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1
 SCHOOL OF
POSTGRADUATE
STUDIES
Research Handbook
2020

The SPS Research Handbook 2020 replaces and supersedes

AUA Standards for Written Work 2014 for use by students
engaged in research at the School of Postgraduate Studies

iii
Copyright © 2020 by the Adventist University of Africa
Private Bag, Mbagathi
00503 Nairobi, Kenya

SPS Research Handbook 2020 Editorial Committee

Susan Baker, DSc

Josephine Ganu, PhD
Musa Nyakora, PhD

Editor: Alexine Bonde, MA

This work is licensed under Creative Commons 3.0

iv
 Welcome to the School of Postgraduate Studies

Daniel Ganu, DrPH

Dean, School of Postgraduate Studies,
Associate Professor of Public Health

On behalf of the faculty at the School of Postgraduate Studies (SPS), I warmly welcome
you to Adventist University of Africa (AUA) and the School. As a graduate student at
AUA, you will face many exciting and rewarding experiences. It is a privilege to study
at the postgraduate level and we trust that you will make the most of your opportunities.

There are several documents that are important to your success at AUA and SPS. One
is the Academic Bulletin, which you can find at the AUA Website. The other is the SPS
Research Handbook 2020, which you are reading now and is also located at the AUA
Website. The SPS Research Handbook is an invaluable guide as you plan, execute, write
and submit your research, which must be professionally done before you can graduate.
If you follow the SPS Research Handbook, diligently, your path to successful
completion of your research will be considerably easier.

We pray that God will richly bless you in your postgraduate studies and that your skills
and talents will be used for His glory and in the service of humankind.

Daniel Ganu, DrPH

Contact Information: spsdean@aua.ac.ke

v
 School of Postgraduate Studies
Faculty and Staff

Seated, left to right:

Musa Nyakora, PhD, Head of Department of Social Sciences, Programme Leader of MA and PhD in
Leadership Programmes
Risper Awuor, PhD, Deputy Vice Chancellor for Academic Administration; Faculty in Leadership
Daniel Ganu, DrPH, Dean of SPS; Programme Leader of MPH Programme
Josephine Ganu, PhD, Programme Leader of MBA Programme
Lossan Bonde, PhD, Head of Department of Applied Sciences; Programme Leader of MSc in Applied
Computer Science

Standing, left to right:

Susan Baker, DSc, Director of Research and Faculty Development; Faculty in MPH
Angela Nwaomah, PhD, University Registrar; Faculty in MBA
SafaryWa-Mbaleka, PhD, EdD, Director of AUA Online; Faculty in Leadership
GimylinWa-Mbaleka, PhD, Chief Accountant; Faculty in MBA
Marie Anne Razafiarivony, PhD, Director of Centre for Continuing Education; Faculty in MBA
Jane Wambui, Administrative Assistant to the Dean, SPS

Not pictured above:

Derrick Deya, PhD, Graduate Research Assistant

vi
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Sections of this work were adapted from the AUA Standards for Written Work, 2014.
Appreciation is expressed to Dr. Shawna Vyhmeister and the other contributors for
the work that produced the AUA Standards for Written Work 2014 which served
students in the School of Postgraduate Studies, the Theological Seminary, and the
University well.

vii
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1
Overview of Research at the Adventist University of Africa
School of Postgraduate Studies 1

Chapter 2
The Proposal Stage and the Proposal Defence 10

Chapter 3
The Writing and Final Oral Defence Stage 30

Chapter 4
Submission of the Project/Thesis/Dissertation 57

Chapter 5
Professional Writing Standards and SPS Style and Formatting 65

Chapter 6
Computer Formatting Tips 87

Chapter 7
Miscellaneous Helpful Items 99

Chapter 8
SPS Research Protocol:The Unabridged Complete Version 105

Chapter 9
Sample Pages, Forms and Grading Assessments 117

viii
 CHAPTER 1

Overview of Research at the

Adventist University of Africa
School of Postgraduate Studies

1
2
 OVERVIEW OF RESEARCH AT AUA
The faculty of the School of Postgraduate Studies (SPS) is pleased to make
available to our students the resources of the SPS Research Handbook 2020. As a
student in SPS, you are a valuable part of AUA and we want your total research
experience to be successful. That is why the SPS Research Handbook was
developed—to give you specific guidance for planning, writing and submitting your
project/thesis/dissertation.

The SPS Research Handbook is revised from the former AUA Standards for
Written Work, but is more complete because of the addition of the SPS Research
Protocol in a format that gives you all the information you need to navigate the
process in one place. You can find the entire SPS Research Protocol at the end of the
SPS Research Handbook. However, you will also find that the applicable sections of
the Protocol are placed throughout the SPS Research Handbook so that you can
follow the Protocol in context. You will notice, too, that copies of all forms you need
to process your project/thesis/dissertation are included in the SPS Research
Handbook, along with sample pages that you can adapt to your research paper.

The SPS Research Handbook has a companion—The Quick Guide to

Successful Project/Thesis/Dissertation Writing. The Quick Guide is a handy, rapid
reference to get you started in the SPS research process. Endeavor to get all the benefit
each of these resources has to offer you.

CONSIDERING YOUR RESEARCH

All culminating research at SPS is primary research, which involves collection of
raw data, processing, and analyzing the data to come up with new ideas and original
conclusions. This gives students the opportunity to:

• Develop and apply postgraduate skills of independent research, analysis,

judgment and critical evaluation.
• Refine and enhance writing and presentation skills.
• Demonstrate capacity to understand and explain strategic issues,
opportunities and/or situations within organizations.

Successful completion of primary research demonstrates a student’s mastery and

integration of theory and applications gained during his/her studies and the ability to
analyze and develop solutions to significant problems.

It is important to recognize that your research project/thesis/dissertation is the

most important artifact you create in earning your degree. It will persist in perpetuity,
long after your graduation. It also shows the extent to which you can perform critical
analysis and make sound decisions based on evidence. It is important to develop

3
interest and sharpen your skills in this area because there are profound future
implications.

Definition of Project/Thesis/Dissertation

Students who graduate from the SPS at AUA will have demonstrated
proficiency in research through the selection and completion of a project, thesis or
dissertation. Masters level students can choose to do either a project or a thesis.
Doctoral students must write a dissertation. Each of these has a scholarly definition:

A project is considered experimental in nature; in that the researcher

establishes variables, designs interventions, and collects data to measure
results of the intervention. Students in any SPS Master’s degree programme
can select to do a project, which requires a Proposal Defence, but not a Final
Oral Defence. A project is supervised by a Primary Adviser and a Secondary
Adviser. A project has an applied aspect to it and can include the production
of a manual, handbook, training or workshop as part of the study process or
outcome. For the Master of Science in Applied Computer Science, a project
must lead to the implementation of a software product/tool that aims at
solving a problem which is judged worthy of a research project.
Typical project length: 70-80 pages excluding appendixes
Typical Computer Science project length: 45-80 pages excluding appendixes

A thesis is research that is more theoretical in nature, in that the researcher

seeks to establish a theory to explain an observed problem. Students who
write a thesis may also collect data and measure variables. However, the
thesis may result in a theory that can be advanced to make a contribution to
the field of study. A thesis must be defended at the proposal level and also
defended before a three to six-member Final Oral Defence Panel at the end
of the writing phase. A thesis is supervised by a Primary Adviser and a
Secondary Adviser and has an External Examiner who reviews the paper then
joins the panel for the Final Oral Defence.
Typical thesis length: 90-120 pages excluding appendixes
Typical Computer Science thesis length: 60-90 pages excluding appendixes

A dissertation is highly academic, comprehensive, and widely considered

the most rigorous type of empirical research conducted by a student for a
terminal degree. It is expected to contribute new knowledge and advance
scholarship in the field of study. Students pursuing a PhD at AUA are eligible
to write a dissertation. Before the dissertation writing commences, the student
must have passed the Comprehensive Examination. The dissertation must be
defended at the proposal level and also before a five to seven-member Final
Oral Defence Panel at the end of the writing phase. A dissertation Committee
comprises of a Primary Adviser and two Secondary Advisers. There is also

4
 an External Examiner who reviews the paper then joins the panel of the Final
Oral Defence.
Typical dissertation length: 200-250 pages excluding appendixes
Typical Computer Science dissertation length: 90-180 pages excluding
appendixes.

Eligibility to Write a Project/Thesis/Dissertation

Students in Masters programmes must have a CGPA of 2.75 or higher and

pass research courses taken at AUA in order to be eligible to write a project/thesis.
Students in the MScACS programme must have a CGPA of 3.00 or higher and pass
research courses to be eligible to write a project/thesis. PhD Leadership students must
have a CGPA of 3.33 or higher and pass research courses before being eligible to
write a dissertation.

Registration for Research

All research at AUA incurs course tuition and a Research Fee. These charges
help defray the expenses of research supervision and assessment.

Research Continuation

If the student does not finish the research within fifteen (15) months of the
registration date for the final required credits, he/she must register for
Project/Thesis/Dissertation Continuation, and pay the normal registration fees that
accompany any registration. Continuation is valid for twelve (12) months, and must
be repeated each year until the student finishes the research.

Research is considered completed when all of the required signatures are on

the project/thesis/dissertation Approval Page, when the Printing and Binding Form
has been signed by all required persons, and finally, when the student’s name has
been submitted to the Registrar by the Dean, indicating eligibility for degree
conferral/graduation.

5
 RESEARCH SUPERVISION AND ASSESSMENT TEAM
Research project/thesis/dissertation is a major undertaking in a student’s
academic life and subjected to the most rigorous levels of scrutiny in order to ensure
a high standard for the degree to be awarded. Therefore, students do not work through
the research process alone. The SPS requires research project/thesis/dissertation to be
examined by a team— Advisers, Programme Leader (PL), Ethics Committee and
External Examiners (members of other university faculty) among others. This section
gives a brief overview of the team involved in supervising and examining research
work and their role.
1. Programme Leader - The PL provides an oversight supervision of the entire
research process and acts as a moderator and quality control regulator. He/she
receives and processes the Research Proposal/full paper through the appropriate
committees. The Programme Leader also checks to make sure that all coursework
is completed and monitors the student’s research progress until graduation.
2. Advisers – Research Advisers are usually classified into two – primary and
secondary who are mostly drawn from SPS faculty, AUA faculty and faculty
from sister universities worldwide. The Advisers are responsible for directing and
helping the student acquire the skills and knowledge necessary to plan and
conduct an original research from the initial stage of the proposal development
to the completion of the full project/thesis/dissertation. Most students and
advisors communicate to work together effectively via face-to-face meetings,
email exchanges backed up by occasional Skype chats and/or telephone
discussions.
3. Graduate Research Assistant - The Graduate Research Assistant (GRA)
primarily provides technical support to students in their research work in the form
of data analysis, interpretation, and academic writing. He/she reviews student
research papers from the Programme Leaders for assistance
and explains research issues to students.
4. Ethics Committee – The Institutional Ethics Review Committee (IERC) seeks
to establish a culture of research ethics among students that is demonstrable in its
respect for human participants and high research standards. The IERC will be key
in reviewing protocols, approving the use of ethical protocols, and assisting
students with the training in human protections necessary to safeguard human
participants. Inherent in the IERC role of ethics review and approval is the need
to consider dignity, safety, rights, autonomy, beneficence, justice, health and
well-being of participants and researchers.
5. Project/Thesis/Dissertation Committee and Panel - The
project/thesis/dissertation Committee and the Final Oral Defence Panel are
quality control regulators for the project/thesis/dissertation. The main duties of
the Committee and Panel revolve around the review, evaluation and grading of
the Research Proposal/final submissions.
6. External Examiner - The External Examiner is a member of the faculty of

6
 another university appointed to evaluate the thesis/dissertation in detail before
the Final Oral Defence. He/she normally assesses the final research to determine
the readiness of the thesis/dissertation to be defended by the student. The External
Examiner submits an official report of his/her evaluation of the paper to the Chair
of the Defence Panel and is also a member of the panel that examines the student
during the Final Defence.
7. Research Director – The Research Director works primarily with the
Programme Director and in collaboration with the Editor and Dean to guide the
student through the final approval stages in the writing of the
project/thesis/dissertation. The Research Director reviews the paper after it is
submitted by the PL and places it into editing when it conforms to AUA
standards, style and format. Following editing, the Research Director sends the
paper to the Programme Leader for final signature from the Dean. The Research
Protocol gives additional details for papers with issues that prevent editing.
8. AUA Editor - The Editor’s role in working with student research is primarily to
check that the project/thesis/dissertation writing and formatting was done
correctly. It is not the role of the AUA Editor to correct all of the student’s
mistakes; excessive or factual errors will result in the paper being returned to the
student for corrections by the PL. The Research Protocol gives additional details
for the process when excessive editing errors are present in a paper.
9. Head of Department - The Head of Department (HOD) of the student’s degree
programme is a member of both the Proposal and the Final Oral Defence Panels.
10. Dean – The Dean is a member of both the proposal and the Final Oral Defence
Panels. The Dean is also responsible for the final approval of a
project/thesis/dissertation, which is shown by his/her signature on the Approval
Page and on the Printing and Binding Form.
11. Student - Even though a student has a whole team to help with his/her research,
the work is the student’s responsibility, not that of the research advisors, PL,
committee, panel, Research Director or Editor. The student takes full ownership
and responsibility for the ideas, statistical design and analysis, grammar/editing,
and referencing of the project/thesis/dissertation. In summary, students must
strive for high levels of academic achievement and contribute to the intellectual
life of the University.

7
 AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is using someone else’s words or ideas as if they were one’s own.
It is equivalent to intellectual thievery. Plagiarism is a serious research violation. The
School of Postgraduate Studies has zero tolerance against submission of any work
containing any amount of plagiarized material.

Plagiarism is not limited only to textbooks, but also includes media resources,
laboratory experiments and results, ideas expressed orally, artistic work, and all
copyrighted materials. At AUA, plagiarism includes all of the following:

1. Any form of copying of ideas or concepts—intentionally or out of

carelessness—and presenting them as one’s own, without crediting the
author(s) and/or proper citing/quoting (e.g. without quotation marks and a
reference).

2. Copying a sentence, paragraph or section (anything more than two words)

word-for-word, or even using paraphrasing that is too much like the original.
The same rules apply if it is an electronic source, if no author is listed, or if
the copyright is expired.

3. Borrowing an idea from someone else or even from one’s own earlier work
without giving proper acknowledgement. A fact that is generally considered
common knowledge may be used without a reference.

4. Unfair use, that is, indiscriminate use of too much material from a source,
even if properly quoted and credited.

Turnitin is an anti-plagiarism software that is available for use by students of

AUA. Students are encouraged to check their papers for plagiarism by using Turnitin
prior to submitting written work to Advisers. Generally, the similarity/originality
index should be less than 20%. They should not select the repository option when
running the paper through Turnitin so that it will not be stored in the database.

Plagiarism attracts severe penalties. The penalties may take the form of
failure of the paper or suspension, or even expulsion from the University. The
University also reserves the right to revoke the degree of a student whose work has
been proven plagiarized or academically dishonest. For the complete policy, refer to
the Academic Bulletin section: Academic Integrity.

8
 PROJECT/THESIS/DISSERTATION
PROGRESSION CHECKLIST

1. Choice of Topic During the research class.

2. Approval of Topic After the research class (presentation
required).
3. Appointment of PL identifies and appoints advisers; Dean
Project/Thesis/Dissertation Advisers processes Adviser Contract.
4. Proposal Writing Student to work with the Adviser(s)
throughout the writing process, not only at
the end.
5. Proposal Defence After approval from Advisers; if research
includes human participants, informed
consent and research instruments must be
submitted at Defence; IERC must approve
instruments before data collection begins.
6. Approval of Proposal After Proposal Defence, revisions and
signed correction form.
7. Authorization to Collect Data After Proposal Defence and following the
approval of corrections by the Advisers/PL.
8. Pilot Study (where applicable) Before data gathering.
9. Actual Data Collection Researcher receives authorization to collect
data from PL.
10. Data Analysis Assisted by statistician/methodologist for
qualitative and quantitative studies in
coordination with the primary and
Secondary Advisers.
11. All 5 chapters written Researcher.
12. Project Submission Advisers approve.
13. Thesis/Dissertation Final Oral Defence After External Examiner’s assessment and
feedback.
14. Approved Project/Thesis/Dissertation After Final Oral Defence, revisions, signed
correction form and PL verification.
15. Final Research Review and Editing Research Director and AUA Editor.
16. Final Approval of Signature of the Dean.
project/thesis/dissertation
17. Production of AUA Library bound Office of the Dean.
copy/soft copy and specifications for
the bound copy

9
 CHAPTER 2

The Proposal Stage and the

Proposal Defence

10
11
 THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL
The Research Proposal stage marks the start of the application of the skills
and knowledge the student has acquired during his/her studies. Upon successful
completion of the research courses in the degree programme, students will be required
to prepare a Research Proposal on a topic of their choice.The Research Proposal is a
very important part of the research exercise because it communicates a researcher’s
plan for a study and is the first major piece of work the student has to put forward for
close scrutiny by the Proposal Committee before he/she can continue with the
research study.

A word to students in the Applied Computer Science programme: In

accordance with the SPS Research Handbook, each project/thesis/dissertation starts
with the proposal formulation and defence. However, the Computer Science program
does not strictly follow the general outline of the social sciences.
For both the proposal and final project/thesis paper, the writing style is based on
predefined templates which are derived from the best practices in writing for
Computer Science and related fields of study. The templates used incorporate the
following: formatting, in-text citations, references, tables, figures, etc. While students
are free to use any writing software (e.g., Word, Pages, OpenOffice, LaTeX/BibTeX),
students are strongly encouraged to use LaTeX/BibTeX.

Computer science students are strongly encouraged to familiarize themselves

with the entire SPS Research Handbook, paying particular attention to the sections
pertaining to Computer Science which are clearly designated.

THE PROPOSAL STAGE: Process for

Projects/Theses/Dissertations

1. After the designated research course is completed and passed, each student is
assigned a Primary Adviser and a Secondary Adviser by the Programme Leader
(PL) in consultation with the student, the Head of Department (HOD), and the
Dean. In the case of a Project, the Secondary Adviser may be assigned later in
the work.

2. The student, with the assistance of the Advisers, develops a Proposal by

following the proposal and research design guidelines found in the SPS Research
Handbook.

3. When the Advisers approve the Proposal and sign the Proposal Examination
Form, a Proposal Defence Panel is formed by the PL, in consultation with the
HOD and the Dean, for the Proposal Defence by the student.
• For a Project or Thesis: The Proposal Defence Panel will consist of
the two Advisers, designated programme faculty, the PL, HOD, and
the Dean. Typically, the PL serves as the Chair.

12
 • For a Dissertation: The Proposal Defence Panel will consist of the
Primary Adviser, two Secondary Advisers, designated programme
faculty, the PL, HOD, and the Dean. Typically, the PL serves as the
Chair.

4. A student will defend the Proposal only when the method of data collection
is clearly described, the instrument(s) of data collection is presented, and
Ethics Clearance has been obtained. To initiate Ethics Clearance, the student
submits the paper, along with the Informed Consent and all research
instruments to the IERC after these have been approved by the PA and the
PL. The results of the Ethics Review will be communicated to the PL in
writing by the IERC Chair and a copy of the Clearance will be given to the
student for inclusion in the project/thesis/dissertation.

5. In conjunction with the Ethics Clearance process, the Proposal and research
instruments will be reviewed by the AUA Editor for formatting and writing
style as per the SPS Research Handbook. Comments from the Editor will be
given to the PL so that they can be brought to the student’s attention.

6. After the Proposal is assessed and approved by the Proposal Defence Panel,
using the Research Proposal Evaluation Form, the student is informed of the
outcome of the Proposal Defence by the PL in writing with the Proposal
Evaluation Result Form. If no corrections are necessary, the student is
authorized to collect data and continue the research process under the
supervision of the Advisers. If corrections are needed, the student cannot
begin collecting data until the revisions are completed and approved. The
student is expected to incorporate all the suggestions of the Proposal Defence
Panel under the guidance of his/her Adviser(s). Submission of the revised
proposal should not take longer than three (3) months after the Proposal
Defence.

• After revision, the Advisors verify that all the corrections have been duly
incorporated into the revised proposal, using the Correction
Confirmation Form.

• The Primary Advisor then sends the revised proposal directly to the PL
who confirms the revision and officially authorizes the student to collect
data and continue the research process under the supervision of the
Advisers.

Note that if, during the Proposal Defence, changes are recommended by the Panel
that affect the ethics clearance, the student is not authorized to collect data. Instead,
the student must re-submit the proposal to IERC and obtain a new ethical clearance.

13
Obtaining Research Permit

Upon receiving permission from the AUA IERC to initiate data collection, the
student is also required to:

• Apply for authority to conduct research in the country where he/she plans to
conduct the study, if applicable to country regulations. All researchers who
plan to conduct research in Kenya are required to file an online application
to the National Commission for Science, Technology, and Innovation
through this website: http://oris.nacosti.go.ke/

• In addition, where applicable, obtain permission from Officers or

Management where the student plans to collect data through questionnaires,
interviews, etc. for the study.

• Individual permission, by use of an Informed Consent, must still be obtained

even if the organization’s officers/management give consent.

14
Contents of the Project/Thesis Proposal

Generally, the Research Proposal for a project/thesis/dissertation is made up

of three chapters, with appendixes and references:

CHAPTER

1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Research Questions or Objectives
Hypotheses, Null and Alternative (if applicable)
Conceptual/Theoretical Framework of the Study
Significance of the Study
Scope and Limitations of the Study
Operational Definition of Terms

2. REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Relevant Literature
Related Studies

3. METHODOLOGY

Research Design
Population and Sampling Procedure
Instrument(s) for Data Collection
For quantitative research: Instrument validity and reliability
For qualitative research: Trustworthiness of instrument, data, and/or
findings
Data Collection Procedure
Method of Data Analysis
Ethical Considerations

REFERENCES

APPENDIXES

Research Instrument(s) (questionnaires, surveys, interview guide, focus

group questions, etc.)
Informed Consent Form and Permission Letters
Institutional Ethics Review Committee Approval

15
Contents of the Project/Thesis Proposal for
Applied Computer Science Programme

For Computer Science students, the proposal document follows the structure
below:

CHAPTER

1. AREA OF RESEARCH

Overall purpose of the research

Research question (main question)
Support questions
Scope of the project/thesis
Benefits of the study and Expected results

2. METHODOLOGY

Indicate the nature of the research to be done: empirical, theoretical,

experimental, or simulation
Indicate the theories, tools and technologies that will be involved in
the study
Indicate how the expected results will be evaluated and benchmarked,
where applicable

3. CHAPTER OUTLINE

List of the chapters of the project/thesis

4. SCHEDULE (plan with dates of the work)

Give the main milestone of the research

For each milestone, indicate dates (estimated starting and ending dates)
Indicate if specific resources are required for the milestone, and how those
resources will be made available for the research

PRELIMINARY REFERENCES

Provide list of scholarly referenced resources that will support the research

16
Contents of the Dissertation Proposal

CHAPTER

1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Research Questions or Objectives
Hypotheses, Null and Alternative (if applicable)
Conceptual or Theoretical Framework
Significance of the Study
Scope, Limitations and Assumptions of the Study
Operational Definition of Terms

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Relevant Literature from related studies

3. METHODOLOGY

Research Design
Population and Sampling Procedure
Instrument(s) for Data Collection
For quantitative research: Instrument validity and reliability
For qualitative research: Trustworthiness of instrument, data, and/or
findings
Data Collection Procedure
Method of Data Analysis
Ethical Considerations

REFERENCES

APPENDIXES

Research Instrument(s),(questionnaires, surveys, interview guide, focus

group questions, etc.)
Informed Consent Form
Institutional Ethics Review Committee Approval

17
 DETAILED CONTENTS OF THE PROPOSAL
Research Topic/Title - The first step in the research process is to identify a
topic. This is the title of the study and should reflect an area of interest to the student.
The topic must also possess potential for academically rigorous research and answer
the question: So what?

CHAPTER 1

INTRODUCTION

This chapter introduces the entire study and justifies the study by highlighting
the gap in the existing knowledge and how the present study will attempt to bridge
the gap. The primary goal of this chapter is to catch the attention of the readers
through the following elements:
a. Background of the Study: This section serves as the introduction and
provides the reader with the essential context needed to understand the
research problem. It describes the research problem with reference to the
existing literature. The background information should indicate the root of
the problem being studied, appropriate context of the problem in relation to
theory, research, and/or practice, its scope, and the extent to which previous
studies have successfully investigated the problem, noting, in particular,
where gaps exist that your study attempts to address.
b. Problem Statement: The statement of the problem is the focal point of the
research investigation. A research problem may be defined as an area of
concern, a gap in the existing knowledge, or a deviation in the norm or
standard that points to the need for further understanding and investigation.
This section should clearly define and articulate the problem to be addressed
and indicate the need for a study. It should describe the gap that exists
between the real and the desired or a contradiction between principle and
practice which the study intends to fill.
c. Research Questions or Objectives: This section should contain a clear
statement of the research objectives questions. Research Objectives are the
goals which the research is supposed to attain and there can be one general
objective and a corresponding number of specific objectives which are
derived from the general objective. Alternatively, the researcher can pose
research questions. Research questions are those that the researcher would
like to specifically answer in the study. Thus, the research problem is broken
down into a series of questions/objectives concerning the relationship
between the cause (independent variable) and the effect (dependent variable).
The researcher may write objectives instead of research questions, as his/her
department may require.

18
d. Null Hypotheses: A research hypothesis is a tentative statement of a potential
relationship between two or more variables or a potential difference between
two or more groups expressed in the form of a clearly stated relation between
the independent variable(s) and dependent variable(s). Hypotheses requiring
statistical testing are stated in negative form and are, therefore called “null
hypotheses.” These are formulated after a thorough review of the literature.
The research hypotheses should relate to the aims and objectives. The
hypothesis is accepted or rejected depending on the results of the statistical
tests. All inferential research questions (or objectives) require null
hypotheses to be stated.
e. Conceptual Framework: A conceptual framework is the detailed presentation
of the variables/constructs that support and guide the research. It explains,
either graphically or in narrative form, the main issues to be studied—the key
factors, concepts, or variables—and the presumed relationships among them.
A schematic diagram of conceptual model helps the reader to visualize the
theorized relationships between the variables in your model.
f. Significance of the Study: This section explains the rationale for why the
study is important and how it will contribute to professional knowledge and
practice. What is the value of your work—who might be able to use it? The
significance of the study addresses (1) why your study is important, (2) to
whom it is important, and (3) what benefit(s) will occur if your study is done.
This should be limited to a couple of paragraphs.
g. Scope and Limitations of the Study: The scope defines the boundaries of the
research in terms of the depth and breadth of your study. The
selectedvariables, population/sample, etc. can determine the scope. The
limitation of the study identifies potential weaknesses of the study. The
student should identify and precisely list the limitations of the study and
discuss the extent to which the limitations would affect the quality of the
research. If any limitations can be mitigated, state how this will be done.
h. Assumptions of the Study: PhD students are required to discuss the
underlying assumptions of their study. Assumptions reflect important issues
surrounding the study which the researcher believes to be true. The most
obvious is that the sample represents the population. Another common
assumption is that an instrument has validity and is measuring the desired
constructs. Still another is that respondents will answer a survey truthfully.
The important point is for the researcher to state specifically what
assumptions are being made.
i. Operational Definition of Terms: This section defines/explains key
terms/variables used in the study that do not have a commonly understood
meaning and those that have been operationally defined in the context of the
study.

19
 CHAPTER 2

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

Before planning the details of a study, the researcher should dig into the
literature to find out what has been written about the topic he/she is interested in
investigating. The idea is that the student reads the literature base and critically
evaluates it to produce a balanced review. Both the opinions of experts in the field
and other research studies have a significant bearing on the problem under study.
Therefore, Chapter 2 is usually reasonably long and organized by theme, subtopic, or
variable based on the conceptual framework of the study.

The literature review should cite similar studies that lead up to the current
research. The student should seek to synthesize findings across studies and compare
and contrast different research outcomes. It is important to note gaps or shortcomings
in the literature so as to provide a rationale for the current study. A typical Literature
Review section begins with definitions and theoretical discussions, a review of
research that has already been done in this area and a theoretical framework. PhD
students are required to include a theoretical framework in addition to the conceptual
framework in their proposal. A student who thinks critically will not only look for
and cite literature that supports his/her study perspective, but will also present
literature that takes an opposite or conflicting view. When this is skilfully and
impartially done, the value of the study is enhanced.

20
 CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

The Methodology chapter is very important because it tells your Research

Committee how you plan to tackle your research problem. The guiding principle for
writing the Methodology section is that it should contain sufficient information for
the reader to determine whether the proposed methodology is sound. Therefore,
Chapter 3 describes and justifies the research methods which the studentplans to
utilize in her/his investigation. This includes a description and justification of the
research design, target population and sampling technique, the instruments to be used,
the procedures to be followed, an identification of threats to internal validity, ethical
considerations and a description and a justification of the statistical procedures used.

a. Research Design: The research design provides the framework and structure
within which a particular research study is conducted. Examples of research
design include the following types: descriptive, ethnographic, causal, action
research, and cross sectional, etc. Descriptive statistics, while appropriate for
a project, are not sufficient for a thesis or dissertation which requires some
form of inferential statistics or sufficient qualitative data to develop a theory
or confirm/modify an existing theory. Research methods may be qualitative,
quantitative, or a combination of both, which is known as mixed methods.
b. Population and Sampling Procedure: This section discusses the target
population and how the sample was selected. The reader of your paper will
want to know whether the sample you have chosen is representative of the
entire study population. Representative samples are important for drawing
insights and generalizing the findings for the entire population. The
unquestionable way of achieving representative samples is to use probability
(random) sampling methods. The student should also describe the procedures
for selecting the sample, including the sampling technique and state how the
sample size was determined.
c. Instruments: These are the tools used to obtain information from respondents.
Examples include questionnaire, interview, observation, and reading of
documents. Describe the instruments you intend to use. Be sure to design
your instrument(s) based on your research questions/objectives and/or test
hypotheses. For each instrument you did not make yourself be sure to show
your permission to use the instrument, give reliability numbers from past uses
of the instrument(s), and include a proper reference for it. If you have adapted
the instrument, tell WHAT you changed, WHY, and HOW. If it is a
substantial change, you may have to pilot test the instrument again and
provide reliability numbers. If you are going to develop a new questionnaire,
how you design the items is very important. They should not favor any biases
you may have; they should not lead the respondent to an answer and,
typically, a new questionnaire should be pilot tested and validated in order to

21
 evaluate if it is measuring what it is supposed to measure and doing so
reliably.

i. Instrument Validity (used in quantitative research) –Validity refers to the

accuracy or truthfulness of a measurement. There are at least three types of
validity that should be addressed and you should state what steps you took to
assess validity. (1) Face validity refers to the likelihood that a question will
be misunderstood or misinterpreted. Pilot testing of a questionnaire is a good
way to increase the likelihood of face validity. (2) Content validity refers to
whether an instrument provides adequate coverage of a variable/concept.
Expert opinions help to establish content validity. (3). Construct validity
refers to the theoretical foundations underlying a particular scale or
measurement. The researcher should describe the criteria used to validate the
construct. A technique known as confirmatory factor analysis is often used
to explore how individual survey items contribute to an overall construct
measurement. PhD students are required to conduct construct validity in
addition to face and content validity.
ii. Instrument Reliability (used in quantitative research) – A measurement that
yields consistent results over time is said to be reliable. There are different
statistical analyses for testing reliability depending on the type of data.
Researchers must use the appropriate statistical technique in testing for
reliability.
iii. Trustworthiness—(used in qualitative research) Trustworthiness is a way of
evaluating rigor in qualitative research. Typically, there are four aspects of
trustworthiness that a researcher must establish: 1) credibility; 2)
dependability; 3) transferability; and 4) confirmability. There are various
methods used to establish these aspects, such as triangulation of data sources,
participant-checking, and peer/content expert input or review of
instrument(s), data or findings. Note that qualitative research does not
generally use the measures of instrument validity and reliability.
iv. Translation— Translation of the original instrument(s) into one or more
additional languages may be necessary if the population sample cannot
adequately comprehend and respond to the instrument in the original
language (usually English). In this case, translation is required and the
student MUST describe the specific method of translation. Also, the initial
translation from the original language to the target language(s) should be
made by at least one independent translator/interpreter before the
instrument(s) is subjected to validity and reliability analysis. A copy of the
research instrument(s) should be included in the appendixes. Note: all
documents that appear in the appendixes in a language other than English
must appear with an English version.
d. Data Collection Procedure: Describe your data collection procedures in the
exact sequence in which you carried them. How will you actually go about

22
 it? Will you seek permission from the relevant authorities? When and where
will the data collection take place? Will you personally collect the data or
employ the services of research assistants/enumerators? How will you
conduct the interviews or focus group discussions (if any)? If you are doing
an ethnographic study or population observation, how will this proceed? If
you use research assistants and/or enumerators, how will you choose them?
How will they be trained so as to comply with your research methods? If they
are paid or incentivized in any way, it is professional to discuss this. Also,
describe any special procedures that will be followed (e.g., instructions that
will be read to participants, presentation of an informed consent form, etc.).
e. Method of Data Analysis: Data analysis involves the application of the
appropriate statistical tools and/or qualitative methods to generate results
which can be meaningfully used to answer the research questions and/or test
hypotheses. The choice of a particular statistical tool(s) depends on the type
and level of data, hypothesis statements, and the requirements and
assumptions of the statistical tools. If the data only requires qualitative
analysis, descriptive tools such as content analysis can be used. If you are
doing an intervention, discuss the exact way your data analysis will support
the design of your intervention. In this section, include the decision-making
criteria (e.g., p-value, scoring of means, etc.) as well as the statistical software
that will be used, which is typically given an inline citation or simply state
the version of the number of the software. If your statistical analysis is
complicated or you are not confident of your abilities, consider hiring a
statistician.
f. Ethical Considerations: Ethical issues are an area of great concern in social
research. If your study population consists of humans or animals, or creates
a situation which could affect them, it is necessary to obtain approval for your
research study before collecting any data. This section must clearly discuss
any potential risks relating to the participants in your study. Potential or
actual risk can be physical, mental, social, or emotional in nature, so think
broadly about potential risks. Your paper should describe how you will
reasonably minimize risk to participants—do not just state that you will avoid
risks to participants—you must have safeguards in place at the start of your
study. Explain in detail how you will secure informed consent, maintain
anonymity, support confidentiality, and what you will do with the data once
you are done with it. Research ethics also demands that researchers report
findings objectively, accurately, and acknowledge all data sources in the
research report. This section should also contain appropriate permissions for
photography, direct quotation of participants and any potential use of
personally identifiable information in the written report if anonymity is
promised.

23
 REFERENCES

The School of Postgraduate Studies at AUA uses American Psychological

Association (APA) style for their research. This includes term papers and class
assignments, projects, theses and dissertations.

A reference list provides a complete description of the sources cited in the

proposal/report. Each reference cited in the main work must appear in the reference
list, and each entry in the reference list must be cited in the text. As far as possible,
references used in the paper should be current—within the past five years. Students
are encouraged to minimize the use of internet webpage articles. Peer-reviewed
journal articles and books are considered more academic for references than are
unpublished works or non-peer-reviewed journal articles. The APA reference list
must match the citations used in text EXACTLY. There are many useful web sites
that give information on compiling your references, such as:
http://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/APA6th/referencelist.

APPENDIXES

This section is the appropriate place for all the supportive

documents/materials that substantiate the study. Appendixes are usually grouped by
type of material, and each individual item does not need a separate subtitle. Common
appendixes include correspondence such as Letters of Authorization from AUA,
ethics committee approvals and other relevant institutional documents, should be
attached as appendixes to show that the researcher obtained all the needed approvals
to conduct the study. In addition, the research instruments, statistical analyses, etc.,
are appended and labelled.

24
 THE PROPOSAL DEFENCE
Proposal Defence examination is an integral part of the proposal assessment
process. Each student has to orally defend his/her proposal before a panel of
experts/professors from the SPS to assure the Panel that the proposed research is
relevant and interesting. Additionally, it is to assure that the study design is sound
and that the researcher is capable of successfully conducting the study. Upon meeting
the proposal requirements, a Proposal Defence Panel is formed by the PL, in
consultation with the Dean within two weeks. The Research Proposal Defence
schedule is usually provided to each student at least a week before the Defence,
detailing the venue, time and duration of the defence. Refer back to the Research
Protocol for specifics of the Proposal Panel.

The Research Proposal should be orally defended to a Panel of Examiners, using

PowerPoint presentation. Usually, students are given 20 minutes for presentation and
40 minutes for cross examination from the evaluation panel and the audience. Table
1belowpresents sample contents of the proposal presentation and some tips.

25
Table 1. Sample Distribution of Slides and Tips for Presentation Slide Show
Presentation Content Number Note
of Slides
Title Slide 1 Include Title of the Research Proposal, Program
of Study, Name of the Student and the date

Introduction 2-3 Brief background of the Study

Problem Statement 1-2 Important to establish a problem clearly and
definitively
Research Questions/ 1-2 Research questions should be related to the topic
Objectives and be answerable within the time frame of the
Quantitative Studies: study. Findings should relate back to research
Hypotheses questions
Qualitative Studies: Typically 3-5 research questions are adequate
Do not use hypotheses
Conceptual/Theoretical 1 Project the diagram/figure
Framework
Literature Review 2-3 Briefly present the key literature reviewed
Methodology 2-5 Include the research design, population, sample
size determination and sampling method,
instruments and method of data analyses. (2-
5slides)
Question/Answer Time 1
Formatting
Don’t put too much information on one slide. Each slide should have no more than 7
lines.
Avoid font size smaller than 24 points. Titles/Headings can have as large as 32-40 points
in size. Bulleted lists are effective at 24-28 points.
Use simple backgrounds that produce high contrast. Use either a dark background with
light letters or a white background with dark letters.
Other Presentation Tips
Do not read the presentation to the audience. Reading a presentation word-for-word
shows lack of confidence and familiarity with the study.
Arrive early (at least 15 minutes before schedule) and present within the allotted time.
Arrive early enough to test the presentation and familiarize yourself with the room and
equipment.
Pay attention to other details such as typographical and grammatical errors in the
presentation, as well as to how you dress, your mannerisms and basic courtesy during
presentations. The appropriate dress for a Defence is professional, whether the setting is
via conferencing or face-to-face. It is courteous to thank your committee/panel, either at
the start of the defence or at the end.
Don’t put effects into your presentations, such as sounds, animations, and distracting slide
transitions. A simple, well-planned presentation is most effective.

26
On-line Conferencing Proposal Defence Tips

A significant number of SPS Proposal Defences are carried out by video

conferencing due to the cost of travel. In such cases, the appropriate IT people set the
link up and then the defence is carried out in exactly the same way it would be
conducted on campus. Students who opt for the online Proposal Defence should
consider the following to facilitate a smooth conference:
• Speak slowly and clearly.
• Make sure each person present can hear everybody else.
• Allow for a transmission time lag. This can be up to 2 seconds over very long
distances.
• Always assume it is going to take longer than planned to set up the video
link.
• Ensure there is no background noise, especially from nearby traffic and air-
conditioning systems.
• Make sure that the latest approved copy of your proposal has been sent to
your Programme Leader before the Defence in order for your Panel to review
your paper before the Defence. Inform your adviser(s) of any substantive
changes and get his/her approval.

Proposal Post-Defence Requirements

If no post-defence corrections are required, the student can begin to collect

data. If corrections are required, they must be completed in the time frame given by
the panel. Refer back to the Research Protocol for the post-defence steps.

Forms for the Proposal Stage

Below is a listing of the Samples, Forms and Grading Assessments that are
used in the Proposal Stage. All of these documents are located in Chapter 9 of this
SPS Research Handbook for your convenience.

Some of these documents are generated by the student, some by the

Programme Leaders, Advisers or Examiners. Review each form so that you are
familiar with them and how they are used. In the case of
Grading/Assessment/Evaluation forms, these are provided so that you know what is
expected of your work, which will help you in planning, writing and defending your
project/thesis/dissertation.

Give attention to the title of the documents so that you know whether it is
used for a project or a thesis or a dissertation.

27
Forms
Informed Consent
Parent or Guardian Permission Form for Research Involving a Minor
Non-Disclosure Agreement for Participants in Interviews or Focus Groups
Permission to Use Direct Quotations for Interviews or Focus Groups
Permission for Photography/Any Pictures Taken by Researcher
Proposal Examination Form
Research Proposal Defence Evaluation Form
Research Proposal Defence Evaluation Form for Computer Science
Proposal Defence Evaluation Result Form
Proposal Correction Confirmation Form

28
29
 CHAPTER 3

The Writing and Final Oral

Defence Stage

30
31
 WRITING, DEFENDING AND SUBMITTING THE
RESEARCH PROJECT/THESIS/DISSERTATION
The first three chapters of the project/thesis/dissertation are essentially the
same three chapters of the proposal and have been covered previously. The
difference, however, is that the proposal speaks in the future tense to show how the
researcher intends to carry out the research—it outlines the proposed plan of the
research. However, after the data is collected and analyzed, the researcher must focus
on the reporting of the research, which requires entrance into the writing stage. Now
the researcher builds on the approved proposal and reports (in past tense) what was
done, rather than what he/she plans to do, and he/she includes the actual results of the
study. This part details the entire research process that the student went through to
find answers to the research problem.

Again, the Research Protocol is given for an overview of the steps in the
process. Notice that the Research Protocol numbering begins afresh in each section.
If you want to view the complete Research Protocol, it is found at the end of the SPS
Research Handbook. Following the Protocol, information is given to organize and
structure the full research report. Note that processes are specific to whether the paper
is a project, thesis, or dissertation.

THE WRITING STAGE: Process for Projects

All SPS students must ensure that their citations follow the American
Psychological Association (APA) style and that their writing and formatting conform
to the SPS Research Handbook.

1. The student submits each chapter of the Project to the Primary Adviser who
assists the student to reach the highest level of research and writing quality, and
also advises of areas that are incorrect, non-conforming to style, or are weak and
need modification. When the student has corrected all indicated areas to the
satisfaction of the Primary Adviser, the Primary Adviser provides written
approval to the student. Approval from the Primary Adviser affirms that the
Project adheres to academic research standards and SPS Research Handbook. The
Primary Adviser should copy the PL on all correspondence to the student.

2. After the Primary Adviser approves the Project, it is returned to the PL. The PL
then assigns the Project to the Secondary Adviser, who provides another critical
reading of the work and recommends any additional modifications to the student.
When this process is completed to the satisfaction of the Secondary Advisor,
he/she gives the student written approval and completes the Project Examination
Form. Then the Secondary Adviser sends the Project back to the Primary Adviser
to check the changes.

32
3. The Primary Adviser gives approval of the paper and completes the Project
Examination Form, which is submitted to the PL, along with the paper. Students
should not submit approved Projects directly to the PL.

4. The PL requests grades for the Project from the Primary and Secondary
Advisers by sending them the Grade Form for Advisers.

THE WRITING STAGE: Process for Theses

All SPS students must ensure that their citations follow the American
Psychological Association (APA) style and that their writing and formatting conform
to the SPS Research Handbook.

1. The student submits each chapter of the Thesis to the Primary Adviser who assists
the student to reach the highest level of research and writing quality, and also
advises of areas that are incorrect, non-conforming to style, or are weak and need
modification. When the student has corrected all indicated areas to the
satisfaction of the Primary Adviser, the Primary Adviser provides written
approval to the student. Approval from the Primary Adviser affirms that the thesis
adheres to academic research standards and the SPS Research Handbook. The
Primary Adviser should copy the PL on all correspondence to the student.

2. After the Primary Adviser approves the thesis, it is returned to the PL. The PL
then avails the thesis to the Secondary Adviser, who provides another critical
input to the work and recommends any additional modifications to the student.
When this process is completed to the satisfaction of the Secondary Advisor,
he/she gives the student written approval and completes the Thesis Examination
Form. Then the Secondary Adviser sends the thesis back to the Primary Adviser
to check the changes.

3. The Primary Adviser gives approval of the thesis and completes the Thesis
Examination Form, which is submitted to the PL, along with the thesis. Students
should not submit an approved thesis directly to the PL.

THE WRITING STAGE: Process for Dissertations

All SPS students must ensure that their citations follow the American
Psychological Association (APA) style and that their writing and formatting conform
to the SPS Research Handbook.

1. The student submits each chapter of the dissertation to the Primary Adviser who
assists the student to reach the highest level of research and writing quality, and

33
 also advises of areas that are incorrect, non-conforming to style, or are weak and
need modification. When the student has corrected all indicated areas to the
satisfaction of the Primary Adviser, the Primary Adviser provides written
approval to the student. Approval from the Primary Adviser affirms that the
dissertation adheres to academic research standards and the SPS Research
Handbook. The Primary Adviser should copy the PL on all correspondence to the
student. After the Primary Adviser approves the dissertation, he/she returns it to
the PL.

2. The PL then avails the dissertation to the two Secondary Advisers, who provide
additional critical input to the work and recommend modifications to the student.
When this process is completed to the satisfaction of the Secondary Advisers,
they both give the student written approval and complete the Dissertation
Examination Form.

3. Then the dissertation is sent back to the Primary Adviser to check the changes.
The Primary Adviser gives approval of the dissertation and completes the
Dissertation Examination Form and submits it to the PL, along with the
dissertation. Students should not submit an approved dissertation directly to the
PL.

Organization and Structure

The final project/thesis/dissertation is organized into five (5) chapters with

structured sections in each chapter. Again, there are differences between the structure
of a project, thesis, and dissertation as shown in the following:

34
 Research Project Outline
Abstract
Title Page
Copyright Page
Approval Page
Dedication Page (optional)
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
List of symbols and/or abbreviations
Acknowledgements (optional)

CHAPTER

1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Research questions or objectives
Hypotheses (if applicable)
Conceptual or Theoretical Framework
Significance of the Study
Scope & Limitations of the Study
Operational Definition of Terms

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature relevant to the research study/conceptual framework.

Related Studies relevant to the research study.
The review must be comprehensive in terms of breath (scope) and
depth (extent).

3. METHODOLOGY

Research Design
Population & Sampling Procedure
Instrument(s) for Data Collection
For quantitative research: Instrument validity and reliability
For qualitative research: Trustworthiness of instrument, data, and/or
findings
Data Collection Procedure
Method of Data Analysis
Ethical Considerations

35
4. RESULTS & DISCUSSION

Study Area Setting

Response Rate
Demographic Characteristics of Respondents
Results and discussions based on the research questions
Proposed Product Development/ Program Development on the results of the
study
Product/Program Implementation and/or Evaluation (Optional)

5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary
Conclusion
Recommendations
Suggestions for Future Research

REFERENCES

APPENDIX(ES)

Correspondence
Questionnaires
Interview guide
Statistical Analyses
Any other supplementary materials

CURRICULUM VITAE

36
 Research Thesis Outline
Abstract
Title Page
Copyright Page
Approval Page
Dedication Page (optional)
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
List of symbols and/or abbreviations
Acknowledgements (optional)

CHAPTER

1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Research questions
Hypotheses (if applicable)
Conceptual or Theoretical Framework
Significance of the Study
Scope & Limitations of the Study
Operational Definition of Terms

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Review of literature relevant to the research study/conceptual framework

Related Studies relevant to the research study

3. METHODOLOGY

Research Design
Population & Sampling Procedure
Instrument(s) for Data Collection
For quantitative research: Instrument validity and reliability
For qualitative research: Trustworthiness of instrument, data, and/or
findings
Data Collection Procedure
Method of Data Analysis
Ethical Considerations

37
4. RESULTS & DISCUSSION

Study Area Setting

Response Rate
Demographic Characteristics of Respondents
Results and discussions based on the research questions

5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary
Conclusion
Recommendations
Suggestions for Future Research

REFERENCES

APPENDIX(ES)

Correspondence
Questionnaires
Interview guide
Statistical Analyses
Any other supplementary materials

CURRICULUM VITAE

38
 Computer Science Research Project Outline
Abstract
Title Page
Copyright Page
Approval Page
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
List of symbols and/or abbreviations

CHAPTER
1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Scope and Limitations of the Project
Operational Definition of Terms

2. METHODOLOGY

The methodology should be concise to include only theories, methods, tools

and technologies that are related to the project work. It should also seek to
compare, contrast and justify the differences (approach, methods, tools and
technologies) with similar projects.

3. PROPOSED SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM

The title of this chapter will be determined by the project aim and outcome.
This is where the student work is presented in detail.

4. RESULTS AND BENCHMARKING

This chapter presents the experimental results of the project and provides
where applicable benchmarking information of the project results.

5. CONCLUSION

Summary of the work that has been done

Discussion
Limitations
Perspectives and Future work

REFERENCES (IEEE Trans Reference Style)

39
APPENDIXES
Reference material developed and/or used in the course of the project,
needful to the understanding of the work, but not suitable to be put in the
body of the document—e.g., sample(s) of source codes.

40
 Computer Science Research Thesis Outline
Abstract
Title Page
Copyright Page
Approval Page
Dedication Page (optional)
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
List of symbols and/or abbreviations

CHAPTER
1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Research questions or objectives
Significance of the Study
Scope and Limitations of the Study
Operational Definition of Terms

2. LITERATURE REVIEW

Theoretical Review of literature relevant to the research study

Related Studies relevant to the research study. The review should seek
to show the link with the current study.

3. RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The methodology should be concise to include only theories, methods, tools

and technologies that are related to the research work.
- indicate the nature of the research to be done; empirical, theoretical,
experimental, simulation
- indicate the theories, tools and technologies that will be involved in the study
- indicate how the expected results will be evaluated and benchmarked where
applicable

4. CONTRIBUTION (PROPOSED SOLUTION TO THE PROBLEM)

The title of this chapter will be determined by the student contribution.

This is where the student work is presented in detail.

Depending on the level of the study contribution, an extra chapter can be

41
 added to present and discuss the results.
5. CONCLUSION

Results and their interpretation

Discussion
Limitations
Perspectives and Future work

REFERENCES (IEEE Trans Reference Style)

APPENDIXES

Reference material developed and/or used in the course of the study, needful
to the understanding of the work, but not suitable to be put in the body of the
document—e.g., sample(s) of source codes.

CURRICULUM VITAE

42
 Research Dissertation Outline
Abstract
Title Page
Copyright Page
Approval Page
Dedication Page (optional)
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures
List of symbols and/or abbreviations
Acknowledgements (optional)

CHAPTER

1. INTRODUCTION

Background of the Study

Statement of the Problem
Research questions
Hypotheses
Conceptual or Theoretical Framework
Significance of the Study
Scope, Limitations and Assumptions of the Study
Operational Definition of Terms

2. REVIEW OF LITERATURE

Theoretical Review of literature relevant to the research study/conceptual

framework
Related Studies relevant to the research study

3. METHODOLOGY

Research Design
Population and Sampling Procedure
Instrument(s) for Data Collection
For quantitative research: Instrument validity and reliability
For qualitative research: Trustworthiness of instrument, data, and/or
findings
Data Collection Procedure
Method of Data Analysis
Ethical Considerations

43
4. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Study Area Setting

Response Rate
Demographic Characteristics of Respondents
Results and discussions based on the research questions
Proposed Model/Framework based on the results of the study

5. SUMMARY, CONCLUSION & RECOMMENDATIONS

Summary
Conclusion
Recommendations
Suggestions for Future Research

REFERENCES

APPENDIX(ES)

Correspondence
Questionnaires
Interview guide
Statistical Analyses
Any other supplementary materials

CURRICULUM VITAE

44
 REQUIRED PRELIMINARY PAGES FOR
PROJECTS/THESES/DISSERTATIONS
Each SPS research project/thesis/dissertation should have preliminary pages.
These are the initial pages that precede chapter one of the study. Preliminary pages
include the following and in this order:

1. Abstract (approximately 250-350words)

2. Title page
3. Copyright page
4. Approval Page
5. Dedication page (optional)
6. Table of Contents
7. List of Tables (if 5 or more are used)
8. List of Figures (if 5 or more are used; combine on one
page with list of tables, if possible)
9. List of symbols and/or abbreviations (if 5 or more are
used at least 3 times each)
10. Acknowledgements(optional)

a) Abstract. The abstract is a descriptive summary of the research. A good abstract

briefly defines the research problem, the methodology, findings and brief
conclusions or recommendations of the study. Descriptions of the method may
include the design, the sample and the research instrument(s) used. At the end of
the abstract, there should be 3-5 keywords that give the main topics of the
research and allow other researchers to find your study when searching the
literature.
b) Title page. This is the page (after the abstract) which displays the research title,
name of the author (student), purpose for which the dissertation has been
submitted, the school, university and the date research was completed or
approved.
c) Copyright page. Copyright indicates the intellectual ownership of material. While
it is not required to copyright your research work, it is encouraged. Use of
copyrighted material is limited to (a) “fair use” or (b) licensed use. A simple
copyright notice can be done using the sample statement at the bottom of an
otherwise empty page.
d) Approval Page. This page is signed by the members of the Panel for a Defence
and by the members of the Committee for a Project.
e) Dedication page. This is a statement where students may dedicate their work to
whoever they wish, such as family members, loved ones, friends, participants,
etc. It is optional and should be short.
f) Table of Contents. This is a paginated guide to the paper. It lists the chapter titles
and major headings that come after it exactly as they appear in the body of the

45
 document based on the project/thesis/dissertation structure. The Table of
Contents should be generated automatically.
i. The Table of Contents must reflect the first three levels of
subheadings used, if all are used.
ii. Each of the preliminary pages, starting at the Table of
Contents, has a page number in lower case Roman numerals at
the bottom center of the page in the same font and size as the
text. Start counting pages from the Title Page, then start
printing them from the table of contents.
iii. Page numbering in Arabic numerals is in the same font and
size as the text, beginning with the first page of Chapter One
and runs consecutively throughout the
project/thesis/dissertation.
g) List of Tables. This page lists all tables in the report when five or more tables are
used in the paper.
h) List of Figures. This page lists all figures in the report when five or more figures
are used in the paper.
i) Acknowledgements. A page of Acknowledgements offers opportunity to express
gratitude to persons/institutions that have been helpful during the course of the
research study. This page is optional.

46
 CHAPTER 4

RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

Chapter 4 is the main contribution of the research. This chapter reports the results
of the study based on the research questions/objectives posed in Chapter 1 and
provides the basis on which the hypothesis is either accepted or rejected. Chapter 4
may be organized as follows:

a) Study Area Setting. Describe the settings/area in which the study took place. The
research setting is the study environment which can be seen as the physical,
social, and cultural site in which the researcher conducts the study.
b) Response Rate. The response rate refers to the proportion of the
respondents/participants who actually participated in the study survey divided by
the number of people in the sample. It is usually expressed in the form of a
percentage. The student is expected to report and discuss the response rate to
determine the degree of success in obtaining completed surveys from a sample
and also discuss the possible reasons for the response rate.
c) Demographic Characteristics of Respondents. An insight into the demographic
profile of the respondents gives an overview of the type of people this study has
been carried on. It is important for the researcher to present and discuss the
general characteristics of the research participants in terms of age, gender,
educational level, etc., using frequencies and percentages. Generally,
respondents’ characteristics give readers a good understanding of the sample and
the generalizability of the results and are, therefore, important.
d) Research questions or objectives. Organize the presentations and discussions of
the results according to the research questions/objectives/hypotheses in sequence.
Present quantitative data using figures/charts or tables (do not use both for the
same findings), and discuss the results to bring out the implications of each
finding. Literature reviewed in Chapter 2 may be cited to show how your findings
are similar or different from other studies and existing theories. Explain possible
reasons why the results might have turned out the way they did. Thus, a critical
analysis and interpretation of findings are expected in this chapter. Also, each
hypothesis must be tested based on the results and followed by a statement on
action taken (acceptance or rejection of hypotheses) with regard to the hypothesis
and the implications of such action. End the discussion with a reasoned and
justifiable explanation on the importance of your findings.
e) Proposed Model/Framework based on the results of the study. A doctoral
dissertation is the most rigorous type of research conducted by a student. PhD
students are expected to contribute new knowledge and advance scholarship in
their field of study. Therefore, doctoral dissertations are required to offer
new/improved theory/model/framework based on the outcomes of the study.

47
 CHAPTER 5

SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

This chapter gives the summary of the study, conclusions drawn from the
results of the study and recommendations.

Summary

This section gives an overview of the entire study. It reiterates the statement of
the problem, rationale for the study, research questions/objectives, hypothesis (if
any), the method and the main findings. Descriptions of the method may include the
design, the sample and the research instrument(s) used. This section should not
contain any new information. Summary does not include the review of the literature.

Conclusions

The final stage of the project/thesis/dissertation is to derive final conclusions

based on the results of the study. The conclusion should be mainly related to your
original research questions, but including what you think about what was found and
what it might mean.

Recommendations

This section requires the presentation of suggestions or courses of action

based on the findings, which the end user(s) can adopt for improvement. The student
is expected to suggest appropriate measures to strengthen identified weaknesses,
eliminate or solve conflicts or introduce innovative ideas and practices to specific
groups of people/institutions (e.g. Administrators, employees, the church, etc.) that
might be impacted by his/her study.

Remember that recommendations must be based on your data; they cannot

simply be your ideas based on your own personal opinions, unrelated to your findings.
Also, research invariably uncovers more questions than it answers. Therefore, it is
important to include suggestions for further research. This is intended to identify
potential research areas that are outside the scope of the current research but that are
useful and promising areas for other researchers to develop. For example, what
questions does your study leave unanswered? What possible research areas may need
closer examination? Thus, recommendations for further research are required.

48
 REFERENCES

Update the References page to include only sources cited in your work upon
completion of the study. Be sure to follow APA style for references completely, and
be accurate with information.

APPENDIXES

Upon completion of the entire research report, update the appendixes page to
show correspondence, such as Letters of Permission to do the study, instruments, the
statistical raw data from which the study was written, etc.

CURRICULUM VITAE

A brief Curriculum Vitae (CV) which details the student’s personal

information, academic credentials and professional accomplishments is required for
all projects/theses/dissertations. The purpose of the CV is to familiarize readers with
the researcher’s current qualification and experience. The date of birth, place of birth,
marital status, and spouse/children’s names and number are not required on a CV,
though this information may be commonly included in some places. Do not list
referees or recommenders in CV—they will be removed before your paper is bound.

49
 FINAL ORAL DEFENCE OF THE
THESIS/DISSERTATION
After the thesis/dissertation is written, the next step is participation in the
Final Oral Defence. This process can rightly be viewed as exciting because the
student has the opportunity to have his/her research on full display—along with the
chance to discuss it with persons who are committed to bringing it to the highest
standard of quality and scholarship.

Here is the overview by use of the Research Protocol. Note that there is some
variation in the Defence of a thesis and dissertation.

THE FINAL ORAL DEFENCE STAGE:

Process for Theses

1. When the PL has the approved Thesis, he/she sends it to an External Examiner.
2.
3. After the External Examiner has reviewed the Thesis, the PL, in consultation with
the HOD and the Dean, sets a date for the Final Oral Defence.
4. The PL informs the members of the Final Oral Defence Panel that the Oral
Defence date has been set and assures the availability of members. The Final Oral
Defence Panel consists of the:
• Dean, Chair
• Head of Department
• Programme Leader
• Designated Faculty of the Program
• Primary Adviser
• Secondary Adviser
• External Examiner
5. Attendance at the Final Oral Defence is open to the public. Those present may
participate in directing questions to the student on the topic of his/her research,
when invited by the Dean. The audience will not be provided with a copy of the
student’s paper.
6. A Thesis Final Oral Defence shall normally be no longer than two hours and no
shorter than one hour in duration. At the start of the Defence, the student is given
20 minutes to present his/her thesis. The presentation is followed by the
examination from the Panel.

50
7. At the conclusion of the Defence and following an executive session of the Panel,
the student is informed how the Defence was scored:
• Very Good - No corrections necessary.
• Good- Minor corrections necessary; the student may take up to one
(1) month to make the corrections and submit the revised Thesis to
the Primary Adviser through the PL.
• Fair- Major corrections necessary; the student may take up to two (2)
months to make the corrections and submit the revised Thesis to the
Primary Adviser through the PL.
• Fail- Thesis is not accepted; the student must begin the process
afresh.
8. If revisions to the Thesis are necessary, the PL communicates them to the student
and Primary Adviser, along with the timeframe given to finish the revisions. This
will be provided in writing, and the student is expected to be diligent in making
the revisions. These revisions are done in consultation with the Primary Adviser
who then confirms that all the revisions have been done satisfactorily and submits
the Final Thesis Correction Confirmation Form, along with the Thesis to the PL.

Format of the Final Oral Defence

The Final Oral Defence for a Thesis is generally no longer than two hours
and no shorter than one hour in duration. The researcher has 20 minutes to present a
PowerPoint presentation. Then the Panel takes approximately 40 minutes for cross
examination. The Defence is open to students and supporters to attend, and they may
ask questions or make input, but on a limited basis at the discretion of the Chair. The
audience will not be provided with a copy of the student’s paper. Refer back to Table
1 for presentation and formatting tips and to Table 2 (below) for the recommended
contents of the presentation. Although the Final Oral Defence and the Proposal
Defence have similar presentation formats, students should expect that the Final Oral
Defence will have a greater level of rigor.

THE FINAL ORAL DEFENCE STAGE:

Process for Dissertations

1. When the PL has approved the dissertation, he/she sends it to an External

Examiner.
2. After the External Examiner has reviewed the dissertation, the PL, in consultation
with the Dean, sets a date for the Final Oral Defence.

51
3. The PL informs the members of the Final Oral Defence Panel that the Oral
Defence date has been set and assures the availability of members. The Final Oral
Defence Panel consists of the:
• Dean, Chair
• Programme Leader
• Designated Faculty of the Programme
• Primary Adviser
• Two Secondary Advisers, one of whom is the methodologist
• External Examiner
4. Attendance at the Final Oral Defence is open to the public. Those present may
participate in directing questions to the student on the topic of his/her research,
when invited by the Dean. The audience will not be provided with a copy of the
student’s paper.
5. At the conclusion of the Defence and following an executive session of the Panel,
the student is informed how the Defence was scored:
• Very Good - No corrections necessary.
• Good- Minor corrections necessary; student may take up to one (1)
month to make the corrections and submit the revised
thesis/dissertation to the Primary Adviser.
• Fair- Major corrections necessary; student may take up to two (2)
months to make the corrections and submit the revised
thesis/dissertation to the Primary Adviser.
• Fail- Thesis/Dissertation is not accepted; the student must begin the
process afresh.
6. If revisions are necessary, the recording secretary/PL communicates them to the
student and Primary Adviser, along with the time frame given to finish revisions.
This will be provided in writing and the student is expected to be diligent in
making revisions. These revisions are done in consultation with the Primary
Adviser, who then confirms that all the revisions are satisfactory and submits the
Final Correction Confirmation Form, along with the thesis/dissertation to the PL.

Format of the Final Oral Defence

The Final Oral Defence for a dissertation is generally no longer than two and a
half hours and no shorter than two hours in duration. The researcher has 30 minutes
to present a PowerPoint presentation. Following the presentation, the Panel uses
approximately 60 minutes for cross examination. Students and supporters may attend
the Defence—it is open to the public—and they may participate in directing questions

52
to the student on the topic of his/her research, when invited by the Chair. The audience
will not be provided with a copy of the student’s paper. Table 2 (below) presents
sample contents of the dissertation presentation. Additionally, referring back to Table
1 will refresh presentation and formatting tips. The Final Oral Defence of a
dissertation is considered to be the most rigorous among all levels of the exercise.

53
Table 2.Sample Distribution of Slides for Final Oral Defence
Presentation Content Number Note
of Slides
Title Slide 1 Include Title of the Research Proposal,
Program of Study, Name of the Student and
the date.
Introduction 2-3 Brief background of the Study
Problem Statement 1-2
Research Questions/ 1-2
Objectives/ Hypotheses
Conceptual/Theoretical 1 Project the diagram/figure
Framework
Methodology 2-5 Include the research design, population,
sample size determination and sampling
method, instruments and method of data
analyses. (2-5slides)
Results 3-7 Use Tables/Figures to present your results

Proposed Product 1-3 For projects

Development/ Program
Development
Proposed Model/ 1-2 For dissertations (Project the Model/
Framework/Concept/Theory Framework/Concept/Theory)
Conclusion 2-3
Question/Answer Time 1

On-line Conferencing Final Oral

Defence Tips

The skills gained during the Proposal Defence were preparatory for the Final
Oral Defence. These tips were given previously in the Handbook at the proposal
stage; however, they are valid for this Defence also:

• Speak slowly and clearly.

• Make sure each person present can hear everyone else.
• Allow for a transmission time lag. This can be up to two seconds over very
long distances.
• Always assume it is going to take longer than planned to set up the video
link. You can interface prior to the Defence time with the AUA IT team to
make sure your equipment is working properly and you know how to
optimize the connection on your end.

54
 • Ensure there is no background noise, especially from nearby traffic, air-
conditioning systems and other people in the area.
• Make sure that the latest approved copy of your thesis/dissertation has been
sent to your Programme Leader before the Defence in order for your Panel
to review your paper in advance of the Defence. Inform your Adviser(s) of
any substantive changes and get his/her approval.
• Remain positive and confident. Even people who are not anxious about
speaking in public can get nervous when their research is being examined.
These is natural—take a deep breath and enjoy the process.

Forms for the Writing and Final Oral

Defence Stage

Below is a listing of the Samples, Forms and Grading Assessments that are used in
the Writing and Final Oral Defence Stage. All of these documents are located in
Chapter 9 of this SPS Research Handbook for your convenience.

Some of these documents are generated by the student, some by the Programme
Leaders, Advisers or Examiners. Review each form so that you are familiar with them
and how they are used. In the case of Grading/Assessment/Evaluation forms, these
are provided so that you know what is expected of your work, which will help you in
planning, writing and defending your project/thesis/dissertation.

Give attention to the title of the documents so that you know whether they are used
for a project or a thesis or a dissertation.

Forms
Preliminary Pages for the Written Project/Thesis/Dissertation
Chapters 1-3 (Chapters 1-3 are also found in the Proposal Stage)
Chapters 4-5
Figures/Tables
References
Appendix
Curriculum Vitae
Final Thesis Oral Defence Examination Form
Final Dissertation Oral Defence Examination Form
External Examiner Evaluation Form for Final Oral Thesis Defence

55
External Examiner Evaluation Form for Final Oral Defence—Comp Sci
External Examiner Evaluation Form for Final Oral Dissertation Defence
Final Oral Thesis Defence Assessment Form
Final Oral Dissertation Defence Assessment Form
Final Oral Defence Correction Confirmation Form

56
 CHAPTER 4

Submission of the
Project/Thesis/Dissertation

57
58
 SUBMISSION OF THE RESEARCH PROJECT
Since projects are not required to have a Final Oral Defence, the paper is now
ready to be submitted. The Research Protocol outlines the process for project
submission after it has been approved by both Advisers and the Primary Adviser has
submitted it to the PL.

FINAL SUBMISSION: Process for Projects

At this point, the PL requests grades from the project from both Advisers. A copy
of the Grade Report for Advisers is shown in the Forms section so that students know
what the Adviser grades are based on.

1. The PL gives the Project a final check, directs the student to fill the Printing and
Binding Form, and completes the Printing and Binding Form by adding the
grades. The PL submits the final grade to the Dean on the SPS Grade Sheet, as
per protocol.
2. The PL sends the Project, along with the Printing and Binding Form, to the
Research Office for review and editing. During this process, editorial changes
may be made to the paper to improve the grammar and flow of the paper or to
correct errors in style and format. Students and Advisers should not submit
Projects directly to the Research Office—submission is made only by the PL.
3. If substantive concerns are observed that may compromise academic quality,
such as plagiarism or ethics, the Research Director sends the Project back to the
PL with a written explanation of concerns. The PL can give input and/or return
the Project to the student for corrections. If the Editor finds significant errors in
style and formatting, the Editor will return the Project to the PL, who returns the
paper to the student for corrections. The PL also copies the Advisers so they can
provide assistance to the student, if necessary.
4. The student sends the corrected paper back to the PL, who reviews the
corrections made by the student for accuracy. The PL then returns the paper to
the Editor/Research Director so that it continues through the process.
5. After the Research Office approves the Project, it is sent to the PL who then sends
it to the Dean’s Office for final approval signature. The following signature lines
are authorized for the Approval Page:
• Primary Adviser
• Secondary Adviser
• Programme Leader
• Head of Department
• Dean

59
6. When the Dean has given final approval, and signed the Approval Page, the
Project is sent from the Dean’s office for printing and binding. The Dean’s office
submits the student’s name to the Registrar’s Office, where eligibility for
graduation is determined.
7. When the printing and binding are completed, one (1) copy of the Project is
delivered to the Judith Thomas Library for display in the collection.

SUBMISSION OF THE RESEARCH

THESIS/DISSERTATION
After the post-Defence requirements are met, the PL requests grades for the
thesis/dissertation from both Advisers and calculates them with the Final Oral
Defence grade to produce a weighted final grade. Copies of the Grade Form for
Advisers are shown in the Form section so that students know how these grades are
derived.

The Research Protocol outlines the process for thesis/dissertation submission

after the paper has been approved by both Advisers. The Primary Adviser submits the
approved thesis/dissertation to the PL, who manages it through the final submission
processes, as shown below.

FINAL SUBMISSION: Process for Theses/Dissertations

1. The PL gives the Thesis/Dissertation a final check, directs the student to fill the
Printing and Binding Form, and then completes the Printing and Binding Form
by adding the grades. The PL submits the final grade to the Dean on the SPS
Grade Sheet, as per protocol.
2. The PL sends the Thesis/Dissertation along with the Printing and Binding Form,
to the Research Office for review and editing. During this process, editorial
changes may be made to the paper to improve the grammar and flow or to correct
errors in style and format.
3. If there are substantive concerns about academic quality, such as plagiarism or
ethics, the Research Director will direct the Thesis/Dissertation back to the PL
with a written explanation of concerns. The PL can give input and/or return the
paper to the student for corrections. If the Editor finds significant errors in style
and formatting, the Editor will return the paper to the PL to be sent to the student
for corrections. The student sends the corrected paper back to the PL, who
reviews the corrections made by the student for accuracy. The PL then returns
the paper to the Editor/Research Director so that it continues through the process.

4. After the Research Office approves the Thesis/Dissertation it is sent to the PL

who then sends it to the Dean for final approval and signature. The following
signature lines are authorized for the Approval Page:

60
 Thesis Approval Page
Primary Adviser
Secondary Adviser(s)
External Examiner
Programme Leader
Head of Department
Dean
Dissertation Approval Page
Primary Adviser
Both Secondary Advisers
External Examiner
Programme Leader
Head of Department
Dean
5. When the Dean has given final approval, and signed the Approval Page, the
Thesis/Dissertation is sent from the Dean’s office for printing and binding. The
Dean’s office submits the student’s name to the Registrar’s Office, where
eligibility for graduation is determined.
6. When printing and binding are completed, one (1) copy of the Thesis/Dissertation
is delivered to the Judith Thomas Library for display in the collection.

61
 PRE-SUBMISSION CHECKLIST
Use this Checklist to make sure your project/thesis/dissertation meets AUA
format and style standards BEFORE you turn it in. Do not assume that the AUA
Editor will correct these items—the job of the Editor is to check that you have done
them correctly. If there are excessive errors in your paper or it does not follow AUA
style and formatting, your paper will be returned to you for corrections. If you hire
an external editor, send him/her this Checklist so they are familiar with AUA format
and style.

MISCELLANEOUS FORMAT ITEMS

Document is in ONE file, and preliminary pages are properly numbered.
Page numbers are in the same font and size as the rest of the text.
Table of Contents is formatted with tabs and dot leaders, not spaces and full
stops.
Table of Contents entries are title case and page numbering corresponds to the
actual titles.
Round numbers or numbers below 10 are written out in words.
Dashes are formed by two hyphens—they have no space before or after them.

SPACING
Preliminary pages have headers at 2” (5 cm) and follow the format illustrated
in this Handbook.
Document is left-justified, and double-spaced, with no extra space between
paragraphs.
Single spacing may be used in tables.
One blank line is used between chapter number/title, two blank lines between
chapter title/text.
Two blank lines before and one blank line after subheadings within the text.

TABLES/FIGURES
Tables are readable, consistent in format, and have no vertical lines and few
horizontal lines.
Tables/figures all have an introduction and are mentioned by name/number
before appearing in text.
_____ If tables/figures must be continued on the next page, format is consistent for
both.
Tables/figures are numbered consecutively (but separately) throughout the
document.
Table numbers and titles are typed above the table, figure numbers and titles,
below.
Three blank lines before and after tables/figures inserted within the text.
All data in a figure will be visible when printed in black and white.
If a table/figure is taken from another source, the complete source is cited.

62
 HEADINGS and SUBHEADINGS
Headings and subheadings are properly chosen and formatted.
No heading has only a single subheading under it.
Capitalization of headings follows AUA style and is consistent throughout the
document.
Spacing above and below headings is consistent and correct (2 blank lines
above, 1below).
No heading appears without at least two lines of text below it at the bottom of
a page.

REFERENCES
The Reference list is placed after the last chapter of your paper, followed by the
Appendixes, then your CV.
Every citation in the paper is listed in the Reference list.
Each reference follows APA style/format.

APPENDIX(ES)
_____Each item in Appendix must be in English; if there is another language, place the
document with the other language first, followed by the English translation.
_____ All pages should be clear so they can be read and correctly placed on the page.
_____ If you show statistical tables from SPSS (or other software), they should be
correctly formatted so that all data is clearly shown; as far as possible, try to keep
tables together on the page.

63
Forms for the Submission Stage

Below is a listing of the Samples, Forms and Grading Assessments that are
used in the Submission Stage. All of these documents are located in Chapter 9 of
this SPS Research Handbook for your convenience.

Some of these documents are generated by the student, some by the

Programme Leaders, Advisers or Examiners. Review each form so that you are
familiar with it and how it is used. In the case of Grading/Assessment/Evaluation
forms, these are provided so that you know what is expected of your work, which
will help you in planning, writing and defending your project/thesis/dissertation.

Give attention to the title of the documents so that you know whether it is
used for a project or a thesis or a dissertation.

Forms

Printing and Binding Form

Grade Form for Advisers of SPS Students

64
 CHAPTER 5

Professional Writing Standards

AND
SPS Style and Formatting

65
66
 Professional Academic Writing Standards
It is of primary importance that research writing be precise, clear, as succinct
as possible and reflective that the research undertaken was done so in a professional
and scholarly manner. Some guidance is here provided that applies for good writing
of projects/theses/dissertations.

Flow
Papers should follow a clear and logical outline. To make this happen,
multiple drafts of the paper must be written so that writing can be refined and progress
to improvement. Sentence construction should be clear and relate to each other as the
topic is built.

Paragraphs
Paragraphs form the basis of a paper and are composed of sentences that
support the topic. A new paragraph begins when the writer transitions to a new
thought. Paragraphs are indented .5” or 1.27 cm. Paragraphs begin with a well-
constructed introductory statement and generally have at least three sentences.

Headings
Headings are an effective way to introduce new aspects of the chapter topic
and keep the interest of the reader. If subheadings are used, there must be at least two
subheadings.

Writing Style

Clarity, Directness, and Simplicity of Expression

Eliminate jargon and wordiness. Make the paper clearly understandable to
the reader. Be as direct as possible—state specifically what you mean, and do not
leave ideas poorly explained. Readers may be of different careers, churches, and
ethnicities. They may be from different locations and different cultures, with diverse
perspectives. Therefore, when writing, make a rigorous effort not to be narrow and
sectarian. Many readers may not understand religious jargon—explain what phrases
mean at the first use.

Avoidance of Emotional Words to Persuade

Power words attempt to convince by force, rather than reason. Words like
wonderful, evil, solution, or exciting push your reader to accept your argument based
on passion, rather than evidence. Research seeks to understand, not so much to
convince. Restraint is appropriate. Also, restrain the assessment of the results of your
study—it is difficult to change the thoughts and actions of people based on a one
week or one month experimental study or seminar.

67
Correct Grammar
Take care that verb tenses correctly match the subject of the sentence.
Additionally, pronouns must be used correctly, along with the use of singular and
plural words. Researchers typically use active voice when referring to themselves. If
English is not the student’s mother tongue, it may be advisable to seek an external
editor to assist with grammar and construction.

Inclusive Language
Avoid discriminatory language that indicates prejudice against persons on
the basis of gender, sexual orientation, racial or ethnic group, disability, or age.
Statements like the woman judge, the black flight attendant, or the chairman are
better rendered as the judge, the flight attendant, or the chair. Also, avoid using
words that are negative, such as the victim of HIV, or suffers from heart disease.
Instead, simply use: He has HIV; she was diagnosed with heart disease.

Avoiding Bias
Bias consists of drawing conclusions without proper evidence. It can be
manifested in many ways in research: by failure to select the sample carefully, failure
to seek opposing opinions on a topic, privileged treatment of certain sources, or by
stating conclusions the research believes to be true, but is not supported by the data
of his/her research. As much as possible, bias should be intentionally minimized in
research and writing. When operating from personal bias, the researcher should
acknowledge the bias openly and outline the measures taken to control or mitigate
the bias.

Referring to Yourself
To avoid confusion or ambiguity, refer to yourself in the first person— “I
instructed the students,” or “my calculations showed …” To avoid saying “I” often,
recast the sentence to say “students were instructed.” Writing “the researcher” or
“this researcher” is generally no longer appropriate. Generally, the principle is to try
to minimize references to yourself and keep the emphasis on the research.

Reference of Gender
It is permissible to choose to use one gender generically throughout the
paper. However, it is preferable to alternate reference to gender in order to be
inclusive or to designate he/she. APA style (7th edition) allows the use of “they” as
an acceptable gender-neutral substitute for he or she.

Assistance with Spelling and Grammar

Papers that are submitted for Proposal Defence, Final Oral Defence and final
review and editing must be as free from spelling and grammatical errors as possible.
Students are wise to take advantage of the spelling and grammar checker in Word or
a software program like Grammarly.com, which provides suggestions to improve
writing.

68
Word flags potential errors by displaying jagged underlines of the word, phrase or
sentence:
• Red underline: means the word may be misspelled;
• Green underline: means there may be an error in grammar;
• Blue underline: means there may be an error in formatting or an
inconsistency;

Word is not ALWAYS correct when there is an underline, but check

each underline before submitting the paper to the Adviser or Programme Leader.
The grammar checker can be wrong, but do not ignore it. Papers with a lot of
underlining may be returned for corrections by the Adviser, Programme Leader
or the Research Office.

Crediting Sources

Finding Quality Sources

Postgraduate students carefully assess all sources they use in their research.
Just because a journal published an article and it appears scholarly does not mean
that it is. This is particularly true when it comes from the Internet. Judge all research
sources carefully with the following in mind:

1. Try to use sources that were written five to seven (5-7) years
ago. The exception is historical sources and theological
references.
2. Choose refereed sources, over anecdotal or personal sources.
3. Prefer primary studies to secondary ones.
4. Choose recent journals over books; they are newer, and
contain primary data.
5. Look for data included in text that support the conclusions
drawn.
6. Choose academic sources, rather than newspapers,
magazines, etc.

Introducing Quotations
Quotes should be introduced carefully so that the reader knows why the
quote was chosen. Beginning a quote by saying “Hudson says that …” does not add
any information. The quotation marks and the reference already communicate this.
Use this space to say something important that gives more information. “Comparing
students from wealthy communities to those from poor neighborhoods, Hudson
concludes that…” This gives more information about the source—in this case, that
the conclusion is based on a comparison of two groups of people. Words such as
says, comments, mentions, and writes do not really say much about the relationship
of the quoted material to the ideas you are discussing. When you quote, be sure to
add some value to what is already there.

69
Discussing Quotations
Never let another author get the last word (or the only word) about your
topic. You are the author. Tell us what you saw in this quotation, why it is meaningful
and relevant to your topic. Quoting is not an exercise in cutting and pasting. Discuss
the quotation, compare and contrast it with other sources. At all times, make clear to
your reader who is speaking. If you do not give a reference, it is presumed that you
are making the statement. If the idea comes from somewhere else, be quick to give
credit. Do not quote more than necessary; trim the quote to the part that really applies
to your study (use ellipsis marks if you leave out information from the middle of the
quote).

Dealing with Secondary Sources

Sometimes, as you read one source, you find that the author quotes another
source which you find interesting. This is a secondary source. Generally, do not
quote secondary sources—try to access the original source and quote it instead. It is
never appropriate to use the secondary source as a primary source—distinguish
clearly whether you are quoting the primary or secondary author. Using too many
secondary sources is also frowned upon. Finding the original sources shows you have
done your research carefully.

Citing Abstracts
If you find an abstract but cannot access the complete article, you must cite
it in your bibliography or reference list as an abstract, not as if you actually read the
article. To do otherwise is considered deceptive and unethical.

Mechanics of Writing

Period. Use a period at the end of a complete sentence. Use it to separate

parts of a bibliographic entry, and after all but the most common abbreviations.

Comma. Use commas between elements (including before words such as

and and or) in a series of three or more items. Do not use commas for seriation within
a paragraph or sentence if there are commas within the items; rather, use semicolons
(e.g., The respondents were (a) mothers, 20–30 years old; (b) 3rd-grade students; and
(c) teachers with 5 years’ experience).

Colon. Use the colon after a clause to introduce a series of items only if the
clause is a grammatically complete sentence (e.g., The following are ways to treat
insomnia: (a) think about short-term HRT, (b) consider an alternative, (c) wick away
the problem, and (d) chill out). Do not use a colon after an introductory phrase that
is not a complete sentence, or after a verb to introduce a series of items (e.g., The
respondents were (a) mothers, (b) 3rd-grade students, and teachers with 5 years’
teaching experience).

70
 Parentheses. Use parentheses (not square brackets) if you wish to explain
something that does not fit with the grammar of your sentence. Do not use
parentheses back to back; rather, use a semicolon to separate the statements, and
enclose them in a single set of parentheses.

Hyphen (-). Hyphenate a compound word with a participle when it is before

the word it modifies (e.g., the t-test results, decision-making policies, up-to-date
technology, middle-class houses, 4th-year students). None of these are hyphenated
if they occur after the noun (e.g., the results from the t test, policies about decision
making, the technology was up to date, houses of middle class employees, students
in the 4th year). Do not use a hyphen if a compound adjective cannot be misread or
its meaning is established (e.g., grade point average). Self-compounds are always
hyphenated regardless of whether they are used as an adjective or a noun (e.g., self-
explanatory, self-study, self-confidence).

Dash (—). A dash usually shows an interruption of the flow of thought (e.g.,
Beethoven’s music—unlike that of Mozart—uses emphatic rhymes). If you are
typing in Word, the dash will appear automatically if you type two hyphens, then
continue typing.

Ellipsis points. Three dots indicate omitted words in direct quotations

within a sentence. Leave spaces before and after the dots. For omitted words between
sentences or paragraphs, use four dots; the first serves as the period for the first
sentence (so it has no space before it). Do not use ellipses at the beginning or end of
a quote, but when material is removed from the middle.

Single quotation marks. Use single quotes to enclose text that was enclosed
in double quotes in someone else’s work. This is a secondary source, and should be
used sparingly. The source of the material in single quotes should not be put in your
reference list. In some fields, a specific word may be set off in single quotation
marks, but this is not common.

Double quotation marks. Use double quotation marks to show every place
someone else’s words are quoted directly, unless it is a block quote, in which case
the quotes are not necessary.

Capitalization. Capitalize proper nouns (Seventh-day Adventist is

commonly misspelled; this is the correct spelling). Avoid incorrect and inconsistent
capitalization throughout the paper.

Titles. Use title case for subheadings (Levels 1 and 2). For tables, the table
number appears on its own line, in plain text, followed by the table title on the
following line, in italics and title case. In case of figures, the figure number appears
below the image, in italics and followed by a period. Figure caption on the same line,
in plain text and followed by a period. Use full caps for chapter titles. In titles (but
not in the reference list), when a capitalized word has a hyphen, capitalize both words

71
(exceptions can be made if it makes good sense); in titles, also capitalize the first
word after a colon or dash.

Title case. Title case capitalizes all nouns, pronouns, verbs, adjectives,
adverbs, and other words of four letters or more, except short prepositions, articles,
or conjunctions.

Sentence case. Sentence case uses lower case for all words, except the first
word and proper nouns.

Academic references. Capitalize names of university departments if they

refer to a specific department within a specific university and academic courses if
they refer to a specific course; e.g., Department of Public Health, or Financial
Management; but do not capitalize generic titles: any department wishing to
participate, or curriculum and instruction courses.

Tests. Capitalize exact, complete titles of tests; e.g., Kolmogorov-Smirnov

Test; the words test or scale are not capitalized if they refer to subscales of tests; e.g.,
Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory Depression scale.

Reference list. Use sentence cases in reference lists, i.e., capitalize the first
word of titles of books and articles, proper nouns, and the first word after a colon or
dash. Titles of periodicals are in title case.

Tables/figures. Use sentence case for figure titles and headings or text
within tables and figures. Use title case for table titles.

Numbers. Write out small numbers. The general rule is to use figures to
express numbers 10 and above. Use words to express numbers smaller than these.

Figures. Use figures for exact numbers, such as time (8:15), dates (May 14),
ages (2-year- olds), weights or measures (2.5 kilos, 5 cm), mathematical/statistical
functions (divided by 6, 5 times as many), and items in a numbered series (Level 2,
Grade 5). Also use numerals in the abstract of a paper, in tables, and in parentheses.
For decades or other plurals, the correct form does not require an apostrophe (1970s).

Statistics. Statistics can be presented in text, in tables, and in figures. A

general rule is that if you have three or fewer numbers, use a sentence; if you have
from 4 to 20 numbers, use a table; and if you have more than 20 numbers, consider
using a graph or figure rather than a table.

• Do not give a reference or a formula for statistics in common use

• In tables, use a capital, italicized N to specify the number of
members in a total sample; use lowercase, italicized n to specify the
number of members in a limited portion of the total sample. Do not

72
 use the statistical symbol of the term in the text; use the spelled-out
form.
• Use lowercase Greek letters (not italicized) to represent population
statistics; use italicized Latin to express sample statistics.
• Use the percent symbol (%) only when preceded by a number or in
tables.

Abbreviations/acronyms. Acronyms should be used sparingly. Do not

switch between an abbreviation and the spelled-out form.

Introducing an abbreviation. Do not introduce an abbreviation if it will

not be used at least three times in the paper. The first time an abbreviation is used,
explain it in the text with the acronym/abbreviation in parentheses, and be sure it is
in the list of abbreviations at the beginning of the paper if there is one. Thereafter,
use the abbreviation, unless it makes better sense to spell out the word, such as at the
beginning of a sentence.

73
 SPS STYLE AND FORMATTING GUIDELINES
The format and style of SPS project/thesis/dissertation proposals and the final
version of the paper must conform with the latest edition of the Manual of the
American Psychological Association (APA). The SPS Research Handbook is based
on the 7th edition of the APA Manual (2020). In matters of format not specified in the
SPS Research Handbook, follow the specifications of APA.

There are a number of internet sites that present the APA Manual in
condensed form. If one of these sites is used, be confident that it is current and correct.
One simple to use and complete resource that SPS recommends is found at
http://www.bibme.org/citation-guide/apa/.

What follows is an abbreviated Guide to SPS Style and Format with the most common
usages for students.

1. Margins. The margins in the text are:

Left – 1½ inches
Right – 1 inch
Bottom – 1 inch
Top – 1 inch for all pages, except the first page of every chapter and all of
the preliminary pages, which have top margins of 2 inches.
2. Alignment. Use left-aligned margins for all text in the body of the paper.
3. Font Style and Size. Use Times New Roman font type, font size 12
throughout the document, including chapter titles and headings. Table and
Figure data can be in Times New Roman, font size 10, if space is an issue,
but the captions remain in font size 12. Be sure to use a consistent size with
all tables throughout the paper.
4. Page Numbering. Numbers are placed at the bottom center of each page, in
the same font/size as the text. Preliminary pages are numbered using
lowercase Roman numerals (e.g. iii, iv), counting from the Title Page, but
showing the number starting on the Table of Contents Page. The main text
(From Chapter 1 to the end of the project/thesis/dissertation) is numbered
consecutively using Arabic numerals (e.g., 1, 2, 3).
5. Line spacing. Text is double spaced, and indented 5 spaces (.5”) at the
beginning of each paragraph, with no additional space between paragraphs.
Numbered (and bulleted) lists and tables can be single spaced if it improves
readability.
6. Levels of Heading. When a document requires the use of headings, the
following levels should be utilized, as appropriate. It is wise to create
headings with Word Styles so that they can be populated in the Table of
Contents automatically. Create Headings that conform to these levels. Levels
Four and Five are rarely used.

74
 a. Level Zero–Use with Chapter titles; Centered and all capitals, no
periods
b. Level One–Centered, bold and title case, no period
c. Level Two – Left aligned, bold and title case, no period
d. Level Three– Indented, bold and sentence case, ending with a period
e. Level Four – Indented, italics, bold and sentence case, ending with a
period
f. Level Five – Indented, italics and sentence case, ending with a period
7. Widows and Orphans. The first or last line of a paragraph should not
appear alone at the top or bottom of a page—this is called a
widow/orphan. Instead, bump widows or orphans to the previous/next
page so that all text appears together. A subheading at the bottom of a
page must have at least two lines of text below it, otherwise, the
subheading should begin at the top of the next page. You may allow
more than 1 inch at the bottom of a page in order to avoid “widow”
and “orphan” lines.
8. Lists and Enumerations. If there are several enumerated items within a
sentence, use a comma to separate items unless items in the list contain
commas; in that case, use semicolons. An identifying element (letter
or number) should always be on the same line as the item. While
numbers or letters are generally used in a paper for the vertical listing of
items, bullets can be used if the ranking of the items is not important. Lists
and enumerations can be double or single spaced—whichever is more
readable and neat.

In-Text Citation
APA requires the use of in-text citations when you use the words or thoughts
of another person. Footnotes are not used in APA style. Any idea that is not original
to yourself should have a citation in your paper. The citation rules vary, depending
on whether you have quoted someone’s words or merely referred to their ideas.

How to Use Direct Quotations

Capitalization. Direct quotations may be part of the grammar of the sentence, or not.
If they are, the beginning of the quote is not capitalized, even though it might be in
the original work.

Smith (1985) did not describe the child's behavior, but he did state that “the
entry of the child into the strange environment caused disturbed behavior”
(p. 123).

75
 He stated, “The entry of the boy into the strange environment caused the
disturbed behavior” (Smith, 1985, p. 123), but he did not describe the
behavior.

Page number information. If you use a direct quote, you must include the page
number. The author’s name and date may appear in various positions, but the page
number is placed at the end of the quote, after the quotation marks but before the
period.

The results of the experiment (Smith, 1985) showed that “the entry of the
child into the strange environment cause disturbed behavior” (p. 123).

Note: If a quote includes two or more pages, use a double p before the page number
(pp. 45-46).

Block quotations. A direct quotation of 40 words or more must be formatted as a

block quotation, indented one tab position and double-spaced. Punctuation after the
introductory statement is optional—it depends on what introduction is used.
Smith (1985) stated:

After the child made some friends and identified with the adult in charge, the
disturbed behavior decreased. The time factor required for this “settling in”
process varied from child to child, depending on the age of the child, the
general atmosphere of the new environment, and the temperaments of both
the child and the adult involved. (p. 124)

Note: In block quotations (unlike in-text quotations), the final punctuation follows
the material quoted, and is followed by the reference, without any final period.

How to Paraphrase a Quotation

A paraphrase does not utilize the original grammar of the sentence and is in
your own words. The page number (or paragraph number, for electronic sources) is
not required for paraphrases. Be careful when paraphrasing not to use too many of
the author’s original words, or use it exactly as a quotation if paraphrasing is too
difficult.

In his study, Smith (1985) observed that when the child entered the strange
environment, disturbed behavior resulted (p. 123).

Introducing Citations or Quotations

There are many ways to cite in text, but the ideal forms use sentence space to
discuss and analyze the quote or the citation, not to indicate who said it (the reference
already does that).

76
 a) An alternative interpretation that Smith (1985) suggests is to …
b) The results of one experiment (Smith, 1985) showed that “…” (pp. 73-75).
c) Coffee drinking has been found to affect … (Day, 2005, p. 280).
d) As Day (2005) says, “…” (this is not the best)

If you occasionally wish to discuss the author, or wish to emphasize

something about the individual, sentences like those below would be appropriate.

e) In 1985, Smith studied …

f) Smith (1985), who is an expert in the field of nutrition, found … (p. 74).
g) Smith (1985, chap. 5) gives a summary …

Specific In-Text Referencing Rules

1. If information is given in the sentence, it is not repeated in the parentheses.

See example a) above.
2. The name and date can go with the page or earlier. See examples b) and c)
above.
3. If the name is used in text, the date usually follows it. See examples f) and
g) above.
4. The period or other punctuation marks are placed after the final parenthesis
or at the end of the sentence.
5. When the author Smith and Johnson appear in the text, the word and is
written out. When the names appear in parentheses, an ampersand (&) is
used (Smith & Johnson).
6. What is inside the parentheses is NOT considered part of the grammar of
the sentence. For that reason, one cannot say “As (Smith & Johnson, 2009)
suggest… .” Rather, say “As Smith and Johnson (2009) suggest … .”

Repeated References to an Author within a Paragraph

1. APA requires that the name and date reappear with each new paragraph.
2. A study or an author may be mentioned again within the same paragraph
without repeating the name, as long as it is clear to the reader which study
is indicated.
3. If the name is used a second time within the paragraph, however, the year
should accompany it, for clarity.
4. If the author’s name was placed within parentheses the first time, as in
examples b) and c) above, it cannot appear as “he” or “she” thereafter, since
the parentheses are not part of your sentence.

77
Examples of In-Text Citation Format

The following are examples of how to use in-text citations correctly. These
are the most commonly used. For other types of citations, refer to the APA Manual.

One Author

The required information is the author’s surname and the year of the publication.

a) An alternative interpretation (Smith, 2007) suggests that …

b) Grisso (2009) takes the idea a bit further when she …

Multiple Authors

Two authors. Include both authors every time you mention them.

Three to five authors. Include all authors the first time you cite them. For subsequent
citations, use the surname of the first author and “et al.”

First citation
a) One study (Smith, Johnson, & Brown, 2007) found …

b) Smith, Johnson, and Brown (2007) found …

Subsequent citations
c) Another study (Smith et al., 2007) found that …

d) Smith et al. (2007) found that …

e) Smith and others (2007) found that …

Six or more authors. Use the first author's surname and “et al.” the first and any
subsequent times the source is used.

Recent research (Brown et al., 2008) indicated …

Several Works in the Same Reference

When more than one source is given in parentheses, the authors' names are
listed in alphabetical order. Note that all the studies were read by the researcher.
Even if a source lists several references, you may only list the one(s) you read—you
may not simply copy a list of references taken from someone else’s study.

Same author.
Several studies (Smith, 1977, 1982, 1983) show …

78
 Different authors.
Recent studies (Brown, 1999; Johnson & Smith, 2008; Morrison, 2004;
Smith &Ogleby, 2009) indicate that …

One Author in the Same Year

a) Smith (1984a) has pointed out that …
b) Several studies (Brown, 2010; Smith, 2007a, 2007b) indicate that …

No Author

When no author is listed, it may be that an organization authored the piece

(see Corporate Author, below). If there is no author listed, use the title, or at least the
first few words of it, in the author position. If it is a book, periodical, or report,
italicize it. If it is a journal article, title of a web page, or a chapter in a book, put it in
quotes.

a) Current information (Education Handbook, 2007) suggests that …

b) Recent studies in this area (“Six Studies on Learning,” 2008) seem to
show that …

Corporate Author

When citing government agencies, corporations, study groups or

associations, use the full name every time it is mentioned in the text (see example a,
below). You may abbreviate the name for the second and subsequent citations if the
abbreviation is familiar, if it has been explained in the text and will be used at least
three (3) times (see example b, below), or if the complete name is very long.

a) Statistics released (National Institutes of Mental Health, 1986) seem to

show …
b) A statistical analysis by the National Institutes of Mental Health
(NIMH,1986) …

In the reference list this would be spelled out as National Institutes of Mental
Health. If you have five or more abbreviations in your paper, it is appropriate to make
a list of abbreviations at the beginning. Once an abbreviation is explained, it should
be used consistently throughout the paper.

Authors with the Same Surname

If two or more references have authors with the same surname, use the initials
or, if necessary, the complete name of each author in all citations to avoid confusion.

a) K. Lee (2008) suggests that Koreans were trying a different approach …

b) Other research (see for example J. Lee, 2007) has found …

79
Personal Communication

This form is used for letters, e-mails, or conversations, with the author. Such
references do not appear in the reference list. Give the initials with the surname and
the complete date.

L. R. Brown (personal communication, October 20, 2009) said that …

Reprinted or Republished Works

The first date is that of the original publication and the second is the date it
was republished, reprinted, or published in the translated form. This information is
especially useful if the study is following a historical sequence.

a) Early research on Cerebral Palsy (Freud, 1933/1974), pointed out that …

b) The aim of true education is … (White, 1903/1952).

Electronic Media

Often no page numbers are provided with electronic sources. In that case, use
paragraph numbers (preceded by “para.” or “¶”) to direct the reader to quoted
material. Give the nearest document heading, and then count the paragraphs after that
heading. Note that the web address (URL) does not go in the in-text reference. It goes
in the Reference list.

a) As Rittenhouse (2001, para. 3) aptly phrased it, “There is no need …”

b) “It is clear from conditions today that …” (Jacobs, 2003, Conclusion section,
¶ 1).

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 Reference List Rules
The APA Manual requires a reference list at the end of the paper that includes
each source cited in the paper. No extra sources are allowed in the reference list.

General Rules for Reference Lists

1. References are listed in alphabetical order.

2. Run-over lines in references are indented by the regular default of .5”.
3. Entries are single spaced. Double space between entries.
4. When an author has several works, each entry must provide the author's
name.
5. Several references by one author are arranged by year of publication, the
earliest first—not alphabetically by title. References by the same author
with the same publication date are arranged alphabetically by title and
assigned lowercase letters (a,b,c) immediately after the year within the
parentheses.
6. Italics are used for titles of books/journals, they are never underlined.
7. No quotation marks are used for article titles in magazines/journals.
8. For books, give the publisher only, city and state/country of publication
are not required.
9. Titles of books are presented in sentence case. Proper nouns and the first
word after a colon are capitalized. For example:
From program to practice: A guide to beginning your new
career
10. Journal titles are presented in title case. The title and the volume number
are italicized. An issue number (if available) follows the volume number
(no space), within parentheses (but not in italics). This is followed by the
page numbers where the article was found. For example:

Ali, W. H. (2004). Learning teams and low achievers. Social

Education, 48, 60-64.

Astin, A. W. (2007). Change. Competition Journal, 19(5), 12-19.

81
Author Rules

Single author entries. Single author entries precede multiple-author entries:

Alleyne, R. L. (2001).
Alleyne, R. L, & Evans, A. J. (1999).

Same authors, different year of publication. Identical author entries are arranged by
year of publication, the earliest first:

Cabading, J. R., & Wright, K. (2000).

Cabading, J. R., & Wright, K. (2001).

Different subsequent authors. These are arranged alphabetically by the surname of

the second author, or third author (if the second author is the same), and so on:

Gosling, J. R., Jerald, K., & Belfar, S. F. (2000).

Gosling, J. R., &Tevlin, D. F. (1996).

Hayward, D., Firsching, A., & Brown, J. (1999).

Hayward, D., Firsching, A., & Smigel, J. (1999).

Different authors with the same surname. Arrange alphabetically by the first initial.

Mathur, A. L., &Wallston, J. (2009).

Mathur, S. E., &Ahlers, R. J. (1998)

Referencing Electronic Media

Using resources on the Internet can be a challenge because information may

often be missing. Internet sources should provide the same information as any other
reference, if it is available, and a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) address. The
retrieval date is no longer generally required. Specific suggestions include:

1. Direct your reader as closely as possible to the information being cited—rather

than the home page or menu pages.
2. Test the URLs in your reference list before the final submission of the
document to make sure the document is still available.
3. Do not put a period after a URL.
4. Break a long URL before punctuation. Use shift + enter to move the text to a
new line.

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 5. When there is a high possibility of change (personal websites, wikis, blogs,
online discussions) the retrieval date should be included.

Juke, A. (n.d.). My opinion about homework. Retrieved January 13,

2010 from http://www.myopinion.com

6. Remove the underlining and blue color from URLs before you submit your
paper.
7. Include a Digital Object Identifier (DOI) if it is given with the Internet resource.
If you include the DOI, there is no need to give a URL for online journals.

Printed Materials

One Author

Sommer, R. F. (1989). Teaching writing to adults. Jossey-Bass.

Up to Seven Authors

Bennett, N., Crawford, M., & Cartwright, M. (2003). Effective educational

leadership. Open University Press.

For more than seven authors, consult the APA Manual.

Author as Publisher

American Psychiatric Association. (1990). Diagnostic and statistical manual

of mental disorders(3rd ed.). Washington, DC: Author.

National Science Foundation. (2010). Earth sciences: Instrumentation and

facilities.Arlington, VA: Author.

Edition Other Than the First

Denis, T., White, N., & Peterfreund, S. (2005). Great traditions in ethics
(11thed.). Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.

Edited Book (Editor as Author)

Roth, J. (Ed.). (1995). International encyclopedia of ethics. Fitzroy Dearborn.

83
Book in a Foreign Language

Kleinert, U., &Kühn, R. (2011). Und Sie zogenaus in Ein wüstes Land: Auf den
Spuren der BibelDurchden Sinai. [And they went out into a barren
land: On the trail of the Bible through the Sinai]. Wissenverbindet.

Article in a Magazine

Adams, W. (2010, May 10). Norway builds the world’s most humane prison.
Time, 175, 78.

Article in a Newspaper

Gardiner, B. (2010, April 15). Emphasis on ethics. The Wall Street Journal,
p. 9.

Article in a Journal

Knatterud, M. E. (1991). Writing with the patient in mind: Don’t add insult to
injury. American Medical Writers Association Journal, 6, 10-17.

Electronic Sources

In APA style (7th edition), the words “Retrieved from” or “Accessed on” are no longer
included in the citation.

Entire Book Online

Boud, D., &Feletti, G. (Eds.). (1999). The challenge of problem-based learning

(2nd ed.). http://books.google.com/books

Article with DOI

Articles retrieved from an electronic database are now cited exactly as the print
version unless the article is particularly difficult to find. No need to include date
retrieved or the database. The DOI is included, when present, however, whether you
read the print or the electronic version.

Devlin, J. T. & Poldrack, R. A. (2007). In praise of tedious anatomy.

NeuroImage, 37, 1033-1041. DOI:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2006.09.055

Internet Article or Website (Without DOI)

Lumsden, L. (1994). Student motivation to learn.

http://chiron.valdosta.edu/whuitt/files/stdtmotv.html

84
Article in an Internet-Only Journal

Salend, S. J. (2004). Fostering inclusive values in children: What families can

do. Teaching Exceptional Children, 37(1), 64-69.
http://journals.sped.org/index.action=TEC_toc&ID=55

Newspaper Article (Online)

Kershaw, A. (2010, May 05). Students hit by lecturers’ strike. The

Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk

Website of Organization or Governmental Agency

British Educational Communications and Technology Agency. (2010).

Assistive technology and the Home Access programme.
http://schools.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=oe&catcode=ss_es
_hom_02&rid=17557

U.S. Copyright Office. (1981). Circular R1: Copyright basics (Publication

No. 341- 279/106). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.

Article from Wikipedia

School violence. (2010, May 13). In Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Retrieved May 20, 2010, from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki
/School_violence

Thesis Retrieved Online

Havens, L. (2009). Behavioral and socioeconomic differences among users of

the internet public library from North Carolina. (Master’s thesis).
http://www.openthesis.org/documents/Behavioral-Socioeconomic-
Differences-among-Users-594471.html

Unpublished Material

Unpublished Paper

Skinner, E., & Belmont, M. (1991). A longitudinal study of motivation in

school: Reciprocal effects of teacher behavior and student
engagement. Unpublished manuscript, University of Rochester, NY,
USA.

85
Thesis/Dissertation

Akpa, V.O. (2006). Factors that motivate employees to work at Northern

Luzon Adventist College (NLAC), Philippines: An analysis
(Unpublished master’s thesis). Adventist International Institute of
Advanced Studies, Silang, Philippines.

Missing Information

No Date

Bligh, B. (n.d.). Cherish the earth. Macmillan.

No Author

Handbook of research. (1998). College Board Publications.

Not all of the APA style rules are given in this handbook. Students are
encouraged to consult the APA Publication Manual, 7th edition, or in online materials
to find other references rules, as needed. Three helpful online sites are

APA
http://www.apastyle.org/index.aspx
Active as of 11/26/2019

The Owl at Purdue: Online Writing Lab

http://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/section/2/10/
Active as of 11/26/2019

APA Citation Guide in BibMe

http://www.bibme.org/citation-guide/apa/
Active as of 11/26/2019

86
 CHAPTER 6

Computer Formatting Tips

87
88
 Computer Formatting Tips
Even when a student is familiar with using a computer, writing a
project/thesis/dissertation will likely take more time to finish. The style and format
required by AUA may mean new computer skills need to be learned—and there are tips
to make it easier and quicker to format the paper correctly. This chapter was added to
help save your time and energy, but will not replace a basic knowledge of word
processing computer usage. Since most students at AUA use Microsoft Word, many
specific tips will be given for that software. If you use a Mac, it is possible some of the
explanations will not work or be done in a different way on Mac. Many, however, can
be used with any word processor.

A writing template for projects/theses/dissertations is available from the AUA

Editor or Research Director. This template is correctly formatted and uses APA/SPS
style so that errors are eliminated when used properly.

One major tip: Learn to use the help screens in Microsoft Word when you run into
problems. It is also smart to use Google to get help when you cannot figure out what to
do. There are many free online tutorials and YouTube videos, which are invaluable, on
a variety of topics to teach computer skills. Give Wiki How a try for stepwise
instructions in computer usages for style and formatting.

General Instructions

Spacing vs. Tabs

Many people try to use spaces to format lists, to align information inside tables,
or for parallel columns. A general rule in electronic documents is to avoid using spaces
for aligning information at all times. Use tabs. If there is no tab set in the position
you desire, it can easily be adjusted on the ruler bar, or through the menu system (Tabs
are under Paragraph, at the bottom left). Inside tables, use Shift + Tab to achieve the
same result.

Many researchers also find it wiser to indent paragraphs using a tab (set at .5”
or 1.25 cm) rather than using the automatic paragraph indent. Automatic indentation
can cause problems with centered headings (they end up not really centered because of
the additional tab).

Page Setup

Page layout is easiest when the correct page layout is set up before typing
begins. If you are using Word, go to Page Layout>Page Setup. Set the paper size to
A4, and set the margins at 1.5” (3.75 cm) for the left and 1” (2.5 cm) for the other three
(the bottom one is often better at .8” (2 cm) in order to achieve text that comes 1” (2.5
cm) from the bottom of the page). Click the marker to the right of Page Setup and
under Layout in the resulting dialog box, set the header and footer to .5” (1.25 cm).
Also go to Paragraph and under Indents and Spacing > Spacing Before and after

89
Paragraph, choose 0 pt before and after; under Line Spacing, set the line spacing to
double space (2.0). Then choose Set as Default.

Consistency
Human beings are not by nature as consistent as is necessary for computer
work. All headings need to be used in the same way in every chapter. Spacing, margins,
fonts, etc., need to be consistent throughout the entire document. Research does not
leave room for much creativity in the way it is displayed. There is only one font, and
generally, only one font size. Spacing before and after headings, must be exactly the
same throughout the document.

The easiest way to achieve this kind of consistency involves two steps.

1. Try to take note of the basic pattern to follow while you are writing the
document, and follow it as well as you can. Write down the pattern so you can
refer to it if you forget.

2. Once a major section of your document is completed, go over it to check for

consistency. This involves scanning the electronic document for one specific
concern at a time. Check heading levels and spacing. Then look for margins
and page numbering. Check that all indents are the same, and that all numbered
lists match. Work with Table titles, spacing, and contents.

Large Documents

Computers have many tools for working with a large document that are worth
knowing about. Moving about in a document can be greatly facilitated by the following:

Effect Command
Go to the last page of the document Ctrl + end
Go to the first page of the document Ctrl + home
Go to the beginning/end of the line Home/end
Go to a specific part of the document Ctrl + G
Find a specific word/phrase in the document Ctrl + F
Highlight entire document Ctrl + A
Find and replace words in a document Ctrl + H

90
Quick Formatting

Keyboard shortcuts tend to be much faster than mouse/menu combinations, so

learning some of them can save you a lot of time. Commonly used shortcuts for
formatting include:

Effect Command
Center Ctrl + E
Left/right justify Ctrl + L/R
Bold/italics/underline Ctrl + B/I/U
Single/double line spacing Ctrl + 1/Ctrl + 2
Undo Ctrl + Z
Redo Ctrl + Y
Copy/cut/paste Ctrl + C/X/V
New page Ctrl + Enter
Adjust spacing (table lines, tabs) more finely than a Alt + mouse button on
whole space at a time the item to adjust

Tips for Specific Problem Areas

Reference List

The Reference List uses the same technique as a numbered list. DO NOT use
spaces or “enter” and then a tab to create the look where the first line sticks out further
than the rest. Type many entries without formatting them, and then highlight them and
format them at once (it is faster). Click on Paragraph>Special>Hanging and make
sure it is set to .5” (1.25 cm).

Find and Replace

If you find an error you have made consistently throughout your document, and
you wish to find each one and fix it, you can use the computer to help you search for
all instances of something and fix it. On the Home menu, choose Find (on the top right-
hand corner of the screen). On the left of your screen in the Navigation Pane that pops
up, type what you want the computer to search for, and click on the magnifying glass,
and it will find it for you. If you wish for it to replace one text with another text, rather
than Find, choose Replace. This gives you the option of saying what you want to find,
and what to replace it with. You can do this automatically, or manually, where you
check each instance to be sure it is correct.

91
Formatting URLs

There are three common ways you will frequently need to format URLs.

1. If you paste the URL into your document, make sure that it is the SAME FONT
as the rest of your text. If not, highlight it and change the font.

2. If the URL needs to break somewhere in the middle, to not leave a large blank
space on the page, find an appropriate place for the break, BEFORE some
punctuation mark in the URL. The new line of a divided URL should begin
with punctuation. Once you have identified the place you wish to divide the
URL, put your cursor on it, and type Shift + Enter (at the same time). Enter
tells the computer to make a new line; Shift tells it NOT to make a new
paragraph. Do NOT simply put a space in the middle of the URL, as this will
cause the URL to no longer function if you are trying to find the website.

3. The URLs in your paper should have the hyperlinks removed. The easiest way
to do this is to place your cursor at the end of the URL and to hit Backspace.
Check to be sure this does not remove the last letter of the URL—if you have
found the right place, it will not. It will, however, remove the blue font, and the
underline.

Page Breaks

If you are finished on one page and wish to begin a new page, DO NOT simply
hit several Enters until you have pushed the cursor to the new page. This makes for
many problems later when you are formatting your text, because when you change
things on one page, it affects the next page. Instead, hit Control + Enter (at the same
time). This tells the computer to begin a new page. If you need to find this mark to
delete it later, click on the paragraph icon (¶) (under the Home menu, in the Paragraph
group) and it will be visible. Then click again on the same icon to return to normal
view.

Page Numbering

It is sometimes a struggle to adjust the page numbers in one part of a document

without changing all the other page numbers in the document. The reason for this is
that Word has the underlying philosophy that if you want something changed on page
45, you really meant to change it all the way back on page 1; therefore, it changes all
the other page numbers automatically.

If you need to change page numbering (or insert a landscape page), you must
insert a Section Break and make sure that footer is not connected to the others before
you continue. This means that if you have introductory pages with no page numbers,
pages with Roman numerals, then regular page numbers for the body text of your
project, you will need 3 sections in order to paginate this properly. This will allow you
to have several different format styles together in the same document.

92
 To change pagination types, first, you must insert a Section Break anytime you
wish to make a formatting change. Insert the section break at the end of the page
preceding the page where you want to change numbering. Click on Page
Layout>Breaks>Section Breaks>Next Page. If the new section is different from what
follows, also insert a section break AFTER it. If you have inserted 2 breaks, you should
now have 3 sections.

Before actually making the page number format change, however, you need to
go to the footer (double click on it) and “disconnect” it from other footers, so it will not
affect all the rest of the document toward the beginning, or forward to the end. To
disconnect the footer, double click on the page number to enter the footer editing space.
You should see a note at the top of the footer that says “same as previous.” Since you
do NOT want this footer to be the same as the one before, click the orange-highlighted
button Link to Previous (above, on the ribbon), and you will see that on your footer, it
no longer says “Same as Previous.” Go to the footer for the next section, and also
“disconnect” it from the section you wish to modify. Once this is done, any changes
made to the numbering or page layout in this section will not affect the other sections.

Trouble shooting.

1. When you change the page numbers in one section, it changes them in the next
section also. Either you have not inserted a section break between the two
pages, or you have not “disconnected” the footers as described above.

2. The page has the wrong number. Click on Insert>Page Number>Format Page
Number. Choose the correct number and tell it to start at that number.

3. The page number has the wrong font/size. Highlight the page number. From
the Home menu, select the correct font and size. You will have to do this for
each section, but doing it once should fix all the page numbers in that section.

4. The page numbers are too low on the page, or almost touching the bottom line
of text. Click on Page Layout>Page Setup>Layout and make sure the footer
is at .5” (1.25 cm). Another possible cause is that there are extra lines
accidentally entered into the footer. From the Home menu, click on the ¶
button, then double-click on the footer space. Examine the footer area for any
hard returns (they will appear as ¶) and remove them. When you are finished,
click again on the¶ button to return your screen to the normal view.

Viewing Section Breaks. If you wish to see what section you are in at all times, right
click on the bottom gray or blue bar in Word, and choose Section as one of the options.
This will now show you the section number at all times in the lower left corner of the
screen.

If you wish to see your section breaks, click on the paragraph icon (¶). You will see the
section break at the end of the text on the page. It can be deleted if need be.

93
Numbered Lists

To achieve nice-looking numbered lists, it is imperative to use tabs between

the numbers and the text (not spaces). This means you should type the number and the
dot, then insert a tab, then type the text. If the tab is not the right length, you can adjust
it from the ruler bar (highlight the text and drag the tab to where you want it), or you
can highlight the text and adjust the tab settings under Paragraph. When you have
typed your list, highlight the entire section, and click on Paragraph>
Special>Hanging. Make sure that the distance for the hanging indent is .5” (1.25 cm),
which is the same as your paragraph indentation. Also make sure that the distance
between the numbers and the text is the same if you have multiple lists in your
document.

Numbered lists can be single- or double-spaced, depending on how they look

best in your text. You can decide.

Trouble shooting.

1. If you did NOT insert tabs between the numbers and the text, they will not line
up properly. Go back, remove the spaces, and insert a tab for each number.

2. If you ever need to adjust the space between the numbers and the text, be sure
to highlight the entire list so it stays the same.

Tables

Formatting tables is tricky, and time-consuming. Consistency here is very

important. The main computer tips are as follows:

1. Tables should not extend beyond the margins of the text. If the table is longer
than text, an option is to landscape the page.
2. Remove as many lines as possible from the table, so that the table looks better
when it is printed.
3. Tables should have ½ point lines (as a border) around them, not bigger.
4. Table content should NOT be double-spaced. Single-space it, then block the
ENTIRE TABLE and select Paragraph>Spacing>Before and After and set it
to 3 points before, and 3 after. This will allow a bit of space, but not too much.
Be consistent with all tables.
5. Table content can be as small as 10-point font, but if you do this, you should
be consistent with all of the tables in the paper. The titles remain in 12-point
font.
6. Table text can be centered, left, or right-justified, depending on what looks
best. Usually, the left column is left-justified, and others are often centered.
7. If you have decimal places that need to line up, right-justify the numbers, then
move the entire column over toward the center. Use
Paragraph>Indentation>Right and choose.1” or .15” or .2” (.15 cm or .37 cm
94
 or .5 cm), depending on how far you need it to shift. You can type the number
you want.
8. Do not use bold with table content, and note that the content is capitalized only
on the first letter.
9. Maintain spacing before and after tables. It should be two double spaces (3
blank lines). If this leaves only 1-2 lines of text below the table, push them to
the next page.
10. If you need to insert spacing inside a table, don’t use spaces. Change the
margin, or use
Control + Tab if you wish to have tabs.
11. If a table fits on a page, it should NOT be split over two pages. Move it so that
it is on the same page, but always AFTER the table was first mentioned in the
text.
12. If table content does NOT fit on the page, you have two choices: split the table
and put the rest on a second page, or create a landscape page and put the table
sideways.
13. To create a landscape table, insert a blank page and insert section breaks before
and after it, so that it is in its own section and the footer shows that it is not
linked to the other sections (see instructions under page numbering). Then,
under Page Layout> Orientation, choose Landscape. Format your table here,
and when it is printed, turn it the same way as the other pages. You may skip
the page numbering on this page, but remember that it is counted, even if not
numbered, and make sure the numbering resumes properly on the next page.

Table of Contents

The Table of Contents contains the first 3 levels of headings exactly as they
appear in your paper, and the page numbers on which they are found. There are two
basic approaches to creating a Table of Contents: You can type the titles manually, or
have the computer do them for you automatically.

Manual method. You can set up the formatting before or after typing the
entries. If you do it afterward, be sure to highlight the entire Table of Contents text
before setting the tabs. Use a tab with dot leaders to create the line of dots. Set the tab
by using Paragraph>Tabs. Clear the other tab stops and set one at 5.6” (14 cm) with
alignment Left and Leader 2 (the one with dots). Add a second tab at 5.9” (15 cm) with
alignment Right and No Dot Leader to make the blank space before the number. At the
end of each Table of Contents entry, insert a tab, which should create the dot leader.
Insert a second tab, which should make the space and right align the page numbers.
Additional tab stops should be added at .3” (.75 cm) and .6” (1.5 cm)—left, no dot
leader—for indenting the second and third level headings (see below).

95
 Sample
Heading 1………………………………………………………………...…………..13
Second Level ……………………………………………………….65
Third Level …...…………………………….……………134

Trouble shooting. If you have typed your Table of Contents before setting up
the tabs, here are several suggestions.

1. Before you set up your tabs, highlight the ENTIRE Table of Contents. This
way, the tabs will be set for the entire section you typed. Otherwise, you may
need to re-enter the settings multiple times.

2. From the Home tab, click on the paragraph icon (¶). This is a toggle on/off,
and will show you where you have spaces that may need to be erased, and
other formatting features. You can turn it off again once you have seen what
you need to.

3. Make sure that you remove all spaces, and format with tabs. Spaces will create
an uneven line anywhere you use them.

4. Do NOT use the period with spaces between to try to make a dot leader
(…… ). It will never be evenly spaced.

Automatic method. A better way to achieve the needed consistency is to

generate the Table of Contents automatically. This takes a bit of time to set up, but if
any headings move to a different page, you can update the Table of Contents
automatically.

To use the automatic method, you first must set up Styles so that the headings
are formatted properly. These headings, once set, will be used for generating the Table
of Contents. The easiest way to do this is to type a Level 1 entry heading correctly (with
the correct spacing and capitalization, bold, etc.), and then right click on Heading 1
using Home>Styles>Heading 1. Choose Update Heading 1 to Match Selection. This
means that the computer will take your heading as the new “normal” for Heading 1. Do
the same with headings for Levels 2 and 3. Once these are set correctly, you only need
to highlight any new heading, and click on the correct style—heading 1, 2, or 3—and
it will be formatted correctly, AND marked for the Table of Contents. The automatic
Table of Contents does not yield a dotted line with a small space before the numbers,
as illustrated above in the manual method. As long as the numbers are properly right
justified, this space is not required. If you use automatic Table of Contents generation,
you do not need a space between the dot leader and the page numbers.

Generating the Table of Contents. When you have marked all your headings
(at least 3 levels), create a blank page where you want your Table of Contents, and
select References>Table of Contents>Automatic Table 2. This should give you a
complete Table of Contents, but ONLY IF you have marked all the headings properly.
If you have missed some, they will be missing in the list. Check carefully.

96
 Updating the Table of Contents. If you need to update the Table of Contents
because you changed some things or made some mistakes, simply right-click on the
table, and choose Update Field. Note that you can choose to update everything (this
will destroy any formatting you have done), or just the page numbers (this will not
destroy your formatting, but it will also not update the titles).

Trouble shooting. There are MANY things that can and will go wrong with
the Table of Contents as you format it. Microsoft Word cannot do everything. Once you
have finished generating your Table of Contents, there WILL be things you need to
format manually.
Fortunately, the generated text can be edited just like any other text you typed. Here are
some of the most common things you will need to do/problems you may experience.

1. The chapter titles are not formatted properly. Microsoft Word does not do
these. You will need to enter the word “chapter” and put in the numbers, and
delete the extra lines Word created.
2. The spacing is not correct for AUA standards. The spacing required for your
Table of Contents will have to be done manually. Check where you need
double-space, single space, etc.
3. The indentations for section headings are not right. Word should put in the 3
levels of headings with proper indentations for you. If not, you can do it
manually. Set tabs at appropriate distances (often .3”, .6”, and .9” or .75 cm,
1.5 cm, and 2.25 cm).
4. I have moved my text around (or edited the titles), but the Table of Contents
has not updated itself to match the changes. Solution: Right click on your
Table of Contents, and ask it to update. If it is text that needs to be updated, it
will destroy your formatting, and you will have to re-do it. If it is only
numbering, you can just update the numbers.
5. When I update the Table of Contents, all the formatting changes I made
disappear. The solution is to update ONLY the page numbers, NOT the entire
Table of Contents.
6. When I generate the Table of Contents, there are several headings that don’t
belong there. This is because those headings were marked with the style of
Heading 1, Heading 2, etc. Go to that place in your document, highlight the
text, and select Normal from the list of styles. When you regenerate the Table
of Contents (or update it), this text will no longer show.
7. The title Table of Contents is not according to AUA standards. Just fix it.
Type it as it should be, making sure to put it at 2” (5 cm) with the correct space
(triple space, or 2 blank lines) after it. Make sure it is in the same font as the
rest of your document.
8. There is formatting I don’t like, but I can’t see what it is actually doing. Click
on the paragraph icon (¶) on the Home menu, and it will be visible, then you
can edit it.

97
Track Changes

Track changes is a feature of Microsoft Word that allows another reader to

make comments on your writing, or even to make changes, but keeps track of all those
changes so that the original author can see exactly what was changed. It is a handy tool
that most of you can/should use if your Advisor is at a distance and you need to send
revisions back and forth via e-mail. Later, the original author can accept or reject the
advice from the “editor” and can introduce new changes of his own, which will show
up in a different color from the editor’s work.

Changes such as additions or deletions will be marked automatically if Track

Changes is turned on, but additional comments can be made as well. These will show
up in the margins, or in the text itself, and must be deleted by the author once they are
no longer needed. Like any other document, however, if you do not save the file once
you are done making the changes; you will lose your work.

To turn on Track Changes, go to Review>Track Changes on the menu bar in

Word and click on it. Click in the same place again, and it will turn off. Under Review,
you will see a menu bar showing the buttons needed for working with the changes—
Accept, Reject, New Comment, etc. Note the Previous/Next buttons—these are very
useful for finding comments in a large document, as they will take you from one
comment or change to the next—you do not need to search for them page by page.

Tracking sometimes shows up in the right margin, and sometimes in the text
itself. The problem with the in-text version (with strikethrough) is that it does not show
the true page breaks. The version in “balloons” makes the entire page a little smaller
(temporarily), but DOES NOT CHANGE the format, which means that your actual
page breaks will be exactly the same as what you see on screen. Unfortunately, the
Word default is NOT to put the changes in balloons, but in text. To change this, click
on Review>Show Markup>Balloons>Show Revisions in Balloons.

Notice that you can accept each change one by one, or you may read a whole
paragraph or two, highlight that section, and accept all the changes in that section by
clicking on the arrow on the right side of the Accept Change button. You may even
accept ALL the changes in the entire document, but unless you have blind faith in your
editor, this option is not recommended. Accepting all changes will NOT remove all the
comments—those must be removed one by one, as you are finished with them.

If you have removed all marks but your document still looks pushed to one
side, as if there were still comments present, choose the Accept all Changes in
Document button, and this will remove any last mark that might have remained by
accident, and the formatting will go back to normal.

98
 CHAPTER 7

Miscellaneous Helpful Items

99
100
 Acceptable Abbreviations
African Countries are not abbreviated in APA Style

State Abbreviations for the United States

In reference lists and in-text citations, the names of the states in the United
States are always abbreviated. Below are the two-letter abbreviations for each state.

Location Abbreviation Location Abbreviation Location Abbreviation

Alabama AL Kentucky KY North Dakota ND
Alaska AK Louisiana LA Ohio OH
Arizona AZ Maine ME Oklahoma OK
Arkansas AR Maryland MD Oregon OR
California CA Massachusetts MA Pennsylvania PA
Colorado CO Michigan MI Rhode Island RI
Connecticut CT Minnesota MN South Carolina SC
Delaware DE Mississippi MS South Dakota SD
District of Columbia DC Missouri MO Tennessee TN
Florida FL Montana MT Texas TX
Georgia GA Nebraska NE Utah UT
Hawaii HI Nevada NV Vermont VT
Idaho ID New Hampshire NH Virginia VA
Illinois IL New Jersey NJ Washington WA
Indiana IN New Mexico NM West Virginia WV
Iowa IA New York NY Wisconsin WI
Kansas KS North Carolina NC Wyoming WY

Biblical Book Abbreviations

Abbreviations for books of the Bible should be consistent throughout the paper.
They are written with no periods. Abbreviations are used when specific chapter or
chapter-and-verse references are given, not when the Bible book name alone is used. Do
not use these abbreviations to begin a sentence or within a title.

Gen 1 Kgs Eccl Obad Matt Phil 1 Pet

Exod 2 Kgs Song Jonah Mark Col 2 Pet
Lev 1 Chr Isa Mic Luke 1 Thess 1 John
Num 2 Chr Jer Nah John 2 Thess 2 John
Deut Ezra Lam Hab Acts 1 Tim 3 John
Josh Neh Ezek Zeph Rom 2 Tim Jude
Judg Esth Dan Hag 1 Cor Titus Rev
Ruth Job Hos Zech 2 Cor Phlm
1 Sam Ps (Pss) Joel Mal Gal Heb
2 Sam Prov Amos Eph Jas

101
 TIPS FOR MAKING STUDENT RESEARCH PUBLISHABLE
Turning a project/thesis/dissertation into a publishable journal article takes some
additional thought and effort. Typically, a student research paper will have to be
significantly shortened to be published in a peer-review journal—and the expectation is
that the article will be focused, clear and succinct. The first step to preparing a
publishable article is to decide which journal is appropriate for your paper to be
submitted to.

Once you have settled on several journals that seem appropriate, study the
guidelines for authors which the journal provides. The guidelines will give instruction
regarding content, format, and submission. To get published, the guidelines must be
followed exactly.

Even though a journal article is shorter than your paper, the basic parts must
appear. These parts are shown below, along with suggestions for making the transition
from academic paper to journal article. If the work seems daunting, don’t let that deter
you—it is worth the effort.

Student paper Publishable paper How to get there

Can tend to be wordy, Tight, no wasted words, highly Write it, and then edit it repeatedly using
unedited. polished, edited well. other readers if possible, until output is high
quality.
Can appear as if the General feeling that the Start with a slightly longer paper and
student is trying to stretch author has more to say than reduce it. Think how to best
the paper to meet the what will fit and is trying to communicate the research in the most
minimum length reduce the paper to meet the word economical way possible. A
requirement. maximum length allowed. published paper is approximately 10-12
pages long.
Often lengthy general Introduction and Literature Keep introduction short. Write a
introduction. Review are usually paragraph or two, and move directly into
combined and point to the your study. The introduction must
need for the present study. convince readers of the timely relevance of
your study and show its place in current
research.
Literature Review is Literature review is focused Read the general introductory studies for
lengthy, contains a lot of and relatively brief. It contains your own information, if needed, but do
general information, not mainly primary studies closely not put them in the introduction. A
many primary sources. related to the research, not project/thesis/dissertation contains a
Often does not give general, introductory sources general literature review occupying a
reasons for inclusion of or tangentially related past whole chapter which an article leaves out.
information. work.
Frequent use of poor Sources must be recent, and Seek out high quality sources, especially
quality sources, such as closely related to the study. primary studies that are directly related to
general internet articles High quality sources, such as your study. Ask more from your sources.
on a topic, textbook journals, recently published Mediocre sources make a mediocre paper.
explanations, Wikipedia books, and primary studies are There is plenty out there—make the effort
definitions, etc. used. Review articles can be to find the good stuff.
useful summaries or sources
of expert opinion. Breadth is
sought to include multiple
perspectives.

102
Student paper Publishable paper How to get there
Tends to use a lot of Few quotations, but many Make sure you understand what is being
quotations, even references; often multiple said, and summarize/reduce bulky ideas
lengthy ones. ones in the same area into smaller spaces using the support of
reinforcing a point of multiple sources.
view or line of research.
Tends to rely heavily on a Much more breadth of Find out who are the key authors in a field
few sources sources; not overly dependent and cite them, but seek breadth, as well as
on a chosen few. depth. One article per area discussed is not
sufficient coverage.
Analysis is heavily tied Independent thinking is clearly Read more. Think more critically about
to ideas found in the demonstrated; ideas come what you read. When you have read more
literature. Little original from the author as well as the deeply and widely, you will begin to have
thought is evident. literature; value added by the your own expertise to write about. Be
author is clearly demonstrated. careful to link your own ideas to sources
contributing to or sharing perspectives you
develop.
Plagiarism is not always Quotations and ideas of others This is an area which must be carefully
carefully avoided. are carefully referenced. guarded in all papers. Reference carefully
Sometimes this is due to at all times; take special care with internet
poor technique, sites to acknowledge authorship correctly.
sometimes because the
student does not believe
it is important.
Personally created Appropriate summaries, Seek opportunities to summarize, combine,
summaries, lists, tables figures, tables, or lists are create, construct, and share ideas in the
or figures are rare; any generated when analysis form of personally created tables, figures,
found in the text are requires some creative form of or graphs. Resist the temptation to quote
usually quoted. synthesis to describe what was other people’s analyses in your paper—
learned. Figures from others just reference them.
are almost never reproduced.
The referencing style is Evidence is given of clear Follow carefully the style manual indicated
often followed understanding of the by the journal in which you wish to
mechanically, but not referencing style, be it APA, publish. Thoroughly learn the reference
well understood. MLA or another common style required. Have others who know it
style. check your paper.
Headings are frequent, Headings are carefully Edit your headings specifically. Don’t
but not always planned to divide a piece into overuse them. Consider the organization of
meaningful. sections and subsections. The your piece so that the headings help
purpose of headings is to help structure your article. Ask for expert
the reader and provide a opinions.
“guide” through the article.
Quotations are often Quotations are rare; ideas from Make sure every word counts. Do not
introduced in a wordy sources are analyzed and begin sentences with authors’ names, but
way that does not show compared with ideas from rather with ideas. Compare/contrast and
true analysis of what other sources. The referencing synthesize relationship ideas adequately.
was said. style shows source
information, leaving the writer
free to make analytical
comments.

103
Student paper Publishable paper How to get there
Often repetitive, loosely Tightly organized by topic, Write an outline first; check the
organized. with each topic being organization before you finish. Print the
addressed once—no repetition. article and check its organization, making
sure that all similar ideas are in the same
place or are clearly associated by linking
terms. Do not repeat yourself.
Method section tends to Method is almost like a From the description of the methodology in
cover several pages. formula—it is concise, dense, your paper, create a more concise
and short—usually only a page explanation, following the norms of the
or so. Ethical considerations discipline. Give enough information to
are discussed briefly—more confirm to the reader that you are a careful
in-depth with vulnerable researcher, but avoid going into fine detail
participants. Data collection that burdens the reader.
details are summarized so the
reader can assess them, but not
explained in depth.
Analysis is often bulky Analysis is as concise as You may need to write out a bulkier data
and repetitive. possible. Tables and text section at first and then reduce it. Do not
overlap very little, but rather, repeat yourself or describe uninteresting
complement each other. data. Tell the important parts and say that
Comments and references to the rest confirmed prior research, was
relevant literature are made insignificant, or contributed no new
when appropriate. knowledge.
Analysis tends to be Analysis is written in as Editing is needed here. Early drafts look
driven by numbers simple a language as possible, more like plain SPSS output. Later drafts
which are sometimes not highlighting meaning, will read more like a reasoned explanation
interpreted adequately interpreting statistics to or expository story, with numbers for
and are often awkward confirm trends or hypotheses support.
to read. and practical applications to
the ideas of the research study.
Conclusion tends to Conclusion puts together all This requires careful writing, critical
repeat analysis, rather the pieces found in the thinking, disciplined creativity in forming
than bringing something analysis (without necessarily new syntheses suggested by the data and
new. restating them) and analyze discussion with your advisor. Put your
the whole, bringing in ideas in your writing; test them on your
references to literature, advisor. Write, and be prepared and willing
interested parties, etc. The to rewrite. Conclusions should be short and
conclusions are tied to the substantive.
data, but clearly represent the
author’s explanation of the
meaning of the data.

104
 CHAPTER 8

SPS Research Protocol:

The Unabridged Complete Version

105
106
 ADVENTIST UNIVERSITY OF AFRICA

School of Postgraduate Studies

RESEARCH PROTOCOL

Students who graduate from the School of Postgraduate Studies (SPS) at AUA will
have demonstrated proficiency in research through the selection and completion of a
project, thesis or dissertation. Each of these has a scholarly definition:

A project is considered experimental in nature; in that the researcher

establishes variables, designs interventions, and collects data to measure
results of the intervention. Students in any SPS Master’s degree programme
can select to do a project, which requires a Proposal Defence, but not a Final
Oral Defence. A project is supervised by a Primary Adviser and a Secondary
Adviser. A project has an applied aspect to it and can include the production
of a manual, handbook, training or workshop as part of the study process or
outcome. For the Master of Science in Applied Computer Science, a project
must lead to the implementation of a software product/tool that aims at
solving a problem which is judged worthy of a research project.
Typical project length: 70-80 pages excluding appendixes
Typical Computer Science project length: 45-80 pages excluding
appendixes

A thesis is research that is more theoretical in nature, in that the researcher

seeks to establish a theory to explain an observed problem. Students who
write a thesis may also collect data and measure variables. However, the
thesis results in a theory are advanced to make a contribution to the field of
study. A thesis must be defended at the proposal level and also defended
before a three to six-member Final Oral Defence Panel at the end of the
writing phase. A thesis is supervised by a Primary Adviser and a Secondary
Adviser and has an External Examiner who reviews the paper then joins the
panel for the Final Oral Defence.
Typical thesis length: 90-120 pages excluding appendixes
Typical Computer Science thesis length: 60-90 pages excluding appendixes

A dissertation is highly academic, comprehensive, and widely considered

the most rigorous type of empirical research conducted by a student for a
terminal degree. It is expected to contribute new knowledge and advance

107
 scholarship in the field of study. Students pursuing a PhD at AUA are eligible
to write a dissertation. Before the dissertation writing commences, the student
must have passed the Comprehensive Examination. The dissertation must be
defended at the proposal level and also before a five to seven member Final
Oral Defence Panel at the end of the writing phase. A dissertation committee
comprises of a Primary Adviser and two Secondary Advisers. There is also
an External Examiner who reviews the paper then joins the panel of the Final
Oral Defence.
Typical dissertation length: 200-250 pages excluding appendixes
Typical Computer Science dissertation length: 90-180 pages excluding
appendixes

The following Research Protocol guides the student step-by-step through the research
writing process from the proposal stage to final approval by the Dean.

THE PROPOSAL STAGE: Process for

Projects/Theses/Dissertations

1. After the designated research course is completed and passed, the student is
assigned a Primary and a Secondary Adviser by the Programme Leader (PL)
in consultation with the student, the Head of Department (HOD), and the
Dean. In the case of a Project, the Secondary Adviser may be assigned later
in the work.
2. The student, with the assistance of the Advisers, develops a Proposal by
following the proposal and research design guidelines outlined in the SPS
Research Handbook.
3. When the Advisers approve the Proposal and sign the Proposal Examination
Form, a Proposal Defence Panel is formed by the PL, in consultation with the
HOD and the Dean, for the Proposal Defence by the student.
• For a Project or Thesis: The Proposal Defence Panel will consist of
the two Advisers, designated programme faculty, the PL, HOD, and
the Dean. Typically, the PL serves as the Chair.
• For a Dissertation: The Proposal Defence Panel will consist of the
Primary Adviser, two Secondary Advisers, designated programme
faculty, the PL, HOD, and the Dean. Typically, the PL serves as the
Chair.
4. A student will defend the Proposal only when the method of data collection
is clearly described, the instrument(s) of data collection is presented, and
Ethics Clearance has been obtained. To initiate Ethics Clearance, the student
submits the paper, along with the Informed Consent and all research
instruments to the IERC after these have been approved by the PA and the
PL. The results of the Ethics Review will be communicated to the PL in

108
 writing by the IERC Chair and a copy of the Clearance will be given to the
student for inclusion in the project/thesis/dissertation.
5. In conjunction with the Ethics Clearance process, the Proposal and research
instruments will be reviewed by the AUA Editor for formatting and writing
style as per the SPS Research Handbook. Comments from the Editor will be
given to the PL so that they can be brought to the student’s attention.
6. After the Proposal is assessed and approved by the Proposal Defence Panel,
using the Research Proposal Evaluation Form, the student is informed of the
outcome of the Proposal Defence by the PL in writing with the Proposal
Evaluation Result Form. If no corrections are necessary, the student is
authorized to collect data and continue the research process under the
supervision of the Advisers.
If corrections are needed, the student cannot begin collecting data until the
revisions are completed and approved. The student is expected to incorporate
all the suggestions of the Proposal Defence Panel under the guidance of
his/her Adviser (s). Submission of the revised proposal should not take longer
than three (3) months after the Proposal Defence.
• After revision, the Advisors verify that all the corrections have been duly
incorporated into the revised proposal, using the Correction
Confirmation Form.
• The Primary Advisor then sends the revised proposal directly to the PL
who confirms the revision and officially authorizes the student to collect
data and continue the research process under the supervision of the
Advisers.

Note that if, during the Proposal Defence, changes are recommended by the Panel
that affects the ethics clearance, the student is not authorized to collect data. Instead,
the student must re-submit the proposal to IERC and obtain a new ethical clearance.

THE WRITING STAGE: Process for Projects

All SPS students must ensure that their citations follow the American Psychological
Association (APA) style and that their writing and formatting conform to the SPS
Research Handbook.

7. The student submits each chapter of the Project to the Primary Adviser who
assists the student to reach the highest level of research and writing quality,
and also advises of areas that are incorrect, non-conforming to style, or are
weak and need modification. When the student has corrected all indicated
areas to the satisfaction of the Primary Adviser, the Primary Adviser provides
written approval to the student. Approval from the Primary Adviser affirms
that the Project adheres to academic research standards and SPS Research

109
 Handbook. The Primary Adviser should copy the PL on all correspondence
to the student.
8. After the Primary Adviser approves the Project, it is returned to the PL. The
PL then assigns the Project to the Secondary Adviser, who provides another
critical reading of the work and recommends any additional modifications to
the student. When this process is completed to the satisfaction of the
Secondary Advisor, he/she gives the student written approval and completes
the Project Examination Form. Then the Secondary Adviser sends the Project
back to the Primary Adviser to check the changes. The Primary Adviser gives
approval of the paper and completes Project Examination Form to submit to
the PL, along with the Project.
9. When the Primary Adviser approves the paper, he/she sends it directly to the
PL. Students should not submit approved Projects directly to the PL.
Approved Projects are moved through the process by the PL.
10. The PL requests grades for the Project from the Primary and Secondary
Advisers using the Grade Report for Advisers.
11. The PL gives the Project a final check, directs the student to fill the Printing
and Binding Form, and completes the Printing and Binding Form by adding
the grades. The PL submits the final grade to the Dean on the SPS Grade
Sheet, as per protocol.
12. The PL sends the Project, along with the Printing and Binding Form, to the
Research Office for review and editing. During this process, editorial changes
may be made to the paper to improve the grammar and flow of the paper or
to correct errors in style and format. Students and Advisers should not submit
Projects directly to the Research Office—submission is made only by the PL.
13. If substantive concerns are observed that may compromise academic quality,
such as plagiarism or ethics, the Research Director sends the Project back to
the PL with a written explanation of the concerns. The PL can give input
and/or return the Project to the student for corrections. If the Editor finds
significant errors in style and formatting, the Editor will return the Project to
the PL, who returns the paper to the student for corrections. Copies are also
sent to the Advisers so they can provide assistance to the student, if necessary.
The student sends the corrected paper back to the PL, who reviews the
corrections made by the student for accuracy. The PL then returns the paper
to the Editor/Research Director so that it continues through the process.
14. After the Research Office approves the Project, it is sent to the PL who then
sends it to the Dean’s Office for final approval signature. The following
signature lines are authorized for the Approval Page:
• Primary Adviser
• Secondary Adviser
• Programme Leader

110
 • Head of Department
• Dean
15. When the Dean has given final approval, and signed the Approval Page, the
Project is sent from the Dean’s office for printing and binding. The Dean’s office
submits the student’s name to the Registrar’s Office, where eligibility for
graduation is determined.
16. When the printing and binding are completed, one (1) copy of the Project is
delivered to the Judith Thomas Library for display in the collection.

THE WRITING STAGE: Process for Theses

All SPS students must ensure that their citations follow the American Psychological
Association (APA) style and that their writing and formatting conform to the SPS
Research Handbook.

17. The student submits each chapter of the Thesis to the Primary Adviser who
assists the student to reach the highest level of research and writing quality,
and also advises of areas that are incorrect, non-conforming to style, or are
weak and need modification. When the student has corrected all indicated
areas to the satisfaction of the Primary Adviser, the Primary Adviser provides
written approval to the student. Approval from the Primary Adviser affirms
that the Thesis adheres to academic research standards and the SPS Research
Handbook. The Primary Adviser should copy the PL on all correspondence
to the student.
18. After the Primary Adviser approves the Thesis, it is returned to the PL. The
PL then avails the Thesis to the Secondary Adviser, who provides another
critical input to the work and recommends any additional modifications to
the student. When this process is completed to the satisfaction of the
Secondary Advisor, he/she gives the student written approval and completes
the Thesis Examination Form. Then the Secondary Adviser sends the Thesis
back to the Primary Adviser to check the changes. The Primary Adviser gives
approval of the Thesis and completes the Thesis Examination Form and
submits it to the PL, along with the Thesis.
19. When the Primary Adviser approves the paper, he/she sends it directly to the
PL. Students should not submit an approved Thesis directly to the PL.
Approved theses are moved through the process by the Primary Adviser.

111
THE WRITING STAGE: Process for Dissertations

All SPS students must ensure that their citations follow the American Psychological
Association (APA) style and that their writing and formatting conform to the SPS
Research Handbook.

20. The student submits each chapter of the Dissertation to the Primary Adviser
who assists the student to reach the highest level of research and writing
quality, and also advises of areas that are incorrect, non-conforming to style,
or are weak and need modification. When the student has corrected all
indicated areas to the satisfaction of the Primary Adviser, the Primary
Adviser provides written approval to the student. Approval from the Primary
Adviser affirms that the Dissertation adheres to academic research standards
and the SPS Research Handbook. The Primary Adviser should copy the PL
on all correspondence to the student. After the Primary Adviser approves the
Dissertation, he/she returns it to the PL.
21. The PL then avails the Dissertation to the two Secondary Advisers, who
provide additional critical input to the work and recommend modifications to
the student. When this process is completed to the satisfaction of the
Secondary Advisers, they both give the student written approval and
complete the Dissertation Examination Form.
22. Then the Dissertation is sent back to the Primary Adviser to check the
changes. The Primary Adviser gives approval of the Dissertation and
completes the Dissertation Examination Form and submits it to the PL, along
with the Dissertation. Students should not submit an approved Dissertation
directly to the PL. Approved Dissertations are moved through the process by
the Primary Adviser.

THE FINAL ORAL DEFENCE STAGE: Process for Theses

23. When the PL has the approved Thesis, he/she sends it to an External
Examiner.
24. After the External Examiner has reviewed the thesis, the PL, in consultation
with the HOD and the Dean, sets a date for the Final Oral Defence.
25. The PL informs the members of the Final Oral Defence Panel that the oral
defence date has been set and assures the availability of members. The Final
Oral Defence Panel consists of the:
• Dean, Chair
• Head of Department
• Programme Leader

112
 • Designated Faculty of the Program
• Primary Adviser
• Secondary Adviser
• External Examiner
26. Attendance at the Final Oral Defence is open to the public. Those present
may participate in directing questions to the student on the topic of his/her
research, when invited by the Dean. The audience will not be provided with
a copy of the student’s paper.
27. A Thesis defence shall normally be no longer than two hours and no shorter
than one hour in duration. At the start of the Final Oral Defence, the student
is given 20 minutes to present his/her Thesis. The presentation is followed by
the examination of the Panel.
28. At the conclusion of the defence and following an executive session of the
Panel, the student is informed how the defence was scored:
• Very Good - No corrections necessary.
• Good- Minor corrections necessary; student may take up to one (1)
month to make the corrections and submit the revised Thesis to the
Primary Adviser through the PL.
• Fair- Major corrections necessary; student may take up to two (2)
months to make the corrections and submit the revised Thesis to the
Primary Adviser through the PL.
• Fail- Thesis is not accepted; the student must begin the process
afresh.
29. If revisions to the Thesis are necessary, the PL communicates them to the
student and Primary Adviser, along with the timeframe given to finish
revisions. This will be provided in writing and the student is expected to be
diligent in making revisions. These revisions are done in consultation with
the Primary Adviser, who then confirms that all the revisions have been done
satisfactorily and submits the Final Thesis Correction Confirmation Form,
along with the Thesis to the PL.
30. The PL gives the Thesis a final check, directs the student to fill the Printing
and Binding Form, and then completes the Printing and Binding Form by
adding the grades. The PL submits the final grade to the Dean on the SPS
Grade Sheet, as per protocol.
31. The PL sends the Thesis, along with the Printing and Binding Form, to the
Research Office for review and editing. During this process, editorial changes
may be made to the paper to improve the grammar and flow or to correct
errors in style and format.

113
 32. If there are substantive concerns about academic quality, such as plagiarism
or ethics, the Research Director will direct the Thesis back to the PL with a
written explanation of concerns. The PL can give input and/or return the
paper to the student for corrections. If the Editor finds significant errors in
style and formatting, the Editor will return the paper to the PL to be sent to
the student for corrections. Copies are also sent to the Advisers so they can
provide assistance to the student, if necessary. The student sends the
corrected paper back to the PL, who reviews the corrections made by the
student for accuracy. The PL then returns the paper to the Editor/Research
Director so that it continues through the process.
33. After the Research Office approves the Thesis, it is sent to the PL who then
sends it to the Dean for final approval and signature. The following signature
lines are authorized for the Approval Page:
• Primary Adviser
• Secondary Adviser(s)
• External Examiner
• Programme Leader
• Head of Department
• Dean
34. When the Dean has given final approval, and signed the Approval Page, the
Thesis is sent from the Dean’s office for printing and binding. The Dean’s
office submits the student’s name to the Registrar’s Office, where eligibility
for graduation is determined.
35. When printing and binding are completed, one (1) copy of the Thesis is
delivered to the Judith Thomas Library for display in the collection.

THE FINAL ORAL DEFENCE STAGE: Process for Dissertations

36. When the PL has approved the Dissertation, he/she sends it to an External
Examiner.
37. After the External Examiner has reviewed the dissertation, the PL, in
consultation with the HOD and the Dean, sets a date for the Final Oral
Defence.
38. The PL informs the members of the Final Oral Defence Panel that the oral
defence date has been set and assures the availability of members. The Final
Oral Defence Panel consists of the:
• Dean, Chair
• Head of Department

114
 • Programme Leader
• Designated Faculty of the Program
• Primary Adviser
• Two Secondary Advisers, one of whom is the methodologist
• External Examiner
39. Attendance at the Final Oral Defence is open to the public. Those present
may participate in directing questions to the student on the topic of his/her
research, when invited by the Dean. The audience will not be provided with
a copy of the student’s paper.
40. A Dissertation defence shall normally be no longer than two and a half hours
and no shorter than two hours in duration. At the start of the Final Oral
Defence, the student is given 30 minutes to present his/her dissertation. The
presentation is followed by the examination from the Panel.
41. At the conclusion of the defence and following an executive session of the
Panel, the student is informed how the defence was scored:
• Very Good - No corrections necessary.
• Good- Minor corrections necessary; student may take up to one (1)
month to make the corrections and submit the revised Dissertation to
the Primary Adviser through the PL.
• Fair- Major corrections necessary; student may take up to two (2)
months to make the corrections and submit the revised Dissertation
to the Primary Adviser through the PL.
• Fail- Dissertation is not accepted; the student must begin the process
afresh.
42. If revisions to the Dissertation are necessary, the PL communicates them to
the student and Primary Adviser, along with the timeframe given to finish
revisions. This will be provided in writing and the student is expected to be
diligent in making revisions. These revisions are done in consultation with
the Primary Adviser, who then confirms that all the revisions have been done
satisfactorily and submits the Final Dissertation Correction Confirmation
Form, along with the Dissertation to the PL.
43. The PL gives the Dissertation a final check, directs the student to fill the
Printing and Binding Form, and completes the Printing and Binding Form by
adding the grades. The PL submits the final grade to the Dean on the SPS
Grade Sheet, as per protocol.
44. The PL sends the Dissertation, along with the Printing and Binding Form, to
the Research Office for review and editing. During this process, editorial
changes may be made to the paper to improve the grammar and flow or to
correct errors in style and format.

115
 45. If there are substantive concerns about academic quality, such as plagiarism
or ethics, the Research Director will direct the Dissertation back to the PL
with a written explanation of concerns. The PL can give input and/or return
the paper to the student for corrections. If the Editor finds significant errors
in style and formatting, the Editor will return the paper to the PL to be sent
to the student for corrections. Copies are also sent to the Advisers so they can
provide assistance to the student, if necessary. The student sends the
corrected paper back to the PL, who reviews the corrections made by the
student for accuracy. The PL then returns the paper to the Editor/Research
Director so that it continues through the process.
46. After the Research Office approves the Dissertation, it is sent to the PL who
then sends it to the Dean for final approval and signature.
The following signature lines are authorized for the Approval Page:
• Primary Adviser
• Both Secondary Advisers
• External Examiner
• Programme Leader
• Head of Department
• Dean
47. When the Dean has given final approval, and signed the Approval Page, the
Dissertation is sent from the Dean’s office for printing and binding. The
Dean’s office submits the student’s name to the Registrar’s Office, where
eligibility for graduation is determined.
48. When printing and binding are completed, one (1) copy of the Dissertation is
delivered to the Judith Thomas Library for display in the collection.

Updated and voted by the SPS School Board: August 26, 2019
Update accepted by the Senate: September 12, 2019

116
 CHAPTER 9

Sample Pages, Forms and

Grading Assessments

117
118
 Sample Pages for Written
Project/Thesis/Dissertation
These pages demonstrate the format/style for pages in the project/thesis/dissertation
proposal or final paper.

Instructions

The boxes that look like the one above give instructions for how the page is to be
formatted. Sometimes all instructions could not be included, so students must refer to
detailed instructions in the appropriate chapter. These boxes are not to be placed on
your paper—they only give you format/style instructions.

Follow the examples so that your pages conform to the proper style and format. The
Sample Pages are titled to be used with a project, thesis or dissertation—use the one
for your type of paper. If there is not a paper type on the Sample Page, it means that
the sample page is used for all types of papers.

The Sample Pages follow the order that the pages should appear in your paper:

Abstract
Title Page
Copyright
Approval Page
Dedication (optional)
Table of Contents
List of Tables (required if five or more tables appear in the paper)
List of Figures (required if five or more figures appear in the paper)
List of Abbreviations (required if five or more abbreviations are used at least
three times each)
Acknowledgements (optional)
Chapters 1-5
References
Appendix(es)
Curriculum Vitae

119
 Place the correct type for
your paper:
Project
Thesis
Dissertation Abstract Page:
Start title at 2” (5cm) from top
Centered on page
Title of paper:
All capitals
Block indent
Single line space,
if more than two
lines
No abbreviations
Have geographical
locator

Name format:
First Name Surname

Align text left Use correct degree(s) of adviser

throughout
paper

MARGINS
(throughout
paper):
Under Page
Layout tab,
select
Margins,
and custom
accordingly:
Left = 1.5
Right = 1.0
Top = 1.0
Abstract pages are neither counted nor numbered Bottom: 1.0

Abstract was shortened for illustrative purposes; see Handbook regarding Abstract length.

120
 Title:
Two lines, double
space
More than two lines,
single space
Divide lines at logical
place
Try to form an
inverted pyramid Title Page:
shape Start first line 2” (5
Include a geographical cm) from top,
locator title of the research
No abbreviations, no at 4” (10 cm),
period at end description of the
research at 6” (15
cm), and
the word by at 8”
(20 cm)
Place the correct type of your paper:
Project
Thesis
Dissertation

Date:
Name format: Project: month of approval (no day)
First Name Surname Thesis: month of defence (no day)
Dissertation: month of defence (no day)

Title page is page i, but the number does

not appear on the page.
Page count starts with the Title Page.

121
Copyright Page: not required, but encouraged.
Information is placed at bottom of page as shown.

No page number is shown, but page is counted.

122
 Approval Page Project:
Format page to look like this and fit on one page.

Title:
Two lines, double
space
More than two Approval Page:
lines, single space Start title of the
Divide lines at research 2” (5 cm)
logical place from top,
Try to form an description of the
inverted pyramid research at 4” (10
shape cm),
Include a the word by at 6”
geographical (15 cm), and
locator the word
No abbreviations, APPROVED BY at
no period at end 7” (17.5 cm)

Name format:
First Name Surname

Date is filled by Dean when signed.

Add solid line after colon.

Approval Page has no page number

although it is counted as a page.

123
 Approval Page Thesis:
Format page to look like this and fit on one page.

Title:
Two lines, double
space
More than two lines, Approval Page:
single space Start title of the
Divide lines at logical research 2” (5 cm)
place from top,
Try to form an inverted description of the
pyramid shape research at 4” (10
Include a geographical cm),
locator the word by at 6”
No abbreviations, no (15 cm), and
period at end the word
APPROVED BY at
7” (17.5 cm)

Name format:
First Name Surname

Date is filled by Dean when signed.

Add solid line after colon.

Approval Page has no page number

although it is counted as a page.

124
 Approval Page Dissertation:
Format page to look like this and fit on one page

Title: Approval Page:

Two lines, double Start title of the
space research 2” (5 cm)
More than two lines, from top,
single space description of the
Divide lines at logical research at 3.5” (9
place cm),
Try to form an inverted the word by at 5.5”
pyramid shape (14 cm), and
Include a geographical the word
locator APPROVED BY at
No abbreviations, no 6.5” (16.5 cm)
period at end

Name format:
First Name Surname

Date is filled by Dean when signed.

Add solid line after colon.

Approval Page has no page number

although it is counted as a page.

125
Dedication Page:
- Has no page number,
although it is counted as a page
- Is brief and centred on the page

126
 Entries in the Table of Contents (TOC) must
reconcile exactly with the headings and page
numbers in the text.

Start with headings that come after the TOC.

Leave a triple space after all

chapter titles.

Single
space
between
subheading
entries.

Each level
is indented
three spaces
(.3” or .75
cm) further
than the one
before.

Page numbering with Roman numerals begins on TOC page.

Count pages from Title Page and place the number of this page.
Continue page numbering on subsequent preliminary pages.

127
Run-over
lines
should be
indented
three
spaces (.3”
or .75 cm).

Double
space
between
appendix
entries.

Numbers must be right-justified.

Continue page numbering on subsequent preliminary pages.

128
 Required if you have five or more tables in your text.

Leave a triple space after all

chapter titles.

Double
space
between
list of
tables
entries.

Continue page numbering on subsequent preliminary pages.

Numbers must be right-justified.

129
 Required if you have five or more figures in your text.

Leave a triple space after all

chapter titles.

Double
space
between
list of
figures
entries.

Numbers must be right-justified.

Continue page numbering on subsequent preliminary pages.

130
 Required if you used five or more abbreviations in your text
at least three times each.

Abbreviations are in alphabetical order

Leave a triple space after all

chapter titles.

Use tabs, not spaces, to create the second column.

Continue page numbering on subsequent preliminary pages.

131
 The acknowledgements section is appropriate, but not required.
Acknowledgements should be focused and names spelled correctly.

Leave a triple space after all

chapter titles.

Continue page numbering on subsequent preliminary pages.

132
 Chapter numbers can be spelled
out (Chapter One) or numerated
Chapter 1), just be consistent
throughout chapters.
Start 2” (5cm) from top for
pages with titles

Double space between chapter Written in uppercase.

number and title Centered.

Triple space between title and

text

MARGINS
(throughout
paper):
Under Page
Layout tab,
select
Margins,
and custom
accordingly:
Left = 1.5
Right = 1.0
Top = 1.0
Bottom: 1.0

Page numbering in Chapter one begins with

Arabic number 1 and continues consecutively
throughout the paper.

133
 Level 1 heading:
centered, title case, bold
Leave
double
space
between
heading and
text.
Figures and Tables
must always be
introduced by
number before they
are shown.

Leave two
double
spaces before
and after
tables and
figures.

Figure titles go below the figure, numbered

consecutively with no decimals.
Quantitative studies show variables.
Qualitative studies do not have variables.

134
At least two lines of text must appear after
the heading at the bottom of a page.

135
If the first
section of a
chapter
serves as an
introduction,
it need not be
labelled as
such.

Leave a double space

between two successive
headings.
There can never be three
successive headings.

Level 2 heading:
left margin, title
case, bold

136
 Use figures
to express
number 10
and above.

137
Place table titles above the table. Leave a
single
space
between
title and
table.

Tables should fill the width of the page. To achieve this:

Select the table (top left-hand corner). Then go to
TableTools > Layout and under the Cell Size group, select
AutoFit > AutoFit Window.

138
 Write (continued)
after the table
number on the
following page, and
(table continues) at
Show all headers at the tops of the bottom of the
columns for convenience of the first page of the
reader and keep columns and rows table.
aligned as in first page.

Tables should typically fit on one page. If they

have to be continued, present as shown here.

139
Tables can be in landscape view if data set is large.
All table rules apply; title number/title are on left margin.

Page number is placed in same position as vertical pages.

140
Figures can also display data nicely.
Figures and Tables must always be introduced by number before they are
shown.

It is a good idea to add the

percentage amounts when
using graphic data where they
can be seen.

Your paper will be printed in black and white, so avoid color and
make sure data is readable.

141
Displayed to follow the order that the pages
should appear in your paper.
All format rules apply.

142
 References follow the last chapter of
your work immediately.
Include in
Format for books:
alphabetical
Author(s). (Year).
order all
Title of the book
sources
(ed. or vol. if any).
cited in the
Publisher.
paper. Do
not add
NB: You do not
extra work.
need to include the
publisher location
or databases where
you retrieved the
book.

Single space
References.

Leave double
space between Format for
entries. journal article:
Author(s). (Year).
Use “hanging Title of the
indent” style article. Title of
of paragraphs. the journal,
(Under Page Volume(Issue),
Layout, Click Page range. DOI.
the marker to
the right of NB: Both DOIs
Paragraph. and URLs are
Under presented as
Indentation>S hyperlinks (i.e.,
pecial in the beginning with
resulting “http:” or
dialogue box, “https:”), and it is
set hanging by not necessary to
0.5”.) include the words
“Retrieved from”
or “Accessed
Format for chapter in an from” before
edited book: them.
Author(s). (Year). Title
of the chapter. In
Editor(s), Title of the
book (pp. xx-xx).
Publisher.

143
Initial appendix cover sheet

The cover sheet has no page number,

although it is counted as a page.

144
 Appendixes can be titled with numbers
(Appendix 1), or alphabets (Appendix A).
Appendixes usually appear in the order Just be consistent with use of one or the
they are presented in the text. other throughout the document.

Questionnaires
appear in the
appendixes as
they were
presented to the
respondents.

145
If you have to
include material
that cannot be
reformatted, make
sure that the text is
still visible after the
scanning/cropping
process.

146
This is only an example.
Refer to Handbook regarding CV is not an appendix.
what to include in CV.

CV has the last page number of the document.

147
 Samples of Consent and Permission Forms
Use these pages for ethics requirements.

148
 Informed Consent
Note to Researcher: Areas to be filled are shown by parentheses and italics. These should be
completed before given to participants.

You are being asked to participate in a research study entitled: (Title of your study).
The purpose of this study is (give a BRIEF sentence about the purpose of your study).

In order to participate in the study, you will be asked to fill out a questionnaire that has
(number) items. Finishing the questionnaire should take approximately (amount of time for
average person to complete) minutes. (Add other research instruments, if applicable, and
state what participants have to do and how long their participation should take them to
complete.)

Your participation in this study is voluntary. If you sign the bottom of this Form, it means that
you are giving your consent to be in the study. You will NOT write your name on the
questionnaire and this Form is separate from the questionnaire—this ensures that your identity
will not be revealed. No one other than the researcher(s) and advisers will have access to the
data. All data will be kept on a password protected computer. (If this statement is not true of
your study, delete it and state how data will be protected.)

If you do not want to participate in the study, do not begin filling the questionnaire or
participating in other research activities. If you start to fill the questionnaire and decide you
do not want to participate, stop filling it and give it to the researcher. There is no penalty for
not participating and your questionnaire will not be used.

If you participate, you will contribute to knowledge about (briefly state the benefits of this
knowledge), which may help to (give a brief statement of benefits). There are no identifiable
risks in participation (or, if there are risks, discuss them here).
The researcher will answer any questions that you have about the study and you should ask
them now.

If you have complaints or concerns about this research, please contact the Chair of the AUA
Institutional Ethics Review Committee:
(Give the name of the AUA IERC Chair and his/her email address here. You can get this
information from your Programme Leader.)

Thank you.
(Include your name and programme)

By signing below, I agree to participate in this research.

Signature _________________________________ Date _______________________

This study has been approved by the AUA Institutional Ethics Review Board. (Only add this
statement when approval has been given.)

149
 Parent or Guardian Permission Form
for Research Involving a Minor
Note to Researcher: This is a sample. Your permission form does not need to be formatted
exactly like this one, as long as it includes the necessary elements contained here.

For research involving minors, child assent should be sought whenever possible. At times,
this may entail creating a separate consent document for parents and children (each written
in age-appropriate language) and each must be signed. At other times, parents may be
required to make the decision for the child. Please be aware that participants give consent,
parents give permission, and minors give assent. Your documents should contain the
appropriate terms.

Areas to be filled are shown by parentheses and italics. These should be completed before
given to participants.

Title of Project: (give title written in plain, non-jargon language; can be brief)

Researcher: (your name and email address or phone number)

Your permission is being sought to have your child participate in this study. Please read the
following information carefully before you decide whether or not to give your permission.

Purpose of the research: (make a brief and clear statement)

Procedure to be followed: (state what child will have to do in the research)

Discomforts/risks: (This can be the following sentence or modified to meet the need of your
study.) There are no foreseeable discomforts or dangers to either you or your child in this
study.

Incentives/benefits for participation: (This can be the following sentence or modified to

meet the need of your study.) There are no direct benefits to your child from participating in
this study. However, the results of this study will (add the potential benefits of your study to
humanity/society/community/church here).

Time duration of participation: (state how long participation will take)

Statement of confidentiality: All records are kept confidential and will be available only to
the researcher. If the results of this study are published, the data will be presented in group
form and individual children will not be identified.

Voluntary participation: Your child’s participation is voluntary. If you feel your child has
in any way been coerced into participation, please inform the Chair of the AUA Institutional
Ethics Review Committee, (add the name of the Chair of the Committee here) at the email
address: (add the Chair’s email address at AUA; your Programme Leader can give you this
information) or the phone number: (add the phone number at AUA; your Programme Leader
can give you this information). This letter can be read to your child, if age-appropriate, and
150
inform your child that participation is voluntary. At the time of the study, your child will
once again be reminded of this by the researcher.

Termination of participation: If at any point during the study you or your child wishes to
terminate the session, we will do so. There is no penalty for ending participation.

Comments, concerns or complaints regarding the research should be directed to:

The Chair of the AUA Institutional Ethics Review Committee, (add the name here, as you
did above) at the email address: (add the Chair’s email address at AUA, as you did above)
or the phone number (add the phone number, as you did above).

This research has been reviewed and approved by the ethics committee at the Adventist
University of Africa. If at any time before, during or after the study your child experiences
any physical or emotional discomfort that is a result of his/her participation, contact the Chair
of the Institutional Ethics Review Committee, (add the name here, as above), using the email
address: (add email address here) or phone number: (add the phone number at AUA here.)

Signing the form below will allow your child to participate in the study.
If you do not sign and return this form, the researchers will understand that you do not
wish to allow your child to participate.

Parent Signature
I, the parent or guardian of ______________________________________, a minor who is
__________ years of age, give my permission for his/her participation in the research named
above.
______________________________________ ____________________________
Parent/Guardian Signature Date
_________________________________________________________________________
Printed name

Child/Minor Signature, if appropriate

I, ___________________________________, agree to participate in the research named
above. I understand that this is voluntary and that any questions I have about this research
have been answered.

______________________________________ ___________________________
Signature of Child/Minor Date

151
 Non-Disclosure Agreement for Participants in
Research Interviews or Focus Groups
Note to Researcher: If participants must sign an Informed Consent, the participant must read
and sign the Informed Consent BEFORE being given this Form for completion.

Non-Disclosure Statement:
You are being asked to read and sign this Form because you are invited to be a participant in
a focus group, an interview or a discussion. As a participant, you will be asked to voice your
opinion and others will voice their opinions. You are asked to NOT disclose anything that
was said during the focus group, interview or discussion. By agreeing to participate, you agree
NOT to disclose to others outside this event anything said within the context of the focus
group, interview, or discussion.

____I agree to maintain the confidentiality of the information discussed by all participants and
researchers during the focus group/interview/discussion session.

___ I do not agree to the confidentiality requirements of this study and decline to participate.

Name __________________________________________ Date: __________________________

Signature: ________________________________________________________________________

152
 Permission to Use Direct Quotations for
Participants in Research Interviews
or Focus Groups
Note to Researcher: If participants must sign an Informed Consent, the participant must read
and sign the Informed Consent BEFORE being given this Form for completion.

Permission to Quote:
I may wish to quote your words directly in reports and publications resulting from this
interview, focus group or discussion. With regards to being quoted, please check yes or no
for each of the following statements:

Researchers may publish documents that contain quotations by me under the following
conditions:
□ Yes
I agree to be quoted directly (my name can be used).
□ No
□ Yes
I agree to be quoted directly if my name is not published (I remain anonymous).
□ No
□ Yes
I agree to be quoted directly if a made-up name (pseudonym) is used.
□ No

By signing this consent form, you are indicating that you fully understand the above
information and agree to participate in this study.

Name ___________________________________________ Date: __________________________

Signature: ________________________________________________________________________

153
 Permission for Photography for Research Participants
in Any Pictures Taken by Researcher
Note to Researcher: If participants must sign an Informed Consent, the participant must read
and sign the Informed Consent BEFORE being given this Form for completion.

Permission to Use Photograph(s):

If any photographs or likenesses of you, a minor member of your family, or your property
have been taken during this research, we request your permission to use them in a published
document. Once the document is published, the photographs could appear in media, such as
the internet.

Permission to use your photograph(s)/likeness is voluntary. You do not have to consent to

participate in this study. You do not have to agree to have pictures taken or published.

In regard to publication of photographs/likenesses of me, a minor member of my family,

or my property:
Yes No I agree to be photographed and have the photographs used in a
publication.
Yes No I give permission for a minor member of my family to be photographed
and the photograph used in a publication.
Yes No I agree that my property can be photographed and the photograph used
in a publication.
Yes No I do not give permission for any of the above uses of my photograph,
likeness, minor family member, or property.

By signing this consent form, you are indicating that you fully understand the above
information and agree to participate in this study.

Name ___________________________________________ Date: __________________________

Signature: ________________________________________________________________________

154
Proposal and Proposal Defence Forms

155
 Proposal Title Page

Insert the type of your paper:

Project Make sure
Thesis the name of
Dissertation the degree
you are
getting is
correct

Name format:
First Name Surname

Date: month and year you

submit proposal with no
punctuation

156
 Proposal Examination Form

To: ________________________________________ Date: ______________________

Programme Leader

This is to confirm that:_______________________________________________________

Student Name

Project Thesis Dissertation

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

has finalized his/her proposal, including research instrument(s) and is now ready for Proposal
Defence and Panel examination.

Primary Adviser: ___________________________ Signature _____________ Date ______

Secondary Adviser: _________________________Signature_____________Date______

Secondary Adviser (If applicable): _____________Signature _____________Date ______

Programme Leader: ________________________ Signature_____________ Date ______

157
 Research Proposal Defence Evaluation Form

Name of Student:

__________________________________________________________________________

Project Thesis Dissertation

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Direction:Please carefully read the attached proposal and evaluate each section of the
proposal using the rating scale:

1 Below average
2 Average
3 Above average

Where you’ve rated “Below average,” specify the desired improvement in the space
provided.

Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments

(circle)
Title of the Study/Background Study
1. The title of the study properly 1 2 3
captures the main problem of the
research.
2. The background of the study gives 1 2 3
adequate context to understand what
the research is about.

158
Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments
(circle)
Problem Statement
3. The problem is relevant to the needs 1 2 3
of society and significant enough to
add to existing knowledge.
4. There is sufficient evidence in the 1 2 3
problem statement to convince the
reader that the problem is real and
solvable.
5. The problem is focused enough to be 1 2 3
accomplished within a reasonable
expenditure of time, money and
effort.
Research Questions/Hypotheses
6. If the study is quantitative, the 1 2 3
research questions/hypotheses align
with the purpose and variables.
If the study is qualitative, the
research questions are aligned with
selected phenomenon.
7. The research questions/hypotheses 1 2 3
taken together answer the research
problem.
8. There is a direct link between the 1 2 3
research questions/hypotheses and
the conceptual/theoretical
framework.
Theoretical/Conceptual Framework
9. The theoretical/conceptual 1 2 3
framework identifies the
concepts/variables and the presumed
relationships among them.
10. The theoretical/conceptual 1 2 3
framework demonstrates
understanding of relevant reviewed
literature.
11. The theoretical/conceptual 1 2 3
framework is linked to the research
problem/questions/hypotheses.
12. Key concepts/variables and 1 2 3
terminologies in the study are defined
according to how they are used in the
study.

159
Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments
(circle)
Review of Related Literature
13. There is adequate exploration of 1 2 3
literature relevant to the research
problem and questions.
14. The reviewed literature identifies 1 2 3
gaps and/or limitations in existing
research, therefore providing a
context for the study.
15. The literature review is organized 1 2 3
systematically and logically based on
the key concepts/variables in the
study.
16. The literature review is coherent in a 1 2 3
way which offers new insights into
the topic.
Research Methodology
17. The study clearly identifies an 1 2 3
appropriate research design.
18. The study demonstrates why the 1 2 3
chosen design and methods are well
suited to the study.
19. The study population and sample 1 2 3
procedures are clearly identified and
described.
20. Sampling is clearly described 1 2 3
according to the standards of the
selected research design.
21. The proposal identifies the 1 2 3
appropriate data analysis techniques
for addressing the research questions.
22. The proposal discusses ethical issues 1 2 3
that may arise from the study and
how to safeguard the participants and
data collected.
Research Instruments (s)
23. The instrument(s) for gathering data 1 2 3
is/are clearly identified and
described.
24. The instrument(s) for data collection 1 2 3
contain all the constructs and
variables in the research questions.
25. The instrument validation processes 1 2 3
are indicated.

160
 Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments
(circle)
26. The instrument reliability processes 1 2 3
are indicated.
References
27. The proposal provides a list of cited 1 2 3
references according to the APA
reference style.
28. The references are current and 1 2 3
relevant.
Other Considerations
29. The proposal is free from 1 2 3
typographical and grammatical
errors.
30. The student demonstrated a clear 1 2 3
understanding of the study.
31. Student’s overall grasp of the subject 1 2 3
of his/her research.
Overall Score =

Other General Remarks

__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Score Interpretation
81- 93 Approved, with minor or no correction
61- 80 Approved, revise – no need to re-submit
41-60 Revise, must re-submit
Below 41 Denied, re-write proposal

Overall Evaluation: ____Approved, with minor or no correction

____Approved, revise – no need to re-submit
____Revise, must re-submit
____Denied, re-write proposal

Evaluator: ____________________________ Signature: ____________________________

Date: _____________________________________________________________________

161
 Research Proposal Defence Evaluation Form
for Computer Science

Name of Student:

__________________________________________________________________________

Project Thesis Dissertation

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Direction: Please carefully read the attached proposal and evaluate each section of the
proposal using the rating scale below:

1 Below average
2 Average
3 Above average

Where you’ve rated “Below Average,” please specify the desired improvement in the space
provided.

Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments

(circle)
Title of the Study/Background Study
1. The title of the study properly captures 1 2 3
the main problem of the research.
2. The background of the study gives 1 2 3
adequate context to understand what
the research is about.
Problem Statement
3. The problem is relevant to the needs of 1 2 3
society and significant enough to add to
existing knowledge.
4. There is sufficient evidence in the 1 2 3
problem statement to convince the
reader that the problem is real and
solvable.

162
Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments
(circle)
5. The problem is focused enough to be 1 2 3
accomplished within a reasonable
expenditure of time, money and effort.
Research Questions/ Hypotheses
6. The research questions/hypotheses 1 2 3
align with the purpose and variables.
7. The research questions/hypotheses are 1 2 3
appropriate to answer the research
problem.
Review of Related Literature
8. There is adequate exploration of 1 2 3
literature relevant to the research
problem and questions.
9. The reviewed literature identifies gaps 1 2 3
and/or limitations in existing research,
therefore providing a context for the
study.
10. The literature review is organized in a 1 2 3
logical way.
11. The literature review is coherent in a 1 2 3
way which offers new insights into the
topic.
Research Methodology
12. The study clearly identifies an 1 2 3
appropriate research design.
13. The study demonstrates why the chosen 1 2 3
design and methods are well suited to
the study.
14. The study population and sample 1 2 3
procedures are clearly identified and
described.
15. Sampling is clearly described according 1 2 3
to the standards of the selected research
design.
16. The proposal discusses ethical issues 1 2 3
that may arise from the study.
Oral Presentation
17. The presentation is professional and 1 2 3
attracted the audience’s attention.
18. The slides (visual aids) are well 1 2 3
organized, clear, readable and relevant.
19. The student has used the proper 1 2 3
language and terms.
20. The student showed clarity and 1 2 3
completeness in responding to
questions.

163
 Evaluation Statement Ratings Comments
(circle)
References
21. The proposal provides a list of cited 1 2 3
references according to the IEEE
Trans reference style.
22. The references are current and 1 2 3
relevant.
Other Considerations
23. The proposal is free from 1 2 3
typographical and grammatical errors.
24. The student demonstrated a clear 1 2 3
understanding of the study.
25. Student’s overall grasp of the subject 1 2 3
of his/her research.
Overall Score =

Other General Remarks

__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Score Interpretation
66 - 75 Approved, with minor no correction
49 - 65 Approved, revise – no need to re-submit
33 - 48 Revise, must re-submit
Below 33 Denied, re-write proposal

Overall Evaluation: ____Approved, with minor or no correction

____Approved, revise – no need to re-submit
____Revise, must re-submit
____Denied, re-write proposal

Evaluator: _____________________________ Signature: ___________________________

Date: _____________________________________________________________________

164
 Proposal Defence Evaluation Result Form

To: __________________________________________________ Date: ______________

Student Name

Project Thesis Dissertation

This is to inform you that your proposal entitled:

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

presented on (date) ________________________ has been assessed with the following

result:

1. ____ Approved, with minor or no correction

2. ____ Approved, revise – no need to re-submit
3. ____ Revise, must re-submit proposal
4. ____ Denied, re-write proposal

Please revise the proposal according to the comments and suggestions of the Proposal
Defence Panel under the guidance of your Primary Adviser and Secondary Adviser(s). If
required to re-submit/re-write, submission of the revised proposal should not take more than
three (3) months after the defence. Let me know if you have any questions.

Programme Leader: _________________________________________________________

Signature: _________________________________________________________________

Date: _____________________________________________________________________

165
 Proposal Correction Confirmation Form
Final Oral Defence Correction Confirmation Form

Student Name: _____________________________________________________________

Project Thesis Dissertation

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

We, the undersigned, confirm that all the corrections suggested by the student’s panel of
oral examiners and the suggestions given during the defence have been incorporated into the
revised proposal/final oral project/thesis/dissertation.

Primary Adviser: ________________ Signature __________________ Date ___________

Secondary Adviser: ______________ Signature __________________ Date ___________

Secondary Adviser: (If applicable) ____________ Signature ________ Date ___________

**************************************************************************

Verified by: ______________________________________________ Date: _________

Programme Leader

Other General Remarks

__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

166
Oral Defence of Thesis/Dissertation Forms

167
 Final Thesis Oral Defence Examination Form
Final Dissertation Oral Defence Examination Form

To: ___________________________________________________ Date: ____________

Programme Leader

This is to confirm that:______________________________________________________

Student Name

Thesis Dissertation

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

has finalized his/her paper and is now ready for the Final Oral Defence and panel
examination.

Primary Adviser: ___________________________ Signature _____________ Date ______

Secondary Adviser: _________________________ Signature _____________ Date______

Secondary Adviser (If applicable): _____________Signature _____________ Date ______

Programme Leader: ________________________ Signature_____________ Date ______

168
 Proposal Correction Confirmation Form
Final Oral Defence Correction Confirmation Form

Student
Name:____________________________________________________________________

Project Thesis Dissertation

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

We, the undersigned, confirm that all the corrections suggested by the student’s panel of
oral examiners and the suggestions given during the defence have been incorporated into the
revised proposal/final oral project/thesis/dissertation.

Primary Adviser: ___________________________ Signature _____________ Date ______

Secondary Adviser: _________________________ Signature _____________ Date______

Secondary Adviser (If applicable): _____________Signature _____________ Date ______

**************************************************************************

Verified by: ____________________________________________ Date: ______________

Programme Leader

Other General Remarks

__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

169
 Assessment, Evaluation and Grade Forms
[Used by advisers and assessors. For student information only.]

Reviewing these Forms informs you of how research is evaluated/graded.

170
 External Examiner Evaluation Form
for the Final Oral Thesis Defence

Name of Student: _________________________________________________________

Thesis Title:
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

Direction: Please carefully read the attached manuscript and evaluate each section
using the rating scale below:

1. Below Average
2. Average
3. Above average

Items Rating
Scales
Abstract
1. Abstract clearly conveys a focused overview of the research study. 1 2 3
Introduction
2. The background of the study gives adequate context to understand what the 1 2 3
research is about.
3. The problem is relevant to the needs of society and significant enough to add 1 2 3
to existing knowledge.
4. If the study is quantitative, the research questions/hypotheses align with the 1 2 3
purpose and variables.
If the study is qualitative, the research questions are aligned with selected
phenomenon.
5. The study is based on theories/concepts/principles.
6. The conceptual framework identifies the concepts/variables and the 1 2 3
presumed relationships among them.
7. Key concepts/variables and terminologies in the study are defined according to 1 2 3
how they are used in the study.

171
 Items Rating
Scales
Review of Related Literature
8. There is adequate exploration of literature relevant to the research problem 1 2 3
and questions.
9. The literature review is organized systematically and logically based on the 1 2 3
key concepts/variables in the study.
10. The literature review is coherent in a way which offers new insights into the 1 2 3
topic.
Research Methodology
11. The research design for the study is appropriate. 1 2 3
12. The study population and sample procedures are clearly identified and 1 2 3
described.
13. The sample size is representative of the target population. 1 2 3
14. The instruments for gathering data are clearly described. 1 2 3
15. The validation/reliability processes or trustworthiness of the instruments are 1 2 3
indicated.
16. The data analysis techniques for addressing the research questions are 1 2 3
appropriate.
17. The study complies with the ethical principles of social research. 1 2 3
Results & Discussion
18. The results are presented in relevant tables and/or figures based on the 1 2 3
research questions/objectives/hypotheses.
19. Interpretations of the results/findings are based on data analyses. 1 2 3
20. The results are discussed and compared with similar studies and those 1 2 3
found in the literature review.
Summary, Conclusions, & Recommendations
21. The summary re-articulates the research problem, methodology, and 1 2 3
findings of the study.
22. There is a clear link between the research questions and the conclusion 1 2 3
which logically flows from the findings.
23. The strength and focus of the recommendations are supported by findings 1 2 3
presented in the paper.
Other Considerations
24. The paper is free from typographical and grammatical errors. 1 2 3
25. Student’s overall grasp of the subject matter of his/her research. 1 2 3
26. Works cited in the thesis are in the list of References. 1 2 3
27. The references and citations are organized based on APA reference style. 1 2 3
28. The thesis is publishable. 1 2 3
Total Score:

172
 Overall Evaluation:
• Using the total score, indicate the evaluation of the thesis using the scale below.

Score Interpretation Evaluation (tick one)

80 - 84 Excellent [ ]
73 - 79 Above average [ ]
66 - 72 Average [ ]
59 - 65 Below average [ ]
58 and below Poor [ ]

Should the student make corrections before the Final Oral Defence is scheduled?
( ) Yes ( ) No
Evaluator: _________________________________________________________________

Signature: _______________________________Date:_____________________________

173
 External Examiner Evaluation Form for Computer Science

Adventist University of Africa

School of Postgraduate Studies
Evaluation Form for External Examiner

Name of Student:

Project Thesis

Title:
__________________________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________________________

Direction: Please carefully read the attached manuscript and evaluate each section using
the rating scale below:
1 Below average
2 Average
3 Above average

Items Rating
Scale
Abstract
1. The abstract clearly conveys a focused overview of the research study. 1 2 3
Introduction
1. The background of the study gives adequate context to understand what 1 2 3
the research is about.
2. The problem is relevant to the needs of society and significant enough to 1 2 3
add to existing knowledge.
3. The research questions/hypotheses are measurable. 1 2 3
4. The study is based on theories/concepts/principles.
5. Key concepts and terminologies in the study are defined according to 1 2 3
how they are used in the study.

174
Review of Related Literature
1. There is adequate exploration of literature relevant to the research 1 2 3
problem and questions.
2. The literature review is organized systematically and logically. 1 2 3
3. The literature review is coherent in a way which offers new insights into 1 2 3
the topic
Research Methodology
1. The research design for the study is appropriate. 1 2 3
2. The evaluation methods and the results are clearly defined. 1 2 3
3. The approach to arrive to the results is clearly described, as to enable 1 2 3
reproducibility of the research.
4. The study complies with ethical principles. 1 2 3
Results & Discussion
1. The results are presented in relevant tables and/or figures based on the 1 2 3
research questions/objectives/hypotheses.
2. Interpretations of the results/findings are validly based on the approach 1 2 3
defined in the methodology.
3. The results are discussed and compared with similar studies and those 1 2 3
found in the literature review.
Summary, Conclusions, & Recommendations
1. The summary re-articulates the research problem, methodology, and 1 2 3
findings of the study.
2. There is a clear link between the research questions and the conclusion 1 2 3
which logically flow from the findings.
3. The direction and focus of the recommendations are supported by 1 2 3
findings presented in the project/thesis.
4. The strength of the recommendations is supported by findings presented 1 2 3
in the project/thesis.
Other Considerations
1. The paper is free from typographical and grammatical errors. 1 2 3
2. The student’s overall grasp of the subject matter of his/her research is 1 2 3
sound.
3. The works cited in the project/thesis are in the list of References. 1 2 3
4. The references and citations are organized based on the IEEE Trans 1 2 3
reference style.
5. The project/thesis is publishable. 1 2 3

175
 Overall Evaluation:
• Add up all your rated scores of the Student from your evaluation above and
indicate the overall score using the following scale. Please circle the score

Score Interpretation
67 - 75 Very Satisfactory
63 - 66 Satisfactory
59 - 62 Major Changes
55- 58 Pass
Below 54 Failure

Should the student make the corrections before he/she finally defends?
( ) Yes ( ) No

External Examiner: __________________________________________________________

Signature: _______________________________Date:______________________________

176
 External Examiner Evaluation Form
Final Oral Dissertation Defence

Name of Student: ___________________________________________________________

Dissertation Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Direction: Please carefully read the attached manuscript and evaluate each section using
the rating scale below:

1. Below Average
2. Average
3. Above average

Items Rating
Scale
Abstract
1. Abstract clearly conveys a focused overview of the research study. 1 2 3
Introduction
2. The background of the study gives adequate context to understand what the 1 2 3
research is about.
3. The problem is relevant to the needs of society and significant enough to add to 1 2 3
existing knowledge.
4. If the study is quantitative, the research questions/hypotheses align with the 1 2 3
purpose and variables.
If the study is qualitative, the research questions are aligned with selected
phenomena.
5. The study is based on theories/concepts/principles. 1 2 3
6. The conceptual framework identifies the concepts/variables and the presumed 1 2 3
relationships among them.
7. Key concepts/variables and terminologies in the study are defined according to 1 2 3
how they are used in the study.
8. The underlying assumptions of the study are clearly discussed. 1 2 3

177
 Items Rating
Scale
Review of Related Literature
9. There is adequate exploration of literature relevant to the research problem and 1 2 3
questions.
10. The literature review is organized systematically and logically based on the key 1 2 3
concepts/variables in the study.
11. The literature review is coherent in a way which offers new insights into the 1 2 3
topic.
Research Methodology
23. The research design of the study is appropriate. 1 2 3
24. The study population and sample procedures are clearly identified and 1 2 3
described.
25. The sample size is representative of the target population. 1 2 3
26. The instruments for gathering data are clearly described. 1 2 3
27. The validation/reliability processes of the instruments are indicated. 1 2 3
28. Statistical/Analytical tools are appropriate for research methods. 1 2 3
29. The study conforms to ethical principles of social research. 1 2 3
Results & Discussion
19. The results are presented in relevant tables and/or figures based on the research 1 2 3
questions/objectives/hypotheses.
20. Interpretations of the results/findings are based on data analyses. 1 2 3
21. The results are discussed and compared with similar studies and those found in 1 2 3
the literature review.
22. Data analysis (presentation, interpretation, discussion) is consistent with the 1 2 3
research questions or hypotheses.
23. Data analysis (presentation, interpretation, discussion) is consistent with 1 2 3
underlying theoretical/conceptual framework of the study.
24. Dissertation demonstrates mastery of the subject matter. 1 2 3
Summary, Conclusions, & Recommendations
25. The summary re-articulates the research problem, methodology, and findings of 1 2 3
the study.
26. There is a clear link between the research questions and the conclusion which 1 2 3
logically flows from the findings.
27. Recommendations are insightful, appropriate and linked to the research 1 2 3
findings/outcomes.
Research Contribution
28. Dissertation contributes knowledge and advances scholarship in the field of 1 2 3
study.
29. The dissertation contributes a theory/model/framework that is likely to have an 1 2 3
impact on policy or practice.
30. The dissertation has reasonable potential for use by others either in application 1 2 3
or in further research.

31. The dissertation is publishable in a peer reviewed journal. 1 2 3

178
 Items Rating
Scale
Other Considerations
32. Dissertation is free from typographical and grammatical errors. 1 2 3
33. The references and citations are organized based on APA reference style. 1 2 3
Total Score:

Overall Evaluation:
• Using the total score, indicate the evaluation of the dissertation using the scale below.

Score Interpretation Evaluation (tick one)

95 - 99 Excellent [ ]
88 - 94 Above average [ ]
80 - 87 Average [ ]
70 - 79 Below average [ ]
69 and below Poor [ ]

Should the student make corrections before the Final Oral Defence? ( ) Yes ( ) No
Evaluator: _____________________ Signature: ________________ Date: _____________

179
 Final Oral Thesis Defence Assessment Form
Final Oral Dissertation Defence Assessment Form

Name of Student: __________________________________ Programme: _____________

Name of Assessor: _________________________________________________________
Title of Thesis/Dissertation:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________
Direction: The table below is a guide for assessing this oral defence. Rate each item using
the scale provided and return the form to the Chair of the Oral Defence Panel.

1 – Poor 2 – Fair 3 – Good 4 – Excellent

Category of Assessment Rating Scale

Introduction: Rationale of the Study 1 2 3 4
Adequacy of Background Information 1 2 3 4
Research Questions/Objectives 1 2 3 4
Methodology & Study Design 1 2 3 4
Analysis and Presentation of Results 1 2 3 4
Discussions/Implications 1 2 3 4
Conclusions & Recommendations 1 2 3 4
Clarity of Verbal (Oral)Presentation 1 2 3 4
Quality of Presentation 1 2 3 4
Content and Organization 1 2 3 4
Total Score:

Comments:

Assessment Interpretation Overall

Scale Assessment
(tick one)
38 - 40 Excellent, passed with distinction. No corrections necessary. [ ]
34 - 37 Good, passed. Minor corrections necessary. [ ]
29 - 33 Fair, passed. Major corrections necessary. [ ]
28 and below Fail, work unacceptable as presented. [ ]
Indicate reason(s) for failure & where revision should begin.

Comments:
Assessor’s Signature: _____________________________________Date: ______________

180
 Adventist University of Africa
Grade Form for Advisers of SPS Students
(Return this Form to the Programme Leader)

Name of Student

Research
Programme Date
Type

Role Name of Adviser Signature of Adviser*

*By signing and submitting this Grade Form, I certify that the work of this student is
completed and approved by me. The work conforms to the requirements of the SPS
Research Handbook in content, style and format. The AUA may affix my signature to the
Approval Page.

Please insert the letter grade only using the grading scale below. The appropriate grade
points will be derived and the final grade will be automatically calculated for you.

Criterion Letter Grade Grade Points

Sentence and paragraph structure
Format of headings, spacing, pagination
Organization of ideas
Clear introduction and relevant conclusions
Critical thinking and originality
Contribution to scholarship and profession
Grammar, spelling, punctuation
Use of quotations and referencing
Appropriate research language
Final Letter Grade

181
 Grading Scale
Letter Honor Points
Definition
Grade
A Outstanding 4.00
A
Excellent 3.67
-
B Above
3.33
+ Average
B Average 3.00
B Below
2.67
- Average
C
Weak 2.33
+
C Poor 2.00
C
Failing 1.67
-
D Failing 1.00
F Failing 0.00

Thank you for your advisement to this AUA student!

Your Adviser Honorarium will be paid within eight weeks of the student's
graduation.

182
Submission Form

183
 Adventist University of Africa
Printing and Binding Form

Student

Surname: _____________________________First Name: __________________________

Type:  Dissertation  Thesis  Project Programme: _________________

Research Title:
__________________________________________________________________________
__________________________________________________________________________

Primary Adviser: _____________________ Secondary Adviser: ______________________

Declaration of Originality and Research Ethics

Read this statement carefully. Your signature below signifies that the following is true.
I hereby declare and signify that I know the AUA policies on plagiarism and have taken all
caution to uphold the ethics of research and writing. Further, I submit that if it is found that I
have violated the principles of research ethics, writing and academic integrity, the
University shall nullify my research and also apply other appropriate sanctions.

Student Signature: ____________________________ Date: _________________________

One (1) copy of your dissertation/thesis/project will be printed and bound for display in the collection
of the Judith Thomas Library at AUA. Your account at AUA will be charged for the printing and
binding of the book. The Editor will send you a soft copy of your approved paper and the printing
instructions for the AUA binding format that you can use if you want to have a personal copy of your
paper printed and bound by the printer of your choice.
Disclaimer: By submitting this Form, you accept the AUA policy that all research may be
made available online through the Library. You should contact your Dean and request to be
exempted if you feel your research is sensitive and should not be made available.
******************BELOW FOR OFFICE USE ONLY*************************
Programme Leader to complete Grade Information before Submission of Form

Primary Adviser Grade: ________________Secondary Adviser Grade: ________________

Defence Grade: __________ Final Grade ________ Grade submitted? Yes  No

Project/Thesis/Dissertation Approval Signatures

Title Purpose Signature Date
Programme Leader Grade Record and Approval for
Submission to Research Director
Editor Approval of Editing

Research Director Approval for Submission to Dean

Dean Final Approval of

Project/Thesis/Dissertation

Form Revision: September 2020

184
 The End
Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof: and the patient in spirit is
better than the proud in spirit. --Ecclesiastes 7:8, KJV

185