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Practical Handbook to Dissertation and Thesis

Writing

Book · February 2019

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Ndalahwa MUSA Masanja

Andrews University
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 Practical Handbook
to Dissertation and Thesis Writing

Ndalahwa Musa Masanja, PhD

An easy-to-use guide to dissertation or thesis writing

 Practical Handbook to Dissertation and
Thesis Writing
Because of the changing nature of research writing, it is
imperative to develop a practical guideline for students
and research practitioners. This is due to the fact that
most of the students or potential researchers do not have
mastery in proper academic writing. This book helps them
to prepare a comprehensive and thorough dissertation or
thesis.

In this book, Dr. Ndalahwa Musa Masanja outlines the key

aspects of writing a dissertation or a thesis. The author
provides a step by step direction in creating a
comprehensive dissertation or thesis. The following are
the some of the topics included in the book
- Chapter One which provides the background and
introduction of the study
- Chapter Two which provides a comprehensive
discussion of related literature in the study.
- Chapter three which describes the research
methodology used in the study
- Chapter Four which presents the research findings
and a detailed discussion about the findings in
relation to the literature.
- Chapter Five summarizes the key findings while
proposing possible recommendations for
implementation, policy change and
recommendations for further studies.

This book provides the common issues in dissertation or

thesis writing which poses challenges to students pursuing
this academic endeavor. For this reasons, this book is
instrumental to the preparation of students and
practitioners for dissertation and thesis writing.
First published 2019
by NMM Printers

Simultaneously published in the Tanzania and Kenya

by NMM Printers
P.O. Box 11239 Mwanza Tanzania
NMM Printers is an imprint of the NMM Group
2019@ Ndalahwa Musa Masanja
Typeset in N and M by Arusha Imaging Systems (P) Ltd,
Arusha, Tanzania
Printed and bound in Tanzania by NMM Printers
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted
or reproduced or utilized in any form or by any electronic,
mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter
invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any
information storage or retrieval system, without permission
in writing from the author.
Tanzania Library Service Board Cataloguing in Publication
Data.A catalogue record for this book is available from the
Tanzania Library Service Board
NMM Cataloging in Publication Data
A catalog record for this book has been requested

ISBN 978-9976-59-470-6 (hbk)

ISBN 978-9976-59-470-6 (pbk)
 About the author
Dr. Ndalahwa Musa Masanja is an expert in Accounting,
Management and Higher education administration. He
possesses good interpersonal and communication skills.
He is also experienced in the academic research and
business writing. This knowledge is attributed by serving
in different capacities as an Accountant, business
manager and entrepreneur in Tanzania and United States
of America. He holds a BBA in Accounting and
Management, and MBA in Accounting from the University
of Eastern Africa Baraton in Kenya. He also has a PhD
from Andrews University in USA. Currently, He is a
lecturer at the University of Arusha. Furthermore, he was
an Adjunct lecturer at Jomo Kenyatta University of
Science of Technology at Arusha Campus and a part-time
lecturer at MS-TCDC. He has been teaching graduate
programs at the Institute of Accountancy Arusha located in
Arusha and Dar-es-salaam.

He has been supervising students pursuing research

methods in business and projects. Furthermore, he has
been supervising students writing their dissertations and
thesis. At the same time, he has participated as an
external examiner for students pursuing their postgraduate
studies. He has authored several books and published
acclaimed articles in international journals. He also has
participated in international seminars and workshops on
business research.
 Table of Content
1. PRELIMINARY PAGES………………………….
Cover page………………………………………...
Title page…………………………………………..
Certification………………………………………..
Declaration………………………………………...
Copyright…………………………………………..
Release form……………………………………....
Acknowledgement………………………………..
Dedication…………………………………………
Abbreviation and Acronyms……………………
Abstract…………………………………………....
Table of content…………………………………..
List of Tables……………………………………...
List of Figures……………………………………..

2. CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION……………..

Background of the Study…………………………
Problem Statement……………………………….
Objectives of the Study…………………………..
Research Questions……………………………..
Research Hypothesis……………………….……
Theoretical Framework…………………….…….
Conceptual Framework………………….………
Significance of the Study……………………….
Scope and Delimitation of the Study…………..
Definition of Terms………………………………

3. CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW……

Introduction………………………………………
Theoretical Literature…………………………..
Empirical Literature…………………………….
Policy Review……………………………………
4. CHAPTER THREE: RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY………………………………….
Introduction………………………………………..
Research design………………………………….
Data collection methods………………………….
Population and sampling procedures…………..
Data analysis, presentation and interpretation..
Validity and Reliability of research instrument..
Ethical consideration…………………………….

5. CHAPTER FOUR: DATA ANALYSIS,

INTERPRETATION ANDDISCUSSION……….
Introduction……………………………………….
Data presentation………………………………..
Data analysis……………………………………..
Data interpretation……………………………….
Discussion………………………………………..

6. CHAPTER FIVE: SUMMARY OF FINDINGS,

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS.
Introduction………………………………………
Research findings………………………………
Conclusion………………………………………
Recommendations………………………………

7. LIST OF REFERENCES……………………….

8. APPENDICES……………………………..........
 Book Perspective
In most higher learning institutions, a thesis or dissertation
represents a significant part of research task that leads to
the contribution toward the body of knowledge in a given
field. Normally, the two terms (Dissertation and Thesis)
are used interchangeably. However, dissertation refers to
a research work which requires course work in a particular
program while occasionally thesis is applied for research
work without course work. For this reason, most of the
programs in graduate level require a student to either write
a dissertation or a thesis.

Every institution has a format or guideline of preparing a

dissertation or thesis. Therefore, every student or
researcher should take into consideration the guidelines
provided by their institutions.

This book provides broad practical guidelines to prepare a

research proposal and dissertation or thesis report. It is a
step by step guide for writing a dissertation or thesis
8

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