Guideline for

Dissertation and Thesis Write-up

October 2021
Production Credits
This 1st edition is the product of the ad-hoc committee set by the AAU. The product is enriched by the validation
workshop conducted by the Research Office.

Production ad-hoc Committee members

Prof. Hagos Ashenafi (Team Leader),
Prof. Abebe Getahun,
Prof. Damen H/Mariam,
Dr. Abera Kumie,
Dr. Ezara Abate,
Dr. Mesele Mengistab,
Dr. Salehu Anteneh and
Dr. Solomon Kiros.

LATEX Document Layout and Graphics

Tilahun Tesfaye (PhD)

Copyright
Content is copyright Addis Ababa University 2021

Addis Ababa University

Office of the Vice President for Research
Research Director
PO Box 1176
Addis Ababa Ethiopia

E-mail: vpr@aau.edu.et
Website: www.aau.edu.et
Contents

Production Credits ii

Copyright ii

Preamble 2

Background 3

1 Regulations Common to Master’s Thesis and Ph.D. Dissertation 4

1.1 Definitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.2 Publication Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
1.3 Plagiarism Check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
1.4 Sequence of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

2 Guidelines for compiling and presenting Master’s thesis 9

3 Monograph based PhD Dissertation 11

3.1 Introduction: Definition and Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
3.2 Format and Structure of Dissertation as Monograph . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.2.1 Preliminary of the Monograph Dissertation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12
3.2.2 Main Body of the Monograph Dissertation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14
3.2.3 Supplementary/Appendices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

4 Article-compilation Based PhD Dissertation 19

4.1 Background and justification . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19
4.2 Guidelines for compiling and presenting paper-based Ph.D. dissertation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20
4.3 Organization of the dissertation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21
4.3.1 Descriptions of each section of the dissertation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
4.3.1.1 Title Page . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
4.3.1.2 Approval and signature (page) sheet . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.3.1.3 Statement of author . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.3.1.4 Table of contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.3.1.5 List of Tables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23
4.3.1.6 List of Figures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.3.1.7 List of Appendices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.3.1.8 Abbreviations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.3.1.9 Abstract . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24
4.3.1.10 Chapter 1: Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25
4.3.1.11 Chapter 2 and subsequent chapters containing published/publishable articles . . . . 25
4.3.1.12 Final Chapter: General Discussions/Conclusions and Recommendations OR Synthesis 26
4.3.1.13 References: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26
4.3.1.14 Annexes/Appendices: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

5 Project/Practice Based Dissertation and Thesis 27

Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 1

5.1 Background . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27
5.2 Purpose . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.3 Project/Practice-based Doctoral Studies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.3.1 A practice/project Doctoral study can be: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.4 Project/Practice-based Masters (Non-thesis) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.4.1 Thesis versus Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
5.5 Practice/Project-based Ph.D. Dissertation list of chapters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
5.6 Guideline for Project-Based Masters (Non-Thesis) list of chapters: . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5.6.1 MSc, MA, MFA, etc. Project (AAiT, SIT, DCS, CBE, CPVA, etc.) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
5.7 Clarification on Chapters of Practice/Project based Masters (Non-thesis) and Ph.D. . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.7.1 Chapter on Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.7.2 The chapter on Review of Literature . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.7.3 Chapter on Methodology . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.7.3.1 *Development Process . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.7.3.2 *Analysis and Requirements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31
5.7.3.3 *Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.7.3.4 *Implementation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.7.3.5 *Testing and Validation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
5.7.3.6 *Tools and Technologies Used . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.7.4 The chapter on Production/Patent/Publication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
5.8 The chapter on Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33
Preamble
In its latest Senate Legislation (2019, Article 121), Addis Ababa University
(AAU) has introduced a paper-based dissertation model and the require-
ments for thesis/dissertation. Accordingly, Ph.D. candidates shall publish
or produce evidence of acceptance for publication of at least two articles in
reputable journals. A master‘s degree program candidate shall have at least
one publishable manuscript, which they shall present during their thesis
defence.

However, the format for the presentation Ph.D. dissertation/ thesis

varies among different disciplines, and thus it is highly essential to students
provide students with crucial information about how to prepare and submit
theses and dissertations in a format acceptable to the Graduate School of
the University. Nevertheless, no guideline was in place that guides the
postgraduate students to compile the final dissertation/ thesis document
using the new model.

AAU has established an ad hoc committee to prepare a standard guide-

line. The committee members are Prof. Hagos Ashenafi (Team Leader),
Prof. Abebe Getahun, Prof. Damen H/Mariam, Dr. Abera Kumie, Dr. Ezara
Abate, Dr. Mesele Mengistab, Dr. Salehu Anteneh and Dr. Solomon Kiros
and AAU would like to thank them for their effort and professional sup-
port. The Committee has prepared the guideline and submitted it to Di-
rector for Research Office. Then, a validation workshop was conducted
on Friday, November 12, 2021, at Eshetu Chole Hall in the presence of
deans/directors/department chairpersons. The participants were active
and provided several feedbacks and comments to the committee, which
were incorporated in the final version.

This guideline is prepared with the intent that the format and structure
of preparing and submitting dissertations/thesis for the degree of Doctor
of Philosophy/ MSc need to be standardized for all disciplines and profes-
sions running programs at Addis Ababa University. Therefore, Addis Ababa
University graduate students requested to adhere to this guideline.

Addis Ababa University

Background
Addis Ababa University (AAU) is the pioneer university in Ethiopia in terms
of its time of establishment, range and quality of graduate programs it
offers in the country. It is the first among universities in the Horn of Africa
for the academic services and programs it has been running for more than
70 years.

AAU currently offers 407 graduate programs consisting of 226 Masters, 115
Ph.D.s, 23 specialities and 42 subspecialties. Moreover, AAU is regarded as
a research and graduate university as per the recent categorization made
by MoSHE.

The 2019 edition of the AAU Senate Legislation states:

• A thesis shall constitute a partial fulfillment of the requirement for a mas-

ter’s degree except in a program where it is not required. In addition to
his thesis, a master‘s degree program candidate shall, except in a program
where thesis is not required, produce at least one publishable manuscript
which he shall present during his thesis defense (Article 121, subarticle
121.1.2).
• A Ph.D. dissertation is a requirement for a Ph.D. degree (Article 121, subar-
ticle 121.1.3).
• A PhD candidate shall publish or produce evidence of acceptance for publi-
cation of at least one article in a reputable journal . . . (Article 121, subarticle
121.1.3).

Therefore, the Graduate Programs office and Office of Vice president for
research, have developed and provided this general guideline for preparing
and submitting dissertations and theses. This guideline sets forth standards
that dissertations and theses must meet before being received as graduate
requirements.

While the details of how the elements of a thesis or dissertation are written
or assembled are important, it is critical that all stylistic and format deci-
sions be consistently applied throughout the document and these decisions
follow disciplinary norms. The AAU accepts both monograph-style and
article-based theses and dissertations. Graduate programs and a student’s
supervising committee determine if a monograph based or article-based
format is appropriate.

This guideline presents guideline for :

1. Common requirements for Thesis and Dissertation in the first part;
2. Monograph based PhD Dissertation in the second part;
3. Article-compilation based PhD Dissertation in the third part;
4. Project/practice based Dissertation and Thesis in third part, and
5. Masters Thesis preparation and compilation in the fifth and last part.

Important forms and formats are annexed at the end.

 1
Regulations Common to Master’s Thesis and
Ph.D. Dissertation
Some regulations are followed all through the entire MSc/Ph.D. thesis and
dissertation write up.

1.1. Definitions

Masters’ Thesis
In this guideline, the term “Masters’ Thesis’ is defined as follows: Dis-
sertation refers to the documentation of original research prepared and
submitted by a candidate for the award of the degree for the Doctor of
Philosophy in a doctoral program by research or by coursework or by both
research and coursework in a mixed-mode.

PhD Dissertation
In this guideline, the term “Ph.D. dissertation” is defined as follows: Dis-
sertation refers to the documentation of original research prepared and
submitted by a candidate for the award of the degree for the Doctor of
Philosophy in a doctoral program by research or by coursework or by both
research and coursework in a mixed-mode.

1.2. Publication Requirements

There is a distinct difference between submitting a manuscript to a pub-

lisher and providing a completed thesis or dissertation to Departments/Colleges/Institutes.
A manuscript represents a pre-publication format, while a thesis or disser-
tation is a final, completely edited, published document.

A dissertation is a scientific presentation of the candidates’ own aca-

demic work and contribution to the larger pool of human knowledge. It
gives evidence of the candidates’ understanding of their field of specializa-
tion; their ability to interact with the work of relevant experts (duly cited
and credited); their ability to contribute to the creation of new knowledge
in a specific scholarly discipline; and their ability to communicate the
research to the scientific community.

The write-up of the dissertation could be in the form of a monograph or

collection of articles/publications. A dissertation is a scientific paper that
needs to adhere to a certain standard and fulfil the criteria of a scientific
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 5

publication of a journal. The format for the presentation of a Ph.D. disser-

tation varies, and thus it is essential for the University to provide students
at Addis Ababa University with crucial information about how to prepare
and submit theses and dissertations in a format acceptable to the Graduate
School.

1.3. Plagiarism Check

As in any academic work, plagiarism is a serious offense that should be

meticulously avoided. Thus, masters’ theses and PhD thesis should fulfill
the requirements university-wide of the anti-plagiarism policy to be allowed
for public defense.

1.4. Sequence of Contents

The graduate thesis (dissertation) generally consists of three major divi-

sions’ viz., “the Preliminaries, the Text and the Reference plus Appendix
Materials” The format and the major components of the three major divi-
sions of the thesis and/or the dissertation manuscripts are briefly described
in the following sections. Therefore, graduate students of Addis Ababa
University are requested to adhere to this general structure and contents,
occurring in the order presented in preparing their thesis and dissertation
manuscripts. This guideline has been prepared with the intent that the
requirements of the format and structure of preparing and submitting dis-
sertations for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy need to be standardized
for all disciplines and professions running Ph.D. programs at Addis Ababa
University.

Title Page: A standard title page is required for all theses/dissertations.

The title page has no page number.

Signature Page: The student must also prepare a signature page designed
to contain the examining committee members. After the defense, signa-
ture pages the department’s Graduate Program Coordinator and to the
College Dean for signatures and returned to the Department. The signa-
ture page (with examiners’ names but no signatures) must be inserted
into the final electronic submission of the thesis/dissertation.

Table of contents:

Acronyms:

Acknowledgements and/or Dedication: An acknowledgement and/or ded-

ication can be included if desired. If included, it must be page numbered
in roman numerals.

Abstract: 1. A master’s thesis must include an abstract with the thesis title,
the author’s name, and a text not exceeding 250 words. The abstract
must be page numbered in lower case roman numerals.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 6

2. Each doctoral dissertation (monograph style) must include an ab-

stract with the title of the dissertation, the author’s name, the degree
which is sought, Addis Ababa University, the year the degree is to be
granted, and a text not exceeding 350 words. The abstract must be
page numbered in lower case roman numerals.

Summary: In the case of theses/dissertations written in a language other

than English, a comprehensive summary of the contents of the the-
sis/dissertation, written in English, must be included immediately after
the abstract.

Authorship on publications: 1. The candidate may be the sole author of

the publication(s), OR, where the candidate was a joint author, the
research contributed by the candidate is normally expected to be in
the capacity of first/primary author.
2. Publications that can be included are limited to those based on work
undertaken during the candidate’s. These are limited to those regis-
tration at AAU as an MSc/Ph.D. student/candidate.
3. Published material may be submitted for examination once only
and by one doctoral/master’s candidate, so where team research is
involved, it is important to clarify roles at an early stage.
4. Candidates are advised to fully reference previous publications of
their sole-authored work, including graphs, tables and images that
they themselves have generated. Any other intellectual content must
be fully and appropriately referenced to the person(s) that supplied
them. They are then able to sign a statement that the thesis/dissertation
is their own work.
5. The supervisor should not sit on the editorial board of the journals or
have any involvement in the peer-review process.
6. As all MSc theses and Ph.D. dissertations will be made available on
AAU electronic repository, any issues relating to Intellectual Prop-
erty and Copyright should be resolved prior to submission of the
thesis/dissertation. Candidates submitting for MSc/Ph.D.by publi-
cation are required to ensure the journal editor or publishers’ prior
agreement to deposit the published material online.

Additional regulations: For the sake of clarity, the following additional

regulations, which mainly focus on the formatting of the thesis/dissertation
are divided into sub-sections as indicated below:

a. Margins and Fonts Margins of 3.0 cm (1.5 inches) on the left (for bind-
ing) and 2.5 cm (1.0 inch) on the right, top and bottom are required.
While an UPPER CASE 12 points font is recommended for the first
order (major titles), all the rest of the proposal, including the text,
sub-headings and captions of tables and figures, must be written in
12 points font of “Times New Roman” style.
b. Starting on New Pages
Each component of the Preliminaries, each of the five first-order titles
(chapters) of the Text and the Reference and Appendix parts of the
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 7

thesis/dissertation must start on a new page. As a rule, each com-

ponent of the preliminaries is expected to be short and not exceed a
page. Exceptions may be the Table of Contents and/or the List of Ta-
bles. If the Table of Contents and/or the List of Tables are more than
one page, the title followed in the bracket with the word “Continued”
must appear on every additional page, e.g. TABLE OF CONTENTS
(Continued). The Appendix comes following the reference, and the
title: APPENDIX is written on the center of a plain paper that has a
page number on it.
c. Letter Cases and Numbering of Headings
Each of the titles of the preliminaries and the major titles (chapters)
of the text as well as the titles: References and Appendix (ces) must
be written in upper case letters and centered. Each chapter of the
text opens with one or two paragraph(s) discussing general issues of
the chapter so that sub-headings do not occur just below the chapter
heading. Chapter headings of the text are numbered with Arabic
numerals starting from 1 for the Introduction and ending with 7 in
the Appendices (if any) or with 6 in the References. However, none of
the titles of the preliminaries are numbered including in the Table of
Contents.
The second-order titles (sub-headings) are numbered consecutively
with fractions of the Arabic numeral of their respective chapters (e.g.
1.1., 1.2., or 2.1., 2.2., etc.). They must be written in bold title case
letters (only the first letter of all significant words of the heading
written in upper case letters), flushed left and should not run with
text. However, all the third and higher-order sub- division headings
are numbered consecutively with fractions of the Arabic numeral of
their respective sub-headings (e.g. 1.1.1., 1.1.2., or 2.1.1., 2.1.2., etc.)
and written in italic lower case letter (except the first letter of the first
word and proper nouns), flushed left margin, No titles or headings of
any division and headings of either Tables or Figures are underlined.
d. Spacing and Indentation
The thesis/ dissertation submission must be on an A4-size paper. It
must be written in 12 pt sized standard font, with a 1.5 inch (3.81 cm)
left-hand margin and a 1 inch (2.54 cm) margin at the top, bottom
and right. Charts, tables, figures, appendices, references, and all other
pages must conform to the required technical regulations and not
extend beyond the margins.
The spacing between the lines in the text is 1.5 and between para-
graphs is always two line spaces, that is, one more free line of 1.5
spacing in addition to the automatically applied 1.5 line spacing. Free
line space is required between the paragraphs above and below the
sub-headings and division headings in the text. A free line spacing
of 1.5 is also needed between a table and its caption and between a
figure and a figure caption. Indent for one free line spacing between
two paragraphs is the unacceptable spacing between two paragraphs
is not acceptable.
e. Page numbering
 Although not every page has a page number typed on it, every page
(perhaps except the Cover Page) is assigned a page number. The
use of two different series of page numbering is recommended. In
the first series Roman numerals (i, ii, iii, etc.) are used for all the
pages starting from the beginning of the “table of contents” page and
ending at the last page preceding the “Introduction”. In the second
series, Arabic numerals (1,2,3, etc.) are used from the first page of the
“Introduction” and continues up to the end of the appendix section.
The bottom-centre of both series must not have its page number
typed on it. Thus, page numbering starts with “ii” at the bottom-
center of the next page in the first series and with “2” on the second
page of the “introduction” at the bottom-center of the page in the
second series.
f. Other common regulations
• All measurements shall be given in Metric units and currencies
either in Birr or US Dollars or perhaps EURO.
• Scientific names in any part of the thesis/dissertation are written
in Italic Font, the genus name starting with capital (upper case). In
contrast, the species name is in small (lower case) letters. Similarly,
no English Language terminologies (words, nouns, pronouns, etc.)
will be italicized.
 2
Guidelines for compiling and presenting Mas-
ter’s thesis
A master’s thesis should reveal that the candidate can work in a scholarly
manner and is acquainted with the principal works published on the sub-
ject of the thesis. As far as possible, it should be an original contribution.

A Master’s thesis will be in monograph style. All master’s students must

have the papers, or at least one of the papers, prepared for submission to a
peer-reviewed journal before the defense and evaluated by the examining
board.

The composition of the monograph would be as follows:

1. Title page

2. Table of contents

3. Acronyms

4. Acknowledgement and/or Dedication

5. Abstract

6. Introduction (7%)

• Background
• Statement of the problem
• Research questions/Hypothesis
• General objective
• Specific objectives
• Significance of the study
• Scope of the study
• Limitations and delimitations
• Structure of the thesis

7. Literature review (20%)

• Conceptual Framework

8. Materials and Methods (18%)

9. Results (30%)

10. Discussion (20%)

11. Summary of findings/Conclusions and Recommendations (5%)

 Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 10

12. References

13. Annexes/Appendices
 3
Monograph based PhD Dissertation

3.1. Introduction: Definition and Purpose

This guideline has been prepared with the intent that the requirements of
the format and structure of preparing and submitting dissertations for the
degree of Doctor of Philosophy need to be standardized for all disciplines
and professions running Ph.D. programs at Addis Ababa University. Ac-
cordingly, all academic disciplines and professions running Ph.D. programs
within Addis Ababa University must implement this guideline uniformly.
However, taking this guideline as a general standardized frame of reference,
academic disciplines and professions can also entertain their specific tradi-
tions/styles of writing a monograph Ph.D. dissertation to a limited extent
as necessary but only in areas indicated in the guideline.

Definition
In this guideline, the term “Ph.D. dissertation” is defined as follows:

Dissertation refers to the documentation of original research pre-

pared and submitted by a candidate for the award of the degree for
the Doctor of Philosophy in a doctoral program by research or by
coursework or by both research and coursework in a mixed-mode.

Purpose
Cognizant of the definition given above, the Research Office and the Gradu-
ate Studies of Addis Ababa University have taken the initiative to develop
and provide a general guideline for preparing and submitting a Ph.D. dis-
sertation in the form of a monograph. Hence, this guideline will assist
candidates in meeting the minimal format and structural requirements
set by Addis Ababa University to prepare and submit the final manuscript
of their dissertation works. Therefore, each candidate shall apply this
guideline as a minimum requirement to prepare and submit their Ph.D.
dissertation to receive the Doctor of Philosophy degree in their respective
faculty, college, institute, or center. Notwithstanding this, however, the for-
mat and structure may differ in each faculty, academy, institute, or center
with its own additional requirements.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 12

3.2. Format and Structure of Dissertation as Monograph

The write-up of a Ph.D. dissertation could be in the form of a monograph,

including the relevant articles/publications that will be incorporated within
the results/findings section. A typical format for the dissertation mono-
graph write-up should look like the following:

Fig. 3.1: General Structure that Follows

the Monograph Format

3.2.1 Preliminary of the Monograph Dissertation

Title page
The title page is the first page after the front cover and should include: Ph.D Dissertation
Statement on Title page:
Dissertation by Coursework or by
• The final research title which has been approved by the faculty/college/ Clinical Coursework:
institute/center;
Dissertation Submitted in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements for the
• Name of the candidate according to the registration records; Degree of (Name of Program).

• Name of the department/school/center in which the candidate has Dissertation by Research:

studied;
Dissertation Submitted in Fulfillment of
the Requirements for the Degree of
• Name of the supervisor(s)
(Name of Program).

• A statement according to the mode of the program (as indicated on the

Dissertation by Mixed Mode:
margin here); and
Dissertation Submitted in Partial
Fulfillment of the Requirements for the
• The year of submission.
Degree of (Name of Program)
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 13

Original Literary Work Declaration

The candidate must complete this form and sign it by a witness (board of
examiners and Head of Department/School/Centre). The original signed
form must be included in all copies of the dissertation.

Abstract
An abstract is a short summary of the dissertation. An abstract should
briefly describe the objectives (problem statement), the significance of the
research, the research methods, the study population, as the sample size,
and the findings and conclusion of the study. The Abstract page begins
with the title of the research project/dissertation that the faculty approve
after submission of the proposal. Candidates are not allowed to change the
title without the approval of the faculty.

An abstract must not exceed 500 words, typed in a single paragraph with
double-spacing, and written in English. In most cases, a maximum of eight
(8) keywords is tolerable to be listed below the abstract content. However,
this can remain open to the tradition of schools/departments. The abstract
page is assigned with the Roman numeral "iii" and the following pages
should be numbered consecutively. Given this, the abstract can also be
structured, and its volume can be extended to a maximum of one page
depending on the interest of each academic discipline or profession.

Acknowledgements
Most research projects/dissertations include a message to convey appreci-
ation to those involved and provided their assistance directly or indirectly
in preparing the study. However, this is optional and should not exceed a
single page, numbered in Roman numeral accordingly.

Table of Contents
The table of contents lists the chapters, topics, and sub-topics together with
their page numbers. Sub-topics and topics should be labelled according
to the chapter. Also, the table contents should be in a numbering system.
The numbering system provides a clear picture of the relationship between
chapters and topics and shows how they are connected.

List of Figures
The list of figures contains the titles of figures and their page numbers,
which are found throughout the entire text of the dissertation.

List of Tables
The list of tables contains the titles of tables and their page numbers, which
are listed in the entire text of the dissertation. List of Symbols and Abbrevi-
ations
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 14

The symbols, abbreviations, vocabulary, and terminology that are used

in the text must be listed down accordingly. For further information on
spelling and abbreviations, candidates are advised to refer to the latest
edition valid sources such as the Oxford Advanced Learner’s Dictionary
published by Oxford University Press.

List of Appendices
This list is optional and contains the titles of appendices placed in the
supplementary section.

Glossary of Terms/Words
A glossary is a list of terms that relate to a particular subject matter, topic,
discipline, or field of knowledge with supplementary definitions. In this
case, each term needs to be accompanied by a description or explanation
and, where appropriate a diagram or other representation within the con-
text of the subject. A glossary entry should generally be more descriptive
than a dictionary definition.

3.2.2 Main Body of the Monograph Dissertation

Candidates and supervisors should ensure that the text follows the agreed
conventions of the individual faculty. The main text in the research project/dissertation
must be organized following the guidelines as mentioned below:

• The text must be organized in titled chapters;

• The titles must reflect the contents of the chapter;

• Each chapter must begin on a new page;

• Chapters can be divided into sub-chapters with corresponding sub-

titles; and

• Titles and sub-titles must be numbered.

However, there is no restriction on the total number of chapters in a

research project/dissertation. The number of chapters could differ by the
field of a study conducted by the candidate whether it is science-based
or social science-based. Likewise, the content of the chapters may dif-
fer according to the candidate’s research or conventions of individual
schools/departments/centres. Generally, a research project/dissertation
should consist of the following basic structures:

• Chapter One: Introduction

• Chapter Two: Literature Review

• Chapter Three: Materials and Methods/Methodology

• Chapter Four: Results/Findings

Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 15

• Chapter Five: Discussion

– Implications

– Conclusion and Recommendation

• References

Items in the structure are divided into separate chapters and the de-
scriptions of these chapters are provided in the subsequent sections.

Chapter One: Introduction

Chapter one contains the introduction to the issues the research is con-
cerned with. In most cases, it consists of a background overview, statement
of the problem/rationale, objectives of the research/hypothesis, research
questions, delimitation/scope of the study, the significance of the study,
and operational definition of key terms.

Chapter Two: Literature Review

A literature review is a description of the literature relevant to a particular
field or topic of study. It consists of a critically written and comprehensive
account of published works by accredited scholars and researchers on a
topic. A critical literature review is a critical assessment of the relevant
literature. It is directly related to the research, providing empirical and
theoretical information on theories, models, materials, and techniques
used in the research. The literature

review should be comprehensive and include recent publications which

are relevant to the research. Generally, it should be structured based on
themes relevant to the study area and discipline of the candidate. In most
cases, a theoretical/conceptual framework is supposed to be located in
the literature review section and wrapped up with a synthesized summary
of not more than a couple of paragraphs. However, the integration of
theoretical or conceptual frameworks either with the literature review or
with the methods or with the introduction section should be optional
depending on the traditions of departments/schools.

Chapter Three: Materials and Methods/Methodology

This chapter describes and explains the materials and the research method-
ology used in the study. The sub-topics for this chapter include an expla-
nation of the research philosophy, mode of the research design, whether
it is a qualitative, quantitative, or a mixed-methods design, study site and
population, sampling and sampling techniques, methods and procedures
of data collection, tools of data collection, data analysis, knowledge transla-
tion, and ethical considerations. The purpose of this is to inform the reader
of the methods used to collect the data and generate the findings reported.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 16

Chapter Four: Results/Findings

This chapter explains the results/findings commonly presented in text,
figures, and tables, complete with data analysis.

Discussion
This chapter contains the interpretation of the results/findings. The re-
sults/findings of the research should be compared and contrasted with
those of previous studies presented in the literature review chapter. This
chapter aims to discuss the findings and the outcomes of the research
about the results that have been obtained. As an integral part of, and in
wrapping up, the discussion section, the candidate:

• Summarizes and interpreting key findings;

• Maintains the analytical and contextual coherence and integration of

the key findings;

• Substantiates the key findings with the literature review;

• Identifies the specific contribution of the dissertation to the existing

empirical and theoretical knowledge base within the domain of the
research topic;

• Discusses implications of the research to education, research, policy,

and practice;

• Indicates imitations of the study, including suggestions for future re-

search; and

• Provides conclusion and recommendations based on the results/finding.

References
All works or studies referred to in the research project/dissertation in quota-
tions or citations must be included in the references. The references should
be written consistently in the American Psychological Association (APA) for-
mat or in another format approved by faculties/colleges/institutions/centres.
Each reference should be written in a single-spacing format and a double
space should be left between references. The list of references can be ar-
ranged in alphabetical order and the entries should not be numbered. The
list must also have a hanging indentation of 0.5 inches. Candidates can also
apply reference management software. Ethiopian names should be written
in the reference list as they appeared in the articles.

3.2.3 Supplementary/Appendices

Specific items which were not included in the main body of the text should
be put in this supplementary/appendices section. The supplementary/appendices
section consists of research instruments, additional illustrations of data
sources, raw data, and quoted citations that are too long to be placed in the
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 17

text. The appendix section supports the research project/dissertation/thesis’s

written text includes materials that can provide additional information.
These materials include research data, tables, examples of questionnaires,
maps, photos, and other materials that are too long to be included in the
text or are not directly required to comprehend the text can be included
as appendices. Tables and graphics that are more than two pages long are
suggested to be included in the Appendix section. Appendices are labelled
as APPENDIX A, APPENDIX B, etc. and they should correspond to the List of
Appendices of Preliminary section. Published works and papers presented
at conferences, seminars, symposiums, etc. pertaining to the research topic
of the research project/dissertation are suggested to be included in this
section. The first page of the article may also be appended as a reference.

• In all three cases, the total size of a monograph dissertation could also
be distributed across the chapters in the following way:

• The size of the introduction chapter should cover not more than 7

• The size of the literature review chapter should cover not more than 20

• The size of the methods chapter should cover not more than 18

• The results/findings chapter should cover not more than 40

• The discussion chapter should cover not more than 15

Types Size Size Introduction Literature

Table 3.1: Methods
Size distribution by type of
monograph and chapter in percent
Min. Size Max. Size Introduction Literature Methods Results Discussion
Quan. Monograph 150 250 7% 20 % 18 % 40 % 15%
Qual. Monograph 250 300 7% 20 % 18 % 40 % 15%
Mixed Monograph 200 300 7% 20 % 18 % 40 % 15 %

Fig. 3.2: Published Articles Based on the

Monograph

For a candidate to receive the award of the degree for Doctor of Philoso-
phy must attach two published or accepted articles with the monograph:

• Based on the monograph minimum of two articles should be published

or accepted in reputable scientific journals

• The candidate is the first author of the articles

• Supervisor/s/ - co-author of the articles

• The candidate cannot be the sole author of the articles based on the
monograph

• Shared publication among multidisciplinary/interdisciplinary Ph.D. can-

didates can be possible with the endorsement of the Graduate Commit-
tee of each school/department.

• Where possible other academic staff with relevant and related expertise
can take part as co-authors with the Ph.D. candidate and assigned su-
pervisor still with the endorsement of the Graduate Committee of each
school/department

• In all cases, the candidate shall be the first author of the articles

• Copies of the articles published or accepted for publication should be

annexed with the monograph for the oral defense
 4
Article-compilation Based PhD Dissertation

4.1. Background and justification

There are two main types of dissertations; one is the monograph, and the
other is the paper-based dissertation. Since the graduate programs started,
Addis Ababa University (AAU) has practised monograph style MSc thesis
and Ph.D. dissertations. For centuries, monograph style has been around
for as long as Ph.D. degrees have been awarded. But, with the growing im-
portance of academic papers (peer-reviewed articles) and the simultaneous
declining importance of scholarly works published as a book (monograph)
in many disciplines, there is a tendency to shift from a monograph style
of dissertation production to paper-based or cumulative dissertation. The
paper-based dissertation emerged as an alternative to the traditional mono-
graph around 20-25 years ago.

Ph.D.by publication/articles is an alternative to the Ph.D.by monograph

approach, where a Ph.D. candidate authors or co-authors multiple articles
joined together to constitute the Ph.D. dissertation document. In other
words, an article-based Ph.D.is based on a collection of papers (including
published or accepted for publication and publishable manuscripts), which
describes a coherent program of research undertaken by a candidate while
registered for the Ph.D. Each article will have the typical set-up for the field
of study, most frequently with sections for literature review, conceptual
development, method, analyses, and discussion. The dissertation will
have one introductory chapter followed by the list of publications (possibly
with extended versions), concluding chapter, references and annexes. The
Ph.D.by publication teaches the Ph.D. student the skills required for a
modern academic, i.e., writing impactful and innovative research articles
that are concise and clear and navigate the review process. It is important
to note that Ph.D.by publication is not an approach that will necessarily
suit all candidates, all disciplines, or all supervisors. It places additional
demands on the candidate and supervisors to prepare and submit materials
for publication.

The article approach to the dissertation is sometimes incorrectly be-

lieved to be intrinsically less demanding than the monograph dissertation.
The papers published have to be assessed and are subject to examiners
demanding changes. Then the final dissertation is subject to examination,
and different examiners may require further changes. Several universities
worldwide are currently practicing paper-based dissertations as opposed
to monograph style dissertations. The following reasons support the trend:

A. Monograph dissertations are seldom read by anyone other than the ex-
aminers/reviewers. Published papers are recognized means of commu-
 Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 20

nicating research results to the academic community and policy/decision-

makers. Therefore the work undertaken for the degree will have a much
higher probability of being seen and cited by other academics. Through
the publishing platforms or the open-access platforms and indexing
databases, the peer-reviewed papers are far more widely distributed and
accessible.

B. The external peer-review process is often considered as a quality-label re-

garding scholarly work. Assessment committees (= examination board)
often perceive it as a bonus if an international peer-reviewed journal
already accepted the main body of academic work of the dissertation
in your field. With 2-3 published papers in such an outlet, any risk of
failing your Ph.D.at the end is a close ‘zero’.

C. Moreover, for those research degree candidates who wish to follow an

academic career, these publications may be fast to find a suitable aca-
demic post. You start your academic career already having some papers
to your name. In contrast, you might need to write additional documents
with the monograph with.

D. The students learned how to write a manuscript and publish it while the
supervisors practically coach the academic writing exercises.

However, critics sometimes point out that you never get an overview of
everything you have done in your Ph.D. For the individual papers, you just
“take the cream off” your research; you single out the very best and most
clever bits to write about.

It appears that considering the above comparative advantages of the

article-based dissertation, the new AAU Legislation (2019) article 121 stipu-
lates that a Ph.D. candidate shall publish or produce evidence of acceptance
for publication of at least two articles in reputable journals, which is indica-
tive that the University is heading to paper-based dissertation and hence
the need for preparation of these guidelines.

4.2. Guidelines for compiling and presenting paper-based

Ph.D. dissertation

• A doctoral dissertation must embody the results of original investiga-

tions and analyses and be of such quality as merit publication; further-
more, it must constitute a substantial contribution to the candidate’s
field of study knowledge.

• It is an article-based Ph.D.-based on a collection of papers (including

published or accepted for publication or papers under review and pub-
lishable manuscripts) that describe a coherent program of research
undertaken by a candidate while registered for the Ph.D.

• A Ph.D. candidate authors or co-authors multiple articles joined together

to constitute the Ph.D. dissertation document. The papers normally are
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 21

co-authored with the supervisors involved. Usually, each author’s exact

contribution to the publication of the papers has to be declared.

• Although the AAU Senate Legislation (2019) requires at least two ac-
cepted/published papers as requirements, the minimum number of
specific objectives/ chapters for a dissertation should be three. Other
than the two required, the remaining chapter (s) could be published or
prepared for publication.

• Moreover, the dissertation, in addition to the published/publishable

chapters/articles, will also have a general “Introductory chapter” at the
beginning and a “General discussion/Conclusion and Recommendation
OR Synthesis” chapter, in which the latter will be followed by “List of
References” and “Annexes/Appendices”.

• The styles of writing the published chapters follow the ’journal’s particu-
lar guidelines in which each article will be published, most frequently
with sections for literature review, conceptual development, method,
analyses, and discussion.

• However, the first chapter (Introductory) and last chapter (General Dis-
cussion/Conclusion and Recommendation) should be formatted, in
a consistent manner, according to AAU guidelines. One referencing
system and one formatting system should be used throughout.

• The dissertation document must still work as an integrated whole, ad-

dress a significant research question or questions and present a clearly
identified original contribution to the knowledge of the subject with
which it deals.

• There will also be a plagiarism check of the whole document at the

respective departments.

4.3. Organization of the dissertation

The organization of the dissertation generally takes the following form:

• Cover (Title) Page and the Research Project Title

• Approval and signature (page) sheet

• Dedication (if any)

• Statement of author

• Table of contents

• List of Tables

• List of Figures

• List of Appendices

• Abbreviations
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 22

• Acknowledgements

• Abstract

• Chapter 1: General Introduction

– Background and justification

– Concise literature review

– Statement of the problem

– Research questions/Hypothesis

– Objectives

* General objective
* Specific objectives
– Significance of the study

– Scope of the study

– Limitations of the study

– Structure of the dissertation

• Chapter 2: Paper 1: (Published or accepted for publication in a reputable

journal)

• Chapter 3: Paper 2: (Published or accepted for publication in a reputable

journal)

• Chapter 4: Paper 3 and more (Prepared in publishable manuscript

form(s))

• Last chapter: General Discussion/Conclusions and Recommendations

• References

• Annexes/Appendices

4.3.1 Descriptions of each section of the dissertation

4.3.1.1 Title Page

• The “cover/title page” should be informative, free from any ambigu-

ity and incompleteness. It should contain the following: o The logo
of the University o Name of the University, College and Department
o The title of the project o The name of the student o Research Advi-
sors/Supervisors: Name, Qualification, Rank o The month, year and
place.

• The “title” of the Ph.D. dissertation should be as clear, specific and con-
cise as possible, but most appropriately capturing and reflecting on the
study’s main theme(s).
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 23

4.3.1.2 Approval and signature (page) sheet

• The “approval page” presents the names of the schools and universities
attended, the title of the research project, name of the candidate and
the degree sought, and the names and dated signatures of all examining
board members of the open defense testifying their acceptance and
recommendation of the dissertation as fulfilling the requirement for the
degree sought. The signature page must contain the title of the project,
the name of the student, list of terms for internal approval by advisors
and department chairpersons. Dedication (if any)

• A student preferring to dedicate his/her dissertation to someone for

some reason has the right to do so just on a new page next to the Approval
Sheet Page. In such a situation, the title “Dedication”, written in bold-
Italicized upper case letters, is placed in the centre of the page.

4.3.1.3 Statement of author

• This is where the candidate solemnly declares that the dissertation rep-
resents his/her work and is not submitted to any other institution else-
where to award any degree, diploma or certificate. The candidate also
acknowledges the various sources of information, ideas, views and opin-
ions and the likes that he or she borrowed and used in the manuscript.
Acknowledgements

• “Acknowledgements” recognize the persons and/or institutions the can-

didate is indebted to for guidance, assistance and those to whom he/she
remains thankful for special aid or support. Good taste calls for acknowl-
edgements to be expressed simply and tactfully.

4.3.1.4 Table of contents

• The heading and/or all entries in the “table of contents” page should
correspond exactly in wordings, fonts and cases with headings as they
appear in the text.

• The words “title” and “page”, as well as dotted lines connecting headings
and respective pages in the “table of contents” page, should be avoided.

• Usually, notations for sub-divisions of sub-headings should not exceed

three decimals.

• In case such divisions are necessary, the 4th and higher-order division
headings may be ignored from entering into the “table of contents” so
that the table of contents may not be too long.

4.3.1.5 List of Tables

• Whenever applicable, the “list of tables” comes next to the “table of

contents”.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 24

4.3.1.6 List of Figures

• The “list of figures”, which comes after the “list of tables”, is prepared the
same way the “list of tables” is prepared.

4.3.1.7 List of Appendices

• The supportive and supplementary technical matters such as formulae,

derivations, methodologies to be followed, questionnaires to be admin-
istered etc., in undertaking the study are given in Appendix/Appendices.

• It can be sub-divided into sections such as Appendix Tables, Appendix

Figures, and under the Appendices. The “list of tables” and “list of
figures” in the Appendix are prepared in the same way the list of tables
and figures is prepared in the text.

4.3.1.8 Abbreviations

• Generally, the author’s use of uncommon abbreviations shall be avoided

or at least minimized.

• The first letters of keywords written in upper case letters must be used
for author coined abbreviations.

• The abbreviations are then listed in alphabetical order of the terms

written in a complete form on a new page preceding the “introduction”
section.

• No abbreviation may be used either in a heading of any division or at

the beginning of any sentence.

• Each abbreviation should be defined in full when first used in the manuscript,
followed by the abbreviation in the bracket.

• The standard units of measurements and internationally known and

accepted abbreviations must be listed. Some abbreviations and symbols
such, as i.e., e.g. etc., should be italicized.

4.3.1.9 Abstract

• The abstract is a summary of the whole dissertation. It presents all the

major elements of the work in a highly condensed form. It should sum-
marize the research problem and objectives, major methods employed,
key results and arguments and finally, the conclusion and recommen-
dation. The primary function of the dissertation (and by extension the
abstract) is not to tell readers what has been done, it is to tell them what
has been discovered. Don’t include citations in an abstract unless abso-
lutely necessary. Keywords are expected to be added below the abstract
as the most important items found in the dissertation.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 25

4.3.1.10 Chapter 1: Introduction

• The overall introduction introduces the topic, the problem (also covering
the relevant literature to justify the topic and the research gaps), meth-
ods, and findings. It explains how different chapters address those issues.
The literature review has to be short covering a review of prior work re-
lated to the problem mentioned in all dissertation chapters and not
repeated in the introductory parts of the articles. However, this review
may be deeper or more extensive than publishers allow in manuscripts.
Many of the points that need to be included in this introductory chapter
may be contained in the literature reviews of the individual papers. It
is not permissible to simply cut-and-paste sections or otherwise pla-
giarized work in those papers even if the dissertation writer is the sole
author. It is acceptable to summarize these ideas and cite the sources of
the paper (s).

• After defining the research problems/research questions/hypotheses,

the introduction should also clearly define the general objective and
specific objectives, which the latter should be clearly connected to each
of the published/publishable articles. The study’s significance, scope,
and limitations need to be outlined in the introductory section’s second
part.

• Towards the end of the introductory chapter, the candidate is expected

to outline the structure of the dissertation document indicating the
chapters that have been written as papers for peer-reviewed publication
and indicate the target outlets and the current status of each of the chap-
ters concerning those outlets (e.g., published, under revision following
reviewers’ comments, under review, to be submitted).

4.3.1.11 Chapter 2 and subsequent chapters containing

published/publishable articles

• These chapters contain the manuscripts selected for inclusion in the

dissertation. Each manuscript is presented in a separate chapter. The
two articles published or accepted for publication may be placed se-
quentially or placed at any locations within the chapters (Chapter 2-4) if
the entire chapters are 3 (the minimum).

• The papers will usually address a unique objective or question and form
a coherent and integrated set of projects and outputs outlined in the
dissertation proposal. Each paper must be independent of the others.

• The Ph.D. candidate should target peer-reviewed academic journals that,

in as much as possible, are international and highly ranked outlets for
publication. The quality of the targeted publication outlets should be
verifiable through their impact factor and/or their inclusion in citation
indexes and/or the credibility they hold within the field.
4.3.1.12 Final Chapter: General Discussions/Conclusions and
Recommendations OR Synthesis

The final chapter in an article-based dissertation must summarize the re-

sults and discuss them as they relate to the central research questions posed
in the introductory chapter of the dissertation and present the general con-
clusions supported by the work. Future research directions may also be
discussed in this section.

4.3.1.13 References:

References can be presented at the end of the dissertation before the an-
nexes/appendices. Other than the published/publishable chapters, all
references cited in the dissertation can be organized within a separate bib-
liography after the required chapter on General Discussion/Conclusions
and Recommendations.

4.3.1.14 Annexes/Appendices:

Any data and discussion that was abbreviated due to the structures of the
publication process, Including material published as supplementary can
also be included in the appendices. Detailed methodology, derivations and
questionnaires could also be included in this section.
 5
Project/Practice Based Dissertation and Thesis

5.1. Background

Project is a significant undertaking appropriate to professional fields. Con-

tribution results from a project work are compiled into a project report.
The report describes or documents the problem, the project’s significance,
the background analysis performed, the methodologies used, analyses,
design, implementation, reference to works that were reviewed through
the analyses, and lessons learnt in the process is a conclusion or recom-
mendation form. Interims of effort and presentation, a thesis/dissertation
go well beyond the level of a project. The result of a thesis/dissertation,
documented as a report, should produce material that can be acceptable
for publication in a journal or conference proceedings.

A project differs from a thesis/dissertation in one significant way. A

thesis/dissertation presents a research result that contributes to the schol-
arly literature of the field of study. A project, in contrast, contributes to the
profession of the field via the implementation of known ideas and theories
and/or creative accomplishment. With a project, the student spends the
vast bulk of his/her time investigating and implementing the solution(s)
to real-world problems. With a thesis/dissertation option, the student
spends more time investigating and implementing the experimental de-
sign. Whereas, a project/practice-based non-thesis and dissertation option,
students spend more time on a literature review to identify the problems
and gaps, set objectives, and methodology analysis including test and vali-
dation methods, evaluation processes and implementation mechanisms.

A thesis/dissertation requires an extensive literature survey on exist-

ing works and can generate new knowledge or improve existing tech-
niques/models/theories. One of the primary goals of masters-level thesis
work is to teach students how to do research. The project/practice option
often involves the researcher seeking to solve a problem, challenging the
existing knowledge. The methodology employed will vary depending on
the scope of the problem chosen but will include an analysis and evaluation
of the process involved. The topic chosen may be less novel or original
as compared to a thesis. Generating the project’s objectives, defining the
intervention approach, data collection and analysis are equally important
to the project option.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 28

5.2. Purpose

This document aims to provide guidelines on how to write a graduate

practice/project-based Masters thesis/non-thesis and Ph.D. dissertation. It
is not intended to be used in writing a thesis and dissertation describing
theoretical qualitative and quantitative research works.

5.3. Project/Practice-based Doctoral Studies

A narrative report must accompany a doctoral project submitted to AAU.

The student summarises the project’s introduction, problems, objectives,
literature review, methodology, significance, outcomes/products, and rec-
ommendations. The report is prepared using the same format as a disser-
tation, with all appropriate preliminary pages, chapters, end matter, and
other parts.

5.3.1 A practice/project Doctoral study can be:

• A research whose project/ output / is the implementation of an ‘innova-

tive’ recommendation from previous research and

• Research whose project is adaptation and transfer of an already imple-

mented recommendation or a tested existing solution

• A research whose project either questions the existing knowledge or

practice in the creative and performing arts and design.

A doctoral practice/project may be presented in any of a variety of

appropriate media, including artefacts, film, performance, photography,
music compositions, creative writing, architectural outputs, design pro-
totypes, products, software, video, audio, digital photographs, computer
discs such as CDs and DVDs, web pages, and book-type materials.

Hence, a doctoral practice/project represents the culminating expe-

rience resulting from your graduate study. The practice/project demon-
strates that you can find solutions to significant problems and challenge
the existing knowledge. It shows that you can perform critical analysis
and make sound technical decisions based on the findings. Most impor-
tantly, the practice/project is proof that you can describe the project related
activities and results in a well written scholarly publication.

5.4. Project/Practice-based Masters (Non-thesis)

5.4.1 Thesis versus Project

Students raise one of the difficult questions: What is the difference between
a thesis and a project (non-thesis)? The distinction between a thesis and
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 29

a project is not crystal clear. Both a thesis and a project allow students to
demonstrate and build their abilities to apply knowledge and experience
reflectively. Both are completed under the guidance of an advisor and
carried out in accordance with standards and procedures appropriate to
the area of study. In general, they vary in depth and breadth.

The choice also depends on the student’s career goals. The thesis option
is more appropriate for students who desire to develop additional research
skills and plan to pursue a Ph.D. or seek a career in research. The Project
(or non-thesis) option is designed to be more flexible and is tailored for
students who don’t necessarily desire more extensive research training. A
thesis is a central idea, while in a project, it is central to problem-solving or
what one can develop (e.g., software). A thesis has larger research compo-
nents and a large, more formal requirement for written report components
compared to a project. A thesis would be appropriate if it can result in a
publishable research report.

The thesis option is characterized as the more traditional research

option that typically focuses on choosing an original topic, conducting
an extensive literature review to delimit the topic’s scope and developing
research questions, which the student seeks to answer. The thesis option
requires the researcher to carefully focus on the methodology to be utilized,
including identifying how data will be collected to help answer the research
questions or hypotheses and developing a detailed data analysis plan. The
thesis route may take several approaches including the classic experimental
design, social research, and policy analysis to mention only a few.

The thesis is a scholarly treatment of a subject or an investigative treat-

ment of a problem. It identifies the problem, states the major assumptions,
explains the significance of the undertaking, sets forth the source and meth-
ods of gathering information, analyzes the data, and offers a conclusion
and recommendation. The finished product evidence originality, critical
and independent thinking, appropriate organization and format and thor-
ough documentation. A thesis aims to allow the student to practice what
has been learned in various courses and ultimately develop the capability
to conduct research independently after completing the program.

5.5. Practice/Project-based Ph.D. Dissertation list of

chapters

All the formats, starting from the cover page, table of content, figure and
table content, acknowledgement, declaration, abstract, etc., which is given
to the master/Ph.D. with thesis and dissertation, will also apply to this
practice/project-based master/ Ph.D.

• Chapter 1: Introduction

• Chapter 2: Literature Review

• Chapter 3: Methodology/Materials and Methods (chapter on devel-

 Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 30

opment process, analysis and requirement, design, implementation,

testing and validation, tools and technologies used)

• Chapter 4: Production/Outcomes/Publication

• Chapter 5: Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendation

• References

• Annexes*

*The list of portfolio of components appropriate to the field of study (arte-

facts, film, performance, photography, music compositions, creative writ-
ing, architectural outputs, design prototypes, software, other products)
should be annexed.

5.6. Guideline for Project-Based Masters (Non-Thesis) list

of chapters:

5.6.1 MSc, MA, MFA, etc. Project (AAiT, SIT, DCS, CBE, CPVA, etc.)

• Chapter 1: Introduction: Describe the practice/project work background.

Establish the context. Discuss why this work is important. Briefly de-
scribe the development of the process the practice/project work follows.

• Background

• Statement of the Problem

• General and Specific Objectives

• Chapter 2: Literature Review: provide a survey and a critical review of

related prior work.

• Chapter 3: Methodology

• Chapter 4: Production/Data Presentation and Analysis

• Chapter 5: Summary of Findings, Conclusion and Recommendation

• References

• List of products (If any)

• Annexes* * The list of portfolio of components appropriate to the field of

study (artefacts, film, performance, photography, music compositions,
creative writing, architectural outputs, software, design prototypes, prod-
ucts and others) should be annexed.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 31

5.7. Clarification on Chapters of Practice/Project based

Masters (Non-thesis) and Ph.D.

5.7.1 Chapter on Introduction

Introduce the reader to the particular problem your project is attempting

to solve. Set the scene by providing a background for the work. Why is
this work important or interesting? Write a summary of the overall ap-
proach. Include brief descriptions of the development process, design,
implementation, and testing approaches.

5.7.2 The chapter on Review of Literature

This chapter is mandatory and is different from the background provided

in the introduction. The background provides general information. The
literature review focuses on issues that are more specifically related to the
work in your project. Describe similar work done by others and described
in the literature with a critical analysis. Demonstrate this by writing some
discussions on what others have done, what they have achieved, and the
limitations of their work.

5.7.3 Chapter on Methodology

This chapter is mandatory and is required a detailed description of the de-

velopment process, analysis, tools and technologies used, implementation,
and testing and validation approaches.

5.7.3.1 *Development Process

Describe the development process you followed. To demonstrate your

doctoral study in the field of specialization, your project should follow a
standard development process rather than an undefined or ad hoc process.
Make sure to describe the process you followed for making the multiple
deliveries and demonstrations.

5.7.3.2 *Analysis and Requirements

Describe how you did requirements elicitation, conducted the analysis,

and arrived at the specified requirements. Provide analysis models. Some
suggested model elements are use cases, activity diagrams, sequence dia-
grams, and domain models. The analysis models should express the system
architecture and the top level behavioral requirements.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Addis Ababa University |Page 32

5.7.3.3 *Design

Generally, describe the architectural and detailed design models in sepa-

rate chapters. Always, discuss the alternatives considered and the rationale
for choosing the solutions the practice/project adopted. Describe the ar-
chitectural and detailed design models in a disciplined manner using both
text and comprehensive design models. Suggested design model elements
should be used (For example, class diagrams, interaction diagrams, struc-
tured classes, components, subsystems, and deployment models, etc.).
Provide a comprehensive design model with sufficient design information.
Note that to describe a design adequately, and dynamic views, both static
and dynamic views. The static view includes classes with inheritance and
aggregation, structured classes, interfaces, components, subsystems, and
deployment. The dynamic view includes activity diagrams, sequence or
communication diagrams, and the state model when appropriate.

5.7.3.4 *Implementation

Describe the overall strategy for implementation tasks, such as incremental

builds risk mitigation measures. Discuss why you chose the specific pro-
gramming language, development tools, testing tools, and implementation
platform. Discuss strategies for the reuse of existing products and com-
ponents. The use of design patterns in the implementation demonstrates
sophistication in the subject matter and is highly encouraged.

5.7.3.5 *Testing and Validation

Describe how testing and validation tasks were performed. Describe the
plans and strategies used in unit testing, integration testing and system
testing. Address regression testing. Describe the test plans and provide
test procedures for testing the critical functions. Describe the test tools
you used. Whenever possible, involve someone else, such as friends and
colleagues, in the testing and verification process, and include their com-
ments and observations. Provide test metrics, such as the number of de-
fects found, the defect density of the discovered defects, code and branch
coverage metrics.

Ideally, an analysis should describe the defect injection and discovery

characteristics, such as types of defects, injection phases, and discovery
phases. If your project serves an external customer, you must involve
end-users selected by the customer in the testing process. Examples of
such projects are community service projects, a project from your place of
work, or projects with an external sponsor. Graduate projects involving the
end-users in the testing will be an acceptable validation process.
Dissertation and Thesis Write-up: Guideline Page 33

5.7.3.6 *Tools and Technologies Used

Describe any state of the art tools and technologies used in the project.
The project/practice must provide discussions that demonstrate that they
have performed critical analyses of the subject matter. It is important that
describe how the tools and technologies are being applied to the project
you have completed. The project should include discussions on evaluat-
ing alternate tools and techniques to provide comparisons and state the
rationale for choosing the ones you did.

5.7.4 The chapter on Production/Patent/Publication

Discussion and analysis of research products/outcomes in light of the

literature and methodology, including contextualization of the practical
components of the project, will be presented in this chapter. Patents should
be incorporated as subchapters in the production/outcome section. Partic-
ularly, for candidates from the College of Performance and Visual Arts, this
chapter should include a brief description of the expected creative outputs
for examination (e.g. performance, exhibition, design, music composition,
novel, film, carving etc.), and discuss theoretical and practical components
of the products. In addition, candidates including a nominated creative
part for examination within a Ph.D../master will generally present the prod-
uct/outcome in one or more of the following three formats. They should be
documented and included in the thesis.

* As printed material integrated into the bound thesis;

* As a digital recording in a portable format that can accompany the thesis;

* As a live performance or exhibition

5.8. The chapter on Summary of Findings, Conclusion and

Recommendation

The clarification of this chapter given to the master/Ph.D. with thesis and
dissertation will also apply to this practice/project-based master/ Ph.D.

Remark: The explanation and depth of the report will determine de-
pending on the department situation and field of specialization. Similarly,
the clarification of the chapters for non-thesis Master and Ph.D. might be
different based on the depth of detail works done and field of specialization.