Copyright © 2020 TutorsIndia. All rights reserved 1

How to Write a Master’s Dissertation for Management

Dr. Nancy Agens, Head,

Technical Operations, Tutorsindia

info@ tutorsindia.com

In Brief

Planning a dissertation is one of the most

vital components of one’s education

(graduate and post-graduate). A

dissertation can be explained as a

research paper, being formal and lengthy

to be submitted for a higher degree in a

university. It is noteworthy that the

master’s projects should represent one’s

own research and critical analysis and

hence should be put into action

independently. The work conducted

should exhibit salient features such as

knowledge about the topic, ability to plan

and perform the research, discuss the

results or conclusion obtained etc.

I. INTRODUCTION

A dissertation for masters should be

ones self-work and should represent

novelty and the critical analysis performed.

It has been observed through some

research works that most of the

management students face difficulty while

planning their dissertations because they

do not invest a proper time in deciding the

content that they should include in their

dissertation. It is expected that the

dissertation submitted by the student

should exhibit the following

characteristics:

Sound knowledge about the significant

works performed in the study.

Ability to plan the research and

analyze the results obtained.

Relevant conclusions on the basis of

the results obtained.

Description included should be well-

planned and organized.

These are some of the key

characteristics that a master’s dissertation

should represent. It is also expected that

the candidate should be well-versed with

his dissertation so that he can represent it

in professional meetings or publications

etc.

The struggle or difficulties while

planning a management dissertation can be

overcome only through proper planning

and organization of the content. It is

undeniable that gathering information or

data is a complicated task but a

dissertation cannot be planned without

performing literature review, designing

research questions and hypothesis and

performing analysis for the results

obtained. In addition to these the topics

chosen by the candidates should not be too

broad which results in fragmenting the

content in dissertation rather than giving it

an interrelated appearance. However, it is

highly critical to develop or plan a

dissertation on the basis of a single

question and thus the candidate should

discuss this problem with the associated

supervisor. Additionally, to avoid this

issue some key measures that can be

followed are:

Refer only current theories and models

rather than developing your own

theories.

Focus on implementing some useful

model in your work and make sure

bring out something really useful. This

will give you motivation and make you

feel that you have achieved something

and your efforts have not been waste.

II. STRUCTURE OF THE

DISSERTATION

In the aforementioned section the

emphasis has been laid on the planning of

content in dissertation. However, apart

Copyright © 2020 TutorsIndia. All rights reserved 2

from planning the content it is also

significant to structure it make it appealing

to the audience. A better structure of the

content is of paramount significance as it

ensures better transmission of information

that is being conveyed. A snippet of the

structure to be followed for management

dissertation is given here in addition to a

brief description for what content should

be included in each heading.

Table 1: Structure of Dissertation

Executive

Summary

Introduction

Literature and

theoretical

background

Research Hypotheses

Methodology Results

Discussion Recommendations

Conclusions References

Appendices

Though this structure might ensure

better transmission of information but it is

imperative that the sections are

interlinking. Additionally, it is also

necessary that every chapter of the

dissertation has an introduction and a

conclusion. Dissertations that do not

include any introduction or do not signify

any conclusion or future scope generally

fails.

Executive Summary: This section of the

dissertation presents an overview of what

the dissertation is about, what has been

identified by the candidate etc. It can be

assumed as window shopping of the

dissertation.

Introduction: This is the primary section

of a dissertation and focuses on the motive

of dissertation and the allied problems. It

is also presents an outline of the thesis

describing in brief what content is included

in each chapter.

Literature review: This chapter discusses

the key works performed by different

researchers and the issues resolved.

Planning this section requires a well-

designed content as it helps to examine the

problem that is being discussed by

candidate.

Research Hypotheses: It is actually a set

of questions that define the research and

are planned on the basis of gaps that are

identified from literature review.

Methodology: In this section of the

dissertation the approaches followed for

collecting data are mentioned in addition

to their suitability for the research being

performed. This is an important section as

a poor methodology can cause the failure

of dissertation. Apart from the approaches,

this chapter of the dissertation also

includes the sample size chosen by the

candidate.

Results: This chapter of the dissertation

actually represents the analysis of the data

that has been gathered. It is the most

significant chapter as it exhibits the entire

work of the researcher. It is preferred to

include more graphical illustrations in this

chapter and less theory. Including graphics

will help the researcher to explain his point

in an easy manner and will also be a value

addition to the dissertation.

Discussion: In this section the emphasis is

laid on discussing the significance of

research work. Additionally, it is desired

that in this section the researcher raises

some questions or issues that he has come

across while analyzing his data.

Recommendations: In this section the

candidate can recommend some key points

on the basis of his research, especially the

ones that he analyzed from his work. The

recommendations made should be in

accordance with the research questions.

Conclusions: Similar to introduction,

conclusion is also the most vital section of

a research and is expected that in this

section one should criticise his findings.

Though it is difficult to criticise one’s own

findings but it actually strengthens the

faith of reader in the quality of research

performed.

References (referencing): Again a vital

section, references should be arranged in

accordance with the guidelines mentioned

Copyright © 2020 TutorsIndia. All rights reserved 2

as this can lead to rejection of one’s

dissertation.

REFERENCE

1. Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational research:

Planning, Conducting, and Evaluating Quantitative

and Qualitative Research (4th ed. ed.). Boston:

Pearson Education, Inc

2. Creswell, J. W. (2014). Research design:

Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods

approaches, 4thedition.

3. Saunders, M., P. Lewis, and A. Thornhill (2007).

Research Methods for Business Students (4th

edition). Harlow: Prentice Hall.

4. Levin, P. (2005). Excellent Dissertations. Open

University Press.

5. Calabrese, R. L. (2006). The elements of an

effective dissertation & thesis: a step-by-step guide

to getting it rightthe first time. Lanham, MD:

Roman & Littlefield Education.

6. Collis, J. and Hussey, R. (2003). Business Research:

a practical guide for undergraduate and postgraduate

student (2nd edition). Basingstoke: Palgrave

Macmillan (Chapter 9: Writing up Research).

7. Leary, Z. (2004) The Essential Guide to Doing

Research. London: Sage Chapter Six