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How to create a dissertation proposal defense powerpoint (+example), published by steve tippins on june 21, 2022 june 21, 2022.
Last Updated on: 22nd May 2024, 04:14 am
As part of the dissertation process, you will need to create a dissertation proposal defense PowerPoint to present a summary of the plan for your study. You will need to show how important your study is and how it is useful.
When creating the PowerPoint, keep in mind that you need to make sure all of your audience can understand all aspects of your study. The exact content for the defense PowerPoint varies by college, discipline and department, so it is important that you discuss with your committee chair about the requirements. However, we will give some general guidelines that apply to most institutions.
The defense typically takes 20‐30 minutes. You should keep the timeframe in mind as you consider the information you will have in your presentation.
Except for aspects of your presentation, such as the research question(s) or hypothesis(es), do not just read the slides. Instead, explain or expand on what is on the slides. To ensure you keep within the timeframe, practice narrating your PowerPoint presentation.
Although the APA manual does not provide guidelines for creating a PowerPoint presentation, you will need to follow some of the APA style guidelines within your PowerPoint.
For example, provide in-text citations for quotes, paraphrases, images, graphs, and other information that should be cited. Also, you will need to provide a list of pertinent references.
The following are other format requirements for the slides :
- Create 17-20 slides.
- Do not provide a lot of information. Be concise and write a few sentences (approximately 1-7 on each slide).
- Because your slides will contain only a small amount of information, any extra information that you want to touch on should be put in the notes section of the PowerPoint.
- Write the information in your slides for visual appeal and optimum communication, using a legible font size.
- You can use graphics and images to enhance and reinforce the information. However, ensure that they do not distract from your information.
- You can use bullet points but keep them to a minimum of 3-4 for each listing.
Example Dissertation Proposal Defense PowerPoint Template
The dissertation proposal will consist of three chapters, which you will be providing information on in the presentation. Although the contents and order of the contents may vary, there are some basic parts of the proposal that are usually required.
The following is a breakdown of the usual contents that are included in the presentation. Each of these headings below represents the titles of each slide. The information below the headings is the type of content you will need to provide.
Title (1 slide) :
- Dissertation’s Title
- Department of Program of Study/Name of University
- Chair and Committee Members
Statement of the Problem (1 slide):
- Provide the problem that your dissertation will address.
Purpose of the Study (1 slide):
- Provide what the study will do relative to the issue(s) defined in the statement of the problem.
Significance of the Study (1 slide):
- Provide the main argument of why the solution to the problem that you propose is important.
Research Question(s)/Hypothesis(es ) (1 slide):
- Provide the research question(s) or hypothesis(es) relevant to your field of study, written exactly as it is in your dissertation proposal.
The Literature Review (2 slides):
- These slides should consist of a coherent, organized overview of the main literature that frames your study’s problem, and the gap in literature that your study will address. Make sure that you include the sources.
Theoretical/Conceptual Framework (1 slide):
- This slide should consist of the theoretical/conceptual framework that will help you make sense of the phenomenon that you will investigate.
Research Design (1 slide):
- Provide the framework for the methods of data collection and data analysis. Indicate whether the study will be quantitative or qualitative.
Sample and Population (1 slide):
- Provide the population that refers to the entire group that you will draw conclusions about, and the sample that refers to the specific group that you will collect data from.
Data Collection (1 slide):
- Provide the methods by which you will obtain the data. If the research design is quantitative, provide methods such as correlation and regression, mean, mode and median or others. If the design is qualitative, provide methods such as, interviews, questionnaires with open-ended questions, focus groups, observation, game or role-playing, case studies, or others.
Data Analysis (1-2 slides):
- This slide should contain the process you will use to understand, gather, compile, and process the data you will obtain.
Limitations (1 slide):
- In this slide, explain the nature of the limitations and how they will be overcome during your research.
Delimitations (1slide):
- Provide the characteristics that describe the boundaries of your study and limit the scope, such as sample size, geographical location, population traits, or others.
References (1-2 slides):
- Only provide those sources that you referred to in the presentation. Do not provide all the sources that you have in your dissertation proposal.
Thank You/Questions (1 slide):
- Use this final slide to thank your committee and to request questions from them.
Note : For information about citing your references, refer to Chapters 9 and 10 of the APA Manual 7 th edition.
For instructions on how to create a PowerPoint, see How to Create a Powerpoint Presentation .
View this video for “ Tips and Tricks for your Proposal Defense Day Presentation ”
You can find several templates of students’ Dissertation Proposal Defense presentations online by searching for “Dissertation Proposal Defense PowerPoint.” You can also find one at this webpage .
Steve Tippins
Steve Tippins, PhD, has thrived in academia for over thirty years. He continues to love teaching in addition to coaching recent PhD graduates as well as students writing their dissertations. Learn more about his dissertation coaching and career coaching services. Book a Free Consultation with Steve Tippins
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40 Thesis Defense Questions
Practicing answering thesis defense questions in a mock thesis defense is the best way to get ready for this challenging step in your academic career. Aside from knowing your research project inside and out, you must have solid strategies for tackling different question types and talking about why you chose your research topic. You might have already answered questions related to your research interests in your research interest statement and grad school interview questions , but now after years for in-depth study, it's time to really test what you have accomplished! Check out some of the hardest thesis defense questions below and read our expert responses!
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Article Contents 11 min read
What to expect in a thesis defense.
A thesis defense is your chance to demonstrate your in-depth knowledge and expertise in the topic of your research thesis. While you will be able to take charge of the narrative and present your research to those on your thesis committee, the professors will prod you to test how well you know and understand your topic. The questions are mostly open-ended and give you the chance to showcase your knowledge and understanding, as well as any future plans you may have regarding your research topic.
A thesis defense usually lasts between one and two hours, depending on the area of your research. It starts with you giving a presentation of your interest, findings, and conclusions. After you have finished, the committee members will ask you questions based not only on your presentation, but also on your written thesis as they will have read it before your presentation. Lastly, the committee might approve your thesis or suggest changes to your paper.
Preparing thesis defense questions requires you to start well in advance. While the duration of your thesis defense might vary as per your institution's requirements, the major idea is to defend your research. Thus, you should go about preparing for your thesis defense questions by taking the following steps.
Interested in a quick overview of the section below? Check out this infographic:
Re-read your thesis for clarity
Your thesis defense questions will be based on what you have written in your research paper. Hence, it is a good idea to re-read your paper. You should be clear on the concepts and understand your research well. It might have been some time since you would have submitted your paper, so a revision should be the starting point of your preparation.
Have an answer strategy and structure
Plan a strategy to answer the panel’s questions. Keep your answers direct, but elaborate on the research details wherever necessary. If you do not know the answer to a question, that is alright. The key is to be able to formulate an answer even if you do not possess enough knowledge to answer at that point in time. For instance, if a question is about the content of your research, you can say something like “I am not certain my research touches on the question you are asking, but my research has led me to Dr. X. Based his evidence, I would have to conclude that…” Having a strategy for answering even the most unexpected questions can be a life saver in these situations!
Most of the thesis defense questions can be easily predicted based on your research. You can prepare a list of possible questions when you are going through your paper. Getting to know the committee can help you in preparing better. Their areas of expertise can help you in determining what they might ask. Once you have a list of questions, you can start brainstorming how you might answer them.
Prepare your slides in advance
If you require visual aids such as slides, it is a good idea to prepare them beforehand. You can double-check the slides and make sure that your presentation will run smoothly on the day of your thesis defense. Make sure your slides are arranged in the correct order.
Attend a thesis defense of other candidates if it is an open event
If your institution allows it, you can visit a thesis defense of other candidates. This will give you an excellent idea of what you can expect in your meeting. If it is not possible to attend the event, you can speak to your peers to find out how their meeting went and what questions were asked.
Dress appropriately for your meeting
The thesis defense meeting is a formal event, and hence you should be dressed in formal clothes. While there are no strict dressing rules, you should consider it something equivalent to a job interview. Don’t just wear your T-shirt and appear in front of the committee. Your formal suit is a better option for the occasion.
Practice speaking for your meeting
Take your preparation to the next level by practicing your presentation. This activity will give you the confidence for the actual meeting and presentation. You can request your academic peers to help you out in the practice task. Based on their feedback in the mock session, you can improve for the actual session. Make sure to prepare well for the mock session as if you are preparing for the actual session. You can also practice your speech and body language in the mock session. If you used thesis writing services , these professionals would also be the ideal people to test you in a mock thesis defense – don’t hesitate to reach out to them again!
Sample Thesis Defense Questions and Answers
1. what is your research study all about.
In your answer, you should summarize your research in a few sentences. The question is simple but requires technical expertise for a better explanation of concepts. For instance, if you completed a thesis in an attempt to explain the constituents of dark matter in the universe and particle accelerators, you could frame your answer like this:
In this research, the different aspects of dark matter and its detection models have been investigated. The cosmic ray positron excess observed by the PAMELA detector has been discussed and explained through the construction of models of decaying dark matter. The cosmic-ray electron and positron spectra were studied assuming a general Dirac structure for the four fermion contact interactions of interest. A supersymmetric leptophilic Higgs model was constructed to explain the possible excess of gamma rays in the galactic center. Finally, by the use of Razor analysis, an improvement on the dark matter collider searches is considered.
2. Why did you choose this study?
This question requires you to answer what motivated you to pursue the study in the first place. Your answers could touch on your interests in the area of the study. For example, if you conducted a study called “Media Combat: The Great War and the Transformation of American Culture” then you can shape your answer like this:
The First World War (1914-1918) has always been a topic of fascination for me, and my prime interest lies in exploring the state of society at that time. I wanted to analyze the formation of a nationalized, wartime cultural apparatus during the United States' involvement in the war and how theatre and music transformed the relationship between the government and American citizens.
3. Why did you choose this particular title for your research?
The title of your thesis captures the main point of your research, which is why it is so important to use an appropriate title. Your committee will want to know how you came to the final decision of naming your work. For example,
I chose the title “Dark matter in the heavens and at colliders: Models and constraints” for my research thesis because my research attempts to explain the constituency of dark matter as it occurs in the universe. “The heavens” is another word for the universe. Dark matter can also be created in particle accelerators such as the CERN collider. I have attempted to provide an explanation for both of the cases through the use of models, along with describing the constraints which exist in the current times due to certain scientific limitations.
4. What is the scope of your study?
In your answer, you have to define the boundaries of your project and define exactly what you are studying. There can be several elements involved but you have to define the parameters that you have chosen to study. For example,
My study is on the efficacy of equity stocks in the US market. For my study, I have chosen 50 companies listed on the NASDAQ. You can review the names of these companies on page 5 of my thesis.
5. What phenomenon were you trying to understand with this research?
Describe the focus concept of your thesis in the answer. For example,
In our study “Motivation to volunteer”, we were looking to study the Theory of Planned Behavior by analyzing the behavioral and normative beliefs that influence attitudes and subjective norms.
6. Who will be most interested in your research?
You can talk about who may be affected by your research and the parties who can potentially benefit from the research. Take a look at this example:
My sociology thesis on “Impact of social media on youngsters” can be of interest to sociology academics, social media companies, education experts, and parents of youngsters in general.
7. Did your research questions evolve during the process? If so, how?
Often, qualitative research questions change over time with respect to the responses that you might get from your focus group. Or you might just change your question as you do lab research or general text research. You can describe the change to the evaluating committee. For example,
We started our study to understand the impact of the new public policy change on recycling of vinyl waste through installation of garbage bins specifically for vinyl products. However, after interviewing some of the respondents in the target community, we found that the rule is actually irrelevant to their behavior and thoughts because the percentage of vinyl waste in that specific locality was very low and it didn’t need the installation of dedicated bins for the purpose. Going by their frustrations with the current economic insecurity, our study evolved into the impact of costs incurred by public policy changes.
8. What gaps did you intend to bridge with your research?
Your research thesis must eliminate the present gaps in the concepts related to your subject topic.
The relationship between hard water and its effect on the size of the kidney stone is not clear yet, so we analyzed the mineral composition of hard water to determine its impact on the size of the kidney stone.
9. Why is your research significant?
The answer to this research question should outline the impact of your research on your field of study. You may talk about the new insights contributed by your research and its impact on society.
Through my study on “The effect of chamomile in reducing stress and promoting better sleep,” patients with insomnia and anxiety will be able to find alternative treatments without the use of medicinal drugs. The medical abilities of chamomile will promote the usage of ingredients in nature and will encourage the community to plant more herbs and trees.
10. What did you find in your research?
You may describe your research in a few sentences in this answer. For instance,
In our study on “Impact of artificial fluoride in water on the human body,” we found that excessive exposure to high quantities of Fluoride can result in tooth discoloration and bone issues in humans since it has neurotoxic qualities.
11. What research findings surprised you?
When you conduct research, you come across findings that you were not expecting earlier. If you had such an experience, you might describe the same to the evaluation committee when you answer this question. For example,
I was expecting that business promotion through social media would not be a good idea for rural enterprises in developing countries in my comparative analysis of the usage of traditional and contemporary marketing methods. But I was surprised to learn that 68% of rural textile businesses in Nigeria promote their products on Instagram.
12. What is the validity of your findings?
You have to talk about the conditions in which your research findings would be valid.
In my research, I have considered test anxiety to be involving both nervous system activation and negative thoughts. Thus, my measure of test anxiety has included the elements of both nervous feelings and negative thoughts, the conditions in which my findings are valid.
For example,
For studying the differential protein expression, its localization, and distribution at different levels, we used the method of immunostaining in our research.
14. What sources did you use for data collection?
You would have used several sources to search for data for your topic. You may elaborate on those sources. You might have referred to databases, content on the web, or even conducted primary research by interviewing prospects. Thus, you can talk about these sources. Refer to the following answer:
To understand the impact of the current tax regime on skilled workers, we interviewed 150 subjects in 5 months. Additionally, we referred to databases and scholarly works available by authors who had previously conducted such studies for previous tax laws and rates.
15. How can your research be put into practice?
This question talks about the practical implications of your research. You should talk about how your research is beneficial for society and how it can help in eliminating current issues.
In our research titled “Effectiveness of Meditation on Reducing the Anxiety Levels of College Students in the US,” we discovered that students who practiced meditation at least thrice a week were two times more likely to score better in their exams, owing to the positive impact of meditation. So, this research finding can help in the reduction of mental health issues among students. A suitable course of action would be to hold meditating sessions a couple of times a week.
16. How will your findings contribute to the related area of knowledge?
Our study on medicinal analysis of herbs conveys information about various medicinal benefits of chamomile in treating depression and contributes to the area of medicinal botany.
17. Did you experience any limitations in your research?
Our research on “Impact of smoking on β-cell function and risk for type 2 diabetes in US citizens” finds that smoking increases the risk of diabetes among smokers. However, smokers might be affected by some genetic conditions which can protect them from diabetes.
18. What sampling techniques did you use?
When conducting research, it is practically not possible to study the entire number of elements. So, you would be using a method to select a sample population.
In our study “Impact of consumption of soda on the health of teenagers in Corpus Christi”, we used area sampling to divide the city into several areas and then selected some clusters for our sample group.
19. What are the dependent and independent variables in your research?
In research, several variable factors impact your study. You can describe these variables. Independent variables have values which are not affected by other variables in your study. On the other hand, the dependent variables have values that change with changes in the independent variable. For example,
In our study on “Impact of online tutoring on test scores”, the independent variable is the nature of the classes i.e., online and the participants' test score is the dependent variable.
20. What areas do you suggest for further research?
As a researcher, you should be able to describe what further areas are open for research with the addition of your research to the field. This can act as a starting point for future researchers. For example,
In my research on “Effectiveness of Acetaminophen in treating sports induced injuries”, I discovered that administering Acetaminophen is not very effective for treating joint pains such as the knee. This further suggests measures for the regulation of Acetaminophen in the production of painkillers for body pain and the search for alternative compounds.
Practice Questions
After taking a look at the sample answers, now try answering these questions by yourself:
Do you have any closing comments? "}]'>
After submitting your research thesis for evaluation, you have to appear before a panel of professors and present your work; afterwards, they will ask you questions about your research.
You have to plan and prepare for your thesis defense. Review your paper and anticipate the questions that the committee can ask. Practice with mock defense sessions using professional servicesand make improvements based on their feedback. Be prepared with a strategy for answering any question asked by the panel.
Your research thesis should be on a topic of your interest. Scan your course syllabus to find something that makes you curious. Or, you can even refer to your grad school career goals statement to review what got you interested in grad school in the first place. Shortlist a few topics and zero down to the one that excites you the most.
The first step in preparing for a master’s thesis defense is to revise your research paper and write down a list of questions that the committee might ask. Find answers to those questions and get ready for your presentation. Practice your presentation beforehand. Try to attend a thesis defense of other candidates to know what you can expect in your session.
You will get questions related to what you have mentioned in your research paper. The most common starting questions are “what is your research about?" and “what was your motivation behind choosing this topic?” Later on, the committee asks you more detailed questions on research methodology, literature review, study variables, research findings, recommendations, and areas of further research.
You can get help from a grad school essay tutor for your research thesis writing. They can help you in developing writing skills and reviewing your work. They can proofread your work and provide recommendations on areas of improvement.
You can include your research thesis on your grad school CV to show your practical knowledge and skills. You can add the details of the study in a separate section for research experience.
Immediately after the thesis defense, the evaluation panel will decide whether to approve your paper as submitted or request some changes, or reject it.
To pass a thesis defense, a majority of the panel members must approve the defense. In case of more than one vote against you, you can fail the thesis.
A thesis defense can last for two hours or longer, depending on your area of research.
Your thesis defense presentation should include the focus concept, findings, recommendation, and conclusion.
The contribution of your thesis towards your degree differs as per institution. You can refer to your course handbook for exact details. In most cases, the committee needs to approve your thesis for you to graduate from your degree.
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Have a question ask our admissions experts below and we'll answer your questions.
why did you choose this place for a research locale
BeMo Academic Consulting
Hi Jeff! Yes, this can also be one of the questions you are asked in a thesis defense!
That is good
Hello Eshetu! Thanks for your comment. Glad you found this helpful!
Very helpful
Thanks, Abel. Glad you found this helpful.
Helpful thank you.
Hi Lagat! Thanks!
As an 11th-grade student, I don't have any experience in thesis or research defense in general. Me and my groupmates will be conducting our research title defense next week, this is invaluable information for us. Thank you!
You are very welcome, Kate!
THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR THIS, I REALLY APPRECIATE.
Hello Stephanie! Thanks for your comment.
EMELDA NAFULA NYONGESA
This is a good guideline to post graduate students (Masters and PhD) CPA:Emelda Nyongesa
Hi Emelda! Thanks!
Hello, all questions were useful for me thank you so much
NALUBIMBA JASCENT
I am so grateful for this guide, I am leveraged about presenting my research proposal and defending my thesis within the coming 3 months
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