This template can help you structure your work for a formal academic research project, whether you’re writing an undergraduate, master’s, or doctoral dissertation or thesis. Whether you’re working on a dissertation, idea, or research project, our free dissertation template is a terrific place to start. Every element of the template is deconstructed step by step, with clear, straightforward explanations and examples. Our free dissertation and thesis template include everything you’ll need to write a special dissertation. The template’s foundation is based on a tried-and-true best-practice approach for formal academic research projects like dissertations and theses. The template’s structure corresponds to the whole research process, allowing for a smooth, logical transition from chapter to chapter in your dissertation or thesis.

The following essential components are included in the dissertation template:

• The title page/cover page
• The abstract (sometimes also called the executive summary)
• The contents page
• Tables/figures/figures/tables/figures/tables/figure
• Introduction (Chapter 1)
• 2^nd Chapter: Review of the Literature
• 3^rd chapter Methodology
• 4^th Chapter: results/ findings
• 5^th Chapter: analysis
• 6^th Chapter: conclusion and recommendations
• A list of references
• Appendices

Each topic is explained in clear, straightforward language, followed by a summary of the key points that must be covered in each area. We’ve also included some real-life examples to help you understand what to anticipate in each section.

You may utilise the well-structured Word document, copy the contents to a new document, or convert it to LaTeX for your dissertation or thesis. In a few phrases, we’ll go through what each section is about and the most critical things you should accomplish there. We’ll also provide links to other videos and blog posts to confidently help you achieve each process. 

1. Title page

Because your dissertation’s title page is the first impression the reader will get of your work, it’s worth devoting some thought to it. What, on the other hand, makes a fantastic title? A captivating title must possess three characteristics:

1. It should be brief and to the point
2. Particularly
3. Appropriate for the research you are doing out

A good title often has the following elements:

• The scope of the research
• Your research’s main emphasis
• The analytical approach is described. Keep in mind that some institutions may have specific requirements for the title’s style and structure, so double-check with your school.

 Acknowledgements

The dissertation abstract, also known as the executive summary for certain degrees, provides a high-level overview of your dissertation and marker or moderator to the first-time reader. In other words, it should provide readers with a sense of the research’s primary ideas and conclusions without requiring them to go through the whole of the dissertation. It should be able to provide readers with a sense of the primary ideas and conclusions of the study without requiring them to read the whole report. It should be self-contained.

Your abstract should at least address the following crucial features for it to stand alone:

• Your research goals and objectives – what major question did you want to solve with your study?
• Your research approach – how did you go about researching the issue and answering your research questions?
• Your results – what did you learn from your research?
• Your conclusions – what conclusions did you make based on your findings? What responses did you come up with to your research question?

So, just as the organisation of your dissertation reflects the research process, the structure of your abstract should represent the entire research process, from the beginning of asking the original question to the conclusion. It’s better to write this section as the last after the major chapters have been completed. Otherwise, you’ll have to re-do this section many times if you don’t.

2. Table of contents

This is a simple part. The table of contents (TOC) is usually shown first, then the two lists – figures and tables. The automated table of contents generator in Microsoft Word is recommended for creating your TOC (example below).

Title page…………………………………………………………………………. 2

Acknowledgements……………………..………………………….…… 3

Abstract (or executive summary) .…………..…………. 4

Table of contents……………………………………………………………. 5

List of figures……………………………………..……………………………….. 6

List of tables…………………………………….………………………………….. 7

Chapter 1: Introduction…………………………….….………………… 8

Chapter 2: Literature review……………………………………….. 9

hapter 3: Research methodology…………………………… 10

Chapter 4: Research findings………………….…………………. 11

Chapter 5: Discussion and analysis of results … 12

Conclusion and recommendations……………………….13

References …………………………………………………………………………… 14

Appendices …………………………………………………………………………. 15

 List of tables

Figures are listed in this section, which is often referred to as the table of figures. This component of the paper also includes captions for photographs, charts, graphs, slides, or other illustrations that appear in your document, as well as the page numbers on which they appear on each page. This part is identical to the preceding one, with the exception that it uses tablets instead of figures.

Chapter 1. Introduction 

The introductory Chapter is the first formal Chapter of your dissertation or thesis. Even if your abstract summarises your study, your introduction should be presented as if the reader has not gone through the document  because an abstract is a stand-alone document. As a result, your introductory Chapter should begin at the beginning and answer the following questions:

• What will you be looking into?
• What makes you think it’s worth looking into? What role does it play in academics or business? What makes it sufficiently unique?
• What are your study’s objectives and research questions? The research question might be presented following the literature review in this situation. What is the scope of your research project? In terms of what will be covered and what will not be covered.
• What method will you use to do your research? To put it another way, what approach will you use?
• How are you going to organise your dissertation? What are the main chapters, and what will you be doing in each one?

As much as some institutions might want additional bells and whistles into the introduction chapter, these are the minimum requirements for our introduction chapter. However, ensure to contact your supervisor to know the actual requirement from your institution.

If you, do it effectively, the primary section of your exposition will establish the vibe for the rest of it. It will make it clear to the peruse what you will investigate, why it is significant, and the way that you will direct your examination. If, then again, a first-time peruse is left thinking about the thing you’ll be investigating, you actually have a work to do.

Chapter 2. Literature Review

You’ll continue on toward the writing survey now that you’ve laid out a make way with your presentation section. To sort out some way to address the accompanying inquiries in this part, you’ll utilise momentum research, which generally comprises of scholastic diary papers and top-notch modern distributions:

• What is the opinion of the current literature about the topic you’re researching about?
• Is there a scarcity of books or is there plenty? Is it divided or in conflict with itself?
• How does your study fit into the larger scheme of things?
• What unique contribution does your study make?
• How can prior research techniques assist you in developing your own?

Contingent upon the idea of your review, you may likewise introduce a calculated or hypothetical system at the finish of your writing audit, which you will examine in your genuine examination.

Once more, a few colleges might would rather that you center around a portion of these areas more than others, while others might have more or less necessities, etc. Inspect your brief and converse with your manager to ensure you see the exact thing is required from your writing audit section.

Chapter 3. Methodology

Now that you’ve researched the present status of information in your writing survey section and know about the current key hypotheses, models, and systems, now is the ideal time to plan your review. The following area is the most “logical” of the parcel.

In this Chapter, it is very important that you respond to two crucial questions:

1. How will you perform your research, first and foremost?
2. WHY did you make this decision?

Recall that the paper part of your certificate is tied in with improving and showing your exploration skills. Subsequently, the markers need to see that you know the ways to deal with use, can make sense of why you picked them, and can appropriately send them.

This section, specifically, requests particularity; don’t hold back on the subtleties. Determine what you’ll do, who you’ll do it with, when you’ll make it happen, how long you’ll get it done, and so on. Moreover, be certain you can protect each plan choice you make.

You’ll likely revisit this section after finishing every one of your information gathering and investigation to change it, relying upon your alterations during the examination stage. This is OK. It’s normal to add another insightful methodology, garbage an old one, etc., contingent upon where your information leads you. Yet, I’m alluding to little changes here, not a total shift from subjective to quantitative, which would toss your supervisor into a spiral!

Chapter 4. Research Findings/Results

The results chapter (also known as the findings or analysis chapter) is when things heat up. You’ve just spoken about what others have done and what you’ll be doing up to this point in your dissertation or thesis – now it’s time to get down to business and illustrate what you’ve discovered!

In the findings chapter, it is your exclusive responsibility to describe your data collection and analysis outcomes, not to interpret them in light of the literature or your research questions. The section on interpretation will be discussed in the following Chapter (the discussion chapter). This may appear difficult at first (particularly for qualitative data), but “breaking apart” the presentation and interpretation of the results make things easier to understand for the reader. However, some institutions encourage students to integrate the findings and the discussion chapter, merging facts with interpretation, so be sure to verify with yours.

The methodology you use to tackle this Chapter – quantitative or qualitative – will greatly impact how you approach it.

For quantitative studies (i.e., a study that focuses on numerical data), you’ll often begin by giving basic demographic data statistics, such as gender, age, ethnicity, and other demographic breakdowns.

You’ll then show your unmistakable insights, including implies (midpoints), medians, modes, and standard deviations. Then, if vital, you’ll continue on toward inferential insights like t-tests, connections, relapses, and so forth. Simply relax in the event that you don’t see what I’m talking about; I’ll add a connection to one of our blog pieces that make sense of quantitative insightful approaches.

The technique is a little different for qualitative investigations, and it might vary quite a deal depending on your analytic method. For example, you may not have a precise hypothesis while conducting qualitative research. Therefore, you’ll want to report on subjects or themes that emerge during your investigation.

Depending on your research, you’ll probably show a graphic demonstrating how you collapsed your codes into themes. After that, you’d name and describe the topics, backed up by statements from your participants.

The most important thing to remember is to “show, not tell.” Put another way, carefully quote your sources verbatim to demonstrate what your study has discovered.

Whatever you do, keep in mind the results. The Chapter’s sole purpose is to convey the findings. You shouldn’t try to decipher them or connect them to your research questions, goals, or objectives. The following Chapter is all about interpretation (unless your university wants you to merge them). So, let’s get started on the discussion chapter with that in mind.

Chapter 5. Discussion and Analysis of Findings

The conversation part may now start once the information has been introduced in the outcomes section. In the conversation section, you dissect your information and make sense of your discoveries consequently the part name.

What are the guidelines for writing a strong argument chapter? Although each project is unique, in your discussion chapter, you should ideally accomplish the following:

1. Before making any significant conclusions, you must first examine the facts. If strong correlations between variables were discovered in your statistical analysis. Is it possible, for example, that Factor A fosters or promotes trust while Factor B has no effect?”
2. Then, link your results to the literature. To put it another way, do your results corroborate or refute previous research as mentioned in the literature review chapter? What may be causing that, if that’s the case? Is it feasible that your results contradict previous research because of a different contextual or environmental factor?
3. Finally, and maybe most importantly, your findings must be linked to the study questions. To put it another way, how might these results help you address the questions, goals, and objectives you set for your research? Do they give you straightforward answers, or do they imply that things are more convoluted than you first thought? For instance, if your research question was to determine which characteristics promote trust, you’ll need to specify which elements are linked to confidence based on your results.

At long last, remember that your conversation section should be safely secured in your outcomes part; as such, you can’t give new information or make suspicions in your conversation part except if they are connected with an item in your outcomes branch. Each decision you make in this part of the results section should be proof-based.

Chapter 6. Conclusion and Recommendations

You’ve presented your data and assessed your results; now it’s time to bring everything together in the conclusions chapter. Its goal is to summarise your findings and highlight the most crucial details.

A decent rule of thumb is that your introductory Chapter should be intelligible to someone who has never heard of your topic before. Then, go through your conclusions Chapter to make sure you know precisely what you were attempting to figure out and what you found out. Your relatives and friends should therefore be able to understand what you’re learning without having to read a complete page.

Is it possible to reduce your whole dissertation or thesis into a single chapter? Each project is unique; however, the following outline provides a good starting point for this section:

1. Remind the reader of what you wanted them to understand in the first place, such as your research objectives, goals, and questions.
2. Summarise what you learnt – your main findings – in a clear and concise manner.
3. Finally, relate your results to the goals, objectives, and questions of your study, i.e., explain how your findings aided in the formulation of responses to your research questions.
4. Discuss the constraints of your exploration as well as any defects in your review. You ought to likewise make thoughts for how the review may be improved and how different analysts might further develop it in this part, which is the place where the ramifications and ideas come in.
5. Discuss the discoveries and ideas at the end. How may professionals, for instance, utilise your exploration and the new information it produces? What fields of examination should future scientists focus on? Your exploration will complete the cycle assuming you research these five worries. All in all, you will answer your exploration inquiries while likewise thinking about the implications of your discoveries for business and scholastics.

As I previously stated, after reading your introduction and conclusion chapters, a layperson should be able to comprehend what your project is about. As a result, it’s a good idea to read back over your first Chapter several times before writing your conclusion to ensure everything is connected.

Also, keep in mind that simple language is favored here; complicated or specialist vocabulary should be avoided. Although it may be difficult, you should attempt to keep things as basic as possible.

References

The rundown of references is clear. It ought to incorporate a rundown of all references utilised in your paper, organised in the fitting style (APA, MLA or Harvard, for instance).

While composing your exposition, you should utilise references the board programming. However, it’s anything but really smart to deal with your references physically since it’s excessively perilous. Moreover, you’re sure to commit an error with a multi-page reference list.

We suggest either Mendeley or Zotero for this reason. Both are totally free and have an exceptionally easy to use design to ensure that you’re referring to is impeccable.

Appendices

This segment is very clear; in any case, there are a couple of central issues to remember: The addendums, most importantly, incorporate unnecessary supplemental data. They’re for superfluous data as it were. The main material ought to be in the body of your exposition. Your reader shouldn’t need to switch this way and that among parts and addendums to accept your ideas. Addendums ordinarily don’t get focused, so don’t use them to eliminate your assertion count.

Second, each appendix contained inside your main content should be correctly labelled and linked. To put it another way, you must refer to Appendix A, Appendix B, and so on throughout your chapters. Appendices cannot exist in isolation; they must be related to the main content. When you’re ready to finish your appendices, go back over your whole thesis to verify you’ve mentioned the appropriate appendix. Incorrect references here might perplex the reader and lead them to feel you made things up, resulting in a grade loss.

Finally, don’t add too many appendices. It’s hard to place a value on it. Appendices, on the other hand, should not exceed 20-30% of the overall page count. Excessive appendices can lengthen your document and raise your printing expenses. If your material is more than 30%, consider placing it in a password-protected ZIP file that can be downloaded and adding the download URL in an appendix.