MSc Final Project

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BUS7048 Information on topic selection

Choice of topic

It is usual to give you some discretion in the choice of topic for the dissertation and in the

approach to be adopted. You will need to ensure that your dissertation is related to your

chosen pathway.

Planning your Dissertation

This will entail the following:

 Selecting a topic for investigation

 Establishing the precise focus of your study by deciding on the aims and objectives of

the dissertation, or formulating questions to be investigated. Consider very carefully

what is worth investigating and whether it is feasible.

 Drawing up an initial dissertation outline in line with the aims and objectives of the

dissertation.

 Devising a timetable to ensure that all stages, including writing of the dissertation will

be completed on time. The timetable should include provision for regular contact with

your dissertation supervisor.

The Dissertation Topic

Deciding this is often the most difficult part of the dissertation process, and perhaps, you

have been thinking of a topic for some time.

It is important to distinguish here between ‘dissertation topic’ and ‘dissertation title’. The topic

is the specific area that you wish to investigate. The title may not be decided upon until after

the dissertation has been written so as to properly reflect its content.

Some restrictions are placed on the choice of the topic. We would expect it to be:

 Relevant to business, defined broadly

 Related to your pathway (e.g. Finance, Marketing or International Business)

 Clearly focused so as to facilitate an in-depth approach, subject to the availability of

adequate sources and to your own knowledge;

 Of value and interest to you and your personal development.

In addition, students must choose a topic that is aligned with their chosen subject pathway.

For example: MSc Management and Marketing students must chose a marketing topic; MSc

Management and International Business must choose a relevant topic related to

International Business; and MSc Management and Finance must choose a Finance-related

topic.

You will be asked to submit a topic overview by the deadline. The topic overview will trigger

the allocation of an appropriate supervisor. If no topic is submitted, the supervisory allocation

process will not proceed. The topic should consist of a summary (no more than 300 words)

of the subject area of the project. The submission of an initial ‘topic overview’ via the

Research Practice or Research Project Management module is not marked and does not

form part of the assessment process it merely facilitates the allocation of supervisor. Please

note that once supervisors have been allocated they cannot be changed.

This means that there are three basic problems in deciding the dissertation:

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The first is the imaginative and creative task of generating ideas for the research

investigation – “What Can I Look At?” Some suggestions for doing this are given in the

following section.

The second is the difficulty of determining the feasibility of the dissertation. Will the

necessary information be available? Can you get the support and facilities you need. Has

the topic been exhaustively researched before? What sort of work is needed? How long will

it take?

The third, and perhaps most important, is deciding whether the topic is sufficiently interesting

and worthwhile for you to want to do it. Good dissertations result from a high level of

personal motivation and commitment. A dissertation requires a lot of hard work over a long

time. This is a lot easier to carry out if you are dealing with a topic of importance and

relevance to yourself. With personal interest a dissertation changes from a burden to an

experience. Clearly this is something that only you can decide.

Choosing the Dissertation Topic

It is important here not to restrict yourself by assuming that all dissertations are of a similar

type. You are free to select any aspect of the business world aligned to your chosen

pathway for your investigation.

You can be specific to one company, one industry or sector, and you are required to focus

on one or more subjects in the core and pathway programme. The chosen area should allow

you to develop an in-depth analysis.

The following list of suggestions may help you in your search for a topic:

Suggestions from the Taught Units

What topics, issues, subjects etc. have particularly captured your interest from the core and

pathway modules. Use as a base for examining what is going on in your organization, if you

are employed.

Current Events

What are the problems, significant issues, etc., that are currently evident from your study

and knowledge of business, whether in the UK or in your own country.

Your Career Interests

What sort of job will you be aiming for when you finish the course? Can the dissertation help

prepare you for this? What developments would it be worthwhile examining in depth? The

dissertation may give you an advantage over other graduates applying for these types of

jobs.

Your Own Interests

But perhaps, most importantly, you should choose a topic from within a business area in

which you have a high personal interest. The reason for this is quite simple: It is often one’s

own interest in a topic which sustains the motivation to see the dissertation through to a

successful completion.

In order to get started you obviously need some initial ideas as to what is to be the broad

subject matter of the dissertation. It can also be equally sensible to start by considering what

is feasible in the light of the data to which you can get access. You should never be rigid in

your proposals. There are all sorts of ways you can set about refining the initial idea into a

definite dissertation.

You could start by:

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 Thinking of a title for the report of results;

 Considering your personal interests and aims; how could a dissertation help realize

these?

 Deciding on some particular outcome you wish to achieve, either in terms of

organisational goals or your own personal objectives;

 Listing possible issues for investigation: these could take the form of a series of

questions that the research would answer, or a series of hypotheses for testing;

 Finding out what research has already been conducted and what has been written on

the subject of your choice, i.e. a review of the literature

 Starting straight away with some exploratory research

The only starting point for defining your topic that is definitely not recommended is choosing

the method of data collection or analysis. This is a secondary consideration that should be

determined in the light of one’s dissertation objectives once these have been set. Allowing a

preference for a particular method of research to determine the nature and content of your

dissertation is, in our experience, a sure recipe for amassing mountains of data with no clear

purpose or means of using them.

Further Advice on Topic Selection

Market entry plans are very much off limits; they lack critical thinking and analysable data.

Strategic analysis of companies and analysis of companies strategies; It has proved hard to

get realistic valid data; some students have failed because they thought asking a few

customers about strategic success with the company data means they are set up to fail. This

is particularly true of Multi National Enterprises and Global Enterprises and the banking

sector, where students thought they could ring up a Headquarters and they would be told

strategies, financial positions, etc.

Topics must be clearly within the module specifications of the pathways, otherwise the

background theories will be absent.

Case studies, i.e. worked illustrative examples, are only acceptable if they are situated within

a wider context and involve primary data collection and analysis.

Historical retrospective write-ups, e.g. “How Coke made it big in India” are not acceptable.

Industry reports such as “The Indian Diamond industry” or “Thailand’s auto spares industry”

are not acceptable.

Only Finance pathway students can select finance topics.

International Business (IB) Pathway Dissertations

An IB Pathway dissertation could be ‘international’ via:

1) Collecting data in two countries

2) Collecting data in one country and comparing it with secondary data in another country

(previous studies)

3) Relating to the activities of an international company in a country which is not its ‘home

country’ (so not Asda in the UK, because Asda is a UK company, although owned by

Walmart; but if Walmart introduced Walmart stores into the UK then it would be OK to

study them. HRM practices of Barclays bank in Nigeria would be OK).