How to write a thesis outline your promotor will accept first time

Why promotors send outlines back

The most common reasons:

• The topic is too broad. “Marketing in modern companies” is a topic for a textbook, not a thesis.
• There is no aim. There are chapters, but it is unclear what question the thesis answers.
• The chapters are not connected. The theory is about one thing and the research about another.
• There is no research part, or it is mentioned in a single line.
• It does not fit the programme. The topic is interesting but does not match your field or the department’s profile.

All of these problems can be spotted and fixed before the outline reaches your promotor.

Step 1. Narrow down the topic

A good thesis topic is specific in three respects: what you are studying, where (what material, which organisation, which country) and when (the period). Compare:

If your topic has not yet been approved, it is a good idea to prepare two or three options and discuss them with your promotor. If you are unsure which to choose, you can book a topic selection consultation, including an analysis of which options you can realistically research within your deadlines.

Step 2. Define the aim (cel pracy) and research question

The aim (cel pracy) is a single sentence describing what the thesis sets out to discover or create. The research question (problem badawczy) is the same thing phrased as a question. For example:

• Aim: to identify which non-financial motivation tools have the greatest impact on employee retention in small IT companies.
• Question: which non-financial motivation tools do employees of small IT companies consider most important?

Master’s theses are often also expected to include hypotheses (hipotezy). Whether you need them depends on your field and your promotor.

Step 3. Choose a method

Your promotor wants to see exactly how you will answer the question. The options depend on your field:

• a survey (badanie ankietowe);
• interviews;
• analysis of documents or data;
• a case study of a specific company;
• an experiment, calculations or a design (for technical programmes).

The method has to be realistic: if you are planning a survey, think about where you will find respondents and how long it will take.

Step 4. Build the chapter structure

A typical outline for a bachelor’s thesis has three chapters; for a master’s thesis, three or four. Each chapter is divided into two to four sections. For more on the parts of a thesis, see our article on thesis structure.

A sample outline for a thesis on motivation:

1. Introduction
2. Chapter 1. Theoretical foundations of employee motivation
   • 1.1. The concept and types of motivation
   • 1.2. Theories of motivation
   • 1.3. Non-financial motivation tools
3. Chapter 2. Research methodology
   • 2.1. Aim, questions and hypotheses
   • 2.2. Method, research tool and sample
4. Chapter 3. Research findings
   • 3.1. Respondent profile
   • 3.2. Assessment of motivation tools
   • 3.3. Conclusions and recommendations
5. Conclusion
6. Bibliography, list of tables and figures, appendices

Check that every section serves the aim. If you could remove a section without changing anything, it may be unnecessary.

Step 5. Allocate the length of each chapter

Approximate proportions help both you and your promotor. An example for a 50-page thesis:

This is only an example. The actual length requirements are set by your department.

Step 6. Add starting sources to the outline

An outline with 5–10 relevant sources looks far more convincing than one with none. Ideally, these should include:

• Polish textbooks and monographs in your field;
• articles from academic journals (including English-language ones);
• reports, statistics (for example, from GUS, Statistics Poland) and legislation, if relevant to your topic.

If you do not know where to start looking, our academic sources for a thesis chapter service adds recent literature to a chapter you have already drafted.

Common mistakes in chapter and section titles

Even when the structure is right, an outline can be sent back because of its wording. Watch out for a few things:

• Chapter titles that repeat the topic. If the topic and the title of Chapter 3 are identical, your promotor may conclude that the chapter has no purpose of its own.
• Section titles without a clear subject. “Analysis”, “Research” or “Conclusions”, with no indication of what is being analysed, say nothing about the content.
• Chapter 3 titled something like “Practical part”. It is better to state outright what you are analysing: “Assessment of motivation tools at Company X”.
• The language of the outline. If the thesis is written in Polish, submit the outline in Polish too, using the accepted terminology of your field.

Read your outline aloud: every title should answer the question “What is this part about, and why is it in the thesis?”

How to submit the outline to your promotor

• Send the outline as a single file containing the topic, aim, method, chapters and sources.
• Add two or three sentences on why the topic interests you and where your data will come from.
• Ask specific questions: “Are three chapters enough?”, “Is a survey a suitable method?”
• If your promotor gave you feedback in person, write it down and send a short confirmation by email, which reduces the risk of misunderstandings.

If your outline has already been sent back without explanation, it can help to go through it with someone outside the process. You can get a free thesis outline or have your own outline checked against your department’s requirements; either way, the outline remains yours.

Changing the outline after it has been approved

An outline is a working document, not a contract. As you write, you often find that one section should be merged with another or that the research has produced unexpected results. That is normal. What matters is that any changes are agreed:

• tell your promotor about significant structural changes before you send a new chapter;
• explain the reason in a sentence or two — for example, a lack of data or a new source;
• update the outline in your thesis file so that the table of contents and introduction reflect the new structure.

Also check whether the change to the outline means the topic needs adjusting. At many universities the topic is officially approved, and changing it involves a separate procedure at the dean’s office.

Keep all versions of the outline, with dates. If someone asks at the end why the structure differs from the original, you will have a record of what was agreed.