Top Challenges Faced by Scholars While Crafting a Dissertation Proposal

Proposing future research or crafting a dissertation proposal is not an easy task. There are many challenges associated with this scholarly document. Those challenges, if not known by the student, can create big troubles for him, from having his proposal rejected by the research supervisor to extreme difficulties. Therefore, in this scenario, it is important for a student to learn the top challenges that he may face while crafting a dissertation or research proposal.

As you are here reading this post, it means you are looking for the same information. Well, there is no need to worry at all. In today’s article, we will look at each challenge one by one. Before that, let’s explain what a dissertation proposal is.

What is a dissertation proposal?

A dissertation or research proposal is a scholarly document that describes your intended research topic. It explains what you want to do, what it is about, how you want to do it, and most importantly, why conducting research on this topic is worthwhile. A dissertation proposal is required by most universities around the world before you embark on your actual dissertation writing journey. The research proposal varies a lot in terms of length and structure. The reason is that these guidelines are set by the university, and they vary.

Top challenges faced by students when crafting a proposal

After reading the information above, you now have a good idea of what a proposal is. However, you still do not know what challenges you might face on the road to creating a good dissertation proposal. Hence, a brief description of the challenges is as follows:

1. Selecting a good topic

In high school and college, teachers help students a lot. They provide them with the topics, and students just have to start writing. However, this is not the scenario at the university level. Here, you need to select the topic for yourself, and this is the first challenge you face. Amid many, many options for research, choosing one is really a difficult task. However, you can cope with this challenge by exploring your research interests.

2. Poor research skills

If you are a student, who has done his Master’s with research work, then there is no need to worry. It is because such students have considerable knowledge of how to research properly. However, if you are a student with no research background, then the second top challenge that you are going to face is the research challenge. Being a newbie, you will not be able to find reliable and authentic information for your research topic. However, if you are facing this challenge, do not worry and take help from dissertation proposal writing services.

3. Choosing the methodology

The third top challenge that PhD scholars face while crafting a dissertation proposal is choosing the right methodology. The methodology section of the research proposal is the most important one. Basically, the teachers only pay attention to this chapter. There are multiple ways of studying a research topic and answering the related research questions. However, settling on one methodology is really difficult for students.

4. Lack of open discussion

PhD scholars often face the challenge of open discussions with their research supervisors. At the proposal stage, the research supervisors leave the students alone and ask them to work on their own. This is a major blow to students as they cannot decide things on their own. Hence, the lack of discussion and involvement from the research supervisor is another one of the top challenges faced by PhD scholars.

5. Failing to budget the research

Budgeting is the most important element of a dissertation proposal. If you are going to develop something, the research committee wants to see how much you intend to spend on it and whether it is a safe investment or not. Most students find themselves stuck here as they do not know how to budget the research. Hence, giving a clear picture of the research expenses is another issue you may face.

6. Writing in a convincing tone

Lastly, PhD scholars face the challenge of writing the dissertation proposal in a convincing tone. Most scholars are used to writing a text which is descriptive and straightforward. However, the tone and style of a proposal are a bit different, and this is what creates difficulties for them. As most scholars do not know how to write in a convincing tone, they face a lot of challenges when trying the achieve the main objective of a proposal.

Conclusion

To sum up, a dissertation proposal is a document that explains your intended research project. It explains what it is, how you are planning to do it, and what its significance is. However, explaining all this is not an easy task. As a PhD scholar, surely, you are going to face some issues while crafting this document. Some of the challenges are mentioned above. Hence, read them and devise solutions to overcome them.