university dissertation research

Harvard University Theses, Dissertations, and Prize Papers

The Harvard University Archives ’ collection of theses, dissertations, and prize papers document the wide range of academic research undertaken by Harvard students over the course of the University’s history.

Beyond their value as pieces of original research, these collections document the history of American higher education, chronicling both the growth of Harvard as a major research institution as well as the development of numerous academic fields. They are also an important source of biographical information, offering insight into the academic careers of the authors.

Spanning from the ‘theses and quaestiones’ of the 17th and 18th centuries to the current yearly output of student research, they include both the first Harvard Ph.D. dissertation (by William Byerly, Ph.D . 1873) and the dissertation of the first woman to earn a doctorate from Harvard ( Lorna Myrtle Hodgkinson , Ed.D. 1922).

Other highlights include:

• The collection of Mathematical theses, 1782-1839
• The 1895 Ph.D. dissertation of W.E.B. Du Bois, The suppression of the African slave trade in the United States, 1638-1871
• Ph.D. dissertations of astronomer Cecilia Payne-Gaposchkin (Ph.D. 1925) and physicist John Hasbrouck Van Vleck (Ph.D. 1922)
• Undergraduate honors theses of novelist John Updike (A.B. 1954), filmmaker Terrence Malick (A.B. 1966),  and U.S. poet laureate Tracy Smith (A.B. 1994)
• Undergraduate prize papers and dissertations of philosophers Ralph Waldo Emerson (A.B. 1821), George Santayana (Ph.D. 1889), and W.V. Quine (Ph.D. 1932)
• Undergraduate honors theses of U.S. President John F. Kennedy (A.B. 1940) and Chief Justice John Roberts (A.B. 1976)

What does a prize-winning thesis look like?

If you're a Harvard undergraduate writing your own thesis, it can be helpful to review recent prize-winning theses. The Harvard University Archives has made available for digital lending all of the Thomas Hoopes Prize winners from the 2019-2021 academic years.

Accessing These Materials

How to access materials at the Harvard University Archives

How to find and request dissertations, in person or virtually

How to find and request undergraduate honors theses

How to find and request Thomas Temple Hoopes Prize papers

How to find and request Bowdoin Prize papers

• email: Email
• Phone number 617-495-2461

Related Collections

Harvard faculty personal and professional archives, harvard student life collections: arts, sports, politics and social life, access materials at the harvard university archives.

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, automatically generate references for free.

• Knowledge Base
• Dissertation

What Is a Dissertation? | 5 Essential Questions to Get Started

Published on 26 March 2020 by Jack Caulfield . Revised on 5 May 2022.

A dissertation is a large research project undertaken at the end of a degree. It involves in-depth consideration of a problem or question chosen by the student. It is usually the largest (and final) piece of written work produced during a degree.

The length and structure of a dissertation vary widely depending on the level and field of study. However, there are some key questions that can help you understand the requirements and get started on your dissertation project.

Instantly correct all language mistakes in your text

Be assured that you'll submit flawless writing. Upload your document to correct all your mistakes.

Table of contents

When and why do you have to write a dissertation, who will supervise your dissertation, what type of research will you do, how should your dissertation be structured, what formatting and referencing rules do you have to follow, frequently asked questions about dissertations.

A dissertation, sometimes called a thesis, comes at the end of an undergraduate or postgraduate degree. It is a larger project than the other essays you’ve written, requiring a higher word count and a greater depth of research.

You’ll generally work on your dissertation during the final year of your degree, over a longer period than you would take for a standard essay . For example, the dissertation might be your main focus for the last six months of your degree.

Why is the dissertation important?

The dissertation is a test of your capacity for independent research. You are given a lot of autonomy in writing your dissertation: you come up with your own ideas, conduct your own research, and write and structure the text by yourself.

This means that it is an important preparation for your future, whether you continue in academia or not: it teaches you to manage your own time, generate original ideas, and work independently.

The only proofreading tool specialized in correcting academic writing

The academic proofreading tool has been trained on 1000s of academic texts and by native English editors. Making it the most accurate and reliable proofreading tool for students.

Correct my document today

During the planning and writing of your dissertation, you’ll work with a supervisor from your department. The supervisor’s job is to give you feedback and advice throughout the process.

The dissertation supervisor is often assigned by the department, but you might be allowed to indicate preferences or approach potential supervisors. If so, try to pick someone who is familiar with your chosen topic, whom you get along with on a personal level, and whose feedback you’ve found useful in the past.

How will your supervisor help you?

Your supervisor is there to guide you through the dissertation project, but you’re still working independently. They can give feedback on your ideas, but not come up with ideas for you.

You may need to take the initiative to request an initial meeting with your supervisor. Then you can plan out your future meetings and set reasonable deadlines for things like completion of data collection, a structure outline, a first chapter, a first draft, and so on.

Make sure to prepare in advance for your meetings. Formulate your ideas as fully as you can, and determine where exactly you’re having difficulties so you can ask your supervisor for specific advice.

Your approach to your dissertation will vary depending on your field of study. The first thing to consider is whether you will do empirical research , which involves collecting original data, or non-empirical research , which involves analysing sources.

Empirical dissertations (sciences)

An empirical dissertation focuses on collecting and analysing original data. You’ll usually write this type of dissertation if you are studying a subject in the sciences or social sciences.

• What are airline workers’ attitudes towards the challenges posed for their industry by climate change?
• How effective is cognitive behavioural therapy in treating depression in young adults?
• What are the short-term health effects of switching from smoking cigarettes to e-cigarettes?

There are many different empirical research methods you can use to answer these questions – for example, experiments , observations, surveys , and interviews.

When doing empirical research, you need to consider things like the variables you will investigate, the reliability and validity of your measurements, and your sampling method . The aim is to produce robust, reproducible scientific knowledge.

Non-empirical dissertations (arts and humanities)

A non-empirical dissertation works with existing research or other texts, presenting original analysis, critique and argumentation, but no original data. This approach is typical of arts and humanities subjects.

• What attitudes did commentators in the British press take towards the French Revolution in 1789–1792?
• How do the themes of gender and inheritance intersect in Shakespeare’s Macbeth ?
• How did Plato’s Republic and Thomas More’s Utopia influence nineteenth century utopian socialist thought?

The first steps in this type of dissertation are to decide on your topic and begin collecting your primary and secondary sources .

Primary sources are the direct objects of your research. They give you first-hand evidence about your subject. Examples of primary sources include novels, artworks and historical documents.

Secondary sources provide information that informs your analysis. They describe, interpret, or evaluate information from primary sources. For example, you might consider previous analyses of the novel or author you are working on, or theoretical texts that you plan to apply to your primary sources.

Dissertations are divided into chapters and sections. Empirical dissertations usually follow a standard structure, while non-empirical dissertations are more flexible.

Structure of an empirical dissertation

Empirical dissertations generally include these chapters:

• Introduction : An explanation of your topic and the research question(s) you want to answer.
• Literature review : A survey and evaluation of previous research on your topic.
• Methodology : An explanation of how you collected and analysed your data.
• Results : A brief description of what you found.
• Discussion : Interpretation of what these results reveal.
• Conclusion : Answers to your research question(s) and summary of what your findings contribute to knowledge in your field.

Sometimes the order or naming of chapters might be slightly different, but all of the above information must be included in order to produce thorough, valid scientific research.

Other dissertation structures

If your dissertation doesn’t involve data collection, your structure is more flexible. You can think of it like an extended essay – the text should be logically organised in a way that serves your argument:

• Introduction: An explanation of your topic and the question(s) you want to answer.
• Main body: The development of your analysis, usually divided into 2–4 chapters.
• Conclusion: Answers to your research question(s) and summary of what your analysis contributes to knowledge in your field.

The chapters of the main body can be organised around different themes, time periods, or texts. Below you can see some example structures for dissertations in different subjects.

• Political philosophy

This example, on the topic of the British press’s coverage of the French Revolution, shows how you might structure each chapter around a specific theme.

This example, on the topic of Plato’s and More’s influences on utopian socialist thought, shows a different approach to dividing the chapters by theme.

This example, a master’s dissertation on the topic of how writers respond to persecution, shows how you can also use section headings within each chapter. Each of the three chapters deals with a specific text, while the sections are organised thematically.

Prevent plagiarism, run a free check.

Like other academic texts, it’s important that your dissertation follows the formatting guidelines set out by your university. You can lose marks unnecessarily over mistakes, so it’s worth taking the time to get all these elements right.

Formatting guidelines concern things like:

• line spacing
• page numbers
• punctuation
• title pages
• presentation of tables and figures

If you’re unsure about the formatting requirements, check with your supervisor or department. You can lose marks unnecessarily over mistakes, so it’s worth taking the time to get all these elements right.

How will you reference your sources?

Referencing means properly listing the sources you cite and refer to in your dissertation, so that the reader can find them. This avoids plagiarism by acknowledging where you’ve used the work of others.

Keep track of everything you read as you prepare your dissertation. The key information to note down for a reference is:

• The publication date
• Page numbers for the parts you refer to (especially when using direct quotes)

Different referencing styles each have their own specific rules for how to reference. The most commonly used styles in UK universities are listed below.

You can use the free APA Reference Generator to automatically create and store your references.

APA Reference Generator

The words ‘ dissertation ’ and ‘thesis’ both refer to a large written research project undertaken to complete a degree, but they are used differently depending on the country:

• In the UK, you write a dissertation at the end of a bachelor’s or master’s degree, and you write a thesis to complete a PhD.
• In the US, it’s the other way around: you may write a thesis at the end of a bachelor’s or master’s degree, and you write a dissertation to complete a PhD.

The main difference is in terms of scale – a dissertation is usually much longer than the other essays you complete during your degree.

Another key difference is that you are given much more independence when working on a dissertation. You choose your own dissertation topic , and you have to conduct the research and write the dissertation yourself (with some assistance from your supervisor).

Dissertation word counts vary widely across different fields, institutions, and levels of education:

• An undergraduate dissertation is typically 8,000–15,000 words
• A master’s dissertation is typically 12,000–50,000 words
• A PhD thesis is typically book-length: 70,000–100,000 words

However, none of these are strict guidelines – your word count may be lower or higher than the numbers stated here. Always check the guidelines provided by your university to determine how long your own dissertation should be.

At the bachelor’s and master’s levels, the dissertation is usually the main focus of your final year. You might work on it (alongside other classes) for the entirety of the final year, or for the last six months. This includes formulating an idea, doing the research, and writing up.

A PhD thesis takes a longer time, as the thesis is the main focus of the degree. A PhD thesis might be being formulated and worked on for the whole four years of the degree program. The writing process alone can take around 18 months.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the ‘Cite this Scribbr article’ button to automatically add the citation to our free Reference Generator.

Caulfield, J. (2022, May 05). What Is a Dissertation? | 5 Essential Questions to Get Started. Scribbr. Retrieved 3 September 2024, from https://www.scribbr.co.uk/thesis-dissertation/what-is-a-dissertation/

Is this article helpful?

Jack Caulfield

Other students also liked, how to choose a dissertation topic | 8 steps to follow, how to write a dissertation proposal | a step-by-step guide, what is a literature review | guide, template, & examples.

Dissertation Structure & Layout 101: How to structure your dissertation, thesis or research project.

By: Derek Jansen (MBA) Reviewed By: David Phair (PhD) | July 2019

So, you’ve got a decent understanding of what a dissertation is , you’ve chosen your topic and hopefully you’ve received approval for your research proposal . Awesome! Now its time to start the actual dissertation or thesis writing journey.

To craft a high-quality document, the very first thing you need to understand is dissertation structure . In this post, we’ll walk you through the generic dissertation structure and layout, step by step. We’ll start with the big picture, and then zoom into each chapter to briefly discuss the core contents. If you’re just starting out on your research journey, you should start with this post, which covers the big-picture process of how to write a dissertation or thesis .

*The Caveat *

In this post, we’ll be discussing a traditional dissertation/thesis structure and layout, which is generally used for social science research across universities, whether in the US, UK, Europe or Australia. However, some universities may have small variations on this structure (extra chapters, merged chapters, slightly different ordering, etc).

So, always check with your university if they have a prescribed structure or layout that they expect you to work with. If not, it’s safe to assume the structure we’ll discuss here is suitable. And even if they do have a prescribed structure, you’ll still get value from this post as we’ll explain the core contents of each section.  

Overview: S tructuring a dissertation or thesis

• Acknowledgements page
• Abstract (or executive summary)
• Table of contents , list of figures and tables
• Chapter 1: Introduction
• Chapter 2: Literature review
• Chapter 3: Methodology
• Chapter 4: Results
• Chapter 5: Discussion
• Chapter 6: Conclusion
• Reference list

As I mentioned, some universities will have slight variations on this structure. For example, they want an additional “personal reflection chapter”, or they might prefer the results and discussion chapter to be merged into one. Regardless, the overarching flow will always be the same, as this flow reflects the research process , which we discussed here – i.e.:

• The introduction chapter presents the core research question and aims .
• The literature review chapter assesses what the current research says about this question.
• The methodology, results and discussion chapters go about undertaking new research about this question.
• The conclusion chapter (attempts to) answer the core research question .

In other words, the dissertation structure and layout reflect the research process of asking a well-defined question(s), investigating, and then answering the question – see below.

To restate that – the structure and layout of a dissertation reflect the flow of the overall research process . This is essential to understand, as each chapter will make a lot more sense if you “get” this concept. If you’re not familiar with the research process, read this post before going further.

Right. Now that we’ve covered the big picture, let’s dive a little deeper into the details of each section and chapter. Oh and by the way, you can also grab our free dissertation/thesis template here to help speed things up.

The title page of your dissertation is the very first impression the marker will get of your work, so it pays to invest some time thinking about your title. But what makes for a good title? A strong title needs to be 3 things:

• Succinct (not overly lengthy or verbose)
• Specific (not vague or ambiguous)
• Representative of the research you’re undertaking (clearly linked to your research questions)

Typically, a good title includes mention of the following:

• The broader area of the research (i.e. the overarching topic)
• The specific focus of your research (i.e. your specific context)
• Indication of research design (e.g. quantitative , qualitative , or  mixed methods ).

For example:

A quantitative investigation [research design] into the antecedents of organisational trust [broader area] in the UK retail forex trading market [specific context/area of focus].

Again, some universities may have specific requirements regarding the format and structure of the title, so it’s worth double-checking expectations with your institution (if there’s no mention in the brief or study material).

Acknowledgements

This page provides you with an opportunity to say thank you to those who helped you along your research journey. Generally, it’s optional (and won’t count towards your marks), but it is academic best practice to include this.

So, who do you say thanks to? Well, there’s no prescribed requirements, but it’s common to mention the following people:

• Your dissertation supervisor or committee.
• Any professors, lecturers or academics that helped you understand the topic or methodologies.
• Any tutors, mentors or advisors.
• Your family and friends, especially spouse (for adult learners studying part-time).

There’s no need for lengthy rambling. Just state who you’re thankful to and for what (e.g. thank you to my supervisor, John Doe, for his endless patience and attentiveness) – be sincere. In terms of length, you should keep this to a page or less.

Abstract or executive summary

The dissertation abstract (or executive summary for some degrees) serves to provide the first-time reader (and marker or moderator) with a big-picture view of your research project. It should give them an understanding of the key insights and findings from the research, without them needing to read the rest of the report – in other words, it should be able to stand alone .

For it to stand alone, your abstract should cover the following key points (at a minimum):

• Your research questions and aims – what key question(s) did your research aim to answer?
• Your methodology – how did you go about investigating the topic and finding answers to your research question(s)?
• Your findings – following your own research, what did do you discover?
• Your conclusions – based on your findings, what conclusions did you draw? What answers did you find to your research question(s)?

So, in much the same way the dissertation structure mimics the research process, your abstract or executive summary should reflect the research process, from the initial stage of asking the original question to the final stage of answering that question.

In practical terms, it’s a good idea to write this section up last , once all your core chapters are complete. Otherwise, you’ll end up writing and rewriting this section multiple times (just wasting time). For a step by step guide on how to write a strong executive summary, check out this post .

Need a helping hand?

Table of contents

This section is straightforward. You’ll typically present your table of contents (TOC) first, followed by the two lists – figures and tables. I recommend that you use Microsoft Word’s automatic table of contents generator to generate your TOC. If you’re not familiar with this functionality, the video below explains it simply:

If you find that your table of contents is overly lengthy, consider removing one level of depth. Oftentimes, this can be done without detracting from the usefulness of the TOC.

Right, now that the “admin” sections are out of the way, its time to move on to your core chapters. These chapters are the heart of your dissertation and are where you’ll earn the marks. The first chapter is the introduction chapter – as you would expect, this is the time to introduce your research…

It’s important to understand that even though you’ve provided an overview of your research in your abstract, your introduction needs to be written as if the reader has not read that (remember, the abstract is essentially a standalone document). So, your introduction chapter needs to start from the very beginning, and should address the following questions:

• What will you be investigating (in plain-language, big picture-level)?
• Why is that worth investigating? How is it important to academia or business? How is it sufficiently original?
• What are your research aims and research question(s)? Note that the research questions can sometimes be presented at the end of the literature review (next chapter).
• What is the scope of your study? In other words, what will and won’t you cover ?
• How will you approach your research? In other words, what methodology will you adopt?
• How will you structure your dissertation? What are the core chapters and what will you do in each of them?

These are just the bare basic requirements for your intro chapter. Some universities will want additional bells and whistles in the intro chapter, so be sure to carefully read your brief or consult your research supervisor.

If done right, your introduction chapter will set a clear direction for the rest of your dissertation. Specifically, it will make it clear to the reader (and marker) exactly what you’ll be investigating, why that’s important, and how you’ll be going about the investigation. Conversely, if your introduction chapter leaves a first-time reader wondering what exactly you’ll be researching, you’ve still got some work to do.

Now that you’ve set a clear direction with your introduction chapter, the next step is the literature review . In this section, you will analyse the existing research (typically academic journal articles and high-quality industry publications), with a view to understanding the following questions:

• What does the literature currently say about the topic you’re investigating?
• Is the literature lacking or well established? Is it divided or in disagreement?
• How does your research fit into the bigger picture?
• How does your research contribute something original?
• How does the methodology of previous studies help you develop your own?

Depending on the nature of your study, you may also present a conceptual framework towards the end of your literature review, which you will then test in your actual research.

Again, some universities will want you to focus on some of these areas more than others, some will have additional or fewer requirements, and so on. Therefore, as always, its important to review your brief and/or discuss with your supervisor, so that you know exactly what’s expected of your literature review chapter.

Now that you’ve investigated the current state of knowledge in your literature review chapter and are familiar with the existing key theories, models and frameworks, its time to design your own research. Enter the methodology chapter – the most “science-ey” of the chapters…

In this chapter, you need to address two critical questions:

• Exactly HOW will you carry out your research (i.e. what is your intended research design)?
• Exactly WHY have you chosen to do things this way (i.e. how do you justify your design)?

Remember, the dissertation part of your degree is first and foremost about developing and demonstrating research skills . Therefore, the markers want to see that you know which methods to use, can clearly articulate why you’ve chosen then, and know how to deploy them effectively.

Importantly, this chapter requires detail – don’t hold back on the specifics. State exactly what you’ll be doing, with who, when, for how long, etc. Moreover, for every design choice you make, make sure you justify it.

In practice, you will likely end up coming back to this chapter once you’ve undertaken all your data collection and analysis, and revise it based on changes you made during the analysis phase. This is perfectly fine. Its natural for you to add an additional analysis technique, scrap an old one, etc based on where your data lead you. Of course, I’m talking about small changes here – not a fundamental switch from qualitative to quantitative, which will likely send your supervisor in a spin!

You’ve now collected your data and undertaken your analysis, whether qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods. In this chapter, you’ll present the raw results of your analysis . For example, in the case of a quant study, you’ll present the demographic data, descriptive statistics, inferential statistics , etc.

Typically, Chapter 4 is simply a presentation and description of the data, not a discussion of the meaning of the data. In other words, it’s descriptive, rather than analytical – the meaning is discussed in Chapter 5. However, some universities will want you to combine chapters 4 and 5, so that you both present and interpret the meaning of the data at the same time. Check with your institution what their preference is.

Now that you’ve presented the data analysis results, its time to interpret and analyse them. In other words, its time to discuss what they mean, especially in relation to your research question(s).

What you discuss here will depend largely on your chosen methodology. For example, if you’ve gone the quantitative route, you might discuss the relationships between variables . If you’ve gone the qualitative route, you might discuss key themes and the meanings thereof. It all depends on what your research design choices were.

Most importantly, you need to discuss your results in relation to your research questions and aims, as well as the existing literature. What do the results tell you about your research questions? Are they aligned with the existing research or at odds? If so, why might this be? Dig deep into your findings and explain what the findings suggest, in plain English.

The final chapter – you’ve made it! Now that you’ve discussed your interpretation of the results, its time to bring it back to the beginning with the conclusion chapter . In other words, its time to (attempt to) answer your original research question s (from way back in chapter 1). Clearly state what your conclusions are in terms of your research questions. This might feel a bit repetitive, as you would have touched on this in the previous chapter, but its important to bring the discussion full circle and explicitly state your answer(s) to the research question(s).

Next, you’ll typically discuss the implications of your findings . In other words, you’ve answered your research questions – but what does this mean for the real world (or even for academia)? What should now be done differently, given the new insight you’ve generated?

Lastly, you should discuss the limitations of your research, as well as what this means for future research in the area. No study is perfect, especially not a Masters-level. Discuss the shortcomings of your research. Perhaps your methodology was limited, perhaps your sample size was small or not representative, etc, etc. Don’t be afraid to critique your work – the markers want to see that you can identify the limitations of your work. This is a strength, not a weakness. Be brutal!

This marks the end of your core chapters – woohoo! From here on out, it’s pretty smooth sailing.

The reference list is straightforward. It should contain a list of all resources cited in your dissertation, in the required format, e.g. APA , Harvard, etc.

It’s essential that you use reference management software for your dissertation. Do NOT try handle your referencing manually – its far too error prone. On a reference list of multiple pages, you’re going to make mistake. To this end, I suggest considering either Mendeley or Zotero. Both are free and provide a very straightforward interface to ensure that your referencing is 100% on point. I’ve included a simple how-to video for the Mendeley software (my personal favourite) below:

Some universities may ask you to include a bibliography, as opposed to a reference list. These two things are not the same . A bibliography is similar to a reference list, except that it also includes resources which informed your thinking but were not directly cited in your dissertation. So, double-check your brief and make sure you use the right one.

The very last piece of the puzzle is the appendix or set of appendices. This is where you’ll include any supporting data and evidence. Importantly, supporting is the keyword here.

Your appendices should provide additional “nice to know”, depth-adding information, which is not critical to the core analysis. Appendices should not be used as a way to cut down word count (see this post which covers how to reduce word count ). In other words, don’t place content that is critical to the core analysis here, just to save word count. You will not earn marks on any content in the appendices, so don’t try to play the system!

Time to recap…

And there you have it – the traditional dissertation structure and layout, from A-Z. To recap, the core structure for a dissertation or thesis is (typically) as follows:

• Acknowledgments page

Most importantly, the core chapters should reflect the research process (asking, investigating and answering your research question). Moreover, the research question(s) should form the golden thread throughout your dissertation structure. Everything should revolve around the research questions, and as you’ve seen, they should form both the start point (i.e. introduction chapter) and the endpoint (i.e. conclusion chapter).

I hope this post has provided you with clarity about the traditional dissertation/thesis structure and layout. If you have any questions or comments, please leave a comment below, or feel free to get in touch with us. Also, be sure to check out the rest of the  Grad Coach Blog .

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 ...

36 Comments

many thanks i found it very useful

Glad to hear that, Arun. Good luck writing your dissertation.

Such clear practical logical advice. I very much needed to read this to keep me focused in stead of fretting.. Perfect now ready to start my research!

what about scientific fields like computer or engineering thesis what is the difference in the structure? thank you very much

Thanks so much this helped me a lot!

Very helpful and accessible. What I like most is how practical the advice is along with helpful tools/ links.

Thanks Ade!

Thank you so much sir.. It was really helpful..

You’re welcome!

Hi! How many words maximum should contain the abstract?

Thank you so much 😊 Find this at the right moment

You’re most welcome. Good luck with your dissertation.

best ever benefit i got on right time thank you

Many times Clarity and vision of destination of dissertation is what makes the difference between good ,average and great researchers the same way a great automobile driver is fast with clarity of address and Clear weather conditions .

I guess Great researcher = great ideas + knowledge + great and fast data collection and modeling + great writing + high clarity on all these

You have given immense clarity from start to end.

Morning. Where will I write the definitions of what I’m referring to in my report?

Thank you so much Derek, I was almost lost! Thanks a tonnnn! Have a great day!

Thanks ! so concise and valuable

This was very helpful. Clear and concise. I know exactly what to do now.

Thank you for allowing me to go through briefly. I hope to find time to continue.

Really useful to me. Thanks a thousand times

Very interesting! It will definitely set me and many more for success. highly recommended.

Thank you soo much sir, for the opportunity to express my skills

Usefull, thanks a lot. Really clear

Very nice and easy to understand. Thank you .

That was incredibly useful. Thanks Grad Coach Crew!

My stress level just dropped at least 15 points after watching this. Just starting my thesis for my grad program and I feel a lot more capable now! Thanks for such a clear and helpful video, Emma and the GradCoach team!

Do we need to mention the number of words the dissertation contains in the main document?

It depends on your university’s requirements, so it would be best to check with them 🙂

Such a helpful post to help me get started with structuring my masters dissertation, thank you!

Great video; I appreciate that helpful information

It is so necessary or avital course

This blog is very informative for my research. Thank you

Doctoral students are required to fill out the National Research Council’s Survey of Earned Doctorates

wow this is an amazing gain in my life

This is so good

How can i arrange my specific objectives in my dissertation?

Trackbacks/Pingbacks

• What Is A Literature Review (In A Dissertation Or Thesis) - Grad Coach - […] is to write the actual literature review chapter (this is usually the second chapter in a typical dissertation or…

Submit a Comment Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

• Print Friendly

Have a language expert improve your writing

Run a free plagiarism check in 10 minutes, generate accurate citations for free.

• Knowledge Base
• Starting the research process

How to Choose a Dissertation Topic | 8 Steps to Follow

Published on November 11, 2022 by Shona McCombes and Tegan George. Revised on November 20, 2023.

Choosing your dissertation topic is the first step in making sure your research goes as smoothly as possible. When choosing a topic, it’s important to consider:

• Your institution and department’s requirements
• Your areas of knowledge and interest
• The scientific, social, or practical relevance
• The availability of data and resources
• The timeframe of your dissertation
• The relevance of your topic

You can follow these steps to begin narrowing down your ideas.

Table of contents

Step 1: check the requirements, step 2: choose a broad field of research, step 3: look for books and articles, step 4: find a niche, step 5: consider the type of research, step 6: determine the relevance, step 7: make sure it’s plausible, step 8: get your topic approved, other interesting articles, frequently asked questions about dissertation topics.

The very first step is to check your program’s requirements. This determines the scope of what it is possible for you to research.

• Is there a minimum and maximum word count?
• When is the deadline?
• Should the research have an academic or a professional orientation?
• Are there any methodological conditions? Do you have to conduct fieldwork, or use specific types of sources?

Some programs have stricter requirements than others. You might be given nothing more than a word count and a deadline, or you might have a restricted list of topics and approaches to choose from. If in doubt about what is expected of you, always ask your supervisor or department coordinator.

Start by thinking about your areas of interest within the subject you’re studying. Examples of broad ideas include:

• Twentieth-century literature
• Economic history
• Health policy

To get a more specific sense of the current state of research on your potential topic, skim through a few recent issues of the top journals in your field. Be sure to check out their most-cited articles in particular. For inspiration, you can also search Google Scholar , subject-specific databases , and your university library’s resources.

As you read, note down any specific ideas that interest you and make a shortlist of possible topics. If you’ve written other papers, such as a 3rd-year paper or a conference paper, consider how those topics can be broadened into a dissertation.

After doing some initial reading, it’s time to start narrowing down options for your potential topic. This can be a gradual process, and should get more and more specific as you go. For example, from the ideas above, you might narrow it down like this:

• Twentieth-century literature   Twentieth-century Irish literature   Post-war Irish poetry
• Economic history   European economic history   German labor union history
• Health policy   Reproductive health policy   Reproductive rights in South America

All of these topics are still broad enough that you’ll find a huge amount of books and articles about them. Try to find a specific niche where you can make your mark, such as: something not many people have researched yet, a question that’s still being debated, or a very current practical issue.

At this stage, make sure you have a few backup ideas — there’s still time to change your focus. If your topic doesn’t make it through the next few steps, you can try a different one. Later, you will narrow your focus down even more in your problem statement and research questions .

There are many different types of research , so at this stage, it’s a good idea to start thinking about what kind of approach you’ll take to your topic. Will you mainly focus on:

• Collecting original data (e.g., experimental or field research)?
• Analyzing existing data (e.g., national statistics, public records, or archives)?
• Interpreting cultural objects (e.g., novels, films, or paintings)?
• Comparing scholarly approaches (e.g., theories, methods, or interpretations)?

Many dissertations will combine more than one of these. Sometimes the type of research is obvious: if your topic is post-war Irish poetry, you will probably mainly be interpreting poems. But in other cases, there are several possible approaches. If your topic is reproductive rights in South America, you could analyze public policy documents and media coverage, or you could gather original data through interviews and surveys .

You don’t have to finalize your research design and methods yet, but the type of research will influence which aspects of the topic it’s possible to address, so it’s wise to consider this as you narrow down your ideas.

It’s important that your topic is interesting to you, but you’ll also have to make sure it’s academically, socially or practically relevant to your field.

• Academic relevance means that the research can fill a gap in knowledge or contribute to a scholarly debate in your field.
• Social relevance means that the research can advance our understanding of society and inform social change.
• Practical relevance means that the research can be applied to solve concrete problems or improve real-life processes.

The easiest way to make sure your research is relevant is to choose a topic that is clearly connected to current issues or debates, either in society at large or in your academic discipline. The relevance must be clearly stated when you define your research problem .

Before you make a final decision on your topic, consider again the length of your dissertation, the timeframe in which you have to complete it, and the practicalities of conducting the research.

Will you have enough time to read all the most important academic literature on this topic? If there’s too much information to tackle, consider narrowing your focus even more.

Will you be able to find enough sources or gather enough data to fulfil the requirements of the dissertation? If you think you might struggle to find information, consider broadening or shifting your focus.

Do you have to go to a specific location to gather data on the topic? Make sure that you have enough funding and practical access.

Last but not least, will the topic hold your interest for the length of the research process? To stay motivated, it’s important to choose something you’re enthusiastic about!

Most programmes will require you to submit a brief description of your topic, called a research prospectus or proposal .

Remember, if you discover that your topic is not as strong as you thought it was, it’s usually acceptable to change your mind and switch focus early in the dissertation process. Just make sure you have enough time to start on a new topic, and always check with your supervisor or department.

If you want to know more about the research process , methodology , research bias , or statistics , make sure to check out some of our other articles with explanations and examples.

Methodology

• Sampling methods
• Simple random sampling
• Stratified sampling
• Cluster sampling
• Likert scales
• Reproducibility

 Statistics

• Null hypothesis
• Statistical power
• Probability distribution
• Effect size
• Poisson distribution

Research bias

• Optimism bias
• Cognitive bias
• Implicit bias
• Hawthorne effect
• Anchoring bias
• Explicit bias

Formulating a main research question can be a difficult task. Overall, your question should contribute to solving the problem that you have defined in your problem statement .

However, it should also fulfill criteria in three main areas:

• Researchability
• Feasibility and specificity
• Relevance and originality

All research questions should be:

• Focused on a single problem or issue
• Researchable using primary and/or secondary sources
• Feasible to answer within the timeframe and practical constraints
• Specific enough to answer thoroughly
• Complex enough to develop the answer over the space of a paper or thesis
• Relevant to your field of study and/or society more broadly

You can assess information and arguments critically by asking certain questions about the source. You can use the CRAAP test , focusing on the currency , relevance , authority , accuracy , and purpose of a source of information.

Ask questions such as:

• Who is the author? Are they an expert?
• Why did the author publish it? What is their motivation?
• How do they make their argument? Is it backed up by evidence?

A dissertation prospectus or proposal describes what or who you plan to research for your dissertation. It delves into why, when, where, and how you will do your research, as well as helps you choose a type of research to pursue. You should also determine whether you plan to pursue qualitative or quantitative methods and what your research design will look like.

It should outline all of the decisions you have taken about your project, from your dissertation topic to your hypotheses and research objectives , ready to be approved by your supervisor or committee.

Note that some departments require a defense component, where you present your prospectus to your committee orally.

The best way to remember the difference between a research plan and a research proposal is that they have fundamentally different audiences. A research plan helps you, the researcher, organize your thoughts. On the other hand, a dissertation proposal or research proposal aims to convince others (e.g., a supervisor, a funding body, or a dissertation committee) that your research topic is relevant and worthy of being conducted.

Cite this Scribbr article

If you want to cite this source, you can copy and paste the citation or click the “Cite this Scribbr article” button to automatically add the citation to our free Citation Generator.

McCombes, S. & George, T. (2023, November 20). How to Choose a Dissertation Topic | 8 Steps to Follow. Scribbr. Retrieved September 3, 2024, from https://www.scribbr.com/research-process/dissertation-topic/

Is this article helpful?

Shona McCombes

Other students also liked, how to define a research problem | ideas & examples, what is a research design | types, guide & examples, writing strong research questions | criteria & examples, "i thought ai proofreading was useless but..".

I've been using Scribbr for years now and I know it's a service that won't disappoint. It does a good job spotting mistakes”

How to find resources by format

Why use a dissertation or a thesis.

A dissertation is the final large research paper, based on original research, for many disciplines to be able to complete a PhD degree. The thesis is the same idea but for a masters degree.

They are often considered scholarly sources since they are closely supervised by a committee, are directed at an academic audience, are extensively researched, follow research methodology, and are cited in other scholarly work. Often the research is newer or answering questions that are more recent, and can help push scholarship in new directions. 

Search for dissertations and theses

Locating dissertations and theses.

The Proquest Dissertations and Theses Global database includes doctoral dissertations and selected masters theses from major universities worldwide.

• Searchable by subject, author, advisor, title, school, date, etc.
• More information about full text access and requesting through Interlibrary Loan

NDLTD – Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations provides free online access to a over a million theses and dissertations from all over the world.

WorldCat Dissertations and Theses searches library catalogs from across the U.S. and worldwide.

Locating University of Minnesota Dissertations and Theses

Use  Libraries search  and search by title or author and add the word "thesis" in the search box. Write down the library and call number and find it on the shelf. They can be checked out.

Check the  University Digital Conservancy  for online access to dissertations and theses from 2007 to present as well as historic, scanned theses from 1887-1923.

Other Sources for Dissertations and Theses

• Center for Research Libraries
• DART-Europe E-Thesis Portal
• Theses Canada
• Ethos (Great Britain)
• Australasian Digital Theses in Trove
• DiVA (Sweden)
• E-Thesis at the University of Helsinki
• DissOnline (Germany)
• List of libraries worldwide - to search for a thesis when you know the institution and cannot find in the larger collections
• ProQuest Dissertations Express  - to search for a digitized thesis (not a free resource but open to our guest users)

University of Minnesota Dissertations and Theses FAQs

What dissertations and theses are available.

With minor exceptions, all doctoral dissertations and all "Plan A" master's theses accepted by the University of Minnesota are available in the University Libraries system. In some cases (see below) only a non-circulating copy in University Archives exists, but for doctoral dissertations from 1940 to date, and for master's theses from 1925 to date, a circulating copy should almost always be available.

"Plan B" papers, accepted in the place of a thesis in many master's degree programs, are not received by the University Libraries and are generally not available. (The only real exceptions are a number of old library school Plan B papers on publishing history, which have been separately cataloged.) In a few cases individual departments may have maintained files of such papers.

In what libraries are U of M dissertations and theses located?

Circulating copies of doctoral dissertations:.

• Use Libraries Search to look for the author or title of the work desired to determine location and call number of a specific dissertation. Circulating copies of U of M doctoral dissertations can be in one of several locations in the library system, depending upon the date and the department for which the dissertation was done. The following are the general rules:
• Dissertations prior to 1940 Circulating copies of U of M dissertations prior to 1940 do not exist (with rare exceptions): for these, only the archival copy (see below) is available. Also, most dissertations prior to 1940 are not cataloged in MNCAT and can only be identified by the departmental listings described below.  
• Dissertations from 1940-1979 Circulating copies of U of M dissertations from 1940 to 1979 will in most cases be held within the Elmer L. Andersen Library, with three major classes of exceptions: dissertations accepted by biological, medical, and related departments are housed in the Health Science Library; science/engineering dissertations from 1970 to date will be located in the Science and Engineering Library (in Walter); and dissertations accepted by agricultural and related departments are available at the Magrath Library or one of the other libraries on the St. Paul campus (the Magrath Library maintains records of locations for such dissertations).  
• Dissertations from 1980-date Circulating copies of U of M dissertations from 1980 to date at present may be located either in Wilson Library (see below) or in storage; consult Libraries Search for location of specific items. Again, exceptions noted above apply here also; dissertations in their respective departments will instead be in Health Science Library or in one of the St. Paul campus libraries.

Circulating copies of master's theses:

• Theses prior to 1925 Circulating copies of U of M master's theses prior to 1925 do not exist (with rare exceptions); for these, only the archival copy (see below) is available.  
• Theses from 1925-1996 Circulating copies of U of M master's theses from 1925 to 1996 may be held in storage; consult Libraries search in specific instances. Once again, there are exceptions and theses in their respective departments will be housed in the Health Science Library or in one of the St. Paul campus libraries.  
• Theses from 1997-date Circulating copies of U of M master's theses from 1997 to date will be located in Wilson Library (see below), except for the same exceptions for Health Science  and St. Paul theses. There is also an exception to the exception: MHA (Masters in Health Administration) theses through 1998 are in the Health Science Library, but those from 1999 on are in Wilson Library.

Archival copies (non-circulating)

Archival (non-circulating) copies of virtually all U of M doctoral dissertations from 1888-1952, and of U of M master's theses from all years up to the present, are maintained by University Archives (located in the Elmer L. Andersen Library). These copies must be consulted on the premises, and it is highly recommended for the present that users make an appointment in advance to ensure that the desired works can be retrieved for them from storage. For dissertations accepted prior to 1940 and for master's theses accepted prior to 1925, University Archives is generally the only option (e.g., there usually will be no circulating copy). Archival copies of U of M doctoral dissertations from 1953 to the present are maintained by Bell and Howell Corporation (formerly University Microfilms Inc.), which produces print or filmed copies from our originals upon request. (There are a very few post-1952 U of M dissertations not available from Bell and Howell; these include such things as music manuscripts and works with color illustrations or extremely large pages that will not photocopy well; in these few cases, our archival copy is retained in University Archives.)

Where is a specific dissertation of thesis located?

To locate a specific dissertation or thesis it is necessary to have its call number. Use Libraries Search for the author or title of the item, just as you would for any other book. Depending on date of acceptance and cataloging, a typical call number for such materials should look something like one of the following:

Dissertations: Plan"A" Theses MnU-D or 378.7M66 MnU-M or 378.7M66 78-342 ODR7617 83-67 OL6156 Libraries Search will also tell the library location (MLAC, Health Science Library, Magrath or another St. Paul campus library, Science and Engineering, Business Reference, Wilson Annex or Wilson Library). Those doctoral dissertations still in Wilson Library (which in all cases should be 1980 or later and will have "MnU-D" numbers) are located in the central section of the third floor. Those master's theses in Wilson (which in all cases will be 1997 or later and will have "MnU-M" numbers) are also located in the central section of the third floor. Both dissertations and theses circulate and can be checked out, like any other books, at the Wilson Circulation desk on the first floor.

How can dissertations and theses accepted by a specific department be located?

Wilson Library contains a series of bound and loose-leaf notebooks, arranged by department and within each department by date, listing dissertations and theses. Information given for each entry includes name of author, title, and date (but not call number, which must be looked up individually). These notebooks are no longer current, but they do cover listings by department from the nineteenth century up to approximately 1992. Many pre-1940 U of M dissertations and pre-1925 U of M master's theses are not cataloged (and exist only as archival copies). Such dissertations can be identified only with these volumes. The books and notebooks are shelved in the general collection under these call numbers: Wilson Ref LD3337 .A5 and Wilson Ref quarto LD3337 .U9x. Major departments of individual degree candidates are also listed under their names in the GRADUATE SCHOOL COMMENCEMENT programs of the U of M, available in University Archives and (for recent years) also in Wilson stacks (LD3361 .U55x).

• << Previous: Dictionaries and encyclopedias
• Next: E-books >>

Ask Yale Library

My Library Accounts

Find, Request, and Use

Help and Research Support

Visit and Study

Explore Collections

Resources to Find Dissertations: Home

Description.

This page provides links to databases and websites to find dissertations. This includes links to general databases to find dissertations, databases focused on the humanities, foreign dissertations, dissertations on religion, and dissertations hosted by other universities.

General Databases

Humanities dissertations, foreign dissertations, religion dissertations, dissertations of universities, yale divinity library.

Science Dissertations

• Last Updated: Aug 22, 2024 5:30 PM
• URL: https://guides.library.yale.edu/dissertations

Site Navigation

P.O. BOX 208240 New Haven, CT 06250-8240 (203) 432-1775

Yale's Libraries

Bass Library

Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library

Classics Library

Cushing/Whitney Medical Library

Divinity Library

East Asia Library

Gilmore Music Library

Haas Family Arts Library

Lewis Walpole Library

Lillian Goldman Law Library

Marx Science and Social Science Library

Sterling Memorial Library

Yale Center for British Art

SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER

@YALELIBRARY

Yale Library Instagram

Accessibility       Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion      Giving       Privacy and Data Use      Contact Our Web Team    

© 2022 Yale University Library • All Rights Reserved

Dissertation Essentials

• Welcome to Dissertation Essentials

DSE Guides & Templates

Dissertation rubrics, preparing for your cmp course, academic success center services, library dissertation toolbox series, other resources, dissertation essentials webinars.

• Student Experience Feedback Buttons
• Doctoral Record
• Working Ahead Guidelines
• Applied vs Theoretical Doctorates
• Technology Resources
• Published Dissertations
• School of Health Professions
• Scholarly Writing This link opens in a new window
• Qualitative & Quantitative Research Support with the ASC This link opens in a new window
• Library Basic Training for Doctoral Students This link opens in a new window
• Dissertation Toolkit Series with the Library This link opens in a new window
• Template Formatting Help This link opens in a new window
• APA 7th Edition Help This link opens in a new window

Jump to DSE Guide

Need help ask us.

The Dissertation Essentials area houses guides, manuals, and templates to assist you in your doctoral journey.  There is also a section specifically for rubrics for each of the chapters as well as the proposal and manuscript.  Along with these items, there are additional resources provided for the ASC, Library, technology, accessing published dissertations, and even some school specific resources.

• DSE Manual (Previously Handbook) Use this guide throughout the dissertation process to support you in understanding the courses, deliverables, and expectations of students and the dissertation committee.
• Dissertation Proposal/Manuscript Template You will use this templates to write all chapters of the dissertation.
• PhD-DS Dissertation Proposal/Manuscript Template Students in the PhD Data Science program will use this template to write all chapters of the dissertation.
• DSE Dissertation Revision Timeline Use this template to create a timeline for deliverable revisions in the dissertation.
• SOBE Best Practice Guide for Qualitative Research and Design Methods
• SOBE Best Practice Guide in Quantitative Research and Design Methods

If you are working on your CMP course, your course will provide information on how to format your prospectus/portfolio.

• DSE Chapter 1 Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when writing Chapter 1 of your dissertation.
• DSE Chapter 2 Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when writing Chapter 2 of your dissertation.
• DSE Chapter 3 Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when writing Chapter 3 of your dissertation.
• DSE Dissertation Proposal Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when combining Chapters 1-3 into the Dissertation Proposal.
• DSE Chapter 4 Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when writing Chapter 4 of your dissertation.
• DSE Chapter 5 Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when writing Chapter 5 of your dissertation.
• DSE Dissertation Manuscript Rubric Use this rubric to guide you when combing all five of your dissertation chapters to produce your Dissertation Manuscript.

Not yet at the Dissertation phase?  Getting ready for your CMP course?  Check out the CMP Course Frequently Asked Questions document below:

• CMP Course Frequently Asked Questions

Library Dissertation Toolbox Workshop Series

The  Library Dissertation Toolbox Workshop Series  consists of engaging, skill-building workshops designed specifically for doctoral students. Students will learn how to effectively locate, evaluate, and use information relating to their dissertation research topics. Each toolbox session features a new research focus- sign up for the entire series, or just those that most appeal to you:

• Research Process Guide by NU Library Outlines important steps in the research process and covers topics such as evaluating information.
• Managing and Writing the Doctoral Thesis or Dissertation Dr. Linda Bloomberg's newest edition Completing Your Qualitative Dissertation: A Road Map From Beginning to End is out now. This resource includes an interview between Methodspace and Dr. Bloomberg.

Was this resource helpful?

• Next: Doctoral Record >>
• Last Updated: Apr 25, 2024 12:27 PM
• URL: https://resources.nu.edu/c.php?g=1005138

© Copyright 2024 National University. All Rights Reserved.

Privacy Policy | Consumer Information

Dissertation Research—Planning, Researching, Publishing

• Getting Started
• Find Dissertations
• Dissertation Process
• Library Database Searching
• Staying Current
• Qualitative
• Quantitive Research
• Mixed Methods Research
• Dissertation & Fellowship Funding

Searching For Grant Funding

Most foundation funding is awarded to nonprofit organizations, not to individual grantseekers.  However, here are a few search tools for individual grantseekers

• Candid  
• Foundation Directory Online  
• Pivot  
• Grant Forward  
• GrantsNet  

Research Funding

• Social Sciences
• Health Sciences
• Federal Agencies
• Funding for Underrepresented Groups
• American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS)  
• American Philosophical Society (APS)  
• APA Dissertation Research Award Program  
• Charlotte W. Newcombe Doctoral Dissertation Fellowships  
• Dissertation Proposal Development Fellowship (SSRC)  
• Gilder Lehrman Institute of American History  
• Social Science Research Council (SSRC)  
• American Academy of Arts and Sciences Fellowships 
• AERA Dissertation Grants Call for Proposals  
• NAEd Spencer Dissertation Fellowships  
• American Association of School Administrators (AASA)  
• Association for Institutional Research (AIR)  
• Association for the Study of Higher Education (ASHE)  
• Cosmos Scholars: A Grant Program of The Cosmos Club Foundation  
• GW Graduate School of Education and Human Development (GSEHD)  
• Institute of Education Sciences (IES)  
• Institute of International Education (IIE): Fulbright Program  
• U.S. Department of Education  
• Daland Fellowships in Clinical Investigation  
• Directory of Grants and Fellowships in the Global Health Sciences  
• GrantsNet Funding  
• Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI)  
• Postdoctoral Fellowship Program  
• Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: Active Living Research  
• American Musicological Society  
• Art History Fellowships  
• Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR)  
• Grants Programs: Individual Fellowships  
• History of Art: Travel Fellowships  
• Institute of Historical Research (IHR)  
• Office of University Partnerships Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant  
• GW Arts and Sciences Dissertation Funding List  
• Cybercorps Scholarlships  
• National Physical Science Consortium (NPSC)  
• DOD National Defense Science and Engineering Graduate Fellowships  
• National Science Foundation (NSF)  
• Directorate for Biological Sciences  
• Sloan Research Fellowships  
• Van Andel Institute Postdoctoral Program (VARI)  
• HealthResearchFunding.org  
• Grants.gov  
• Housing and Urban Development Doctoral Dissertation Research Grant  
• National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)  
• NIH Postdoctoral Fellowship Program  
• Smithsonian Institute Office of Fellowships  
• U.S. Department of Energy  
• American Indian Graduate Center  
• American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA)  
• Coro Fellows Program in Public Affairs  
• Ford Foundation Diversity Fellowships  
• Scholarships/Internships/Fellowships: United Negro College Fund (UNCF)  
• The Five College Fellowship Program for Minority Scholars  
• Underrepresented Groups  
• Vietnam Education Foundation (VEF)  
• Woodrow Wilson Dissertation Fellowship in Women’s Studies  
• AAUW Dissertation Fellowships  
• Jack Kent Cooke Dissertation Fellowship  

GW Guidelines

Whether you are applying for a research grant or financial assistance, all GW employees, faculty, and students must follow university policy and guidelines.

• Office of the Vice President for Research  
• GW Office of Student Financial Assistance  
• << Previous: ETD at GWU
• Last Updated: Jun 5, 2024 2:48 PM
• URL: https://libguides.gwu.edu/dissertation

• Study and research support
• Academic skills

Dissertation examples

Listed below are some of the best examples of research projects and dissertations from undergraduate and taught postgraduate students at the University of Leeds We have not been able to gather examples from all schools. The module requirements for research projects may have changed since these examples were written. Refer to your module guidelines to make sure that you address all of the current assessment criteria. Some of the examples below are only available to access on campus.

• Undergraduate examples
• Taught Masters examples

• Schools & departments

Dissertations and research projects

General advice and resources to support you throughout your research-based dissertation or project.

This is a general resource to help you with the basics of organising and writing a research-based dissertation or project.  The 'Go further' section at the end includes advice on work-based dissertations and signposts other resources.

You should consult your course or programme information, including online sources, and project supervisor or programme director for subject-specific guidance.

Dissertations and research projects are an opportunity to focus on particular question, and plan and undertake your own research to explore it further.  Many students really enjoy being an independent researcher and becoming the expert on their work.  The format varies depending on the disciplinary context, subject area, your research questions and the project.  You may be reviewing the literature, analysing a novel, developing and testing a new method or doing a work-based project.  However there are some common factors:

• They are an independent piece of work.  You will be working under supervision to some extent and may be collaborating with others, but ultimately you are submitting a piece of independent thought and writing.
• They tend to have a large word count.  This is to allow you to do sufficient in-depth analysis and discussion of the topic.
• They require a large investment of time, thought and energy throughout the process.  As a significant body of academic work, you need to maintain effort whilst reading, researching, thinking, writing and redrafting it.

Choosing your dissertation or project

Whether you are choosing your dissertation from a selection of topics or you are proposing your own, there are a range of factors to consider.  For example:

• What is the starting point for your work, i.e. previous or related research?
• How feasible is your project / proposal?
• Do you have enough time and resources to complete it?
• Will it be of an appropriate academic level?

A key question to ask is “How interested am I in this topic?”  You will be working on your dissertation or project for some time, so having a genuine interest in the topic will help to keep you motivated.  If you have any questions specific to your topic or project, you should ask your supervisor, programme director or another member of staff who teaches you.

Planning your dissertation or research project

A research-based dissertation or project is a large piece of work requiring a high level of critical analysis.  To achieve this you will have to allow time, not just for the researching phase, but also for the writing and editing stages.  You will need to give yourself plenty of time to:

• Read around your topic and undertake background research;
• Digest and think about what you are learning and writing;
• Complete experiments, fieldwork, interviews or project placements;
• Analyse data, findings or results, and interpret them;
• Think about and decide on your conclusions.

Taking a project management approach to your dissertation or research project might be a more effective way to successfully complete it.  The Time management page has tips and tools for organising your time.

Time management webpage and tools

The dissertation and project planner can be used to think about the different stages and help give you an overall view of the process.  There are some general points and questions to act as prompts, spaces you can add your own notes in and some useful tips and resources.

Dissertation and project planner (pdf)                     Dissertation and project planner (rtf)

Writing your dissertation

You should not underestimate the time that should be allocated to writing your dissertation.  Writing will involve planning, background research, drafting, redrafting, and proof-reading and editing.

First draft : Your first draft is about getting words on the page.  For example, it may sketch out your first thoughts, arguments and potential structure.  You can review these and use them to check: are you focussed on the right topics and questions?  Is your structure and line of thought sensible?  This is also a good time to set up your format requirements (e.g. page layouts, references).

Redrafts : Redrafting is where you expand and refine your ideas and argument.  You may also find that as you are writing the direction of your argument changes; for example this could be due to your literature research producing new avenues of thought or your experiments turning up unexpected results.  This is a good time to review the focus of your initial question, and whether your arguments or conclusions are still sensible.

Final draft(s) : Your final draft(s) is where you cast a critical eye over your work and assess how effective it is in communicating your argument and conclusions - does it answer the question?  You should also check that your presentation, spelling and grammar are appropriate and polished, all your references are included, and your are following the appropriate format guidance.

It is a good idea to take a break between writing and reviewing your work.  Try to leave at least a day between writing before you pick it up again, the longer the better.  This allows you to look at your work with an analytical eye, looking for ways to improve.  Imagine you are reading your work as someone who is not so familiar with the topic: would a reader be able to follow and understand your argument?  Do your ideas link?  Have you signposted on from one section to the next?  Remember also to look back at your question/title, does your dissertation address it?  Does it follow a logical structure?

To check the flow of your argument or line of reasoning you can test pieces of your text using set criteria.  To help revise and restructure your text you can make a reverse outline.  Both of these techniques are available on our Editing and proofreading page.

Editing and proofreading

Producing a professional document

Information Services provide information and guidance about how to produce a thesis or dissertation using Microsoft Word.

Producing a thesis or dissertation using Microsoft Word (EASE log in required)

Thesis Hub: Producing your thesis or dissertation in Word

Choosing a reference manager

A referencing management tool can help you to collect and organise and your source material to produce a bibliography or reference list.

Referencing and reference management

Data Mindfulness

As part of your research you will produce and use research data in a variety of forms from quantitative and/or qualitative research.  This may be data you generate yourself or obtained from other researchers, data repositories or public records.  You need to make choices about what you use, handle your data correctly and document all of this process.

The University’s Research Data Service helps staff and students be effective with their research data before, during and after their project.   They have created an introductory handbook on Data Mindfulness for taught students writing a dissertation.  This handbook is accompanied by a set of short videos.  Together these cover topics including what data is, how to store it, file organisation and dealing with your data after your hand-in.  There is advice in the handbook on working with sensitive data and issues such as privacy, confidentiality and disclosure.

Data Mindfulness handbook

Data Mindfulness videos

Work-based dissertations

Many courses and programmes, particularly at Postgraduate level, offer the opportunity to carry out a work-based dissertation.  These opportunities vary between Schools and Programmes but will typically involve students tackling a research question identified by an organisation such as a business, a public sector organisation or a charity.  A work based dissertation project can be invaluable for your employability and for career development.

If you are interested in carrying out a work-based dissertation you may need to start planning earlier than you would for a more traditional academic dissertation.  If your Programme offers this opportunity, you will be given this information at the start of Semester 1.  If you would like to source and set up a dissertation project with an external organisation yourself, you will need to speak with your Programme Director or Course Organiser first.

You can draw on resources developed by the Making the Most of Masters project.

Making the Most of Masters

Work-based projects – advice for students

There are a variety of study guides available on dissertation and project writing.  Books aimed at postgraduate students can also be useful for undergraduates.  Our IAD Resource List has a selection available in University libraries.

Study Skills Guides

This article was published on 2024-02-26

About Us arrow_drop_down expand_more

• News Releases

Our Values arrow_drop_down expand_more

• Diversity & Inclusion
• Accessibility
• Slavery Act Statement

Product Families arrow_drop_down expand_more

Content Solutions expand_more

• Books and Ebooks
• Dissertations
• News & Newspapers
• Primary Sources
• Streaming Video

Products by Subject expand_more

• Health & Medicine
• History & Social Change
• Interdisciplinary
• Science & Technology
• Social Sciences

Popular Products expand_more

Proquest one academic.

• ProQuest One Business
• ProQuest One Education
• ProQuest One Psychology
• ProQuest Black Studies
• Ebooks Offers for Libraries

Library Management expand_more

Discovery services expand_more, resource sharing expand_more, course resource lists expand_more, research management expand_more, mobile solutions expand_more.

• Innovative Mobile

Libraries We Serve expand_more

• Academic Solutions for universities, colleges, and community colleges of all sizes.
• Public Solutions for librarians supporting patrons of public libraries.
• K-12 Solutions for elementary schools, primary schools and high schools.
• Community College Solutions for community colleges, trade schools and two year programs.
• Government Solutions for governmental affairs offices, patent examiners, and grants administrators.
• Corporate Solutions for professionals in the pharmaceutical, legal industries and more.

Solutions For expand_more

• DEI E-Resources
• Print to Electronic
• Reclaiming Your Space
• Library Management
• Library Management – Public Libraries
• Community Engagement
• Content Discovery
• Research Repository
• Digital Preservation
• Resource Sharing
• Document Delivery
• Course Resources

Account Support expand_more

• Setup and Support
• Access Questions
• Renewing a Product
• Paying an Invoice
• Get Usage Data: ProQuest
• Get Usage Data: Alexander Street
• Submitting Dissertations

Idea Exchange

• ProQuest Status Page

Tools & Resources expand_more

• Find a Title List
• Accessibility Documentation
• Open Access

Browse Collections by Subject expand_more

I want to expand_more.

• Start my Research
• Start Text & Data Mining
• Find Research Funding
• Keep up with Research News
• Showcase Research
• See Upcoming Webinars
• Contact Support

I’m Interested In expand_more

• Submitting a Dissertation
• Purchasing a Dissertation
• Assembling Course Materials
• Implementing a Mobile Campus App

Insights expand_more

How text and data mining enables digital literacy in the classroom.

Read about the University of Sydney’s journey to integrate text and data mining (TDM) into its undergraduate courses and incorporate it across disciplines

Meeting Your Needs expand_more

• Graduate Students
• Graduate Administrators

Products & Services expand_more

• ETD Dissemination
• Dissertation & Theses Global
• ETD Dashboard

Resources expand_more

• eLearning Modules
• Expert Advice Articles

Dissertations News expand_more

• Top 25 Most-Accessed Dissertations
• Dissertations Award Winners

Are you a researcher looking for scholarly content? Try searching our platform here...

Language preference

Do you want set this as your default language ?

Connect with ProQuest

Dissertations & theses, proquest: the world leader in dissertation access and dissemination.

Over the last 80 years, ProQuest has built the world’s most comprehensive and renowned dissertations program. ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global (PQDT Global), continues to grow its repository of 5 million graduate works each year, thanks to the continued contribution from the world’s universities, creating an ever-growing resource of emerging research to fuel innovation and new insights.

PQDT Global provides researchers with quality and equitable search results across all institutions, as well as rich citation data that delivers insights into the connections building around the world.

Amplify your Research

Include research with ProQuest to amplify its reach to a vast community of scholars. Submitting is free!

Accelerate your discovery

Subscribe to ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Global to accelerate and focus your discovery journey, resulting in more efficient and effective research.

Analyze your Influence

Analyze the influence and impact of your dissertations and theses globally by monitoring retrieval data from the ProQuest Platform.

Have questions? We've gathered these frequently asked questions about ProQuest Dissertations & Theses.

Free online learning support to inspire and guide

ProQuest has developed on-demand instructional resources for students to use in a virtual learning environment. eLearning Companions are available to support the graduate student during their research and writing process as well as the undergraduate student who is developing their information literacy skills.

Access the Learning Modules

Spotlight on Research

Distinguished Dissertation and Thesis Award Winners

ProQuest sponsors our Graduate students and their ambitions. Click to see detailed author profiles and previous winners

Top 25 Dissertations

See what titles and topics are trending around the globe. Each month ProQuest posts the top 25 Most-Accessed Dissertations and Theses across all subjects, based upon total PDF downloads.

Have an idea for ProQuest? Share, vote and get feedback on ideas in our forums.

Subject Indexing Partners Enhancing Discoverability

Related Products

ProQuest Dissertation & Theses Global

ProQuest Dissertation & Theses Global is the world's most comprehensive curated collection of multi-disciplinary dissertations and theses from around the world.

Empower researchers to uncover new connections and make new discoveries using TDM Studio, a new solution for text and data mining (TDM). From the initial idea to the final output, TDM Studio puts the power of text and data mining directly in the researcher’s hands.

ProQuest One Academic brings together four core multi-disciplinary products, allowing access to the world’s largest curated collection of journals, ebooks, dissertations, news and video.

Dissertation and Thesis

Thesis & dissertation formatting process.

To complete your format check submission, you must complete every registration step and fully submit your thesis or dissertation to the website listed below.

Dissertations and theses turned in as a part of the graduation requirements at Loyola University Chicago must be formatted according to the rules laid out in the Format Manual for Theses and Dissertations created by the Graduate School.

Format Check Submission

To ensure that theses/dissertations are formatted correctly, each thesis/dissertation must undergo a format check by the staff of the Graduate School prior to the submission of final copies. You must  electronically  submit your manuscript for a format check to the Graduate School's  ProQuest ETD Administrator  website ON OR BEFORE the published format check deadline for the term in which you expect to receive your degree.

• May degree conferral format check deadline:  March 1st
• August degree conferral format check deadline:  June 1st
• December degree conferral format check deadline:  October 1st

On or before the format check deadline, please also submit the following items as supplemental pdf files to  ProQuest ETD Administrator  (do not submit them by email):

• One electronic copy of your completed, formatted manuscript
• Formatted approval sheet, with your director's name and space for their signature. You will ultimately replace this file with a scanned copy that's been signed by the director after the defense and after all final edits have been made. This form acts as confirmation that your director has read and approved the final copy.
• Extra title page, formatted as described in the Manual
• One extra abstract, formatted as described in the Manual

Final Copy Submission

Once your dissertation has been defended, formatted correctly, and approved by your committee, you will need to electronically submit your final copy to the Graduate School for approval. You will also need to replace the Approval Sheet with a scanned copy that has been signed by your director.

Your final electronic submission must be uploaded ON OR BEFORE the published final electronic copy deadline for the term in which you expect to receive your degree. The final electronic copy deadlines are as follows:

• May degree conferral final electronic copy deadline:  April 1st
• August degree conferral final electronic copy deadline:  July 1st
• December degree conferral final electronic copy deadline:  November 1st

If your materials are complete or inaccurate, the Graduate School will contact you with a list of required corrections. If required corrections are too extensive or take too long to complete, you may not graduate and the Graduate School will not confer your degree. For this reason, please make every effort to format your manuscript correctly, include all of the materials listed above, and to meet the published deadlines. Also, please keep in mind that a dissertation or thesis is only one of your degree requirements, and that the Graduate School will not confer your degree unless you meet all of these requirements.

Students must submit final copies with approved revisions within one semester of a successful defense (e.g., if a student’s defense falls within a Fall semester, their final copies must meet the Spring semester submission deadlines). After one full semester a student may be discontinued and be required to apply for reinstatement (Approved 4 May 2021)

Visit the  for answers to new questions about the electronic submission process.

• Format Manual for Theses and Dissertations  -  Note: The Formatting Manual was updated in September 2022. If you have any questions about the formatting guidelines, or if you need a copy of the former manual, please  email the formatting assistant , Danielle Richards.
• Format Checklist Copy (Clean)
• Formatting Examples

Questions regarding the format check and the final copy submission process should be directed  here .

Information Sessions

The Graduate School hosts two info-sessions each semester about the thesis and dissertation formatting process. Make sure to follow weekly Graduate School Announcements emails for more information.

Publishing Your Work: Thesis and Dissertation Formatting Workshop (Recorded January 14, 2021)

• Instructions for Thesis and Dissertation
• Approval Ballot for Text and Oral Defense

The Thesis/Dissertation Committee Form, Thesis/Dissertation Proposal Ballot, and the Request for Change in Degree-Seeking Status are located in the Graduate Student Progress System at  GSPS . Please log in to submit these forms. Medical Center Biomedical Science Students MUST Use LUHS Forms.

Publication

Before publication:.

LUC's University Libraries:  If relevant articles, book chapters, and books are not accessible through the library's online catalogue, they can be requested through InterLibrary Loan.

Zotero:  No matter what citation format you use, this free citation software can help save and format citations for use in your article.

Scimago Journal & Country Rank:  To find out the ranking of peer-reviewed journals in your particular discipline before you submit, go to this website.

LUC's Writing Center : Make an appointment with a graduate tutor to have your work reviewed at any stage of the writing or revision process. Often an article will be accepted for publication but an editor requires various corrections. An extra pair of eyes can be useful.

After publication:

GSPS:  Make sure to update publications through this LUC site; submitted entries will be reviewed, approved, and recorded by your GPD.

Google Scholar:  Various peer-reviewed articles and publications found on the internet will be linked to the student's account, which can be created by going to this site and clicking on "My Profile."

ORCiD:  Creating a free ORCiD ID will allow peer-reviewed publications to be linked across digital platforms with this persistent signifier.

Publishing conventions vary widely across disciplines; some graduate students may publish as single authors while others, particularly in the sciences, may be one of several authors collaborating on a project and its resulting published study. When seeking peer-reviewed publication opportunities, one of the best methods is to consult with professors in your department about how to publish and locate journals reputable in your field of study.

Besides helping you avoid scams and predatory publishing through their advice, faculty can also provide you with useful information about the publishing process and direct you to discipline-specific online listservs hosting frequent Calls for Papers.

The following list details other publication resources for graduate students:

Our website is being updated this week; thank you for your patience.

Dissertation Instructions

The dissertation is an original piece of scholarly research on a topic that has been jointly agreed upon by the student and her/his Supervisory Committee members. It is a major undertaking that should reflect the highest standards of scholarship and make a significant contribution to knowledge and practice in the field of social welfare and the profession of social work.

“A candidate must present a dissertation demonstrating original and independent investigation and achievement. A dissertation should reflect not only mastery of research techniques but also ability to select an important problem for investigation and to deal with it competently.” ( University of Washington Graduate School )

Dissertation Research

After the dissertation prospectus has been approved by the Supervisory Committee and the PhD Steering Committee, the student normally works primarily under the direction of the chair. The extent to which other members are involved during the course of the dissertation research is determined on a case-by-case basis. If a dissertation study significantly changes as it progresses from that originally approved in the Prospectus by the Supervisory Committee and Steering Committee, the changes must be reviewed and approved by the Reading Committee members of the Supervisory Committee. 1

Dissertation Research Colloquium

At some point during the dissertation process each candidate is required to make a 30-minute presentation of her/his research at a Dissertation Colloquium. 2 The colloquium is an open assembly of Social Welfare Faculty, PhD students, and others (e.g., faculty from the School of Social Work and other departments, MSW and BASW students, and community persons) who have interest in the proposed research. The Dissertation Colloquium provides (1) a forum for the productive and timely exchange of ideas, suggestions, and resources with doctoral candidates as they work on their first major independent research endeavor and (2) an opportunity for doctoral candidates to articulate to others their research goals, plans, and questions. The timing of the colloquium will depend on the specific needs of each student and be determined by the student and Supervisory Committee. Two options are available:

• At any point during the dissertation research process when the student and Supervisory Committee determine that a public presentation of the research and findings would be useful for the student. (This could be as a practice job talk or for the general purpose of sharing the research with the community.) The student’s Supervisory Committee is typically in attendance, and one member serves as discussant and facilitator of the Colloquium.
• As an opening presentation during the Oral Dissertation Defense. (If this option is chosen the Social Work community must be invited to the presentation. Note: Graduate School guidelines recommend that at least a portion of the Oral Dissertation Defense be open to the public.)

Consistent with the program’s emphasis on providing opportunities for students to strengthen their skills in presenting their work, students are strongly encouraged to invite not only social work faculty and students but also any other relevant university colleagues or community members to attend the Colloquium. At least two weeks prior to the date of the Colloquium the student sends an email announcement with the presentation information and an abstract.

Writing and Submitting the Dissertation

Two general formats have been approved by the Graduate School and the social welfare faculty. The first, more traditional within the Arts and Sciences, is the monograph or ‘book’ format for a dissertation. In this format, the dissertation is organized as an integrated set of chapters written as a logical progression of ideas pertaining to a central topic. The second dissertation format, more prevalent in the health sciences, is a series of three to four research papers that may differ in topic but are clearly reflective of a coherent program of research. (*When the dissertation is composed of a set of research papers that are inclusive of co-authored manuscripts, the candidate must be the primary contributor and lead author on all published papers.) Each format has advantages and disadvantages having to do with publication goals and career plans, and these should be carefully considered by the candidate in consultation with his/her dissertation committee.

For instructions on formatting the Dissertation, follow the School of Social Work Dissertation Style Guidelines . Also referenced in the guidelines document are templates for the required preliminary pages and for paragraph styles . The final dissertation must be submitted to the Doctoral Program Office for approval before it is submitted to the Graduate School, thus students need to contact the Program Office during the final stages of writing to ensure that all the guidelines are understood and complied with. For submitting the final to the Graduate School, students must follow the procedures outlined in the Graduate School’s Dissertation Submission Guidelines for Theses and Dissertations. This document outlines the process for submission of doctoral dissertations.

All members of the Supervisory Committee must be provided a draft of the dissertation chapters at least 6 weeks in advance of the Oral Defense and a complete draft of the dissertation (with all required sections) at least 2 weeks in advance of the Defense. 2

Resources for Dissertation Research and Writing

All-But-Dissertation Survival Guide This monthly newsletter provides practical strategies for successfully completing your doctoral dissertation, periodic interviews with scholars about the tips they wish they’d known at the beginning of their own careers, and teleworkshops.

Phinished A discussion and support site aimed at helping people finish their dissertations.

Summary Notes of Writing for Social Scientists Presents an outline of Howard S. Becker’s suggestions for writing. Taken from his book, Writing for Social Scientists: How to Start and Finish Your Thesis, Book, or Article (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1986).

Thinking About Your Thesis This article by Erika Simpson provides guidelines for finishing a thesis or dissertation.

Writing and Presenting Your Thesis or Dissertation This article by S. Joseph Levine provides guidelines for thinking about a thesis or dissertation, writing a proposal, completing the project, and defending it..

Final Program Office Check

Before scheduling the oral defense, the student must contact the PhD Program Assistant Director for a final degree check, which will be done via email. This will ensure that all degree requirements have been met.

SSW Approval of the Dissertation

Once the entire dissertation is complete, it must be submitted it to the School of Social Work Doctoral Program Office for approval before submitting the final to the Graduate School. Each document will be checked page-by-page, and notations made of all errors to be fixed.

As a general guideline, the SSW check should be arranged at least 2 weeks prior to the time the final will be submitted to the Graduate School. For formatting guidelines, see the School of Social Work Dissertation Style Guidelines . Contact the PhD Program Assistant Director in advance to request this check. Provide electronic files for checking instead of paper copy. This check can usually be accomplished in 1-2 working days if scheduled in advance.

Final Examination: Oral Defense

When the dissertation is complete and the doctoral Supervisory Committee agrees that the candidate is prepared to take the Final Examination (Oral D efense), the Program Director, Assistant Director, and Graduate School must be informed of the decision . 3

All members of the Supervisory Committee must be provided an initial draft of all chapters at least 6 weeks prior to the Oral Defense and a complete draft of the dissertation (with all required sections) at least 2 weeks in advance of the Defense. 4

All members of the Supervisory Committee (including the GSR) must be consulted by the student and approve the date, time, and location for the Oral Defense. The student then logs in to MyGrad to request scheduling of the Defense . (This must be done at least 2 weeks prior to the date of the oral defense.) As soon as the request is made, the student must send an email to the Assistant Director of the Social Welfare Program indicating that the request has been made (the MyGrad system tells students that the departments are being notified, but that’s not true). The Assistant Director will approve the request through MyGrad.

The Final Oral Defense is intended as an opportunity for the student to clarify, elaborate, or justify the procedures used and the findings obtained. At least four members of the Supervisory Committee (including the Chair, all other members of the Reading Committee, and the GSR) must be present at the defense, and all members of the Reading Committee (composed of at least 3 members of the Supervisory Committee, including the Chair) must approve the final product. (The GSR must be there in person; any other members may participate by phone or video-conferencing.) The student may choose to present the public Dissertation Colloquium as part of the Defense (see Dissertation Colloquium section above).

The defense session is normally about 2 hours. The committee Chair completes the Dissertation Evaluation Form . After the defense has been conducted, the committee may approve the dissertation or require the student to make additional modifications or additions. Upon a successful defense and acceptance of the dissertation by the SSW and the Graduate School, the PhD in Social Welfare is conferred.

The Reading Committee approves a dissertation through an online process. All members of a Committee must log into MyGrad Committee View , including non-UW Reading Committee Members. Members log in using their UW NetIDs and will see the option to approve the dissertation after the student’s final exam has been scheduled. Any non-UW Reading Committee members must obtain a UW NetID when the join the committee. The PhD Program GPA can assist in this process.

Participating in Commencement Exercises

Consistent with the eligibility criteria for participation in the University of Washington’s June commencement exercises, individuals are eligible for participation in the School of Social Work’s June commencement exercises if the doctoral degree has been earned during the preceding Summer, or the Fall or Winter term of the current academic year. Alternatively, if a doctoral candidate has a reasonable expectation of graduating in either Spring or Summer of the current academic year he/she may choose to participate. ‘Reasonable expectation of graduation’ is interpreted as having progressed sufficiently in the writing of a dissertation that is of sufficient academic standard that there is strong consensus by the candidate’s Reading Committee that a dissertation defense can be scheduled in sufficient time for graduation by the end of the Summer term (after the commencement exercises).

The PhD Program Director must approve commencement participation for any student who has not completed all requirements, including submission of the final dissertation to the Graduate School.

• For information on participating in the School of Social Work commencement . To apply and participate in the University of Washington’s June commencement exercises go to the Graduation, Commencement, and Diplomas page .
• Approved by Steering Committee, 5/26/98.
• Approved by the PhD Steering Committee, 11/6/2012.
• Graduate School revisions in General Examination and Defense Process instituted May 2009.
• Approved by Steering Committee, 12/7/2010.

• U of T Libraries
• U of T Home
• Campus Maps

• TSpace Repository
• School of Graduate Studies - Theses
• Doctoral Theses (2009 - )

The Holocaust and Mass Violence in the German-Occupied City of Rostov-on-Don, 1941-1943

• Rowe-McCulloch_Maris_Katherine_202006_PhD_thesis.pdf

Permanent link

https://hdl.handle.net/1807/121504

• Show complete metadata
• Show Statistics

Items in TSpace are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.

Jump to main content

Explore the latest news from the university of Northern Colorado.

Sowing Seeds of Change: Cultivating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion in Sport and Exercise Science Higher Education

Doctoral student's dissertation evaluates effectiveness of adding DEI course to undergraduate curriculum.

September 3, 2024 | By Brenda Gillen

Jenna Altomare, a doctoral student in the University of Northern Colorado's Social Psychology of Sport and Physical Activity program , is incorporating a social justice lens into her degree. She arrived at UNC determined to provide support for the LGBTQ+ community and has since broadened her scope to a variety of marginalized groups.

During her university search, a phone call with Professor Scott Douglas in the College of Natural and Health Sciences ' Department of Kinesiology, Nutrition and Dietetics convinced Altomare her research would find support at UNC. Now, Douglas is her dissertation adviser.

"Growing up, I faced hate and discrimination simply for being myself. This personal experience inspired my master's thesis, a meta-analysis on LGBTQ+ safe spaces and inclusion, driven by my deep passion for supporting others like me," she said.

One way she's found to help others is by designing and teaching a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) course.

"The DEI course prepared undergraduate students in Sport and Exercise Science programs for their future work by learning about social justice advocacy, allyship, privilege and bias," Altomare said.

In her dissertation, "Integrating Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Into an Undergraduate Sport and Exercise Science Program: A Holistic Case Study Utilizing Social Justice Education," she'll use multiple data sources to evaluate the course's development, implementation and impact. Some epiphanies occurred during the pilot class last spring. One student learned how to support their transgender and non-binary friends, and several others said they'd never before considered themselves as having privilege.

"I believe my dissertation will demonstrate the significant need for this class and the substantial benefits students derived from its content. This course offers valuable insights to students across all degree programs and students from various backgrounds, religions and cultures,” she said. 

Her dissertation topic meets Douglas' challenge to his doctoral students to do something unique and “change the world.”

"Jenna wants to dig into this subject matter and change things for the better for athletes who are different. She's very curious and wants to do things right, so she takes feedback and incorporates it into her teaching and research. One strength is her willingness to learn. I'm her adviser, but she's actually the expert in transgender athletes in sport. I want to hear what she's thinking, and then we discuss it logically and how it might present in a research project or in her teaching. I give her tidbits, little nuggets from my own experience to help enhance what she's learning about how to teach," Douglas said.

He believes her work has the potential to help coaches overcome their biases and become more accepting of coaching everyone. He noted discussions about making the DEI class available for UNC students in other majors.

"My mantra is 'sport for all.' As an athlete with a disability, I had to break into that world from a different angle. Sport is growing, but we're excluding a lot of people. It's important that we change the world through the benefits of sport, and then hopefully it trickles positively to the rest of society, and we start to get more inclusive sport environments," Douglas said.

Besides her role as a student, Altomare has worked as a graduate instructor, graduate assistant for the Graduate School and office assistant at the Campus Recreation Center. She's certified in teaching, personal training and CPR. Additionally, she's on the U.S. Center for Coaching Excellence's DEI committee, serves on the Society of Health and Physical Educators (SHAPE) board and is a member of the UNC Unified club, which is a Special Olympics Colorado affiliate.

She describes her work as "spreading seeds" and gave an example of how she made the happy discovery of one taking root. After explaining gender-neutral locker rooms and why they're essential in her first SHAPE conference presentation, she learned the following year that a prior attendee had convinced their school to provide them for students. In 2021 and 2023, SHAPE published her articles "LGBTQ+ Diversity and Representation in Health and Physical Activity" and "Transgender-Inclusive Physical Education." After graduating next year, Altomare aims to continue educating about these topics through speeches and written works.

She said one stunning statistic drives her passion: An LGBTQ+ youth with one safe adult in their life — someone they can trust, talk to or lean on — is 40% less likely to commit suicide.

"If I can help coaches and teachers learn how to support these individuals, hopefully, they could be that person for someone and that could save a life," Altomare said.

More Stories

Student Researcher Examines Effectiveness of 'Systems Thinking' Teaching Approach in Chemical Education

Este artículo no está en español..

Student Researcher Aims to Bring Joy Back to Classroom Teachers

Teacher Burnout Addressed in Research Project Investigating Yoga as an Intervention Strategy

Research in Cognition and Metacognition Aims to Improve Mathematical Communication

Follow unc social.

Contact UNC

Social media.

• UNC Overview
• Awards & Accolades
• Organizational Chart
• Strategic Plan
• Accreditation
• Student Consumer Information
• Sustainability
• Accessibility Statement
• UNC Newsroom
• Events Calendar
• UNC Magazine
• Submit News
• Submit an Event
• Marketing and Communications
• University Advancement

Page Last Updated: Today | Contact for this Page: Deanna Herbert

Privacy Policy | Affirmative Action/Equal Employment Opportunity/Title IX Policy & Coordinator

Brendan Haidinger wins 2024 Dissertation Prize

The Prize Committee at the Center for Austrian Studies is pleased to announce that its 2024 Dissertation Prize has been awarded to Brendan Haidinger for his dissertation, Civil Society and State Security in Central Europe, 1770-1830 . 

From the Laudatio:  

Haidinger explores the transformation of the concept of Polizei in Central Europe from a cameralist, administrative one to one grounded in state security. Although spurred on by the events of the French Revolution, this transformation actually began in the early years of Empress Maria Theresa’s reign and became more defined during the decade preceding the revolution. Haidinger also looks at how policing continued to develop after the fall of Napoleon. In so doing, he illustrates continuities that are often missed. Another commendable feature of Haidinger’s work is his juxtaposition of changes in the Habsburg monarchy with similar developments in Prussia, Bavaria, and Habsburg Italy; he demonstrates persuasively that the existence of secret societies and the fear they elicited from conservative governments contributed to the development of policing, including the secret police, throughout Central Europe. Haidinger draws extensively from archival collections in Vienna, Berlin, and Munich to support his compelling argument.

Haidinger’s work is timely as policing has become a pivotal subject in today’s world. Recent debates on how to change policing culture and structure to make it more suited to citizens’ needs demonstrate the salience of Haidinger’s topic. By tracing the development of policing in the period under consideration, this dissertation demonstrates not only the importance of Polizeiwissenschaft but also how the police in the regions under consideration came to assume such wide roles ranging from forest management to price regulation and policing criminality.  

Haidinger also offers us a study that demonstrates a command of archival sources and secondary literature. The work is methodologically sophisticated and suitably comparative; it allows for effective contextualization of the Austrian circumstances. No less important is the fact that he has written a manuscript that is well-organized and a pleasure to read.  

Haidinger's dissertation is available online through ProQuest (via subscription) 

About the Recipient: Dr. Brendan Haidinger is from Binghamton, NY, and is currently an adjunct Professor of History at the University of Delaware where he teaches courses on modern European History.  His research focuses on Central Europe’s  Sattelzeit  (1750-1850) and the impact of revolutionary upheaval on the political culture of German-speaking Europe.  Dr. Haidinger’s interests more generally include the origins of democratic practice in Europe and the various state responses to increased political participation.  His research has been supported by the Social Science Research Council, the Masséna Society, and the Central European Historical Society.  He is currently planning a research trip to the Czech Republic where he hopes to address questions regarding Vienna’s relationship to its provinces during the revolutionary and post-Napoleonic eras.  

Related News

Voices of Vienna Scholarship Recipient Performs at Vienna's Musikverein

Yuwen Sun, who is completing a doctorate in the University of Minnesota's School of Music, performed in Mozart's Così fan tutte in Summer 2024

CAS Participates in Austrian Studies Centres Conference in Budapest

CAS was one of nine Austrian Studies centers located at various universities around the world that participated in the conference.

CAS 2023-24 Annual Report Now Available

The annual report highlights the Center's activities from the prior year

More Austrian Studies News

• How to Contact Us
• Library & Collections
• Business School
• Things To Do

DurhamARCTIC announces winners of 2024 dissertation competition

• Media release

Max Whelan, a 2024 graduate from the BSc Geography programme, has been awarded the first-place prize in the annual DurhamARCTIC Arctic Dissertation Award competition for his dissertation ‘Glacial Change on Bylot Island: An Investigation into Glacier Terminus Migration and the Controls Thereon (1985-2020)’. Other awardees were Francesca Milton-Jones and Lily Thompson.

Whelan’s dissertation used high-resolution satellite imagery to analyse the dynamics of terminus migration on 17 glaciers on Bylot Island in the Canadian Arctic. As Whelan noted when submitting his dissertation for consideration, ‘By tracking glacier terminus retreat, this study contributes to more accurate projections of future glacier meltwater input into the oceans, which is essential for predicting sea-level rise’.

The review panel praised Whelan for a thesis that ‘shows both scholarly originality and excellence, as well as contributing to a gap in the spatial glacial literature by providing longer-term information on the dynamics of glaciers in this part of the Canadian Arctic’.

Whelan intends to work with his supervisor, Dr Rachel Oien, in revising the dissertation for publication.

Second place: Francesca Milton-Jones

The second-place prize was awarded to Francesca Milton-Jones for her Geography BSc dissertation ‘An Updated Assessment of the Status of Mountain Glaciers across the Lyngen Peninsula: Response to 21 st -Century Proglacial Lake Expansion and Climatic Forcing’.

Researching a phenomenon that she first observed during a visit to Norway’s Lyngen Peninsula during her fieldtrip for the third-year Geography Arctic module, Milton-Jones calculated that the peninsula could anticipate deglaciation by 2080, approximately 45 years earlier than previously thought. As Milton-Jones noted when submitting her dissertation to the awards panel, although her study is, in one sense, highly localised, her findings ‘contribute to broader discussions regarding Arctic governance, resource management, and geopolitical stability…[because] a stronger understanding of glacier change among policymakers is paramount to heighten the importance of environmental protection in global politics, reconceptualising the Arctic as a space dedicated to peace and science’.

The review panel noted that, in addition to ‘challeng[ing] previous outcomes which linked precipitation and glacier mass balance [and] thus contributing to creating new knowledge in the field’, the research ‘also demonstrates a critical understanding of how scientific biases, data gaps and limitations, and developments in technology play a role in shaping knowledge of glacial change’.

Milton-Jones’ dissertation was supervised by Dr Nick Cox in the Department of Geography.

Third place: Lily Thompson

The third-place prize was awarded to Geography BSc graduate Lily Thompson for her dissertation ‘Navigating the Polar Frontier: Exploring the Effects of Sea-Ice Decline on Shipping and Sea Routes in the Arctic’.

Combining a physical geographic analysis of sea ice trends with an analysis of wider political and social conditions in the region, Thompson identifies a historic correlation between declining sea ice and increased Arctic shipping, although she notes that predictions about the future are complicated by economic and political factors. The review panel commended the dissertation for ‘demonstrat[ing] a thorough grasp of sea ice as a phenomenon, historical and recent changes in its aerial distribution, and potential future scenarios [as well as how] physical changes in sea ice are linked to technological, scientific, and socio-political developments and how these impact travel in and through the Arctic’.

Thompson’s dissertation was supervised by Prof David Bridgland in the Department of Geography.

The DurhamARCTIC Arctic Dissertation Award is an annual competition to promote and celebrate the rich diversity of Arctic-orientated research and teaching at Durham University. It is open to all Durham graduates who receive a 1:1 on an Arctic-themed dissertation and provides cash prizes of up to £600. The annual submission deadline is 1 July. More information can be found here .

DurhamARCTIC is grateful for the services of the 2024 review panel: DurhamARCTIC-supported PhD graduates Giuseppe Amatulli (Anthropology), Ilona Kater (Biosciences), and Laura Seddon (Geography).

The Department of Political Science

Phd candidate iván ruiz-hernández wins fulbright-hays fellowship.

PhD Candidate Iván Ruiz-Hernández was awarded the Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad . The Fellowship will support Iván’s dissertation research in Mexico. Congratulations, Iván!

Specific features of organic matter in urban soils of Rostov-on-Don

• Soil Chemistry
• Published: 14 August 2014
• Volume 47 , pages 792–800, ( 2014 )

Cite this article

• S. N. Gorbov 1 &
• O. S. Bezuglova 1  

110 Accesses

20 Citations

Explore all metrics

Data on the fractional and group composition of humus in urban soils of Rostov-on-Don are discussed. We have compared the humus profiles of chernozems under tree plantations and those buried under anthropogenic deposits (including sealed chernozems under asphalt). It is shown that the type of humus in these soils remains stable despite a decrease in its total content after the long-term burial under asphalt. Under the impact of the trees, the organic matter of the chernozems acquired some features typical of gray forest soils, i.e., the humate-fulvate type of humus in the humus horizon and the sharp drop in the humus content down the soil profile.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Subscribe and save.

• Get 10 units per month
• Download Article/Chapter or eBook
• 1 Unit = 1 Article or 1 Chapter
• Cancel anytime

Price includes VAT (Russian Federation)

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Rent this article via DeepDyve

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

Organic Matter and Elemental Composition of Humic Acids in Soils of Urban Areas: The Case of Rostov Agglomeration

Physical properties of soils in Rostov agglomeration

Soil organic matter in the moscow state university botanical garden on the vorob’evy hills.

B. P. Akhtyrtsev, Gray Forest Soils of Central Russia (Voronezh, 1979) [in Russian].

Google Scholar  

O. S. Bezuglova, “Composition of humus in chernozems and chestnut soils of Rostov oblast,” Pochvovedenie, No. 12, 70–74 (1978).

O. S. Bezuglova, S. N. Gorbov, and V. V. Privalenko, “The humus profile and the microelemental composition of soils in the recreational areas of Rostov-on-Don,” Eur. Soil Sci. 33 (9), 1001–1006 (2000).

O. S. Bezuglova, S. N. Gorbov, I. V. Morozov, and D. G. Nevidomskaya, Urbopedology (Izd. YuFU, Rostov-on-Don, 2012) [in Russian].

O. S. Bezuglova and N. V. Yudina, “Interrelationship between the physical properties and the humus content of chernozems in the south of European Russia,” Eur. Soil Sci. 39 (2), 187–194 (2006).

Article   Google Scholar  

M. S. Bruk, “On the evolution of chernozems under human impact,” Pochvovedenie, No. 3, 3–12 (1975).

M. I. Gerasimova, “Micromorphological diagnostics of elementary pedogenetic processes,” Pochvovedenie, No. 11, 105 (1985).

M. I. Gerasimova and T. L. Bystritskaya, “The impact of land use on the microfabric of ordinary chernozems,” in Micromorphology of Anthropogenically Transformed Soils ( (Nauka, Moscow, 1988), pp. 46–55 [in Russian].

M. I. Gerasimova, M. N. Stroganova, N. V. Mozharova, and T. V. Prokof’eva, Anthropogenic Soils: Genesis, Geography, and Rehabilitation (Oikumena, Smolensk, 2003) [in Russian].

F. Ya. Gavrilyuk, Chernozems of the Western CisCaucasus (Kharkov, 1955) [in Russian].

S. N. Gorbov, Extended Abstract of Candidate’s Dissertation in Biology (Rostov-on-Don, 2002).

S. N. Gorbov and O. S. Bezuglova, “Elemental composition of humic acids in urbanized soils,” Pochvovedenie, No. 11, 1316–1324 (2013).

N. V. Goryainova, Extended Abstract of Candidate’s Dissertation in Biology (Moscow, 1995).

M. I. Dergacheva, Soil Organic Matter: Statics and Dynamics (by the Example of Western Siberia) (Novosibirsk, 1984) [in Russian].

S. A. Zakharov, Soils of Rostov Oblast and Their Agronomic Characterization (Rostov-on-Don, 1946) [in Russian].

D. S. Orlov, Soil Humus Acids and a General Theory of Humification (Moscow, 1990) [in Russian].

D. S. Orlov and M. F. Ovchinnikova, “Different forms of nitrogen compounds in sierozem, chernozem, and soddy-podzolic soil,” Agrokhimiya, No. 1, 35–44 (1966).

T. A. Plotnikova and N. E. Orlova, “Application of a modified scheme of Ponomareva-Plotnikova for determination of the composition, nature, and properties of soil humus,” Pochvovedenie, No. 8, 120–130 (1984).

V. V. Ponomareva and T. A. Plotnikova, Humus and Soil Formation (Nauka, Leningrad, 1980) [in Russian].

A. I. Popov, Humic Substances: Properties, Structure, and Origin (Izd. SPbGU, St. Petersburg, 2004) [in Russian].

T. V. Prokof’eva, S. A. Sedov, M. N. Stroganova, and A. A. Kazdym, “An experience of the micromorphological diagnostics of urban soils,” Eur. Soil Sci. 34 (7), 783–792 (2001).

T. V. Prokof’eva, M. S. Rozanova, and V. O. Poputnikov, “Some features of soil organic matter in parks and adjacent residential areas of Moscow,” Eur. Soil Sci. 46 (3), 273–283 (2013).

M. N. Stroganova, A. D. Myagkova, and T. V. Prokof’eva, “The role of soils in urban ecosystems,” Eur. Soil Sci. 30 (1), 82–86 (1997).

V. A. Kholodov, A. I. Konstantinov, E. Yu. Belyaeva, N. A. Kulikova, A. V. Kiryushin, I. V. Perminova, “Stroenie guminovykh kislot, izvlekaemykh v khode posledovatel’noi shchelochnoi ekstraktsii iz tipichnogo chernozema,” Pochvovedenie, No. 10, 1177–1183 (2009).

S. N. Chukov, Strukturno-funktsional’nye parametry organicheskogo veshchestva pochv v usloviyakh antropogennogo vozdeistviya (Izd-vo SPbGU, St. Petersburg, 2001) [in Russian].

W. Burghardt, “Urban Soils and Construction Sites,” Encyclopedia of soil cience. N.Y., USA: Marcel Dekker, 1362–1366 (2002).

L. B. Byrne, “Habitat Structure: a Fundamental Concept and Framework for Urban Soil Ecology,” Urban Ecosyst 10 , 255–274 (2007).

A. Chabbi, C. Rumpel, and I. Kogel-Knabner, “Stabilised Carbon in Subsoil Horizons Is Located in Spatially Distinct Parts of the Soil Profile,” Soil Biol. Biochem. 41 , 256–261 (2009).

E. Gruneberg, I. Schoning, E. K. V. Kalko, and W. W. Weisser, “Regional Organic Carbon Stock Variability: A Comparison Between Depth Increments and Soil Horizons,” Geoderma 155 , 426–433 (2010).

I. Kögel-Knabner, “Analytical Approaches for Characterizing Soil Organic Matter,” Organic Geochemistry 31 , 609–625 (2000).

I. Kögel-Knabner, “The Macromolecular Organic Composition of Plant and Microbial Residues As Inputs To Soil Organic Matter,” Soil Biol. Biochem. 34 , 139–162 (2002).

K. Lorenz and E. Kandeler, Biochemical Charaterization of Urban Soil Profiles From (Germany // Soil Biol. Biochem, Stuttgart, 2005), Vol. 37.

K. Lorenz and R. Lal, “Biogeochemical C and N Cycles in Urban Soils,” Environment International 35 , 1–8 (2009).

R. Pouyat, P. Groffman, I. Yesilonis, and L. Hernandez, “Soil Carbon Pools and Fluxes in Urban Ecosystems,” Environ. Pollut. 116 , 107–118 (2002).

I. V. Perminova, F. H. Frimmel, A. V. Kudryavtsev, N. A. Kulikova, G. Abbt-Braun, S. Hesse, V. S. Petrosyan, “Molecular Weight Characteristics of Aquatic, Soil, and Peat Humic Substances As Determined by Size Exclusion Chromatography and Their Statistical Evaluation,” Environ. Sci. Technol. 37 , 2477–2485 (2003).

M. W. I. Schmidt, J. O. Skjemstad, E. Gehrt, and I. Kögel-Knabner, “Charred Organic Carbon in German Chernozemic Soils,” Eur. J. Soil Sci 50 , 351–365 (1999).

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Southern Federal University, ul. B. Sadovaya 105, Rostov-on-Don, 344006, Russia

S. N. Gorbov & O. S. Bezuglova

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to S. N. Gorbov .

Additional information

Original Russian Text © S.N. Gorbov, O.S. Bezuglova, 2014, published in Pochvovedenie, 2014, No. 8, pp. 953–962.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Gorbov, S.N., Bezuglova, O.S. Specific features of organic matter in urban soils of Rostov-on-Don. Eurasian Soil Sc. 47 , 792–800 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064229314080043

Download citation

Received : 29 July 2013

Published : 14 August 2014

Issue Date : August 2014

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1134/S1064229314080043

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• ordinary chernozem
• urban soils
• sealed urbanozem
• fractional-group composition of the humus
• micromorphological features
• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

Graduate Thesis, Dissertation, and Capstone Project for SY 2024-2025 for GBSEALD, SOH, JGSOM, SOSE & SOSS

05 Sep 2024 | Office of the Assistant Vice President for Graduate Education

In the past six years, the Graduate Programs Committee and Office of the Assistant Vice President for Graduate Education in partnership with graduate students, various offices, schools, departments, and programs, have worked hard to improve our graduate research ecosystem. We have updated some of our policies and procedures based on research, benchmarking, reviews, and feedback from everyone involved.

May I direct your attention to the following changes that will be implemented beginning SY 2024-2025: 

A. TDCP I Enrollment

To allow graduate students to be formally part of the adviser's writing group or research laboratory and to facilitate early preparation for publications, the School Council approved the following policy last 24 May 2024:

1. Students are eligible to enroll in Thesis I/ Dissertation I/Capstone Project (TDCP 1) after completion of all coursework, Practicum/ Internship, and Comprehensive Exams.

2. Students are permitted to enroll in a colloquium or seminar course (cat. No. 290-291/ 390-391) whose outcomes are the production of parts of the TDCP concurrently with TDCP I provided that these courses were indicated in the approved curriculum.

B. Grading Rubric for Master's Thesis

1. To enhance the evaluation process for the thesis, the School Council approved the new thesis grading rubric last 24 May 2024. This tool is designed to be easy-to-use, robust, and customizable, ensuring it aligns with our high standards for academic excellence. By implementing this rubric, we aim to provide a consistent and comprehensive assessment framework that supports both students and faculty in achieving their research goals.

2. As approved, the revised weight for written work is 80% while oral defense is 20%.  Please take note too that the criteria for written work and oral presentation have been revised (see table below).

3. The School Council also approved the minimum standard in evaluating a master’s thesis.  Kindly refer to the Criteria, levels of performance, and descriptors for grading the thesis WRITTEN work and ORAL presentation & defense for the complete descriptions. The percentage for each sub-criterion for Written Work and Oral Defense shall be determined per School . Furthermore, the schools may decide to elaborate further and/or set a higher standard than the minimum required. Deans are therefore requested to submit the percentages to be used by their respective schools to the Office of the Assistant Vice President for Graduate Education and Office of the University Registrar for implementation on or before 26 September 2024 . A sample computation is provided here for your reference.

NOTE: The Grading Rubrics for Dissertations and Capstone Projects are next to be drafted for proposal to the school body.'

C. New and Revised TDCP-Related Forms

All students are expected to submit original work for their Theses, Dissertations, or Capstone Projects. The work must be written in its entirety by the student, with proper and accurate referencing for any borrowed content. Students must ensure their submissions do not contain copied, paraphrased, translated, or summarized content from any other sources, including their previous works. To ensure that all research and writing must adhere to the highest standards of academic integrity, ethical conduct, and copyright laws, students will be required to submit the following forms beginning SY 2024-2025: 

1. Declaration of Originality of TDCP - Single Authorship (new) 

2.  Declaration of Originality of Capstone Project - Group Authorship (new)

3.  RL License and Declaration for Graduate Thesis, Dissertation, and Capstone Project (revised)

The forms have been developed and reviewed together with the University Legal and Compliance Office, Office of the Assistant Vice President for Research, Creative Work, and Innovation, Ateneo Intellectual Property Office, and Rizal Library. These are aligned with relevant policies of Ateneo de Manila University, such as the Ateneo Intellectual Property Policy , Academic Integrity Policy , Research Ethics Policy , and the Thesis, Dissertation, and Capstone Project Guidelines for Graduate Students. 

D. TDCP Deadlines

As  indicated in the Academic Calendar for SY 2024-2025 , we would like to reiterate the following deadlines: 

*Commencement Ceremonies for SY 2024-2025 are scheduled on 23-25 May 2025.

Schools and departments may set an earlier deadline for the oral defense and TDCP submission if deemed necessary.

These policies are also found in the 2024 Edition of the Graduate Student Handbook (GSH) and the revised TDCP Guidelines:

- For the Departments/Programs and Deans  

- For Faculty Advisers, Panel Members, and Style Readers  

- For Graduate Students

As always, we are extremely grateful for your patience and continued cooperation. We hope you do not mind if we ask for your assistance in disseminating this memo to your faculty advisers, panel members, style readers, and graduate students. 

Please be guided accordingly. Thank you.

Recent News

05 Sep 2024

Starting the Journey to College with Pathways Batch 20

Ajcu-ap leaders meet in beijing city, the ateneo institute of sustainability hosts joint public plenary "circular economy in higher education: our pact for the future", the ateneo biodiversity action plan (memo u2425-033), traffic bulletin: dismissal schedule – 2 to 6 september 2024 (csmo memo), diocesan holy spirit mass 2024.

04 Sep 2024

Capability Building in Tarlac: A Journey Toward Community Development and Nation Building

Uaap season 87 basketball tournament brings changes to junior high school division, courtside reporter picks, and residency rules, uaap87 ticket selling guidelines (men's basketball tournament), you may also like these articles.

Our Pathways Batch 20 concluded their month-long College Jumpstart last July 11, 2024 but the journey to having these 53 incoming 12th graders join our Pathways family started as early as January this year.

The Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities in Asia Pacific (AJCU-AP) convened from 25 – 27 August 2024 in China for the AJCU-AP Chief Executive

Circular Economy in Higher Education: Our Pact for the Future A joint SDSN Philippines 2024 Public Plenary and ProSPER.Net 2024 Sustainability Forum As the global

(Memo # U2425-033) I am pleased to inform the community of the creation of the Core Working Group that will craft the Biodiversity Action Plan.

5 September 2024 MEMO TO: The University Community FROM: [Sgd] Josephy F Almosera Director, Campus Safety and Mobility Office RE: Traffic Bulletin: Dismissal Schedule –

GK-Ateneo conducted the third run and Luzon leg of their nationwide Capability Building program pilot in Gladys SIBOL School in GK Concepcion, Tarlac Province last April 20-21, 2024.

Modal title