Brief Overview of the 10 Essay Writing Steps

Below are brief summaries of each of the ten steps to writing an essay. Select the links for more info on any particular step, or use the blue navigation bar on the left to proceed through the writing steps. How To Write an Essay can be viewed sequentially, as if going through ten sequential steps in an essay writing process, or can be explored by individual topic.

1. Research: Begin the essay writing process by researching your topic, making yourself an expert. Utilize the internet, the academic databases, and the library. Take notes and immerse yourself in the words of great thinkers.

2. Analysis: Now that you have a good knowledge base, start analyzing the arguments of the essays you're reading. Clearly define the claims, write out the reasons, the evidence. Look for weaknesses of logic, and also strengths. Learning how to write an essay begins by learning how to analyze essays written by others.

3. Brainstorming: Your essay will require insight of your own, genuine essay-writing brilliance. Ask yourself a dozen questions and answer them. Meditate with a pen in your hand. Take walks and think and think until you come up with original insights to write about.

4. Thesis: Pick your best idea and pin it down in a clear assertion that you can write your entire essay around. Your thesis is your main point, summed up in a concise sentence that lets the reader know where you're going, and why. It's practically impossible to write a good essay without a clear thesis.

5. Outline: Sketch out your essay before straightway writing it out. Use one-line sentences to describe paragraphs, and bullet points to describe what each paragraph will contain. Play with the essay's order. Map out the structure of your argument, and make sure each paragraph is unified.

6. Introduction: Now sit down and write the essay. The introduction should grab the reader's attention, set up the issue, and lead in to your thesis. Your intro is merely a buildup of the issue, a stage of bringing your reader into the essay's argument.

*Note: The title and first paragraph are probably the most important elements in your essay. This is an essay-writing point that doesn't always sink in within the context of the classroom. In the first paragraph you either hook the reader's interest or lose it. Of course your teacher, who's getting paid to teach you how to write an essay, will read the essay you've written regardless, but in the real world, readers make up their minds about whether or not to read your essay by glancing at the title alone.

7. Paragraphs: Each individual paragraph should be focused on a single idea that supports your thesis. Begin paragraphs with topic sentences, support assertions with evidence, and expound your ideas in the clearest, most sensible way you can. Speak to your reader as if he or she were sitting in front of you. In other words, instead of writing the essay, try talking the essay.

8. Conclusion: Gracefully exit your essay by making a quick wrap-up sentence, and then end on some memorable thought, perhaps a quotation, or an interesting twist of logic, or some call to action. Is there something you want the reader to walk away and do? Let him or her know exactly what.

9. MLA Style: Format your essay according to the correct guidelines for citation. All borrowed ideas and quotations should be correctly cited in the body of your text, followed up with a Works Cited (references) page listing the details of your sources.

10. Language: You're not done writing your essay until you've polished your language by correcting the grammar, making sentences flow, incorporating rhythm, emphasis, adjusting the formality, giving it a level-headed tone, and making other intuitive edits. Proofread until it reads just how you want it to sound. Writing an essay can be tedious, but you don't want to bungle the hours of conceptual work you've put into writing your essay by leaving a few slippy misspellings and pourly worded phrases.

Why is writing an essay so frustrating?

Learning how to write an essay can be a maddening, exasperating process, but it doesn't have to be. If you know the steps and understand what to do, writing can be easy and even fun.

This site, "How To Write an Essay: 10 Easy Steps," offers a ten-step process that teaches students how to write an essay. Links to the writing steps are found on the left, and additional writing resources are located across the top.

Learning how to write an essay doesn't have to involve so much trial and error.

What is a thesis and why write one?

thesis/"Ti:sIs/ n 1 a proposition to be maintained or proved. 2 a dissertation esp. by a candidate for a degree. [Middle English via Late Latin from Greek = putting, placing, a proposition, etc.] [1]  

hypothesis/h2I"p6TI:sIs/1 a proposition made as a basis for reasoning without the assumption of its truth. 2 a supposition made as a starting point for further investigation from known facts. [Late Latin from Greek hypothesis ‘foundation’; Greek hypo ‘under’] [1] One might infer from the etymology above that a thesis is an (obligatory) offering placed at the desk of the examiner by a candidate who wishes to get a degree. This is the most common, and often only, reason why a thesis is written. But there are other reasons for writing a thesis.

A thesis is a written record of the work that has been undertaken by a candidate. It constitutes objective evidence of the author’s knowledge and capabilities in the field of interest and is therefore a fair means to gauge them. Although thesis writing may be viewed as an unpleasant obligation on the road to a degree, the discipline it induces may have lifelong benefits.

Most of all, a thesis is an attempt to communicate. Science begins with curiosity, follows on with experiment and analysis, and leads to findings which are then shared with the larger community of scientists and perhaps even the public. The thesis is therefore not merely a record of technical work, but is also an attempt to communicate it to a larger audience.

10. The Design and Statistical Procedure:

Provide a well thought-out rationale for your decision to use the design, methodology, and analyses you have selected. Name your research methodology and describe your research design. Be aware of possible sources of error to which your design exposes you. You will not produce a perfect, error free design (no one can). However, you should anticipate possible sources of error and attempt to overcome them or take them into account in your analysis. Moreover, you should disclose to the reader the sources you have identified and what efforts you have made to account for them.

Specify the statistical procedures you will use, and label them accurately (e.g., ANOVA, MANCOVA, ethnography, case study, grounded theory). If coding procedures are to be used, describe them in reasonable detail. This labeling is helpful in communicating your precise intentions to the reader, and it helps you and the reader to evaluate these intentions. Indicate briefly any analytic tools you will have available and expect to use (e.g., Ethnograph, AQUAD, SAS, SPSS, SYSTAT).

9. Instrumentation and Procedure:

Outline the instruments you propose to use. If instruments have previously been used, identify previous studies and findings related to reliability and validity. If instruments have not previously been used, outline procedures you will follow to develop and test their reliability and validity. In the latter case, a pilot study is nearly essential. Because selection of instruments in most cases provides the operational definition of constructs, this is a crucial step in the proposal. Strictly speaking, results of your study will be directly relevant only to the instrumental or operational statements. Include an appendix with a copy of the instruments to be used or the interview protocol to be followed. Also include sample items in the description of the instrument.

Outline in a step by step approach your procedure to carry out your research and the general plan for collecting the data. This may include survey administration procedures, interview or observation procedures. Include an explicit statement covering the field controls to be employed. If appropriate, provide a general outline of the time schedule you expect to follow. Procedures help answer questions such as: How do you plan to carry out your study? What activities are involved? How long does it take?

8. Sampling:

The research must choose a sample that is most representative of the study population (the larger phenomenon or group to which we wish to generalize). When a sample is drawn out of convenience (nonprobability sample), rationale and limitations must be clearly provided. To do so, you must outline the characteristics of the population (by gender, race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, or other relevant characteristics of the sample) and take this in consideration in choosing the sample.

The key reason for being concerned with sampling is that of validity, the extent to which the interpretations of the results of the study follow from the study itself and the extent to which results may be generalized to other situations with other people or situations. Sampling is critical to external validity, the extent to which findings of a study can be generalized to people or situations other than those observed in the study.

To generalize validly, the findings from a sample to some defined population requires that the sample has been drawn from that population according to one of several probability sampling plans. By a probability sample is meant that the probability of inclusion in the sample of any element in the population must be given a priori. All probability samples involve the idea of random sampling at some stage. In experimentation, two distinct steps are involved:

• Random selection: Participants to be included in the sample have been chosen at random from the same population. Define the population and indicate the sampling plan in detail.

• Random assignment: Participants for the sample have been assigned at random to the experimental and control conditions.

7. Research Methodology:

The Method section-chapter is very important because it tells your Research Committee how you plan to tackle your research problem. It will provide your work plan and describe the activities necessary for the completion of your project.
The guiding principle for writing the Method section is that it should contain sufficient information for the reader to determine whether methodology is sound. Some even argue that a good proposal should contain sufficient details for another qualified researcher to implement the study. You need to demonstrate your knowledge of alternative methods and make the case that your approach is the most appropriate and most valid way to address your research question. Please note that your research question may be best answered by qualitative research. However, you may need to justify your qualitative method.

Furthermore, since there are no well-established and widely accepted canons in qualitative analysis, your method section needs to be more elaborate than what is required for traditional quantitative research. More importantly, the data collection process in qualitative research has a far greater impact on the results as compared to quantitative research. That is another reason for greater care in describing how you will choose the sample and collect and analyze your data.

6. Review of the Literature:

In research papers, the literature review is incorporated into the introduction section. However, for theses and dissertations purposes, it is preferred as a separate section, which allows a more thorough review of the literature. The review of the literature provides the background and context for the research problem. It should establish the need for the research and indicate that the writer is knowledgeable about the area.

The literature review serves several important functions:

• It shares with the reader the results of other studies that are closely related to the study being reported.
• It provides a framework for establishing the importance of the study, as well as a benchmark for comparing the results of a study with other findings.
• Gives credits to those who have laid the groundwork for your research.
• Demonstrates your knowledge of the research problem.
• Demonstrates your understanding of the theoretical and research issues related to your research question.
• Shows your ability to critically evaluate relevant literature information.
• Indicates your ability to integrate and synthesize the existing literature.
• Provides new theoretical insights or develops a new model as the conceptual framework for your research.
• Convinces your reader that your proposed research will make a significant and substantial contribution to the literature.

Most students' literature reviews suffer from the following problems:
• Lacking organization and structure
• Lacking focus, unity and coherence
• Being repetitive and verbose
• Failing to cite influential papers

• Failing to keep up with recent developments
• Failing to critically evaluate cited papers
• Citing irrelevant or trivial references
• Depending too much on secondary sources

Your scholarship and research competence will be questioned if any of the above applies to your proposal. There are different ways to organize your literature review. Make use of subheadings to bring order and coherence to your review. For example, having established the importance of your research area and its current state of development, you may devote several subsections on related issues as: theoretical models, measuring instruments, cross-cultural and gender differences, etc.
It is also helpful to keep in mind that you are telling a story to an audience. Try to tell it in a stimulating and engaging manner. Do not bore them, because it may lead to rejection of your worthy proposal.

5. Limitations of the study

Set the limitations or boundaries of your proposed research in order to provide a clear focus. A limitation identifies potential weaknesses of the study. Think about your analysis, the nature of self-report, your instruments, and the sample. Think about threats to internal validity that may have been impossible to avoid or minimize and explain them.

4. Significance of the Study:

Indicate how your research will refine, revise, or extend existing knowledge in the area under investigation. Note that such refinements, revisions, or extensions may have substantive, theoretical, or methodological significance. Think pragmatically that most studies have two potential audiences: practitioners and professional peers. Statements relating the research to both groups are in order. This can be a difficult section to write.
Think about implications, how results of the study may affect scholarly research, theory, practice, educational interventions, curricula, counseling, policy. When thinking about the significance of your study, ask yourself the following questions:

• What will results mean to the theoretical framework of the study?
• What suggestions for subsequent research arise from the findings?
• What will the results mean to the practicing educator or management?
• Will results influence programs, methods, and/or interventions?
• Will results contribute to the solution of educational problems?
• Will results influence policy decisions?
• What will be improved or changed as a result of the proposed research?
• How will results of the study be implemented, and what innovations will come about?

3. Questions and/or Hypotheses:

Questions are relevant to normative or census type research (How many of them are there? Is there a relationship between them?). They are most often used in qualitative inquiry. Hypotheses are relevant to theoretical research and are generally used in experimental inquiry. When a writer states hypotheses, the reader is entitled to have an exposition of the theory that leads to them (and of the assumptions underlying the theory). Just as conclusions must be grounded in the data, hypotheses must be grounded in the theoretical framework.
Research should not include both questions and hypothesis because they are the same just different structure of the sentences. Deciding whether to use questions or hypotheses depends on factors such as the purpose of the study, the nature of the design and methodology, and the audience of the research. The practice of using hypotheses was derived from using the scientific method in social science inquiry since they have
philosophical advantages in statistical testing, as researchers should be and tend to be conservative and cautious in their statements of conclusions.

Types of research questions:
A. Descriptive questions: they reflect a description of a phenomenon or a variable: How much ….?, How many…..?, What are……?
B. Relationship questions: they reflect correlations between variables or causal relations between two variables or more.
C. Comparison questions: they reflect differences between two variables or groups or phenomenon or more.

Types of research hypothesis:
A. Literary null: a "no difference" form in terms of theoretical constructs. For example, "There is no relationship between support services and academic persistence of nontraditional-aged college women." Or "There is no difference in school achievement for high and low self-regulated students."

B. Operational null: A "no difference" form in terms of the operation required to test the hypothesis. For example, "There is no relationship between the number of hours nontraditional-aged college women use the student union and their persistence at the college after their freshman year." Or "There is no difference
between the mean grade point averages achieved by students in the upper and
lower quartiles of the distribution of the Self-regulated Inventory." The operational null is generally the preferred form of hypothesis-writing.

C. Literary alternative: A form that states the hypothesis you will accept if the null hypothesis is rejected, stated in terms of theoretical constructs. In other words, this is usually what you hope the results will show. For example, "The more that nontraditional-aged women use support services, the more they will persist
academically." Or, "High self-regulated students will achieve more in their classes than low self-regulated students."
D. Operational alternative: Similar to the literary alternative except that the operations are specified. For example, "The more that nontraditional-aged college women use the student union, the more they will persist at the college after their freshman year." Or, "Students in the upper quartile of the Self-regulated Inventory distribution achieve significantly higher grade point averages than do students in the lower quartile."
In general, the null hypothesis is used if theory/literature does not suggest a hypothesized relationship between the variables under investigation; the alternative is generally reserved for situations in which theory/research suggests a relationship or directional interplay. Be prepared to interpret any possible outcomes with respect to the questions or hypotheses. It will be helpful if you visualize in your mind's eye the tables (or other summary devices) that you expect to result from your research. Questions and hypotheses are testable propositions deduced and directly derived from theory (except in grounded theory studies
and similar types of qualitative inquiry).

2. Statement and purpose of the problem:

The statement of the problem describes the context of the study and it also identifies the general analysis approach. It is important in a proposal that the problem stand out--that the reader can easily recognize it. Sometimes, obscure and poorly formulated problems are masked in an extended discussion. In such cases, reviewers and/or committee members will have difficulty recognizing the problem. A problem statement should be presented within a context, and that context should be provided and briefly explained, including a discussion
of the conceptual or theoretical framework in which it is embedded. Clearly and succinctly identify and explain the theoretical framework that (underlies) your study and explain how you identified this problem. This is of major importance in nearly all proposals and requires careful attention. You should:

• State the problem in terms intelligible to someone who is generally sophisticated but who is relatively uninformed in the area of your investigation.
• Make the statement of the problem in a separate section.

The purpose statement should provide a specific and accurate synopsis of the overall purpose of the study. If the purpose is not clear to the writer, it cannot be clear to the reader.
The purpose statement should also incorporate the rationale for the study; some committees prefer this to be given in a separate section. Key points to keep in mind when preparing a purpose statement.
• Try to incorporate a sentence that begins with "The purpose of this study is . . ." This will clarify your own mind as to the purpose and it will inform the reader directly and explicitly.
• Clearly identify and define the central concepts or ideas of the study. Some committee chairs prefer a separate section to this end.

1. Introduction:

The introduction is the part of the paper that provides readers with the background information for the research reported in the paper. The main purpose of the introduction is to provide the necessary background or context for your research problem. How to frame the research problem is perhaps one of the biggest problem in proposal writing. If the research problem is framed in the context of a general, rambling literature review, then the research question may appear trivial and uninteresting. However, if the same question is placed in the context of a very focused and current research area, its significance will become evident.
The introduction typically begins with a general statement of the problem area, with a focus on a specific research problem, to be followed by the rationale or justification for the proposed study. The introduction generally covers the following elements:
A. Provide the context and set the stage for your research question in such a way as to show its necessity and importance.
B. Present the rationale of your proposed study and clearly indicate why it is worth doing.
C. Briefly describe the major issues and sub-problems to be addressed by your research.
D. Identify the key independent and dependent variables of your study by alternatively specifying the phenomenon you want to study in terms of concepts, types, effectiveness, or in other words what you know about the phenomenon.
E. State your hypothesis (theory), if any. For exploratory or phenomenological research, you may not have any hypotheses. (Please do not confuse the hypothesis with the statistical hypothesis.)

In an introduction, the writer should:
• Create reader interest in the topic.
• Lay the broad foundation for the problem that leads to the study.
• Place the study within the larger context of scholarly literature.
• Reach out to a specific audience.

THE ELEMENTS OF A PROPOSAL

The research proposal should include chapters or sections and in either case, the following chapters or elements should be included in the proposal:

Chapter one: Study Background: The chapter includes:
1. Introduction
2. Statement and purpose of the problem
3. Study questions and hypothesis
4. Significance of the Study
5. Definition of terms
6. Limitations of the study

Chapter two: Literature Review

Chapter Three: Methodology: The chapter includes:
1. Samples
2. Instruments
3. Procedures
4. Design and Statistical Procedure

How To Make a Thesis Less Painful and More Satisfying

First, a thesis is supposed to demonstrate that you can take a project and bring it to a genuine conclusion – very different from the usual undergraduate term paper that is not revised after the teacher sees it and that is usually done during the last week before it is due. A thesis provides, then, a new kind of work and frequently a new kind of skill.
Pick a topic that will help you professionally. Employers will sometimes ask about your thesis or even want to see it – especially if you go into some branch of education. Your choice of thesis can help you get a job or hold one.
Pick a topic that you are happy to talk about at a cocktail party. People will often ask you, in making conversation, “What is your thesis about?” A good test of your wisdom in picking a topic is the amount of pleasure you get in answering. Here's why: A thesis project involves some frustrating times; your personal interest in your topic is your best help in getting through that frustration.
A thesis should be useful. You'll be happier about doing a thesis if you feel that somebody will use it. And you'll want to do a better job if you feel that somebody will read and use your thesis. It is even better if the thesis is useful not just at the moment of completion, but also later. It should not be a snapshot of information that immediately becomes dated; the thesis should ideally be something with information you can talk about and that people can use for years.
If you are going into any branch of education, try to make your thesis something that can become a journal article; such articles look very good on resumes.

A FEW TIPS
You can find out what is expected of you by reading theses – especially those chaired by the person who will chair your thesis. And you get ideas for procedures to follow both from theses and from other research projects.
In checking abstracts (Journalism Abstracts and Dissertation Abstracts) go back at least to 1965, and look under several key terms – and not just in the “Mass Communication” section. You'll find lots of television references, for instance, under “Education” and “Psychology.” Do your thesis carefully; you never know when a prospective employer will see it. And certainly, you are finding out how critical future graduate students can be of theses that have been done before. You are also finding out how much these future students will depend on your thesis.
These are the “big six” journals that should not be omitted from your literature research: Journal of Broadcasting, Journal of Communication, Journalism Quarterly, Human Communication Research, Public Opinion Quarterly, Communication Research. There are many others, of course, that may – for an individual thesis – be even more important.
You will find many opportunities to help your fellow graduate students. I hope you will do so. You will need help at some point.

Outline for Empirical Master's Theses

PROPOSAL. The following topics usually will be included. In addition to definitions in II.B., define other terms where first used. Do use subheads throughout.

Chapter I. INTRODUCTION.
A. Broad introduction to thesis topic and method. Page or two. Write after remainder of proposal is completed.
B. Research problem. State broadly, in question form. Give sub-questions. Explain carefully. In one sense, usually the problem is to expand the body of knowledge examined in the literature review.
C. Need for the research. Who will benefit? Discuss applied and scientific contributions.
D. Nominal definitions. Define central terms.
E. Context. Add further info to clarify the research problem.

Chapter II. THEORY. Literature review. Organize by idea; avoid stringing together abstracts of articles.
A. Overview. Theoretical foundations.
B. Literature. Group articles by ideas. For a given idea, first discuss common strands in the literature, then departures.
C. Model. Of a process, usually. Based on the lit reviewed.
D. Hypotheses (in broad sense of the term; also called Propositions). For each, give brief restatement of justification tied to earlier sections; explain derivation and implications. Include assumptions. Explicitly state plausible rival hypotheses (explanations of process) of a substantive nature.
E. Scope of the study. Theoretical assumptions; discuss limitations they impose.

Chapter III. METHODS. Outline in a few pages.
A. Introduction. General description of method and design.
B. Design. Experiment, quasi-experiment, survey, and so forth. Detailed description.
C. Sample. Universe, population, element, sample design, tolerance, probability.
D. Measurement. Operational definitions. Include, as applicable, detailed discussion of indexes/ scales. Specify methods used to assess validity and reliability.
E. Analysis. Techniques to be used; justification. Nature of relationships expected (e.g., asymmetrical, symmetrical, reciprocal; linear, monotonic, other curvilinear; necessary, sufficient, necessary and sufficient). Include dummy tables and worked examples of statistics.
F. Validity. Design: Internal and external, with relevant subtypes.
G. Methodological assumptions. Discuss limitations they impose.

APPENDICES.
A. Schedule. In Gantt Chart form.
B. Facilities. Faculty and staff expertise, library and computer resources, other special facilities contributing to a successful study.
C. Budget.
D. Bibliographic essay. Sources searched (indexes, abstracts, bibliographies, etc.). Strengths and weaknesses of literature.

THESIS.

Chapters I-III. As in proposal, re-written and most likely expanded.

Chapter IV. FINDINGS.
A. Brief overview.
B. Results of application of method; any unusual situations encountered. Nature of sample.
C. Descriptive analysis. One-way frequency distributions on central variables.
D. Validity/reliability analysis.
E. Tests of hypotheses. ANOVAs, crosstabulations, correlations, and such, depending on techniques used; give in same order as hypotheses.

Chapter V. DISCUSSION. When discussing implications, deal with both the theoretical and the practical. Present only interpretations of the findings, not opinion.
A. Brief overview.
B. Discussion of results of application of method. Implications.
C. Discussion of descriptive analysis. Implications.
D. Discussion of tests of hypothesis. Implications.
E. Post-hoc analysis. Implications.

Chapter VI. CONCLUSION. May include writer's opinion.
A. Summary of entire thesis in a few pages.
B. Conclusions. Refer to lit review.
C. Implications. Speculate about broadest possible consequences, both theoretical and practical. Label speculation clearly.
D. Limitations. Theory, method.
E. Suggestions for future research.
APPENDICES. Bibliographic essay. Questionnaire and coding manual, if any. Raw data.
BIBLIOGRAPHY. Include all relevant sources examined, whether cited or not.

How To Actually Complete a Thesis:

First, pick something that interests you deeply. Your interest is what carries you through the long days and nights of concentrated effort. So you've picked an interesting topic. What can you do now to improve your chances of finishing the thesis in a timely fashion?
Find a special place to write. Make it a place where you can spread out papers and get messy. Get everybody to agree that you don't have to clean it up until the thesis is done. Then, use three techniques that have helped generations of students: segmenting, scheduling, and rewarding. Segment the whole thesis into small chunks. Tackle just one at a time. Avoid fixating on doing the entire thesis all at once. Instead, focus clearly on just one small piece at a time.
One way to begin to segment is to write a detailed subject outline of the thesis. Get right down to the subsection level – the part that takes only a page or two. First make a topic outline for the entire work. Then make a thesis outline; tell what your thesis (argument) will be for each subsection. Don't worry now about being totally and perfectly accurate in the outline. Certainly the structure will change a bit as you move along through the thesis. But having the detailed outline will prove a great help to finishing the thesis – especially when combined with scheduling and rewarding.
Schedule your thesis writing for three days a week. (The days don't have to be consecutive.) Plan on completing one small subsection each day. After finishing the writing each day, research those nagging minor points that cropped up while you were writing – find the exact spelling of a name, for example, when it's been cited differently by your sources, or check out the correct pages numbers for an article.
On the fourth day of the week, rewrite the three sections you finished most recently. Make sure that you have polished each chapter to a shimmering brilliance before copying it for supervisory committee members.
On the fifth day, deliver thesis chapters to committee members, make appointments for consultation with experts whose help you need, and take care of all those other time-consuming chores.
Now comes the crucial technique. To many thesis writers, the actual writing looms as the hardest part. Such students may be able to breeze through a newspaper article or TV script with no problem, but a hundred-page manuscript blocks them like a ten-foot granite wall across the path. You can make that wall crumble in front of your eyes – by rewarding yourself.
Find something that gives you pleasure. Make it small, easy, inexpensive. Then, at the end of each day's writing, treat yourself! Tell yourself that you've done well! Acknowledge your progress to yourself! Feel good about it all!
Some treats: M&M candies. Soaking in the tub. A phone chat with a friend. A donut. A five-mile run.
Find something you enjoy. It'll help.

The Title of Proposal/Thesis or Dissertation

CHOOSING A TOPIC:
Choosing a topic is often the most difficult part of the dissertation or thesis writing process.
Try to:
1. Develop a topic that has interested you throughout your graduate or undergraduate career.
2. Think about the top three issues you want to study, and then turn them into questions.
3. Review papers you have written for classes, looking for a pattern of interest.
4. Look at class notes; faculty members may have pointed out potential research topics or commented on unanswered questions in the field.
5. Talk with faculty members or advisors about possible topics.
6. Conduct research on a broad topic to discover gaps in the literature.
7. Keep the following cautions in mind:
A. Get feedback on a potential topic from your advisor; your topic may not interest others in the field as much as it interests you.
B. Do an extensive search to discover why your topic has not been studied before.
Is it original? Or may be there is something wrong with your rationale.

Thesis/Dissertation Title:
Remember that the title will be read by hundreds or thousands of readers while only few will read the abstract or the full text of the thesis/dissertation. It is the title that will appear in abstracting or indexing publications the most. Thus, every word in the title is to be properly chosen and written in the correct syntax and order. A good title contains the fewest number of words that adequately describe the content of the thesis/dissertation. The words to be chosen are those that are both understandable and retrievable.

The following basic rules need to be observed when writing your thesis/dissertation title:
1. Use specific, familiar and short words.
2. Make your title as understandable and as retrievable as possible.
3. Use correct syntax (word order) to avoid misunderstanding.
4. Avoid the use of unnecessary words that do not add anything to the title.
5. Do not include abbreviations, or chemical formulas in your title.
6. Let your title be concise and descriptive.
7. Think of an informative but catchy title.

Differences between the Undergraduate and Postgraduate Theses

The differences between the undergraduate and postgraduate theses is one of degree2 rather than kind. They share a common structure and need for logical rigour. It is only in the substance and the emphasis placed on it that the differences arise. Specifically, UWA requires that:
A PhD thesis shall be a substantial and original contribution to scholarship, for example, through the discovery of knowledge, the formulation of theories or the innovative re-interpretation of known data and established ideas [2].
An undergraduate thesis is, at present, graded on the quality of research, the significance of the contributions and the style of presentation. Thus, the undergraduate thesis is judged on a similar basis to the postgraduate one. Indeed, the three most commonly cited qualities that earn an undergraduate thesis the first class grade are originality, independence, and mastery [3].
Candidates writing a higher degree thesis—and the PhD thesis in particular—are required to present their research in the context of existing knowledge. This means a thorough and critical review of the literature, not necessarily limited to the narrow topic of research, but covering the general area. The PhD candidate should also show clearly what original contributions she or he has made [2]. Although neither of these requirements
applies strictly to undergraduate work, the candidate should demonstrate familiarity with previous relevant work in his or her thesis.
In short, a thesis—whether undergraduate or postgraduate—is evidence of the candidate’s capacity to carry out independent research under the guidance of a supervisor, and to analyse and communicate the significant results of that work. The candidate for higher degrees must demonstrate, in addition, mastery of the literature and indicate clearly which is his or her original work, and why it is significant3.