year. The fee for retaking a recertification examination is $200 USD. The examinee must retake the examination within their recertification year with a minimum of 90 calendar days between each retake.

Upcoming Policy Change (Effective January 1, 2025): Starting January 1, 2025, the retake examination policy will be modified. Examinees who fail a recertification examination may apply for a retake examination and pay the discounted retake fee of $200 USD. Examinees pursuing a specialty recertification exam will be allowed up to two retake examinations (three attempts total), with a minimum of 90 calendar days and a maximum of 200 days between each attempt.

Review the Recertification Guide for information on recertification exams.

CPE  and/or CPD  earned in excess of the recertification requirement will not be applied forward to the next certification cycle. CPE and/or CPD must be earned in the year (and therefore cycle) for which it is recorded.

About Continuous Testing

Continuous testing is the opportunity for a candidate to register throughout the year and take a certification or recertification examination at any point in the year. This differs from BPS’s previous certification and recertification examination structure, in which exams were offered in two windows per year.

BCACPWindowContinuous Starts
BCCCPContinuous Starts
BCCPContinuous
BCEMPWindowWindow
BCGPWindowContinuous Starts
BCIDPWindowContinuous Starts
BCNPContinuous 
BCNSPContinuous Starts
BCOPContinuous 
BCPPContinuous 
BCPPSContinuous Starts
BCPSWindowContinuous Starts
BCSCPWindowContinuous Starts
BCTXPWindowWindow

The timeline for other examination programs will be announced at least six months before the shift to continuous testing. BPS aims to transition two to four specialties per year from windowed administration to continuous administration. New specialties will begin with windows-based testing and will move to a continuous testing model. While this transition takes place, all examinations will be available each year.

The application process for windowed testing and  the application process for  continuous testing vary slightly. Below is a process chart to demonstrate the difference for candidates applying for certification and recertification examinations in the two testing modes.  

CT-vs-Window-Testing-Candidates-Journey.png

Continuous testing means that a candidate will be able to test anytime throughout the year instead of the existing structure of two testing windows. For recertification by examination, a candidate will need to achieve a passing score on the recertification examination by December 31 of their recertification year. BPS recommends pursuing an examination early in the recertification year so if a passing score is not achieved, there is time to retake the examination.

Continuous testing will not have an impact on a certificant completing their recertification by the continuing pharmacy education (CPE) option. For recertification by CPE, a candidate must submit their recertification application and fee by the deadline of their recertification year, and complete their specialty’s CPE requirement by December 31 of their recertification year. Continuous testing means that a candidate will be able to take the recertification examination anytime throughout the year instead of the existing structure of two testing windows. For recertification by exam, a candidate must submit their recertification application and fee by the deadline of their recertification year and achieve a passing score by December 31 of their recertification year.

Continuous Testing Exam Registration

For exams transitioning to continuous testing, registration will commence concurrently with windowed exam specialties and will stay open year-round.  

After an applicant submits their registration application,  BPS will review it within 30 calendar days.

For specialties in continuous testing, applications submitted without a transcript will not be reviewed and approved until the transcript has been received directly from the candidate’s school. The 30-day review timeline will not begin until we receive your transcript.

For specialties in windowed testing, please review  the candidates guide  for applicable information. 

From the date of application approval, a candidate may schedule their examination session at any time within the 365 calendar days following their application approval.

Yes, a candidate registered for an examination in a specialty in the continuous testing model can request to reschedule from the window-based test to the continuous test format, assuming that specialty is or will be available continuously that calendar year. To do so, please reach out through the contact us page on the BPS website.

Continuous Testing Exam Format and Administration

All BPS examinations will consist of 150 items. 

The administration time allotted for the 150-item initial certification examinations will be 3 hours and 45 minutes. There is no change in administration time for recertification examinations.

There is no scheduled break during a test in the continuously available testing model.

Candidates may choose to take an unscheduled break and have the time deducted from their examination period. In unscheduled breaks, the candidate is required to notify the proctor and wait for confirmation before leaving the examination area. Failure to inform the proctor prior to taking an unscheduled break or failure to return on time will result in a termination of the examination. Upon return, a full security scan will be conducted prior to resuming exam.

This will not lessen the rigor of the examination. BPS examinations maintain a high standard with a more focused set of examination items. Statistical analysis has determined that BPS can achieve adequate content coverage and reliability of exam scores with this small decrease in the number of examination items. The shorter examination will also create scheduling flexibility for candidates.

New regulations, drugs, and therapies are continually incorporated into the examination content. All BPS specialty certification examinations reflect current, best practice guidelines. Examinations are assembled months prior to the administration date so they may not always reflect all the changes that may have occurred in pharmacy practice during that time. Furthermore, great care is taken to exclude from the examination any content associated with rapidly evolving or emerging practice changes. When in doubt, refer to pharmacy practice guidelines as they were about 6 to 12 months prior to the examination administration date. Official United States Adopted Name (USAN) generic names are used on all BPS examinations for all drug products.

After an applicant successfully completes a certification or recertification examination, they will receive their score determination within 60 calendar days.

I f a candidate does not pass their certification examination, they may request to retake the examination. Once approved for the retake examination, a candidate’s 365-calendar day eligibility period is renewed. A candidate may schedule their retake examination session any time within the following 365 calendar days.

There is a mandatory 90 calendar day period between the last examination session and the date of the scheduled retake examination. 

A candidate is allowed a total of three certification examination attempts, which includes the first certification examination attempt and two retake examination attempts. Once approved for the retake examination, a candidate’s 365-calendar day eligibility period is renewed.

If a candidate does not achieve a passing score after three attempts, they must wait 12 months from the last testing attempt to begin the process and register again. For more information about certification examination applications, visit the BPS Candidate’s guide .

Yes. However, candidates outside of the U.S., Canada, or Australia are not eligible for LRP at this time.

Score Reporting

A candidate can expect to receive a score report within 60 calendar days after their testing session.

Upon achieving a passing score on the certification examination, the certification becomes active the first day of the following month.

Physical certificates are mailed approximately 90 calendar days after a candidate receives their passing score. Physical certificates are automatically sent and do not need to be requested.

Digital badges are sent within 90 calendar days after a candidate receives their passing score. Digital badges are automatically sent and do not need to be requested.

About Continuing Professional Development

BPS defines continuing professional development (CPD) as a commitment to lifelong learning. Various pharmacy organizations worldwide have used the following definitions:

The Accreditation Council on Pharmacy Education (ACPE) defines CPD as:

“a self-directed, ongoing, systematic and outcomes-focused approach to lifelong learning that is applied into practice. It involves the process of active participation in formal and informal learning activities that assist individuals in developing and maintaining continuing competence, enhancing their professional practice, and supporting achievement of their career goals.”

The International Pharmaceutical Federation (FIP) defines CPD as:

“the responsibility of individual pharmacists for systematic maintenance, development and broadening of knowledge, skills and attitude to ensure continuing competence as a professional, throughout their careers.”

The CPD cycle includes several phases, beginning with an assessment of learning needs and goals (REFLECT). Then, outcomes-based learning objectives, priorities, and a timeline are generated (PLAN). Activities, resources, and various learning methodologies are identified and utilized to meet the learning objectives (LEARN). Finally, learning objective outcomes and impact are evaluated (EVALUATE), leading to reflection and the continuum begins again. A key to the CPD approach is connecting learning to practice (APPLY). Each stage of the CPD process should be recorded in a personal learning record or portfolio and reviewed periodically for progress.

The CPD Cycle Chart

Used with permission from ACPE .

Whether recertifying by professional development or recertification examination, board-certified pharmacists who start a new certification cycle in 2024 and forward must:

  • Record their annual reflection and plan (ARP) in their MyBPS profile annually (once they are within the framework effective date in the table below). You may complete your ARP at any point throughout the year; best practice is to document your reflection and plan prior to documenting CPD activities in MyBPS.
  • Earn a minimum of 2 units (via CPD activities or assessed CPE via BPS-approved professional development program) during each year of their cycle.
  • Examination and CPD
  • CPE and CPD

Achieve passing score on a specialty certification examination and report 20 units of continuing professional development (CPD) by the end of the 7 year recertification cycle.

Complete at least 80 units of assessed continuing pharmacy education (CPE) from BPS-approved professional development programs and report 20 units of continuing professional development (CPD) by the end of the 7 year recertification cycle.

CPD activities must correlate to the  content outline  domains of the specialty in which the individual holds BPS certification.  BPS will conduct random audits of CPD activities to ensure appropriateness and alignment with the relevant specialty content outline. BPS will begin recognizing seven categories of activities under the initial CPD pilot.

  • Assessed CPE from BPS-approved professional development program
  • CPE and CPD portfolios
  • Academic, Professional, and Interprofessional Study
  • Teaching and Precepting Learners
  • Scholarly Activities
  • Workplace Activities
  • Leadership and Professional Service
Activity CategoryActivity DescriptionExample Evidence for upload (not exhaustive)Units Awarded*
Assessed CPE from BPS-approved professional development programIf desired, you may complete an additional 20 units of assessed CPE via to satisfy the 100-unit recertification requirement. The necessary plan, reflect, and evaluate components MUST be completed regardless.Verified by BPS
Activity CategoryActivity DescriptionExample Evidence for upload (not exhaustive)Units Awarded*Annual MaximumMaximum per Recertification Cycle
Continuing pharmacy education (CPE) and CPD portfoliosEarn CPE from provider (e.g., state associations, workplace education, certificate training programs)Certificate(s) of completion1 contact hour (0.1 CEU) will be awarded 1 CPD unit1010
Earn CPE or CPD based on local, state, provincial, workplace or institutional requirements utilizing recognized processes and learning plans (e.g., Iowa, Canada, Australia)Portfolio, certificate(s) of completion1 portfolio will be awarded 10 units1010
Academic, Professional, and Interprofessional StudyComplete post-graduate academic or professional courses from an accredited institution (e.g., MPH, MHA)Academic transcript, proof of enrollment1 course will be awarded 5 units510
Attain or maintain active status for non-BPS certifications (e.g., AAHIVP, CDCES, CNSC, BC-ADM)Certification verification document or link1 certification will be awarded 5 units510
Complete continuing education accredited for other healthcare professionals (e.g., ACCME, ANCC, AAPA, APA, CDR, BOC, ADA CERP)Certificate of completion1 credit hour will be awarded 1 unit1010
Teaching and Precepting LearnersDevelop and present educational content (e.g., college/university course lecture, continuing education, preparation/recertification course)Syllabus, course description from catalog1 hour of teaching will be awarded 2 units1010
Serve as a preceptor for students, residents, or other healthcare professionalsConfirmation from college of pharmacy, evaluation from student10 hours of precepting will be awarded 1 unit210
Scholarly ActivitiesServe as an author in a peer-reviewed journal article or book chapterDocumentation of authorship from publisher, copy of chapter page1 article or chapter will be awarded 5 units510
Serve as an author for a published bookDocumentation of authorship from publisher1 book will be awarded 10 units1010
Serve as an investigator for a submitted federal, state or national organization project, regardless of funding outcome.Letter of attestation from organization official, communication from granting agency verifying submission1 grant will be awarded 5 units510
Serve as an investigator on an IRB approved research project.Documentation of project, listing of investigator from IRB1 completed project will be awarded 5 units510
Complete a capstone project, thesis, or dissertation as part of post-graduate academic degree programDocumentation of project, thesis or dissertation from degree granting institution1 unique capstone, thesis, or dissertation will be awarded 5 units510
Workplace ActivitiesLead in-service training or Grand RoundsProgram announcement or presentation title with author, letter of attestation from management10 hours of participation will be awarded 1 unit210
Implement performance, practice, or clinical quality improvement project (e.g. medication safety project/MUE)Letter of attestation from management1 completed project will be awarded 5 units510
Serve on institutional review board, P&T, medication safety, medication therapy management committee, or another similar committee.Letter of attestation from management10 hours of participation will be awarded 1 unit210
Leadership and Professional ServiceServe on a committee, editorial board, review board, workgroup, task force, board of directors (for local, state, provincial, national, or international healthcare-related organization)Letter of attestation from leadership, publication listing individual and corresponding position or role10 hours of participation will be awarded 1 unit210
BPS Specialty Council memberVerified by BPS, if submitted8820
BPS Job analysis panelistVerified by BPS, if submitted2210
BPS Standard setting panelistVerified by BPS, if submitted2210
BPS Item writerVerified by BPS, if submitted2210
BPS AmbassadorVerified by BPS, if submitted2210
BPS Content Contributor (e.g., podcast guest, blogger)Verified by BPS, if submitted122

* BPS will award CPD units for recertification purposes ONLY. The necessary Reflect, Plan and Evaluate components MUST be completed for CPD units to be awarded for recertification. If a certificant wishes to claim CPD activities for licensure or employer requirements, please contact ACPE, the state board of pharmacy, or the employer for information on requirements.

The first cohort of board-certified pharmacists eligible to take advantage of the updated recertification framework, including CPD, are board-certified pharmacists starting a new certification cycle in 2024. This includes pharmacists newly certified in 2023 and board-certified pharmacists who successfully recertified in 2023. The framework will be applied each year to pharmacists starting a new 7-year certification cycle (newly certified and recertified pharmacists) until it is applicable to all board-certified pharmacists.

Year Certified or RecertifiedCertification Cycle
Start Date
(begin earning recertification units)
Certification Cycle Expiration Date
(deadline to complete recertification requirements)
New CPD-Recertification Framework Effective Date
2016January 1, 2017December 31, 2023January 1, 2024
2017January 1, 2018December 31, 2024January 1, 2025
2018January 1, 2019December 31, 2025January 1, 2026
2019January 1, 2020December 31, 2026January 1, 2027
2020January 1, 2021December 31, 2027January 1, 2028
2021January 1, 2022December 31, 2028January 1, 2029
2022January 1, 2023December 31, 2029January 1, 2030
2023January 1, 2024December 31, 2030January 1, 2024
2024 onwardJanuary 1, 2025December 31, 2031January 1, 2025

This table is based on the standard seven-year certification cycle. Certificants who are granted a one time, one year extension will not be subject to the updated recertification framework (including CPD) until they begin a new certification cycle after completion of the extension year.

Board-certified pharmacists will respond to prompts within their MyBPS portal to complete the Reflect, and Plan stages of the CPD cycle annually and complete the Evaluate stage at the time of CPD self-reporting. The Learn stage of the CPD cycle will be documented by uploading evidence of completion. The purpose of documenting the stages within the CPD cycle is to create a record of maintenance of certification.

Reflect: Consider potential learning needs related to your current practice and professional development. Consider the content outline relevant to your specialty certification. What knowledge, behaviors, attitudes, or skills did you identify as an area for growth?

Plan: Consider the CPD activity selected to promote the acquisition of the competency identified in your reflection. Document the SMART goal or learning objectives related to the CPD activity.

Learn: Will be documented via MyBPS CPD activity self-reporting portal and evidence upload feature

Evaluate: Assess the impact of your learning. Describe how your professional development or practice was/will be impacted by this learning.

CPD activities should be reported in MyBPS within six months of the activity completion date.  A step-by-step video detailing how to self-report CPD activities can be found here .  Neither the certificant nor the organization providing the learning opportunity is required to gain BPS approval prior to participating in or reporting CPD activities. BPS will conduct random, statistically significant audits to ensure activity appropriateness and alignment with the relevant specialty content outline.

**The following steps will only appear in your MyBPS profile once you are subject to CPD requirements (see above “Who?” and “When?”). Steps are subject to change as the database undergoes updates.

To document CPD activities, log in to MyBPS. In the “Recertification” section, under the “Action” column, click “Report Activity.” Click the orange “Add Activity Record” button. Read the attestation before clicking the check box of acknowledgement. From the “Activity Type” dropdown menu, select the CPD activity you wish to report. Follow the instructions on the subsequent page and complete the required fields, including the Evaluate box. Upload your evidence of completion in the “Supporting documents” field by clicking the green “Add files” button. Click “Save” when you are ready to proceed.

To document your Annual Reflection & Plan, log in to MyBPS. In the “Recertification” section, under the “Action” column, click “report Activity.” Click the orange “Add Activity Record” button. Read the attestation before clicking the check box of acknowledgement. From the “Activity Type dropdown menu, select “Annual Reflection & Plan Submission.” In the “Date,” field, select a date within the year for which this reflection and plan are applicable. Respond to the Reflect and Plan prompts. Click “Save” when you are ready to proceed.

From the confirmation screen stating, “Record has been added,” you may click “Add new activity” to report additional CPD activities or click “Return to transcript” to review all CPE and CPD completed for recertification so far. If you notice an error in CPD activities that you’d like to correct, click the “Edit” tab.” In the action column, click “Edit/Del.” To delete the record, click “Delete record” above the “Activity Type” drop down. This cannot be undone. If you wish to edit the record, make appropriate changes and click “Save” when finished. CPD activities completed the year prior cannot be edited or deleted (i.e., 2024 activities cannot be edited/deleted in 2025).

Additional Information

Visit the contact us page on the BPS website. To expedite your request, select “CPD” from the first drop down menu when submitting an e-ticket.

You will complete 80 units of assessed CPE via BPS-approved professional development program(s). For the remaining 20 units, you can choose to complete any combination of assessed CPE via BPS-approved professional development program(s) or self-selected, self-reported CPD activities. The necessary plan, reflect, and evaluate components for the 20 units MUST be completed regardless.

Yes, you may earn continuing pharmacy education (CPE) from any ACPE-accredited provider (e.g., state associations, workplace education, certificate training programs offering ACPE credit) to count as CPD units.

BPS will continue listing BPS-approved, assessed CPE professional development program providers for each specialty area on the website. Review a listing of professional development program providers by specialty area by clicking here . 

BPS will not pre-approve CPD activities, so a public repository of CPD activities will not appear on the BPS website.

“Active–activity pending” means that the certificant has an active certification but has not provided evidence of completion of the minimum of 2 CPE/CPD units annually. Pharmacists are allowed 12 additional months to complete recertification activities to correct the deficiency. If the deficiency is not corrected, board-certified pharmacists in “Active-activity pending” status are subject to action, which may include suspension of certification and/or possible revocation of certification.

CPD Recertification Checklist

Use this one-pager as a guide to stay on track to complete your recertification requirements by the end of your certification cycle.

CPD Infographic - Year 1-6

CPD Activity Verification Letter

Cpd workplace activity evidence.

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dissertation of bcps

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Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons: Evolution of Dissertation and Thesis

Profile image of Margub Hussain

Journal of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons

Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS), is a constitutional professional academic organization that confers Fellowship (FCPS) and Membership (MCPS) in various specialties in the field of medicine. As a part of evaluation system, BCPS is responsible for continued improvisation of quality assurance process of the Dissertations/Thesis out of a quality research of global standard. On the occasion of golden Jubilee celebration, an effort to document the gradual progression of the system of learning and performing a research and publishing the results by fellows is made through this article. A sub- committee of 6 members assigned by BCPS Journal committee in a group meeting decided to search BCPS library for dissertations and Thesis, dissertations and thesis database of Research and Training Monitoring Department (RTMD), college office for related documents and websites to collect data regarding evolution of thesis/dissertation of BCPS and other institutions at home and abro...

Related Papers

Emran Bin Yunus

Journal of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (JBCPS), all the go by ‘BCPS Journal’, is the official organ of BCPS inclusive of academic, extra-academic and official matters. The journal started its journey in August 1983, now in the fourth decades is embedded in the fanfare of Golden Jubilee of BCPS. It commensurate with the fellows’ desire that a supplement of the JBCPS shall be published as the official organ of the college on behalf of the education, training, research and publication to Showcase the college image in the academic arena. The special editorial board is tasked to marinate a document of the sojourn of the JBCPS, for now and then. The authors have tried to pick up pieces of information from all available local libraries and online resources to build up an edifice to be added on from time to time. It has been tried to fullfill the mandate through expanded and extended search and find the tenets of the emergence and evolution of the JBCPS with an endeavor to...

dissertation of bcps

Acta Informatica Medica

Dr. Hasan Siamian

Journal of Medical Education

Journal of Medical Education JME

Background: Analysis and review of dissertations over a period of time is one of the methods of viewing documents so that by formulating newer topics, a platform will develop for scientific advancement in the fields related to various academic majors. Objectives: The purpose of this study was to review master's dissertations of medical education graduates in the virtual school of medical education and management of shahid Beheshti University of Medical Science in the years 2011 to 2016. Methods: In this study, 144 master's dissertations of medical education students graduated in 2011-2016 from the virtual school of medical education and management of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Science were evaluated. Using an information checklist, relevant data were extracted from the dissertations. The topics of these dissertations were categorized into nine general categories. Also, we also reviewed the journals in which the articles extracted from the dissertations were published. Results: Overall, 74 MSc. dissertations in medical education (2011 to 2016) in the Virtual Faculty of Medical Education and Management of Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences were evaluated, and the relevant journals in which the extracted articles were published were also reviewed. Conclusions: The results of this study showed that the tendency of students for conducting descriptive studies and using questionnaires was significantly higher, ignoring other research methods. This issue needs to be evaluated, and authorities should determine relevant causes to help planning and to create more diversity in the types of studies in this field. Also, due to the nonallocation of dissertations to some subject areas, such as reviewing and analyzing processes, there is a need to prioritize this topic when selecting future dissertations' subjects and appropriately direct students to achieve the desired situation.

shohael arafat

The Research and Training Monitoring Department (RTMD) has been playing an important role in research and training activities. RTMD is designed to enhance the qualities of clinical training, research skills and the development of other soft skills of post graduate trainees of different faculties. RTMD monitors the training of doctors who will appear in the fellowship examination in various disciplines. It is also involved in the timely evaluation of research activities of health professionals in this field. The core activities of the department are now not only confined to the training and research, but it extends it’s wing to help the trainees technically by Research clinic and financially by the handsome research grants. Time to time updating of training manual by different modern tools by the department is also appreciating. Here the important activities of the RTMD are being highlighted in its all aspects. J Bangladesh Coll Phys Surg 2022; 40: 57-61

Strides in Development of Medical Education Journal

Background Dissertations or theses are valuable sources of information, which play an important role in scientific development because of their specific nature and characteristics. Objectives The aim of this study was to investigate the status of medical students and residents' dissertations in terms of contribution to scientific development in Kerman University of Medical Sciences. Methods This cross-sectional, analytical study examined the status of medical students and residents' dissertations, submitted to the Medical Faculty of Kerman University of Medical Sciences during 2012 - 2015. First, the research deputy of Kerman University of Medical Sciences provided the dissertation information. Then, the information was analyzed in terms of study design, study type, extraction of Persian and English articles, publication in domestic and international journals, and indexing in reputable scientific databases in two groups of medical students and residents' dissertations. SPSS was used for all statistical analyses. Results In total, 643 dissertations were studied, including 342 (53%) residents and 301 (47%) medical students' thesis. Overall, 267 (41.5%) dissertations were published as articles in domestic and international journals. The findings showed that 13.4% of articles were indexed in the Scopus database. The mean scores of medical students and residents' dissertations were 19.22 ± 0.70 and 19.15 ± 0.85, respectively. Conclusions Despite the large number of medical students and residents' dissertations submitted to Kerman University of Medical Sciences, a limited number of dissertations were published as scientific and research papers, and the number of articles indexed in international journals was insignificant. Thesis writing is generally a unique opportunity for students to learn research skills and methods. In addition, publication of thesis findings in domestic and international databases can lead to scientific development.

Mohsen Rezaeian

Susane Giti

Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS) was established in June 1972 through an Order revised in 2018 as an act with six functions which cover post-graduate education of all specialties of medical science. This commission report is to document the spectrum of contribution of BCPS in the health and education sector through its fellows and members. The data obtained for this report covers selected literature review, consultation with key official documents- Year Book of BCPS, Annual report of honorary secretary of BCPS, Health Bulletin of DGHS, various website, information from a brief quick Google survey on the fellows and focus group discussion (FGD) with senior present and past leaders of BCPS. BCPS is providing a skill based supervised comprehensive logbook based clinical training of five years’ duration through its recognized/accredited hospitals in different tiers of mostly public health system across the country. While undergoing clinical training the ‘would be fel...

Journal of Postgraduate Medicine Education and Research

Brij Mohan Gupta

This paper attempts to analyze the research activities of the Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research (PGIMER), Chandigarh as reflected in its 10 years cumulative (1999-2008) publications output covered in Scopus International multidisciplinary bibliographical database. The present study analyses the broad characteristics of 4,771 research papers published by the faculty members of PGIMER, Chandigarh by focusing on its publication growth characteristics, format and media of communication, research impact and quality, patterns of research collaboration, broad and narrow areas of research focus and characteristics of its high cited papers. How to cite this article Kumar R, Gupta BM, Thakur JS, Sharma RK, Baidwan K, Goyal AB. Research Output and Publications Impact of Postgraduate Institute of Medical Education and Research Chandigarh (1999-2008). J Postgrad Med Edu Res 2012;46(3):129-137.

Journal of Drug Delivery and Therapeutics

Bangladesh Journal of Medical Education

Golam Rabbi

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dissertation of bcps

How To Write A Dissertation Or Thesis

8 straightforward steps to craft an a-grade dissertation.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) Expert Reviewed By: Dr Eunice Rautenbach | June 2020

Writing a dissertation or thesis is not a simple task. It takes time, energy and a lot of will power to get you across the finish line. It’s not easy – but it doesn’t necessarily need to be a painful process. If you understand the big-picture process of how to write a dissertation or thesis, your research journey will be a lot smoother.  

In this post, I’m going to outline the big-picture process of how to write a high-quality dissertation or thesis, without losing your mind along the way. If you’re just starting your research, this post is perfect for you. Alternatively, if you’ve already submitted your proposal, this article which covers how to structure a dissertation might be more helpful.

How To Write A Dissertation: 8 Steps

  • Clearly understand what a dissertation (or thesis) is
  • Find a unique and valuable research topic
  • Craft a convincing research proposal
  • Write up a strong introduction chapter
  • Review the existing literature and compile a literature review
  • Design a rigorous research strategy and undertake your own research
  • Present the findings of your research
  • Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications

Start writing your dissertation

Step 1: Understand exactly what a dissertation is

This probably sounds like a no-brainer, but all too often, students come to us for help with their research and the underlying issue is that they don’t fully understand what a dissertation (or thesis) actually is.

So, what is a dissertation?

At its simplest, a dissertation or thesis is a formal piece of research , reflecting the standard research process . But what is the standard research process, you ask? The research process involves 4 key steps:

  • Ask a very specific, well-articulated question (s) (your research topic)
  • See what other researchers have said about it (if they’ve already answered it)
  • If they haven’t answered it adequately, undertake your own data collection and analysis in a scientifically rigorous fashion
  • Answer your original question(s), based on your analysis findings

 A dissertation or thesis is a formal piece of research, reflecting the standard four step academic research process.

In short, the research process is simply about asking and answering questions in a systematic fashion . This probably sounds pretty obvious, but people often think they’ve done “research”, when in fact what they have done is:

  • Started with a vague, poorly articulated question
  • Not taken the time to see what research has already been done regarding the question
  • Collected data and opinions that support their gut and undertaken a flimsy analysis
  • Drawn a shaky conclusion, based on that analysis

If you want to see the perfect example of this in action, look out for the next Facebook post where someone claims they’ve done “research”… All too often, people consider reading a few blog posts to constitute research. Its no surprise then that what they end up with is an opinion piece, not research. Okay, okay – I’ll climb off my soapbox now.

The key takeaway here is that a dissertation (or thesis) is a formal piece of research, reflecting the research process. It’s not an opinion piece , nor a place to push your agenda or try to convince someone of your position. Writing a good dissertation involves asking a question and taking a systematic, rigorous approach to answering it.

If you understand this and are comfortable leaving your opinions or preconceived ideas at the door, you’re already off to a good start!

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Step 2: Find a unique, valuable research topic

As we saw, the first step of the research process is to ask a specific, well-articulated question. In other words, you need to find a research topic that asks a specific question or set of questions (these are called research questions ). Sounds easy enough, right? All you’ve got to do is identify a question or two and you’ve got a winning research topic. Well, not quite…

A good dissertation or thesis topic has a few important attributes. Specifically, a solid research topic should be:

Let’s take a closer look at these:

Attribute #1: Clear

Your research topic needs to be crystal clear about what you’re planning to research, what you want to know, and within what context. There shouldn’t be any ambiguity or vagueness about what you’ll research.

Here’s an example of a clearly articulated research topic:

An analysis of consumer-based factors influencing organisational trust in British low-cost online equity brokerage firms.

As you can see in the example, its crystal clear what will be analysed (factors impacting organisational trust), amongst who (consumers) and in what context (British low-cost equity brokerage firms, based online).

Need a helping hand?

dissertation of bcps

Attribute #2:   Unique

Your research should be asking a question(s) that hasn’t been asked before, or that hasn’t been asked in a specific context (for example, in a specific country or industry).

For example, sticking organisational trust topic above, it’s quite likely that organisational trust factors in the UK have been investigated before, but the context (online low-cost equity brokerages) could make this research unique. Therefore, the context makes this research original.

One caveat when using context as the basis for originality – you need to have a good reason to suspect that your findings in this context might be different from the existing research – otherwise, there’s no reason to warrant researching it.

Attribute #3: Important

Simply asking a unique or original question is not enough – the question needs to create value. In other words, successfully answering your research questions should provide some value to the field of research or the industry. You can’t research something just to satisfy your curiosity. It needs to make some form of contribution either to research or industry.

For example, researching the factors influencing consumer trust would create value by enabling businesses to tailor their operations and marketing to leverage factors that promote trust. In other words, it would have a clear benefit to industry.

So, how do you go about finding a unique and valuable research topic? We explain that in detail in this video post – How To Find A Research Topic . Yeah, we’ve got you covered 😊

Step 3: Write a convincing research proposal

Once you’ve pinned down a high-quality research topic, the next step is to convince your university to let you research it. No matter how awesome you think your topic is, it still needs to get the rubber stamp before you can move forward with your research. The research proposal is the tool you’ll use for this job.

So, what’s in a research proposal?

The main “job” of a research proposal is to convince your university, advisor or committee that your research topic is worthy of approval. But convince them of what? Well, this varies from university to university, but generally, they want to see that:

  • You have a clearly articulated, unique and important topic (this might sound familiar…)
  • You’ve done some initial reading of the existing literature relevant to your topic (i.e. a literature review)
  • You have a provisional plan in terms of how you will collect data and analyse it (i.e. a methodology)

At the proposal stage, it’s (generally) not expected that you’ve extensively reviewed the existing literature , but you will need to show that you’ve done enough reading to identify a clear gap for original (unique) research. Similarly, they generally don’t expect that you have a rock-solid research methodology mapped out, but you should have an idea of whether you’ll be undertaking qualitative or quantitative analysis , and how you’ll collect your data (we’ll discuss this in more detail later).

Long story short – don’t stress about having every detail of your research meticulously thought out at the proposal stage – this will develop as you progress through your research. However, you do need to show that you’ve “done your homework” and that your research is worthy of approval .

So, how do you go about crafting a high-quality, convincing proposal? We cover that in detail in this video post – How To Write A Top-Class Research Proposal . We’ve also got a video walkthrough of two proposal examples here .

Step 4: Craft a strong introduction chapter

Once your proposal’s been approved, its time to get writing your actual dissertation or thesis! The good news is that if you put the time into crafting a high-quality proposal, you’ve already got a head start on your first three chapters – introduction, literature review and methodology – as you can use your proposal as the basis for these.

Handy sidenote – our free dissertation & thesis template is a great way to speed up your dissertation writing journey.

What’s the introduction chapter all about?

The purpose of the introduction chapter is to set the scene for your research (dare I say, to introduce it…) so that the reader understands what you’ll be researching and why it’s important. In other words, it covers the same ground as the research proposal in that it justifies your research topic.

What goes into the introduction chapter?

This can vary slightly between universities and degrees, but generally, the introduction chapter will include the following:

  • A brief background to the study, explaining the overall area of research
  • A problem statement , explaining what the problem is with the current state of research (in other words, where the knowledge gap exists)
  • Your research questions – in other words, the specific questions your study will seek to answer (based on the knowledge gap)
  • The significance of your study – in other words, why it’s important and how its findings will be useful in the world

As you can see, this all about explaining the “what” and the “why” of your research (as opposed to the “how”). So, your introduction chapter is basically the salesman of your study, “selling” your research to the first-time reader and (hopefully) getting them interested to read more.

How do I write the introduction chapter, you ask? We cover that in detail in this post .

The introduction chapter is where you set the scene for your research, detailing exactly what you’ll be researching and why it’s important.

Step 5: Undertake an in-depth literature review

As I mentioned earlier, you’ll need to do some initial review of the literature in Steps 2 and 3 to find your research gap and craft a convincing research proposal – but that’s just scratching the surface. Once you reach the literature review stage of your dissertation or thesis, you need to dig a lot deeper into the existing research and write up a comprehensive literature review chapter.

What’s the literature review all about?

There are two main stages in the literature review process:

Literature Review Step 1: Reading up

The first stage is for you to deep dive into the existing literature (journal articles, textbook chapters, industry reports, etc) to gain an in-depth understanding of the current state of research regarding your topic. While you don’t need to read every single article, you do need to ensure that you cover all literature that is related to your core research questions, and create a comprehensive catalogue of that literature , which you’ll use in the next step.

Reading and digesting all the relevant literature is a time consuming and intellectually demanding process. Many students underestimate just how much work goes into this step, so make sure that you allocate a good amount of time for this when planning out your research. Thankfully, there are ways to fast track the process – be sure to check out this article covering how to read journal articles quickly .

Literature Review Step 2: Writing up

Once you’ve worked through the literature and digested it all, you’ll need to write up your literature review chapter. Many students make the mistake of thinking that the literature review chapter is simply a summary of what other researchers have said. While this is partly true, a literature review is much more than just a summary. To pull off a good literature review chapter, you’ll need to achieve at least 3 things:

  • You need to synthesise the existing research , not just summarise it. In other words, you need to show how different pieces of theory fit together, what’s agreed on by researchers, what’s not.
  • You need to highlight a research gap that your research is going to fill. In other words, you’ve got to outline the problem so that your research topic can provide a solution.
  • You need to use the existing research to inform your methodology and approach to your own research design. For example, you might use questions or Likert scales from previous studies in your your own survey design .

As you can see, a good literature review is more than just a summary of the published research. It’s the foundation on which your own research is built, so it deserves a lot of love and attention. Take the time to craft a comprehensive literature review with a suitable structure .

But, how do I actually write the literature review chapter, you ask? We cover that in detail in this video post .

Step 6: Carry out your own research

Once you’ve completed your literature review and have a sound understanding of the existing research, its time to develop your own research (finally!). You’ll design this research specifically so that you can find the answers to your unique research question.

There are two steps here – designing your research strategy and executing on it:

1 – Design your research strategy

The first step is to design your research strategy and craft a methodology chapter . I won’t get into the technicalities of the methodology chapter here, but in simple terms, this chapter is about explaining the “how” of your research. If you recall, the introduction and literature review chapters discussed the “what” and the “why”, so it makes sense that the next point to cover is the “how” –that’s what the methodology chapter is all about.

In this section, you’ll need to make firm decisions about your research design. This includes things like:

  • Your research philosophy (e.g. positivism or interpretivism )
  • Your overall methodology (e.g. qualitative , quantitative or mixed methods)
  • Your data collection strategy (e.g. interviews , focus groups, surveys)
  • Your data analysis strategy (e.g. content analysis , correlation analysis, regression)

If these words have got your head spinning, don’t worry! We’ll explain these in plain language in other posts. It’s not essential that you understand the intricacies of research design (yet!). The key takeaway here is that you’ll need to make decisions about how you’ll design your own research, and you’ll need to describe (and justify) your decisions in your methodology chapter.

2 – Execute: Collect and analyse your data

Once you’ve worked out your research design, you’ll put it into action and start collecting your data. This might mean undertaking interviews, hosting an online survey or any other data collection method. Data collection can take quite a bit of time (especially if you host in-person interviews), so be sure to factor sufficient time into your project plan for this. Oftentimes, things don’t go 100% to plan (for example, you don’t get as many survey responses as you hoped for), so bake a little extra time into your budget here.

Once you’ve collected your data, you’ll need to do some data preparation before you can sink your teeth into the analysis. For example:

  • If you carry out interviews or focus groups, you’ll need to transcribe your audio data to text (i.e. a Word document).
  • If you collect quantitative survey data, you’ll need to clean up your data and get it into the right format for whichever analysis software you use (for example, SPSS, R or STATA).

Once you’ve completed your data prep, you’ll undertake your analysis, using the techniques that you described in your methodology. Depending on what you find in your analysis, you might also do some additional forms of analysis that you hadn’t planned for. For example, you might see something in the data that raises new questions or that requires clarification with further analysis.

The type(s) of analysis that you’ll use depend entirely on the nature of your research and your research questions. For example:

  • If your research if exploratory in nature, you’ll often use qualitative analysis techniques .
  • If your research is confirmatory in nature, you’ll often use quantitative analysis techniques
  • If your research involves a mix of both, you might use a mixed methods approach

Again, if these words have got your head spinning, don’t worry! We’ll explain these concepts and techniques in other posts. The key takeaway is simply that there’s no “one size fits all” for research design and methodology – it all depends on your topic, your research questions and your data. So, don’t be surprised if your study colleagues take a completely different approach to yours.

The research philosophy is at the core of the methodology chapter

Step 7: Present your findings

Once you’ve completed your analysis, it’s time to present your findings (finally!). In a dissertation or thesis, you’ll typically present your findings in two chapters – the results chapter and the discussion chapter .

What’s the difference between the results chapter and the discussion chapter?

While these two chapters are similar, the results chapter generally just presents the processed data neatly and clearly without interpretation, while the discussion chapter explains the story the data are telling  – in other words, it provides your interpretation of the results.

For example, if you were researching the factors that influence consumer trust, you might have used a quantitative approach to identify the relationship between potential factors (e.g. perceived integrity and competence of the organisation) and consumer trust. In this case:

  • Your results chapter would just present the results of the statistical tests. For example, correlation results or differences between groups. In other words, the processed numbers.
  • Your discussion chapter would explain what the numbers mean in relation to your research question(s). For example, Factor 1 has a weak relationship with consumer trust, while Factor 2 has a strong relationship.

Depending on the university and degree, these two chapters (results and discussion) are sometimes merged into one , so be sure to check with your institution what their preference is. Regardless of the chapter structure, this section is about presenting the findings of your research in a clear, easy to understand fashion.

Importantly, your discussion here needs to link back to your research questions (which you outlined in the introduction or literature review chapter). In other words, it needs to answer the key questions you asked (or at least attempt to answer them).

For example, if we look at the sample research topic:

In this case, the discussion section would clearly outline which factors seem to have a noteworthy influence on organisational trust. By doing so, they are answering the overarching question and fulfilling the purpose of the research .

Your discussion here needs to link back to your research questions. It needs to answer the key questions you asked in your introduction.

For more information about the results chapter , check out this post for qualitative studies and this post for quantitative studies .

Step 8: The Final Step Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications

Last but not least, you’ll need to wrap up your research with the conclusion chapter . In this chapter, you’ll bring your research full circle by highlighting the key findings of your study and explaining what the implications of these findings are.

What exactly are key findings? The key findings are those findings which directly relate to your original research questions and overall research objectives (which you discussed in your introduction chapter). The implications, on the other hand, explain what your findings mean for industry, or for research in your area.

Sticking with the consumer trust topic example, the conclusion might look something like this:

Key findings

This study set out to identify which factors influence consumer-based trust in British low-cost online equity brokerage firms. The results suggest that the following factors have a large impact on consumer trust:

While the following factors have a very limited impact on consumer trust:

Notably, within the 25-30 age groups, Factors E had a noticeably larger impact, which may be explained by…

Implications

The findings having noteworthy implications for British low-cost online equity brokers. Specifically:

The large impact of Factors X and Y implies that brokers need to consider….

The limited impact of Factor E implies that brokers need to…

As you can see, the conclusion chapter is basically explaining the “what” (what your study found) and the “so what?” (what the findings mean for the industry or research). This brings the study full circle and closes off the document.

In the final chapter, you’ll bring your research full circle by highlighting the key findings of your study and the implications thereof.

Let’s recap – how to write a dissertation or thesis

You’re still with me? Impressive! I know that this post was a long one, but hopefully you’ve learnt a thing or two about how to write a dissertation or thesis, and are now better equipped to start your own research.

To recap, the 8 steps to writing a quality dissertation (or thesis) are as follows:

  • Understand what a dissertation (or thesis) is – a research project that follows the research process.
  • Find a unique (original) and important research topic
  • Craft a convincing dissertation or thesis research proposal
  • Write a clear, compelling introduction chapter
  • Undertake a thorough review of the existing research and write up a literature review
  • Undertake your own research
  • Present and interpret your findings

Once you’ve wrapped up the core chapters, all that’s typically left is the abstract , reference list and appendices. As always, be sure to check with your university if they have any additional requirements in terms of structure or content.  

dissertation of bcps

Psst... there’s more!

This post was based on one of our popular Research Bootcamps . If you're working on a research project, you'll definitely want to check this out ...

20 Comments

Romia

thankfull >>>this is very useful

Madhu

Thank you, it was really helpful

Elhadi Abdelrahim

unquestionably, this amazing simplified way of teaching. Really , I couldn’t find in the literature words that fully explicit my great thanks to you. However, I could only say thanks a-lot.

Derek Jansen

Great to hear that – thanks for the feedback. Good luck writing your dissertation/thesis.

Writer

This is the most comprehensive explanation of how to write a dissertation. Many thanks for sharing it free of charge.

Sam

Very rich presentation. Thank you

Hailu

Thanks Derek Jansen|GRADCOACH, I find it very useful guide to arrange my activities and proceed to research!

Nunurayi Tambala

Thank you so much for such a marvelous teaching .I am so convinced that am going to write a comprehensive and a distinct masters dissertation

Hussein Huwail

It is an amazing comprehensive explanation

Eva

This was straightforward. Thank you!

Ken

I can say that your explanations are simple and enlightening – understanding what you have done here is easy for me. Could you write more about the different types of research methods specific to the three methodologies: quan, qual and MM. I look forward to interacting with this website more in the future.

Thanks for the feedback and suggestions 🙂

Osasuyi Blessing

Hello, your write ups is quite educative. However, l have challenges in going about my research questions which is below; *Building the enablers of organisational growth through effective governance and purposeful leadership.*

Dung Doh

Very educating.

Ezra Daniel

Just listening to the name of the dissertation makes the student nervous. As writing a top-quality dissertation is a difficult task as it is a lengthy topic, requires a lot of research and understanding and is usually around 10,000 to 15000 words. Sometimes due to studies, unbalanced workload or lack of research and writing skill students look for dissertation submission from professional writers.

Nice Edinam Hoyah

Thank you 💕😊 very much. I was confused but your comprehensive explanation has cleared my doubts of ever presenting a good thesis. Thank you.

Sehauli

thank you so much, that was so useful

Daniel Madsen

Hi. Where is the excel spread sheet ark?

Emmanuel kKoko

could you please help me look at your thesis paper to enable me to do the portion that has to do with the specification

my topic is “the impact of domestic revenue mobilization.

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  1. BCPS dissertation guidelines

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  1. Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons (BCPS)

    Title of Dissertation. 1. Dr. Afsana Mahmuda. 2024. Comparison of Ketamine-Dexmedetomidine and Ketamine-Propofol for Sedation of Paediatric Patient for MRI and CT Scan. 2. Dr. Ahmed Nashin. 2024. Effect of Fractionated Versus Bolus Dose Injection of Bupivacaine Heavy in Spinal Anesthesia for Lower Limb Surgeries.

  2. PDF Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons(BCPS)

    Dissertation/ Thesis Guide's tasks Guide will guide the trainee in all the steps from identification for the topic, development of protocol, data collection, analysis and writing of the dissertation/thesis. Guide must go through the proposal and once satisfied guide will forward the proposal to BCPS.

  3. PDF Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons(BCPS)

    Dissertation/thesis work (data collection) should be started after the approval of protocol on selected topic during the training period of the candidate. It is desirable that candidate should complete the dissertation/thesis during training period A guide is expected to guide not more than 6 dissertation/thesis for BCPS at any given time.

  4. Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons

    Existing procedure of RTMD, BCPS for Dissertation/ Thesis Protocol To enhance quality of research, after passing FCPS PartI every trainee has to attend 3/4 days training workshop on Research Methodology. Trainee submits the protocol to Ethical Committee, subsequently it goes to the RTMD, then after Protocol reviewing meeting by a committee of 3 ...

  5. (PDF) Contribution of Bangladesh College of Physicians ...

    BCPS is producing specialists' human resources by offering fellowship covering general and specialized subjects (n=59) and membership (n=16) in various branches of medicine. ... dissertation ...

  6. Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons

    Until January 2022, a total of 12,575 dissertations and 355 Thesis have been accepted by BCPS. Year wise distribution of outcomes of submitted dissertations from 2010-2022 and thesis submission ...

  7. PDF Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons

    Until January 2022, a total of 12,575 dissertations and 355 Thesis have been accepted by BCPS. Year wise distribution of outcomes of submitted dissertations from 2010-2022 and thesis submission rate in different specialties are promising. Over the last 50 years, there have been many revisions to the Dissertation submission and assessment ...

  8. Fellowship Trainee Research Activities of a Faculty of Bangladesh

    The objective of the study was to make an in-depth analysis of the dissertations completed by the PMR fellow trainees of BCPS since the inception of the Faculty.

  9. Fellowship Trainee Research Activities of a Faculty of Bangladesh

    g) Dissertation works should be graded or scored for summative marks for the final fellowship examination and an annual "Dissertation Book /Early career Research issue of BCPS Journal" should be published by the BCPS 55 Journal of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons Conclusion: There was a clear trend of MSK pain management and ...

  10. Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons(BCPS)

    Excellence is the Only Mark. Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS) has been the pioneer in developing postgraduate medical education and training in this country. The College has played a unique role in producing specialists in various disciplines of medical science who are working as medical teachers, consultants and specialists.

  11. Welcome to BCPS Journal

    Official Journal of The Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons. EDITORIAL. ♦ Feasibility and Effectivity of Video-Assisted Thoracoscopic Surgery (VATS) 219. in the Management of Acute Empyema Thoracis. A KMA Haque. ♦ Adhesive Capsulitis of the Shoulder, Its Relationship to Diabetes Mellitus, and 221. the Need for Effective Treatment.

  12. Bcps Dissertation Protocol

    Bcps Dissertation Protocol - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. Writing a Bcps dissertation is a challenging process that requires extensive research, critical thinking, and synthesizing large amounts of information over many months or years. Developing a unique research question and adhering to strict guidelines makes the task very complex.

  13. Frequently Asked Questions

    Complete a capstone project, thesis, or dissertation as part of post-graduate academic degree program: Documentation of project, thesis or dissertation from degree granting institution: 1 unique capstone, thesis, or dissertation will be awarded 5 units: 5: 10: Workplace Activities: Lead in-service training or Grand Rounds

  14. Dissertantion / Thesis Titles of FCPS (Hematology), BCPS

    Dissertantion / Thesis Titles of FCPS (Hematology), BCPS - Raiq Raihan. For Dissertation / Thesis titles of FCPS (Hematology) under Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS): Please visit BCPS website for Dissertation Title and. Select Haematology under Subject Menu. Select All or sepcific year under year menu and.

  15. Welcome to BCPS Journal

    Welcome to BCPS Journal. Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons: Evolution of Dissertation and Thesis. Abstract: Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS), is. a constitutional professional academic organization that. confers Fellowship (FCPS) and Membership (MCPS) in. various specialties in the field of ...

  16. Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons(BCPS)

    The important collection of high research value of the library is dissertations and theses submitted by FCPS part-II candidates. The number of dissertation in the library is around 10,794 and thesis is around 200. LIBRARY FACILITIES: LIBRARY RENOVATION: New facility development has been taken place at BCPS library during 2017-2018.

  17. Doctoral Dissertations

    This dissertation focuses on understanding the effect of minimal topographic patterning on guiding the self-assembly of BCPs in 2D and 3D. We demonstrate that minimal trench patterns can be used to achieve highly ordered hexagonal arrays or unidirectionally aligned line patterns over large areas.

  18. Dissertation Topics Bcps

    Dissertation Topics Bcps - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. Writing a dissertation can be challenging, requiring significant time and effort. Choosing a topic is one of the most difficult aspects, as it determines the research direction. Help is available to find an interesting, relevant topic within one's field of study.

  19. Deseration GL Bcps

    Deseration GL Bcps - Free download as PDF File (.pdf), Text File (.txt) or read online for free. 1. The document provides guidelines for FCPS Part II candidates regarding submitting a dissertation for examination. Candidates must select a topic, have their protocol approved, and complete an original dissertation under the supervision of an accredited fellow in their field.

  20. Golden Jubilee of Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons

    Bangladesh College of Physicians and Surgeons (BCPS), is a constitutional professional academic organization that confers Fellowship (FCPS) and Membership (MCPS) in various specialties in the field of medicine. As a part of evaluation system, BCPS is ... Evolution of Dissertation and Thesis ...

  21. Rtm

    Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons(BCPS) Home: About RTM : FAQ. Dissertation Title: Registration : Dissertation Training

  22. How To Write A Dissertation Or Thesis

    Craft a convincing dissertation or thesis research proposal. Write a clear, compelling introduction chapter. Undertake a thorough review of the existing research and write up a literature review. Undertake your own research. Present and interpret your findings. Draw a conclusion and discuss the implications.

  23. Bangladesh College of Physicians & Surgeons (BCPS)

    Notice and list of selected trainees in Surgery Sub-specialities (Colorectal Surgery, Hepatobiliary Surgery, Surgical Oncology and Casualty & Emergency Surgery) in July-2022 session of BCPS. Download. 21-05-2022. IT. Casualty and Emergency Surgery Training in Dhaka Medical College Hospital (January 2022) Download.