Choosing Your Dissertation Research Title

In: Reference & Education

3 Jun 2009

How to choose a dissertation title for a written work is not as simple as it looks. It should be related to your topic and most of all, it should somehow describe what you want to carry out in your discussion.

The first thing that you will be asked in making a dissertation is a working title. From your title, you will be able to start your research and focus on what you want to accomplish – this is your dissertation’s starting point.

More importantly, your dissertation title must provide a clear, concise, and accurate idea of what your dissertation is all about. The success of your dissertation, as well as your doctorate education, depends on how well crafted your dissertation title is. If your title does not grab enough reader attention, chances are your dissertation will gather dust in the shelf of your school’s library.

Thinking of the best dissertation title is a crucial part of the dissertation planning stage to complete your post-graduate education. Doctorate students use different techniques in creating effective titles for their dissertations. You may use a thought-provoking question or an authoritative statement as your dissertation title.

You may also use a term that is commonly searched by researchers and other students. For a better title recall, put the most relevant words at the beginning of the dissertation title. Some doctoral candidates use street jargons or current popular terms, which is a creative way to appeal to most readers. Because readers generally have short attention spans, you need to make your title short, catchy, and easy to remember.

The key to choosing the most appropriate title for your dissertation is to strive for originality. Read numerous sources to know what areas have not been explored. This will give you an idea on how you can add to existing research about your topic. Simply put, your title must highlight something new in your field.

Scan various articles and education materials on your topic and look for any question that has not been answered yet. Make sure that the gap you seek to fill has not been done elsewhere, so you need to do intensive research on this. Once you have chosen an unanswered question, you can use that as a topic for the title of your dissertation.

One of the best methods on how to choose a dissertation title is by using your thesis statement. You can include in your dissertation title the flow, process or methods that your study will undergo to catch the interests of the readers.

Do not use flowery words, instead use words with more attractive connotation and meaning. This will lure your target audience to read more about the contents of your paper, as opposed to intimidating them with your highfaluting concepts. You must also take note of the proper spacing of characters in your title.

Your title should be written and coordinated in a style that will produce curiosity to the readers so they will be eager to read your study. Your title should not contain jargon or technical terms that are not easily understood by readers who have no knowledge in your field of study. Your title as well as the whole dissertation should be written in layman’s term or in common English so it will easily be understood by all.

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