Contents

1. How to choose thesis title

Which Subject You Interested In?
What Kind of Business Organization do You Want to Conduct
Research?
2. Topic Selection
3. How to Write A Successful Master Thesis?
4. About Master Thesis
5. A Suggested Thesis Structure
6. Language & Style
7. Strategies for successful dissertation completion
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 How To Choose Thesis Title
Which Subject You Interested In?
I. General Management
1) Entrepreneurship & Small Business Management
2) Business Management
3) Business Communication
4) Business Planning
5) Management Information System
6) Strategic Management
7) Project Management
8) Risk Management
9) International Business Management
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 Which Subject You Interested In?

II. Finance
1) Financial Management
2) Bank Management
3) Financial Institutions & Markets
4) Capital Markets
5) Portfolio Management
6) Corporate Finance
7) Business Finance
8) Working Capital Management
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9) International Finance
 Which Subject You Interested In?

III. Accounting
1) Business Accounting

2) Cost and Management Accounting

3) Financial Accounting

4) Advance Accounting

5) Government Accounting

6) Financial Reporting

7) Auditing

8) Accounting Standard (International Accounting Standard,

Myanmar Accounting Standard) 5

 Which Subject You Interested In?

IV. Production & Operations Management

1) Management Science

2) Logistics & Supply Chain Management

V. Organizational Behavior
1) Organizational Theory
2) Organizational Change & Development
3) Organizational Strategy
4) Organizational Analysis & Design

6
 Which Subject You Interested In?

VI. Human Resource Management

1) Training & Development
2) Performance Management
3) Talent Management
VII. Marketing Management
1) Consumer Behavior
2) Service Management
3) Business Ethics
4) Customer Relationship Management
5) Sale Management
6) International Trade 7
 What Kind of Business Organization You Want to Conduct
Research?

I. Marketing (distribution, whole sale retailing)

II. Manufacturing (food, garment, footwear, electricity, dirking water
etc., high tech industry or low tech industry)
III. Service (education, health care, entertainment, transportation,
etc.,)
 You need to consider Private or Public or Non-profit organization
of ownership/ religious or business organization.
 You need to consider the size of organization small or medium or
large business enterprises.
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 9
Topic Selection

 You should find your topic on website suitable for your subject you
interested
e.g, www.googlescholar
thesis title/ subject/ practical field

 You can select title that suitable for your situation (country,
interested subject and field)
 You need to narrow down, if your topic is broad and broader
research field
 Your topic should be the first one that you study and should tell it is
not yet absolutely study in your country.
 Topic Selection 10

 No-one study and you are the first one for this topic.
 You should look at the gap in literature review. It means you need
to look for the weak or lack or gap that you need to fill up
 Ask question yourself, what you want to do, why you want to do.
You need to justify it social/ political/ economy/ religion or society
issue
 Some research done in other country, but do not in your country.
 So you can do this but you need to put some new findings.
 You should tell your topic is very important to study
 How to Write A Successful Master Thesis? 11

 What is a Master thesis?

 For whom is it written?

 How should it be written?

 About Master Thesis 12

 Your thesis is a research report.

 The report concerns a problem or series of problems in your
area of research and it should describe what was known about
it previously, what you did towards solving it, what you think
your results mean, and where or how further progress in the
field can be made ?
 The thesis is about creating knowledge. Are you creating
knowledge?
 By creating knowledge, you are contributing to the body of
knowledge.
 13
About Master Thesis

 How to create knowledge ?

 You need competency *©

C = F ( K, S, A ) , where

K = knowledge

S= Skills

A = Attitude

 They are interrelated and you must acquire them

 14
About Master Thesis

 The thesis must make an original contribution to the body of

knowledge

 Your research must discover something hit to unknown.

 Remember, you are writing a thesis for the examiner.

 You should write to make the topic clear to a reader /examiner.

 15
A Suggested Thesis Structure

1. Abstract
2. Introduction
3. Literature Review
4. Empirical Study
5. Research Methodology
6. Analysis and Result
7. Discussion and Conclusion
8. Limitations
9. References
 16
Abstract

 It should be a distillation of the thesis:

• A concise description of the problem(s) addressed,
• your method of solving it/them, your results and conclusions.
• An abstract must be self-contained.
• Check the word limit.
 Remember: even though it appears at the beginning, an abstract is
not an introduction.
 It is a résumé of your thesis. This is to be done at the last stage
( after you write conclusion)
 17
Introduction

 What is the topic and why is it important? State the problem(s) as

simply as you can. Try to step back mentally and take a broader
view of the problem.
 How does it fit into the broader world of your discipline? What is
research question ? It is interesting ?
 The introduction should be interesting. If you bore the reader here,
then you are unlikely to revive his/her interest in other part of your
thesis ( such as methods section). Avoid boring introduction. Make
it interesting and you lead the reader for the next chapters.
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Literature Review

 Literature review is the first step for a Master thesis.

 What topic to be researched on ? How do you find it ? Literature
Review is the answer.
 How many papers? How relevant do they have to be read before
you include them? Have you read a few relevant thesis ? Have
you read influential and latest papers ? Find out their limitations
or recommendations for further studies.
 You spin these limitations
 Literature Review 19

 You may find a broad issues unresolved and but you cannot study
everything. Get over the emotions and narrow down your topic as
much as you can and then look for relevant literature.
 You need to focus on an important ( narrowed down ) topic. Frame
the research question ( a question that is researchable by available
data or information)
 Make sure that you do not omit relevant or influential and latest
papers (even try to include papers done by the examiners)
 Find out the weakness of the previous and recent studies or paper
published in very high quality journal.
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Theoretical Underpinnings

 In some thesis, it is necessary to develop your own theory with

the assistance of literature review.

 You can construct or build a model but you need to justify via

literature review.

 The theory must be new, unheard of and interesting ?.

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Methods

 Discuss how it was studied and reasons for choosing the

particular method

 Examine data sources, type of data and how do they fit to answer

your research question

 Justification for the period studied

 Describe the model and provide justification for the model and

variables
 22
Results and discussion

 In most cases, your results need discussion.

• What do they mean?
• How do they fit into the existing body of knowledge?
• Are they consistent with current theories?
• Do they give new insights?
• Do they suggest new findings, theories or mechanisms?
• Did they show that you have created knowledge ?
• Is it replicated research or original research ?
 23

Results and discussion

 You need to state the overall answer to the purpose of the study

in Results.

 Results must be logically organized?

 The findings should be linked to hypotheses. Supported or

rejected ?

 Do not omit all interpretation of the strategic or important new

data or results
 Conclusions, Recommendations and Suggestions For
Further Work 24

Conclusion must include the following:

 Show how have you created or advanced new knowledge.

 Show how your claims is supported by findings

 Do they seem reasonable? Or overstated ?

 Have the authors indicated how the results relate to earlier

research?
 References 25

 Follow the style recommended by the university.

 Good referencing allows the examiner to check the foundations of

your additions to the knowledge in the discipline is credible and

convincing.

 Good referencing also tells the reader which parts of the thesis are

descriptions of previous knowledge and which parts are your

additions to that knowledge

 Appendices 26

 If there is material that should be in the thesis but which would

break up the flow or bore the reader unbearably, include it as an
appendix.
 Materials that are typically included in appendices are: tables,
figures , data etc that are too large to be represented simply in the
results chapters,
 These pictures or diagrams of results which are not important
enough to keep in the main text.
 This means main text must not be over- burdened with too many
tables and figures.
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Language

 It is often helpful to have someone other than your adviser(s) read

your thesis. You can do this chapter by chapter and you will be
amazed to see the extent of mistakes. Ask them to examine the
flow of arguments and consistency of your chapters, topics,
findings, conclusion.
 In either case, only give them revised versions, so that they do not
waste time correcting your grammar, spelling, poor construction or
presentation
 Show the examiners in simple and short sentences which part/one
is yours.
 Style 28

 Short, simple phrases, sentences and words are often better than
long and complex ones.
 There will be times when you need a complicated sentence
because the idea is complicated.
 Sometimes it is easier to present information and arguments as a
series of numbered points, rather than as one or more long and
awkward paragraphs. A list of points is usually easier to write.
You should be careful not to use this presentation too much:
 One important stylistic choice is between the active voice and
passive voice.
 Golden Rule 29

 Your thesis must show that your have created or contributed or

advanced or added to the body of knowledge.

 The thesis must be well presented, must contain convincing

argument, not just a list of facts and observations.

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Strategies for successful dissertation completion

1. Start early and do not wait for a grand idea to strike or to land.
2. Keep track of everything you do by filing material (whether
digitally or not) and by keeping a diary of progress in your
research.
3. Keep back up of everything!
4. Supervisors are busy, you have to be forceful about this. Do not
be shy. They are (or are supposed to be) there to help you get
through the program.
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Strategies for successful dissertation completion

5. Get feedback on your work regularly. You do not need to write

many chapters for the supervisor
6. Keep a notebook of all of your ideas even if they seem tangential
to the thesis topic. You never know when they will be helpful
later.
7. Do not be scared of contacting researchers elsewhere who may
have relevant material/ideas for you
 32
Strategies for successful dissertation completion

8. Do not be scared of contacting researchers elsewhere who may

have relevant material/ideas for you.
9. Go to conferences. These are helpful for several reasons. Getting
feedback about your thesis should be helpful . You can learn about
more research that is relevant to your topic.
THANKS TO YOU