Writing the dissertation proposal requires preliminary research that will enable you to narrow your focus and settle on a topic. When doing this research, you will get a feel for what the next year or more will be like. You will be married to this project so you don't want to get bored with it. Additionally, the preliminary research provides a base of knowledge, in addition to the course knowledge you already possess, to write your proposal.
The proposal is a difficult but crucial starting point for a dissertation. Your proposal must be approved by your committee before you can proceed. The purpose of the proposal is to identify your research question, importance of the question and research methods. Your proposal should, according to the University of Pennsylvania, identify the following:
* What problem are you going to tackle?
* Why is it a problem?
* Why is it important to solve it?
* Where are you going to look for answers?
* Why are you going to look there?
Good research begins by collecting and reading what has been published pertaining to your research question. Reading what others have done allows you to build on your knowledge and avoid doing something repetitive. Your dissertation should push a topic in your field forward and you can only do this by knowing what has already been done. You thus need a comprehensive literature review of the work related to your topic. The next phase of research involves conducting the research that you discussed in your proposal. This could be a quantitative or qualitative study, or a combination of both. After completing your study you may have further questions and may need to conduct more secondary research as you continue to grow the scholarly conversation and your project.
The most important advice when it comes to writing a dissertation is to write in small pieces. Work on the literature review, sections of the study and other sections in small parts. You shouldn't expect to sit down and write an entire chapter. Setting small page goals or word goals will help you pay more attention to quality instead of content. Of course, you will revise and rewrite numerous times so don't get hung up on small sentence or paragraphs issues when you first write them. Editing is for later.
Choosing a dissertation adviser and committee is a critical step in a dissertation. Your adviser should be someone who is an expert in the field you are researching. You want someone who will be able to guide you, provide feedback, knowledge and wisdom about your topic.
When choosing a committee, seek balance by finding individuals whose research interests complement yours and as well as those of other committee members. Be sure to find individuals who work well together because they will need to assist you and, eventually, decide whether you are granted your doctorate. You do not want them arguing with one another instead of focusing on you.