THESIS WRITING

FOR
( POST GRADUATE MEDICAL STUDENTS )

Dr.T.V.Rao MD

DR.T.V.RAO MD 1
 WHAT IS A THESIS / DISSERTATION
• A dissertation or
thesis[ is a document
submitted in support of
candidature for an
academic degree or
professional
qualification presenting
the author's research
and findings.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 2
 WHY WRITE A THESIS?
• It is the contribution you
make to the academic
community
• You all have to suffer
like we too suffered !

• In the process, you will

learn
• How to research
• How to write

DR.T.V.RAO MD 3
 WHY WRITE A THESIS?
Does make you famous
• Unlikely – yes
• Look at the statistics and the
Seniors Work

• It will radically change

science
• Unlikely
• Look at the statistics

DR.T.V.RAO MD 4
 WHAT A THESIS CREATES
• What I did in the lab over
the last 2 to 3 years
• I first read the background
material
• I then implemented an
algorithm
• I did some practical work
• …
• A thesis is a logical
reconstruction
• Not a historical narrative

DR.T.V.RAO MD 5
 HOW A DISSERTATION IS CONDUCTED
• A postgraduate conducts
research on a problem
relevant to medical
specality under the
guidance of Faculty
Members and submits a
protocol/synopsis in the
end of 1st year and the
final dissertation at the end
of 2½ years.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 6
A THESIS IS AN ORIGINAL CONTRIBUTION TO
KNOWLEDGE
• An advisor/ guide will expect that:

• You have identified a worthwhile problem or

question which has not been previously
answered ?
• You have solved the problem or answered the
question or at least contributed some facts for
better understanding on the topic selected.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 7
 WHO SELECTS THE THESIS TOPIC
GUIDE OR STUDENT ?
On many occasions guide suggest
some topics with better
understanding, knowing very well
the facilities available in the
Laboratory / Hospitals.
The student has also important role
in accepting what has been
suggested,
Impracticable outdated ideas of
guides is catastrophic both to
the students and to the
department.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 8
 CONFLICTS IN GUIDE AND STUDENT
RELATIONS
• A non committed students and a
irrational guides are the real areas
of conflict what we see in the
working environment .
• Todays youth too are intelligent
wise and well informed they can
understand strengths and
weakness of the guides in few
days of joining the Department
• Even guides should practice
the policy of Humble to
learn and wise to teach

DR.T.V.RAO MD 9
 INTRODUCTION TO THESIS
 An average introduction should
build up the logic why it was
necessary to conduct the study
 An average Introduction should
be approx. 5 A4 pages, double
spaced, Times NR, Font size 12
 An Introduction may
contain Figures needed
to build up the logic.
These should have a
legend mentioning the
Source, Year of
publication

DR.T.V.RAO MD 10
 CHOOSING A TOPIC – TOO DIFFICULT A TASK ?

DR.T.V.RAO MD 11
 SCOPE AND OBJECTIVES
 An aim or aims should be 1-3 sentences and as concise
as possible:
Examples:
• The present study aims at evaluating the Carbapenemase
resistance in ICU patients.
Or:
* The present study was conducted to study the prevalence
of Carbapenemase resistance in severely ill patients.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 12
 WHAT YOU CHOOSE FOR
DISSERTATION
• Do remember easier topics
difficult to work with
• Do never select an
outdated work, as you have
to remain in the
Profession for > 4
decades
• Your desertion is the reflection of
your hands on experience,
• Avoid topics which do not give
adequate and modern skills

DR.T.V.RAO MD 13
 CAN INTERNET SEARCH SOLVE THE
PROBLEM OF WRITING A GOOD THESIS
• Many postgraduates usually
search on the internet to find out
information for any thesis. They
find it interesting and obviously
there is no place better than
internet where they can find all
the relevant information.
However, the students are
not aware of the contents
and patterns and often
end up writing down
something absolutely
meaningless.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 14
 SELECTING THE RIGHT TOPIC MAKES A
GREAT CONTRIBUTION
• lot of research and hard work
can make a thesis relevant and
good. The topic must be
something that has some
importance to our society and
something that can be helpful
to evaluate your excellence..
• Vague ideas and concepts
won't work in your thesis. You
need to think plenty of times
about the whole thing. You
must understand that people
must connect with your
research

DR.T.V.RAO MD 15
 WHO ARE THESIS COMMITTEE
MEMBERS
• Who should be on
your committee?
• Ideally you and your
supervisor will come to a
mutual decision and
present with consent
• Important, well-known
researchers,unbaised
teachers
DR.T.V.RAO MD 16
 A GOOD THESIS REFLECTS HOW MUCH YOU
ARE CREATIVE
• How you see the world and what
you think about it must be reflected
in your thesis. This is something
where your thoughts need to be
reflected. That is why choosing the
topic is very crucial. If you are
planning to write down a thesis
on Medical or basic
sciences, then you must
understand even the smallest
things. You need not be a master
of that. You just need to be clear
about the whole concept. Your
enthusiasm and passion must be
there. Otherwise everything will be
a sheer waste of time .

DR.T.V.RAO MD 17
 WHAT IS A THESIS STATEMENT?

• A thesis statement is a sentence used in an essay

that serves as the guide for the essay and directly
answers the question or task asked of you.
• A thesis statement express the
main idea of your paper.

DR.T.V.RAO MD 18
 THE MAIN SECTIONS… IN THESIS
 Introduction
 Aims (in most cases ‘objectives’ = aims with specific targets to achieve)
*****
 A review of the relevant literature
 Methods
 Results
 Discussion
 Summary
 References
 Appendices

NOTE ***** indicates topics which the dissertation committee may especially
like to re-evaluate

DR.T.V.RAO MD 19
 APART FROM THE SECTIONS FROM
START TO END A THESIS MAY HAVE:
 The Title page
 An inscription/dedication
 Certificate
 Declaration
 Acknowledgments
 Abstract (******)
 The contents page (including the contents of Appendices)
 Introduction
 Aims (and Objectives ****)
 A review of the relevant literature
 NOTE ***** indicates topics which the dissertation committee may
especially like to re-evaluate

DR.T.V.RAO MD 20
 ….CONTINUED
 Methods (or Materials, and another Section for Methods, or
Materials and Methods ******)
 Results, including Tables, Figures
 Discussion
 Summary
 References
 Appendices – usually 2: *******
- Appendix A: Materials used in testing
- Appendix B: Original Data which could also include computer
printouts of waveforms, graphs…
NOTE ***** indicates topics which the dissertation committee
may especially like to re-evaluate
DR.T.V.RAO MD 21
 COVER PAGE WITH UNIVERSITY LOGO &
A PHOTOGRAPH OF THE UNIVERSITY OFFICE BUILDING OR AS
ADVISED

 The title: In upper case, Arial, Font Size 16

 Name of the candidate: Sentence case, Name followed
by qualifying degree, Arial, Font Size 14
 Names of Guides: Names followed by degrees (standard
short forms, e.g., MD Ph.D. ), Arial, Font Size 14
 Name of the institution: In upper case, Arial, Font Size 16
 Can covers be different colors? *****
 Should covers be hard-binding and the front page
pasted? *****
 NOTE ***** indicates topics which the dissertation
committee may especially like to re-evaluate

DR.T.V.RAO MD 22
 THE TITLE PAGE INSIDE THE THESIS
 Do we still need to standardize the format? ****
 The title: In upper case, Times NR, Font Size 16
 Name of the candidate: Sentence case, Name followed by
qualifying degree, Times NR, Font Size 14
 Names of Guides: Names in Sentence case, followed by
degrees (standard short forms, e.g., MD ( Microbiology )
 Names of Dissertation Committee members in Sentence case,
followed by degrees, Times NR, Font Size 14
 Names of Doctoral students who assisted in Sentence case,
Times NR, Font Size 12 *****

DR.T.V.RAO MD 23
 ….WHAT EACH SECTION SHOULD CONTAIN…..
Inscriptions/ Dedications:
This is, of course, optional and depends on the
candidate. As far as possible a dedication or inscription
should not be corrected or modified. However it is
necessary to check that there are no obvious
grammatical/spelling errors or that a quotation is not
misquoted
Certificate & Declaration – the format are standardized

DR.T.V.RAO MD 24
 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS….
 It is very important to be clear who may be acknowledged
when writing a thesis – as compared to compiling a
manuscript…
OBVIOUS INCLUSIONS:
• Guides, Dissertation committee members
• Assistance received for laboratory tests, statistical analysis,
compilation, library searches
• Sources of funding both Institutional (to be mentioned in all
cases), other funds
OPTIONAL (for a thesis not a manuscript)
• Family and friends

DR.T.V.RAO MD 25
 THE MAIN SECTIONS…..A FEW
DETAILS
Each Section begins on a fresh page
Section Titles should be in Times New Roman
font, Font size 14, centered, bold, upper case
After each Section Title the first Para of each
Section should be left aligned & not be indented;
subsequent pares are to be indented

DR.T.V.RAO MD 26
 REVIEW OF THE RELEVANT
LITERATURE
 This Section should contain relevant references from
1. Traditional texts (ending with a clear link to
experimental research)
2. Early publications (e.g., books, Indexed Journals )
3. Recent publications – preferably publications, also
books
4. Tabulate the most relevant references at the end of the
Section

DR.T.V.RAO MD 27
 MATERIALS AND METHODS
 This Section has been called:
Methods/ Materials and Methods/
Methods as one Section and
Materials as another – we can
use METHODS *****
 The Methods Section
varies according to the type
of study. This presentation
includes a standard
description for an
experimental study
conducted with Human
Subjects.
DR.T.V.RAO MD 28
 RESULTS
 This main Section should be very concise
 It should include – what was found – mentioning the level
of significance and other information considered relevant
depending on the test used
 Mention the effect size
 Tables
 Graphs
 Information in Tables & Graphs should NOT duplicate
each other

DR.T.V.RAO MD 29
 RESULTS, TABLES
Tables should be numbered in Arabic Numerals
Each Table should have a comprehensive heading
– this should begin on the next line after the Table
No. Headings should be in Times NR (like the rest
of the text), Font size 12, Bold, Sentence case
Each Table should indicate significant changes
with asterisks
The level of significance (e.g., * = p<.05…) should
be mentioned below the Table, Times NR, Font
size 12, Bold
DR.T.V.RAO MD 30
 RESULTS, FIGURES
Figures should not duplicate data given in Tables
Figures should be numbered in Arabic numerals
Every Figure should have a legend written below it
in Times NR, font size 12, bold, sentence case
The units for all numbers should be provided in SI
units (e.g., length – meter (m), time – second (s),
frequency – cycles per second (Hz)

DR.T.V.RAO MD 31
 DISCUSSION
 This is a very important Section!
 It should attempt to describe what the study found &
possible reasons for the findings
 How the findings differ/are similar to those described
earlier – and reasons for differences if any
 Obvious drawbacks of the study design (etc.) and how
these could have influenced the outcome
 Implications of the findings
 Applications of the finding
 Sub-sections depending on variables studied, integrating
the discussion on each at the end

DR.T.V.RAO MD 32
 SUMMARY
 This Section should ideally ‘Stand Alone’ – if anyone reads
it they would know why the study was done, what was done,
what was found..
 It should include:
1. The Background (1-2 sentences)
2. The Aim
3. The Methods
4. Results
5. Implications
6. Drawbacks
7. Directions for future research

DR.T.V.RAO MD 33
 WELL DONE THESIS HAS A MESSAGE

• If You’re tackling an
important research
problem
• You’ve made an original
contribution to its
resolution
• E.g. If you have
attempted uncommon
problem with sincerity

DR.T.V.RAO MD 34
 WELL WRITTEN THESIS ….
 Concise, yet clear
(scientific writing should
avoid long sentences)
 Attention to grammar,
punctuation
 Attention to details (for
example, terms written in a
language other than
English should be in italics)

DR.T.V.RAO MD 35
 PRESENTED WELL…SIMPLE,
YET IMPORTANT
 Titles, sub-titles, sub-sub-titles (differences in case, font
size, bold/underlined/italics, centered or indented or not-
indented)
 Indentation, line spacing
 Fonts (thesis-writers should be discouraged from using
fonts other than Times NR/ Arial); Font size 12, 14
 Bold/Italics/Underlined
 Using the customary sections, using the appropriate
terms (for e.g., references rather than bibliography)

DR.T.V.RAO MD 36
 WHAT IS A ACCURATE,
COMPLETE…THESIS
Figures should have a legend regarding the
source from which they are reproduced
References cited in the text & in the reference list
should NOT have any discrepancies (e.g. authors’
names, year..)
Material used for assessments (e.g.,
questionnaires, recording sheets should be
provided in an Appendix)

DR.T.V.RAO MD 37
 WHAT A THESIS ISN’T?
• A brain dump of everything
you’ve done
• You get to leave out the
dead-ends
• But you have to fill in any
obvious gaps!

• A thesis is should be
logical reconstruction
• With a single coherent
message

DR.T.V.RAO MD 38
 AN IDEAL THESIS SHOULD…..
• Have ‘sound stuff’
• Be well written
• Be presented well
• Be accurate,
complete

DR.T.V.RAO MD 39
 BE BRAVE TO DEFEND YOUR
THESIS / DISSERTATION
• Don’t panic
• You’re probably the expert on
this topic by now!
• Your examiners may not be
experts in your area of work
however you are
• Your examiners are human
• They’ve sat in your seat
• They will help you find what
changes (if any) are needed
to make this the required
quality

DR.T.V.RAO MD 40
 WHAT ARE EXAMINERS LOOKING FOR?
• Review of literature • Methodology
• Is the literature relevant? • Is there a clear hypothesis?

• Is the review critical or • Are precautions taken

against bias?
just descriptive?
• Are the limitations
• Is it comprehensive? identified?
• Does it link to the • Is the data collected
methodology in the appropriately?
thesis? • Is the methodology
justified?
• Does it summarize the
essential aspects?
DR.T.V.RAO MD 41
 WHAT ARE EXAMINERS LOOKING FOR?
• Presentation of results
• Have the hypotheses in fact
been tested?
• Are the results shown to support
the hypothesis?
• Is the data properly analyzed?
• Are the results presented
clearly?
• Are patterns identified and
summarized?
DR.T.V.RAO MD
• Discussion and Conclusions
• Are the limits of the research
identified?
• Are the main points to emerge
identified?
• Are links made to the literature?
• Is there theoretical
development?
• Are the speculations well
grounded?
42
WHAT WE SHOULD DO AFTER COMPLETING THESIS

• You’ve finished writing &

defending your thesis
• What do you do next?
• Turn it into a book
now possible to
publish as e-book
• Publish some journal
articles around it…

DR.T.V.RAO MD 43
TEACHERS SHOULD BE PRACTICAL
• As we pass through years of
change there is change in
education, students are wise
learn what is useful to them
which can bring them
materialistic gains and
academic upliftment
• Teachers should be creative
to select futuristic topics
then only our Departments
flourish

DR.T.V.RAO MD 44
 WHAT TO EXPECT FROM YOUR
GUIDE / MENTOR

• Intellectual support
• Quality assurance
• What standard a thesis
should reach
• Indication of when to stop
• Emotional support
• Encouragement
• Constructive atmosphere

DR.T.V.RAO MD 45
GUIDING TOO MUCH IS CATASTROPHIC
• The guides should be wise to guide the
students,
• Too much and unnecessary guidance will
expose the ignorance of guides sooner if
not later.
• Human relations are more important as
our students are colleagues tomorrow.
• Best dissertations and research is created
when guide knows the his job well done
• Practice the best policy as guide
• 1 Speech is silver
• 2 Silence is gold
• 3 If you talk with Knowledge and
wisdom it is PLATINUM.
• Dr.T.V.Rao MD

DR.T.V.RAO MD 46
 YOUR DEDICATED THESIS WORK HAS
SUPPORT OF……….. THANK THEM

DR.T.V.RAO MD 47
 WITH DEDICATION TO MANY HELPED IN MY
THESIS
• The programme is possible with unselfish dedication of my
Professor and Guide Dr.B Raja Rao MD, Late Dr.Saroja
Venugopal MD and all the Faculty and Non Teaching Staff
members of the Microbiology Department of Andhra
Medical College, Visakhapatnam ( A P ) India and The
Director and all Scientific Community at National Institute of
Enteric Diseases , ICMR Kolkata. Never to be forgotten the
help of Dr.T.N Naik PhD to train me and elevate me from
darkness to light with wisdom and selfless service
Dr.T.V.Rao MD

DR.T.V.RAO MD 48
 VISIT ME FOR MORE TOPICS OF INTEREST IN
MEDICINE AND MICROBIOLOGY

DR.T.V.RAO MD 49
 • Created by Dr. T.V.Rao MD for ‘e’ learning
resources for Medical Students in the
Developing World
• Email
• doctortvrao@gmail.com

DR.T.V.RAO MD 50