Choosing a topic and assessing topic feasibility

1. Choosing a Subject
This apparently simple process can be agonizing. Usually only general

parameters are given, yet great precision is expected. You will be seriously

handicapped unless the topic is one in which you are interested enough to spend

up to a year or more and to sustain that interest during hours of work. The thesis

should be 'about something': the days when rambling, discursive essays were

accepted have long gone, and you must never start without a detailed plan,

preferably also a title, even though this may be subsequently modified.

2. Checking Feasibility
The title and the ideas may sound wonderful, but are they possible? However
worthy it may be to survey 50 local authorities, can you support the cost and
travel that such a project implies?

Questions You Need to Ask when Choosing Your Thesis Subject

• Is the project physically possible with regard to time, distance, and volume of
work?

• Can it be afforded?

• Do you have, or can you develop rapidly, the skills needed for the research?

• Will you be permitted to gain access to the suggested sites?

• Can you find the necessary literature?

• Will the topic remain 'live' over the period of the research?

• Would you have the support of the college?

References

Delamont, S., Atkinson, P., & Parry, O. (2004). Supervising the doctorate: A guide to success.
McGraw-Hill Education (UK).
Paltridge, B., & Starfield, S. (2019). Thesis and dissertation writing in a second language: A
handbook for students and their supervisors. Routledge.
Polonsky, M. J., & Waller, D. S. (2018). Designing and managing a research project: A
business student's guide. Sage publications.
Punch, K. (2000). Developing effective research proposals. Sage.

Exercise
State whether the statements given below are true or false.

• Successful research requires effective and thorough preparation.

• If the thesis subject bores students, it is not likely to get finished.
• The student needs to have time to obtain enough information, undertake the research, and
craft an informative report or presentation.

• There is no sense in choosing a topic if you cannot finish the work within the allocated
period.