diss business pitch

Dissertation Proposal Form

This form must be approved for a candidate to register for the dissertation. It is the student’s responsibility to complete this form. It is also incumbent upon the student to make sure that all academic and administrative criteria have been met. The form must be completed in full, signed by the student and the promoter, and submitted to the Research Coordinator for approval.

Please type on this form. Handwritten forms will not be accepted. Please avoid use of the first person in academic writing.

Section A: Student details

Name:

Email:

Program (DBA; MBA, BA):

Specialization:

Section B: Proposal

Type below each heading. Please ensure you use in-text academic references to support your proposal and aim for 1,000-1,500 words.

I. Proposed Dissertation Title: The title (tentative) should be precise to allow the reader to comprehend the subject matter of the work.

II. Research Question or Hypothesis: State clearly what your research interest is. Define your research question/hypothesis and the main objectives of your research ( 100 words).

III. Review of Literature/Background: Make a synthesis of the contributions made in your research field by accredited scholars. Students are advised to include 10-15 sources, cited using Harvard referencing format, and listed in a reference list at the end of the proposal. Describe how your intended research will complement and expand on the current literature, and what contributions you intend to make to the existing knowledge ( 500 words).

IV. Research Methodology: Clearly indicate the methods and techniques which you are planning to use to gather information and investigate the identified problem. Primary research is expected, with a required minimum number of survey responses or interviews, as indicated in the rubric. Justify why you have chosen the proposed methods to address the research question identified, using citations from research literature to support your proposal.

V. Data Collection : Describe which instruments you intend to use or develop to collect data for your primary research as well as who your participants would be and how you could ensure sufficient participation. How could the effects of insufficient responses be mitigated?

VI. Data Analysis : Describe what methods you propose to use to analyze the data.

VII. Research and Writing Timeline: Indicate your expected research timetable: starting date, research time, data analysis time, writing time, editing time, date of first draft submission, expected defense time. You may use a Gantt chart.

VIII. Ethics: How does your research relate to the ethical aspects of your subject matter?

IX. References (Formatted using Harvard Referencing)

Section C: Submission Registration

Promoter:

Proposed Defense Cohort (Choose One)

☐ January 2026 ☐ June 2026 ☐September 2026

Note: Dissertation Defense must be completed within the three main cohorts, following coursework completion, for which registration is open. (May and June count as a single Cohort for this purpose). Example: students completing in June or July 2023 may register to defend in January 2024 and must defend by September 2024.

Student Declaration

I recognize the extent of the workload involved in undertaking a dissertation project and commit to

planning and coordinating with my Promoter in order to establish an appropriate timeline for its

completion. I commit to familiarizing myself with the requirements for the project, which are detailed

in the Dissertation Guidelines. The management and quality of the dissertation is ultimately my

responsibility.

Student Signature: Date:

Section D: Approval

This form will not be accepted for submission without the signature of the student´s promoter.