PhD degree, a lengthy & tedious process, cannot be achieved without the dedication and hard work. A PhD degree is not merely concerned with collecting data and conducting research. It includes writing a dissertation, the most important aspect of a PhD journey. Normally, a research scholar remains concerned with writing his/her dissertation as it demands undivided attention.
But why is dissertation so important?
A dissertation has the potential to build or ruin one’s PhD degree. It plays an essential role as it formulates a research problem, comes up with strategies and a research methodology to evaluate the research problem, enables you to collect reliable & relevant data and lets you convey the outcomes of your study in an effective way. Dissertation, when crafted appropriately, can shape your academic career and value to it.
However, among all the chapters such as literature review, abstract, research methods, reference etc, writing an introduction and conclusion chapter is a tough row to hoe and requires lots of effort. Today, approximately 48% of the dissertation gets rejected by the Universities or high-impact journals merely because of poorly crafted introduction and conclusion chapters. Some of the challenges faced while writing the introduction and conclusion chapters are: the inability to include points that attract readers attention, not including necessary background information about the chosen topic, contextualising the research, stating the answer to the crucial research question, conveying the significant outcome of the research and many more.
So, what are the essential aspects one must consider why penning-down the most crucial chapters, i.e. the introduction and conclusion sections?
Introduction chapter decides the fate of your dissertation. If this chapter doesn’t attract your review committee or readers attention, then your hard work would go into vain. This is because, most often, a dissertation will be judged based on the content included in the introduction chapter. Hence it becomes a mandate to write a flawless, impressive and attention-grabbing introduction section; after all you won’t get ‘second’ chance to make the ‘first’ impression.
The main purpose of an introductory chapter is to explain to the reader about your research. I.e the aim & objectives of your research, provide sufficient background information about your research topic, show how different & original is your research, how is it important and explains how your study intends to answer the question. Hence it is critical for you to start your dissertation with a brief introduction to the topic, clearly describing why and how the research question has arisen.
Using relevant literature sources provide adequate background information to familiarise the reader with your research topic (do not incorporate a detailed literature review). Next, state the significance and if your study is addressing a hypothesis, ensure to state the hypothesis as well. The introduction section, occupying about 5-7 % of the dissertation, i.e. approximately 10 pages, must end with stating the aims of the research in a clear and concise manner. Remember, this section must be stimulating but not confusing to your readers. If you are not confident about writing this chapter and want some assistance with the same, consider taking help from writers offering dissertation proposal writing service.
The conclusion section is another important section of your dissertation and a section that readers remember the best. This chapter gives you an opportunity to place your point of view on your research and leave a lasting impression on your research. It is an abridgement of the critical features of the investigation and reemphasising its significance. Conclusion section, comprising of 3-5% of the entire dissertation must be concise.
Some of the salient features that are included here are:
a link between the final-conclusions and the introduction conclusions which have a direct relationship to the objectives stated in the introduction of the dissertation and answers to the research question(s).
Comparison of your conclusions with that of the previous researches and pin- point the implications and contributions of your study to the existing knowledge in your area of research. If you are not aware as how to do this, take help from adroit writers providing dissertation proposal writing service. This section provides new insights to the research problem & approaches, its uniqueness, significance as well as limitations.
Tip: Do not include any outcomes presented in the previous section or results aren’t relevant to your study. Ensure that your conclusions are brief, clear and convincing.