What is a dissertation proposal?
A dissertation proposal briefly describes the following aspects of your dissertation:
- What your dissertation is about
- The questions you will be exploring
- The theoretical background of the subject
- The research method you will be using
- The possible results of the study
Putting together your dissertation
proposal is a beneficial task to anyone writing a dissertation.
Some consider it to be the hardest part of the dissertation process, as you are
essentially developing something from scratch – from the idea, to the title, to
the conclusion. However, once you have a comprehensive proposal you will gain a
sense of clarity about the task ahead of you. In addition to this, it can also
be re-used to form the basic framework of your dissertation outline.
Your proposal is a vital tool for gaining feedback on your dissertation from
your supervisor, who will be able to guide you on the tone, style, and content
of your work. At this stage, it is best to be flexible with your proposal, so
you can take on board any suggestions that your supervisor may have and have
their approval for moving forward with it. From this, you can gain confidence
with the avenue you have chosen to go down with your dissertation, and start
focusing on writing your dissertation outline.
When you write your proposal, take care to follow grammatical rules and
principles, making a particular effort to be consistent with the tense of your
proposal. Check with your supervisor for confirmation on the most appropriate
tense; it is most common for the proposal to be written in future tense.
It is important to remember that your dissertation is not an essay. It may look
like one in the humanities, but is different from an essay in that your
proposal only has to develop an argument, and does not need to prove anything
at that time but later on. It is more a diagram of what your dissertation
outline will look like, rather than an essay or mini-dissertation.
In terms of timing, you should not waste months on your proposal, as it is only
one step on a very long path. Similarly, you want to avoid rushing your
proposal, as you may overlook important elements of your topic matter and may
end up having to write a new proposal for approval. This could drastically eat
into the time you have reserved for the other aspects of your dissertation
work.