Format

The following standard is required for the submitted dissertation.

The dissertation is to be typed in a permanent and legible form. You must submit the original top copy and not a photocopy. Where copies are produced by any process they must be of a permanent nature.

One hard copy AND one identical soft copy of the dissertation should be submitted to the University. The soft copy must be submitted via Blackboard. Do note that there is a maximum file size for the soft copy. Currently the maximum file size is a generous 9mb. For the vast majority of students this file size is more than sufficient for their work. In the event that your work exceeds 9mb you are encouraged to consider whether you are incorporating unnecessary material. From experience we know that students can incorporate graphical images of adverts, reports and even the University of Leicester logo, all of which require considerable memory. If the graphics are not integral to your dissertation ask yourself whether you require them.

The hard copy of the dissertation will not be returned to the student. If the dissertation contains confidential information this should be indicated by the student on the title pages. The University will treat all such information in the strictest of confidence and will undertake not to pass on confidential information to a third party. The dissertation is stored securely and is not published in the library or presented for public viewing without the express permission of the student.

The front and rear covers shall offer some rigidity and support to the submitted dissertation. There is no stipulation on the colour or material of the cover.

A title page is required. The dissertation title is important as it needs to indicate quite clearly what the dissertation is about. It is useful when considering a title to also bear in mind how the work may be indexed and coded for information storage and retrieval purposes (what key words should the title incorporate). See Appendix B.

The title page must include the following information:

• the full title of the dissertation 
• the full name of the author
  
• the qualification for which the dissertation is submitted
  
• the month and year of submission. 
• the subject area for the research ^{(i.e. Marketing & Consumption, Finance & Economics, OB, ER & HRM, Managing Information, Managing Quality)}
  

A4 paper (210 mm . 297 mm) of good quality and sufficient opacity should be used. Only one side of the paper should be used and the page setup should be portrait for the main body of the dissertation. A left hand margin of 40 mm should be used all other margins being 20 mm. Line spacing of 1.5 or 2 should be used for typescript, except for indented quotations where single spacing may be used. A font size of 12 is required and you are encouraged to use a clear font design such as Arial, Times New Roman or Courier New.

Pages must be numbered consecutively throughout the text. Page numbers shall be located centrally at the bottom of each page.

Any abbreviations used should be those in normal use. Where necessary a key to abbreviations should be provided.

Where other loose materials are to be incorporated into the dissertation (e.g. compact disks) these must be placed in an adequately secured pocket which is permanently bound into the dissertation. These requirements must be adhered to. Beyond this, however, the exact format of the dissertation is likely to vary according to the particular purpose and subject matter.

Some dissertations will present information that either the sponsoring organisation or the researcher considers confidential. If this is the case the title pages of all submitted work must be clearly marked CONFIDENTIAL. In these circumstances the work will only be made available to the tutor, a second marker and the external examiners.

Where it is felt that the contents of the dissertation would be of interest to a wider audience it is hoped that course members will consider publishing their dissertations either in total or in an edited form.

Structure

A typical dissertation is likely to include the following:

• title page (see Appendix B)
  
• contents list (see Appendix C)
  
• acknowledgments
  
• executive summary
  
• introduction 
• literature review
  
• methodology
  
• findings/data analysis
  
• conclusions
  
• recommendations
  
• reflections
  
• references
  
• appendices
  

Contents list

A table of the various chapters and sections of the dissertation must be included together with clear page references to each of these. Well documented contents will quickly show any reader the scope and direction of the work. See Appendix C for details.

Executive Summary

The final dissertation will need an executive summary, which emphasises the main findings of the study. In particular this executive summary should contain:

• an introduction telling the reader what the dissertation is about, its objective, terms of reference and a description of the approach used
  
• a summary of the information collected and analysis undertaken
  
• details of the conclusions, recommendations and any action plans
  

This executive summary should only be written after the dissertation is completed. It is often very difficult to write an effective summary as it should contain a complete overview of the whole dissertation. It needs to provide an informative outline of contents, conclusions and recommendations of the dissertation. There should also be some indications of the methods used. It must be presented in a coherent form – not as a list of headings or topics.

Introduction

The introduction is essential in order to tell the reader what the dissertation is intended to provide – it ismore than just the first section of the dissertation. It should include a statement of the purpose or objectives of the inquiry, the terms of reference, the sources of information on which the dissertation is based and how it was collected. The introduction sets the scene and puts the whole inquiry into its proper context. It should explain why the research was carried out and outline the significance of related work on the topic. The introduction may provide necessary background, but only if it is relevant and brief. It may also inform the reader how the subject will be developed. It is likely that the main body of the dissertation will contain several chapters/sections and sub-sections. All such divisions should be identified using a decimal notation system whereby major sections are given single numbers 1, 2, 3 and so on in sequence. The first level of sub-section will follow a decimal point, for example 1.1 and the first sub-section under this sub-section will repeat the process, that is 1.1.1 and so on. Be careful to avoid too many sub-sections as this will simply lead to confusion and reading difficulties.

Literature Review

The research question must be seen to relate and informed by the literature. You are encouraged to use the various electronic search facilities, journal articles and texts to identify and understand both well-established and more recent thinking in the area pertinent to your topic. It is important that your literature review is both comprehensive and up-to-date. There is a wide range of potential sources which you can use to put together your literature review. The most recognised in academic terms are monographs (books reporting original research) or journal articles, but you can also use:

• textbooks
  
• reports (e.g., from Mintel or your national government)
  
• conference papers
  
• newspapers
  
• radio programmes
  
• television programmes.
  

A critical evaluation of the literature in your chosen field of study is required to produce clear and logical arguments that inform and reflect on your research questions and objectives. During this process you will need to identify the appropriate theories, models and conceptual ideas. A literature review does not simply relate relevant concepts, but provides some form of critical judgement of these concepts/perspectives in deciding how they will inform the research to be conducted. This research might then not only say something empirically, but also about the literature that underpinned it. As a broad guide, the ‘typical’ literature review will be between 3,000–5,000 words in length.

Methodology

The methodology should provide a justified and informed account of how you approached the research. It should provide detail of epistemological and ontological issues relevant to your study. The methodology should also explain the role of primary and secondary data in addressing the research questions and detail how data was collected and analysed. This will include discussion of instruments used and sampling strategies employed. Students are expected to reflect upon the ethical issues within the research design and conduct of the research. As a broad guide, the ‘typical’ methodology will be between 2,000–3,000 words in length.

Data Analysis

This chapter analyses and evaluates your findings and is often combined with the actual description of the results. You should position your own results against the background of previous research covered in the literature review, and against your original research questions. The final paragraph of this section should point to the conclusions section. As a broad guide, the ‘typical’ data analysis will be between 3,000–5,000 words in length.

Conclusions

The conclusions must be drawn from the body of evidence presented in the main sections of the dissertation. Each separate conclusion should be acknowledged – possibly by numerical sub-sections. The conclusion should be seen to flow clearly from the proceeding analysis and should also indicate any problems that had been identified and which will be the subject of recommended solutions.

Recommendations

This section will suggest ways of solving the problems, how the recommended courses of action will help to achieve the aims of the dissertation, the benefits and cost of implementing the recommendations, the programme of work that is required, the timescale involved and the resource implications. Recommendations should flow logically from the conclusions of the research indeed they are sometimes combined under a joint heading.

Reflections

This section will contain an analysis and evaluation of the research process – particularly an assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of the dissertation, any problems or constraints encountered during the dissertation and how these difficulties were resolved. In addition, an evaluation of the effectiveness of the chosen methodology can be expected together with an assessment of how individual management competencies have been developed. The following questions may be useful in providing a framework for this section:

• were the dissertation objectives well defined and fulfilled?
  
• how did the outcomes compare with initial expectations?
  
• was the research well planned and executed?
  
• what went well and what would have been done differently?
  
• how sensitive was the researcher to the abilities and contributions of others?
  
• what was learnt in terms of management experience and the development of specific management competencies?
  
• what would be your recommendations for improving the dissertation in the light of your experiences?
  

References

References serve two purposes. They enable the reader to check information from external sources and to follow up those sources if further information is required.

References also acknowledge the debt of the reader to other writers whose work has been used. References include all sources which have actually been referred to in the body of the dissertation. References do not include peripheral readings. In order to clearly and accurately identify a particular source it is necessary to have certain minimal information. This information primarily consists of the name of the author, the year of publication, the title of the publication, the place of publication and the name of the publisher.

Further specific information is dependent upon the nature of the publication being referred to. There are a number of ways in which bibliographical data can be presented. It is important, however, that consistency in referencing is maintained by keeping to a single system. Further information on referencing can be found in your Programme Handbook, your Blackboard course site,  via the University of Leicester Library, the Student Learning Centre

Appendices

A copy of the proposal and ethics approval form must be inserted in the appendices. Appendices are essential where there is a lot of detailed information which if presented in the main body would interrupt or spoil the flow of the dissertation. Examples could be detailed tables of statistics, results of experiments, series of graphs, interview transcripts etc. but remember that important items should be included in the text rather than requiring frequent reference to the appendices which can irritate readers. Appendices should be placed at the end of the dissertation and if there is more than one they should be clearly separated and labelled, for example, Appendix A, Appendix B etc. The appendices should be referred to at appropriate points in the text. Please note that all data collected through questionnaires (i.e. paper or electronic format) or interviews (e.g written interview notes, audio/video recordings) must be retained by the student until graduation. The markers may request access to interview transcripts and questionnaires and you should be in a position to provide access to these materials at reasonable notice. 

Submission

Candidates MUST complete and sign the Dissertation Grade and Comments form and attach the completed form to the front of the dissertation. The top white copy of the form will be returned to candidates giving the grade they have been awarded for the dissertation and the tutor’s comments on their written work. Dissertations cannot be returned to course members. University quality assurance systems mean that it is necessary for us to keep the original copy of all course work to provide our external examiners with a complete record of your work. Candidates MUST keep their own copy of the dissertation in case of loss in the mail. It is the responsibility of course members to ensure that the University is in receipt of their submitted course work.