Basic Thesis Guidelines To Follow
Title– A good title should be brief, clear, and focus on the central theme of the topic; it
should avoid abbreviations. The Title should effectively summarize the proposed
research and should contain the PICO elements.
Introduction– It should be focused on the research question and should be directly
relevant to the objectives of your study.
Review of Literature – The Review should include a description of the most relevant
and recent studies published on the subject.
Aim and Objectives – The ‘Aim’ refers to what would be broadly achieved by this study
or how this study would address a bigger question / issue.
The ‘Objectives’ of the research stem from the research question formulated and
should at least include participants, intervention, evaluation, design.
Material and Methods– This section should include the following 10 elements: Study
setting (area), Study duration; Study design (descriptive, case-control, cohort,
diagnostic accuracy, experimental (randomized/non-randomized)); Study sample
(inclusion/exclusion criteria, method of selection), Intervention, if any, Data collection,
Outcome measures (primary and secondary), Sample size, Data management and
Statistical analysis, and Ethical issues (Ethical clearance, Informed consent, trial
registration).
Results– Results should be organized in readily identifiable sections having correct
analysis of data and presented in appropriate charts, tables, graphs and diagram etc.Discussion–It should start by summarizing the results for primary and secondary
objectives in text form (without giving data). This should be followed by a comparison
of your results on the outcome variables (both primary and secondary) with those of
earlier research studies.
Summary and Conclusion– This should be a précis of the findings of the thesis,
arranged in four paragraphs: (a) background and objectives; (b) methods; (c) results;
and (d) conclusions. The conclusions should strictly pertain to the findings of the thesis
and not outside its domain.
References– Relevant References should be cited in the text of the protocol (in
superscripts).
Intro and ROL Discussion- Only contemporary and relevant literature may be reviewed. Restrict the
introduction to 2 pages, Review of literature to 10-12 pages, and Discussion to
8-10 pages.