
The first step in ensuring that your research runs as smoothly as possible is choosing your dissertation topic. Whether you need to choose accounting topics for dissertation or any other subject topic, it’s crucial to take the following factors into account while selecting a topic:
- The specifications of your institution and department
- Your knowledge and passion areas
- The relevance to science, society, or practice
- Access to information and resources
- The length of your dissertation The significance of your subject
You can start by focusing your ideas by using the methods below.
Step 1: Review the prerequisites
Checking the prerequisites for your program is the first step. This determines the range of what you can research.
Does the word count have a minimum and maximum?
What time is the cutoff?
Should the research be professional or academic?
Do any methodological requirements exist?
Do you have to use certain professional dissertation writers UK based to outsource your work?
Specifications for some programs are more stringent than others. A limited list of themes and techniques may be provided to you, or you may only be given a word count and a deadline. Always consult your supervisor or the department coordinator if you are unsure of what is expected of you.
Step 2: Pick a wide area of study
Consider your areas of interest within the subject you are studying first. Examples of comprehensive concepts are:
Literature from the 20th century
economic background
Health care laws
Step 3: Find books and articles to read
Look through a few recent issues of the best journals in your field to gain a more detailed feel of the current level of research on your potential topic. Pay close attention to the publications that have received the most citations. You can also search Google Scholar, subject-specific databases, and the resources at your university library for ideas.
Make a list of the ideas that particularly attract you as you read and shortlist a few potential subjects. Consider how the topics of any previous papers you’ve written, such as a third-year paper or a conference paper, might be expanded into a dissertation.
Step 4: Choose a niche
It’s time to begin limiting the alternatives for your chosen topic after conducting some preliminary research. This may be a gradual process that becomes increasingly detailed as you proceed. You could focus it, for instance, by doing the following:
Literature from the 20th century Irish literature from the 20th century Irish poetry after the war
Economic background Economic history in Europe, History of German labor unions
Health care laws stance on reproductive health Rights to abortion in South America
These subjects are all still wide enough that a tonne of books and articles have been written on them. Look for a niche in which you can stand out, such as an area where little research has been done, a topic that is still up for debate, or a pressing practical concern.
Step 5: Think about the kind of research
There are many various forms of research, so it’s a good idea to consider your topic’s strategy at this point in the process. Will you mostly concentrate on:
- collecting original data
- examining already-available information
- interpreting works of culture
- contrasting academic methodologies
Numerous dissertations will incorporate several of these. In other cases, the nature of research is obvious: for example, if your subject is post-World War II Irish poetry, you would likely focus primarily on poem interpretation. However, there are several options in other situations. If South American reproductive rights are your subject, you may examine governmental policy documents and media coverage or you could collect first-hand information through surveys and interviews.
The sort of study will affect which elements of the issue it is possible to examine, so it is smart to take this into consideration when you reduce your thoughts. Your research design and techniques don’t need to be finalized just yet.
Bonus Metrics to Choose Excellent Topics
Step 6: Assess the applicability
While it’s crucial that your topic interests you, you also need to make sure that it has academic, social, or professional value in your sector.
Academic relevance is the ability of the research to close a knowledge gap or advance a scholarly discussion in your area of study.
Research that is socially relevant can help us better understand society and influence social change.
Practical relevance refers to the research’s ability to be used to solve specific issues or enhance operational procedures.
The simplest method to ensure that your study is pertinent is to pick a subject that is directly related to current concerns or discussions, either in society at large or in your academic field. When defining your research problem, make sure to make the relevance explicit.
Step 7: Verify the likelihood
Before you settle on a topic, take another look at the size of your dissertation, the deadline for finishing it, and the feasibility of carrying out the study.
Will you have enough time to read the entire key scholarly body of work on this subject? If you have too much information to process, think about focusing even more.
Can you compile enough sources or data to meet the dissertation’s requirements? If you anticipate trouble finding information, consider extending or changing your emphasis.
Step 8: Obtain topic approval
A research prospectus or proposal—also known as a summary of your topic—will be required by most programs.
Remember that changing your mind and swapping focus early in the dissertation is typically fine if your topic is weaker than you initially believed. Ensure you have ample time to begin a new issue; always consult your manager or department.