Writing A Dissertation Proposal: Typical Problems To Avoid

Your dissertation proposal is the first thing you have to do before you start you dissertation.  You proposal is a collection of all the information that you are going to put in your dissertation.  It has to be well researched and you have to present it to your advisor or advisors and get approval before you can even start your dissertation.  This means that all of the information in it has to be information that you are going to use in your dissertation.

Typical Problems To Avoid

• The first thing you want to avoid in your dissertation proposal is picking a topic that is overused.  You don’t want to choose one that has been done over and over again.  Pick on that is interesting to you and one that you know that you can find original research on.  You topic will more likely get approved if it is unique.
• Don’t use any sources for your dissertation proposal that you wouldn’t use for your dissertation.  You want to have good sources and you actually get most of your information out of the way with the proposal, so don’t give yourself more work for your dissertation.
• Don’t start writing your proposal until you know exactly what you are writing about.  Get as much information as you can on the topic before you start writing.  Your advisor will know if you don’t know what you are talking about and your proposal will be rejected and then you will have to start all over again.
• Don’t put too much evidence into your proposal.  You do want some evidence to back up your topic but too many students put too much information in it. You want is to be clear and concise and to the point.  You want to focus on the important parts of your research not everything that is saved for your dissertation.
• Start is early, too many students wait till the last minute to do their proposal and end up with not enough information and then have to start all over again. Or hand in a rushed proposal that is likely to get rejected.
• Pay attention to detail, you don’t want to hand in a dissertation proposal that had simple errors that you should have caught. This means grammar and spelling mistakes, you an adult now and should know better.  Read over your proposal at least two or three times before handing it in. This will help you catch these errors and ensure that your proposal is legible.