Concise Guide to Writing a Thesis or Dissertation

<p><em>A Concise Guide to Writing a Thesis or Dissertation</em> provides clear succinct and intentional guidelines about organizing and writing a thesis or dissertation. Part I provides an overview for writing a thesis or dissertation. It describes the big picture of planning and formatting a research study from identifying a topic to focusing on writing quality. Part II describes the framework and substance of a research study. It models the pattern generally found in a formal five-chapter research study. </p><p>Each chapter of a thesis or dissertation has a specific purpose and this book focuses on each in an easy-to-follow structure. Chapter One reviews the headings and contents expected in the introduction of a study. Chapter Two provides advice for writing a literature review. Chapter Three discusses what to include when describing the methodology. These first three chapters form the proposal section of a study. Two additional chapters present results (Chapter Four) and provide discussion and conclusions (Chapter Five). </p><p>Appendices offer resources for instructors and students including a rubric for evaluating writing exercises to strengthen skills in APA format sample purpose statements a research planning organizer and a guide for scholarly writing. The book is designed overall to be a practical guide and resource for students for their thesis or dissertation process. </p><p>Note to readers: Due to publishing limitations some of the titles within the book do not accurately conform with APA format. For precise APA format please see the APA manual (2010 pp. 62-63) or refer to Table 1.1 (p. 8) or Table D.1 (p. 107) in this book.</p>