The General Format Of a Masters Dissertation

Table of Contents

A dissertation falls under academic writing, which is based on original research. After topic selection and getting approval for your Masters Dissertation, the next step is embarking on the journey of dissertation writing. Masters Dissertation is the longest piece of writing you might have ever written. So it can be frightening not knowing where you should start. The format is the standard way of arranging a dissertation, or research paper. The Masters level requires that the dissertation format should have a professional structure, and format.

If you’re worried about the general format of your Masters Dissertation, you can take guidance from dissertation writing services. This article will discuss the general format of a Masters Dissertation. We will specifically discuss the structure and layout, one by one. It would be best to remember that this article provides the generic format of a Masters Dissertation. Therefore, you should consult your University in case they have any specific requirements for the layout, and structure. If that’s not the case, the general format discussed in this article will be suitable for your research.

Masters Dissertation Structure

The general format of a Masters Dissertation varies across disciplines. Dissertations in humanities’ discipline are formatted similar to an essay. It includes the overall arguments with a thesis statement. The chapters are also based on various themes, or case studies.

Social, and natural science dissertations are based on empirical research, or qualitative analysis. They differ from the humanities dissertation, where the general format also varies. For example, in qualitative research regarding social sciences, results and discussion are amalgamated in only one section.

Title Page

Title page is the most significant part of your dissertation. Yet as the saying goes, “First impression is the last impression”, it is highly important. You should invest some time in writing the title page. It will help if you keep it brief, specific, and representative. Further, it includes your dissertation’s title, name, department, institution, degree program, and submission date. It also includes your roll number, supervisor’s name, and the University’s logo. Some universities provide a separate cover sheet to be attached on the top. This is usually done by their business departments.

Acknowledgements

This page includes acknowledging those who have been helpful to you during your research. Usually, it is an option to include this section. But its inclusion depicts academic professionalism. It can include your dissertation supervisor, professors who helped you, mentors/advisors, and family or friends.

Abstract, or Executive Summary

The abstract previews your dissertation, summarising your entire research in about 150-300 words. Consider it like a film’s trailer which provides an overview of the whole film. You should state the following within your abstract;

The main topic, research questions, and aims of your research.
Methodology
Findings
Conclusion

The abstract is only a small part of your research, but it is the first part of your dissertation that people will read. So it is important to write it properly.

This section includes a list of your chapters, subheadings, and page numbers. It also includes the appendices, and a heading of References, or Bibliography. You can generate the table of contents automatically in MS Word.

List of Figures and Tables

If your dissertation includes tables and figures, you should list them in a numerical order. This list can be automatically generated using the Insert Caption option in Word.

List of Abbreviations

This section includes an alphabetical list of abbreviations if you’ve used any within the dissertation.

Glossary

Dissertations are jargon riddled, and most readers are not familiar with certain terminologies. So it would be best to list the terms alphabetically with their meanings.

Introduction

The introduction section includes a dissertation’s topic, purpose, and relevance. It should ensure the following aspects;

Build a foundation for your research topic by providing necessary background information, and context.
Explain the need for conducting your study, and why it is worth investigating?
What is the relevance of your study?
Define scope of the research.
Make space for your research by relating it to the existing ones.
Include research aims, and research questions.
Briefly tell about your research methodology.
Highlight structure of your dissertation, and explain what the core chapters are. Also highlight what you’re planning to include in them.

Literature Review/Theoretical Framework

The literature review is a section that contextualises your dissertation. It explains the rationale for conducting the research as well. It should include the following aspects;

Analysis of available literature about chosen topic.
Identify gaps in the literature gathered from books, and journal articles.
Explain the relevance of your study within available literature.
What will be the contribution of your study?
Do not summarise the existing literature.
Develop coherent arguments to validate your research.
The new theoretical, or methodological approach that you’ve included within your study.

Methodology

This section answers the following key questions;

How will you do your research?
What is your research design?
Why have you chosen this particular research design?

Results

After collecting your data through qualitative, or quantitative methods, you present raw results in this section. For example;

Demographic data.
Statistical data.
Questionnaire data based on Likert scale, or open-ended questions.
Graphical presentation of data using flowcharts, or pie charts.

Discussion

This section discusses the relevance of your results with your research questions. It includes the following;

Interpretation of results in detail.
Discussion on the meaning, and impact of results with your research questions.
Possible implications of your result.
Highlight the limitations of your results.

Conclusion

This section must include the following points;

Establish a clear link of your conclusion with the original research questions.
Wrap up the dissertation, and reflect on key findings, and results.
Recommendations for further research.
Inform the reader about the importance of your research. The implications of your key findings on the relevant field should also be highlighted.

Reference List

Details of all of the sources cited within your dissertation.
Follow the citation style recommended by your University.
Common styles include APA, MLA, or Harvard.
You can insert citations and references automatically in MS Word. This can be done by using the feature of References.

Appendices

This section includes the documents you used for your dissertation. Such as interview transcripts, and survey questions.

Formatting

Font size should be 10, or 12 size Times New Roman.
Insert the numbers for every page.
Margins should be 1.5 inches on the left, 1 inch each for top, bottom, and right.
Appropriate paragraphs for each chapter, double-spaced, first-line indentation 0.5 inches. These should be left, or full justified.
Blockquotes: Indent the left margin of your paragraph.
Tables, and figures should be in reasonable margins.
Heading styles of chapters should be consistent.
References/Bibliography should be single-spaced. They should also use a blank line between the entries.

Conclusion

This article has highlighted the general layout, structure, and format of a Masters Dissertation. We hope that this article will be helpful in adding to your knowledge about the general format of a Masters Dissertation.