THESIS GUIDELINE

FOR UNDERGRADUATE STUDENTS

ENGLISH VERSION

October, 2024

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 Research Manual Guide

PREFACE

This manual is intended to guide Galmudug State University students through the research and
thesis-writing process for their undergraduate degrees. It covers the essential steps of research,
including registration, supervisor roles, and technical formatting requirements. The manual
ensures that research is conducted and presented in a standard academic format, from the
development of the proposal to the final defense and submission of the thesis.

SECTION A: Policies Research Project

1. Registration for the Project

Students must meet specific requirements, including completing their research methodology
course, to register for their final project. The student is assigned a supervisor who must approve
the project proposal.

2. Supervisor's Role

Students cannot choose their Supervisor but Supervisors are assigned the research Department
to guide students through their research and must approve the final report. The student must
work closely with the supervisor and submit periodic progress reports.

3. Project Completion Steps

 Regular meetings with the supervisor.

 Submission of drafts for feedback.

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  Revisions based on feedback and approval from a panel.
 Oral defense and final submission.

4. Project Result

The oral defense committee ( Panel) evaluates the project and assigns a grade: either
"Satisfactory (S)" or "Unsatisfactory (U)." If unsuccessful, the student can retake the oral
defense once.

5. Supervisor's Responsibilities

Supervisors ensure that students complete their projects, attend regular meetings, and adhere
to timelines. They also assist in evaluating the oral defense.

6. Faculty Role

The faculty oversees the entire research process, organizes the oral defense, and evaluates the
final project.

7. Plagiarism

Plagiarism and falsifying data are unacceptable and may result in suspension for one full
Semester.

SECTION B: Technical Requirements

1. Language and Format

The thesis must be written in American English, using A4 paper with 12-point Times New
Roman font. Pages must be double-spaced with specific margins and headings in bold.

2. Headings

Chapter headings, which is all textual, should be centered and written in uppercase bold. The
font size for chapter headings should be 14 point. Subheadings can be 12 fonts size.

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3. Page Numbering

Avery single paper of the project book must be numbered, bottom center except for the title
page which is counted but not numbered. For preliminary pages, use the small roman numerals.

4. Citations

In-text citations should follow APA format, e.g., (Freud, 1900). All sources must appear in the
reference list in alphabetical order.

5. References

References should begin on a new page. Title the new page "References" and centre the title
text at the top of the page and must organized as alphabetical order.

SECTION C: SUBMISSION AND LENGTH OF THE PROPOSAL AND PROJECT

SUBMISSION AND LENGTH OF THE PROPOSAL

A proposal for the research should be not less than 20 pages excluding appendices.

 The proposal is submitted to the Research department or any assigned person or office
for this

purpose

 The Research department will forward your proposal to the committee panel for
further evaluation
 After evaluation, the department will communicate a schedule for presenting the

proposal.

 After presenting the proposal, an “Approval letter” and “introduction letter” will be
issued for the researcher if the proposal succeeds after making minor or major
amendments recommended by the evaluation panel

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NB: The content of the research proposal will normally end at chapter three and its contents
are usually written in the future tense. The references, research instruments and other
essential appendices will however, come immediately after this chapter.

SUBMISSION AND LENGTH OF THE THESIS

 The thesis/report should be not less than 50 pages

 Submission of research report/thesis has to be done within the candidature period. The
candidate should submit one copy of the book in soft PDF or (CD-ROM / DVD) and
Five (4) hardbound copies of the book

SECTION D: Project Elements And Project Report Sequences

Project Elements

The project book should be organized in the following manner:

i. TITLE PAGE
ii. ABSTRACT (in English and Somali)
iii. DECLARATION
iv. DEDICATION PAGE (OPTIONAL)
v. TABLE OF CONTENTS
vi. LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
vii. LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS
viii. BODY OF THE TEXT
ix. REFERENCE
x. APPENDICES

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 Title Page

The Cover page must include the thesis title, student name, department, and year of submission
in uppercase, 18-point font.

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 THE IMPACT OF CLAN CONFLICT ON
DEVELOPMENT INITIATIVES IN SOMALIA: A CASE
STUDY OF GALMUDUG

By
[Your Name]

A GRADUATION PROJECT SUBMITTED IN

PARTIAL FULFILLMENTS OF THE
REQUIREMENTS

FOR THE DEGREE IN BACHELOR OF NURSING

FACULTY OF HEALTH SCIENCE

GALMUDUG STATE UNIVERSITY

MAY, 2025
Supervisor: MAHAD SALAD.M

APROVAL SIGNATURE__________________________

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 Abstract

The abstract is a concise summary of the research, including the introduction, methods, and
key findings. It should not exceed 250 words.

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 DECLARATION

I, ____________________________, declare that my thesis titled

“................................................................” is my original work and, to the best of my
knowledge, has not been submitted for any academic award at another institution. I also affirm
that all secondary sources used have been properly cited in this dissertation.

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 CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.0 INTRODUCTION

This section outlines what will be covered in this chapter.

1.1 BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY

The Research background highlights the importance, relevance, and theoretical

framework needed for the research. It provides a comprehensive overview of the current
conditions surrounding the study problem at local, national, and global scales. This aims
to clarify the study's focus and engage the readers' interest. Additionally, the
background addresses three key perspectives.

1. Historical (global, regional and national level)

2. Theoretical/applications
3. Conceptual and Contextual perspectives.

The length of the background varies for the proposal and reporting of the project.

1.2 STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

In this section of the project proposal/report, the study problem addressed by the study is clearly
delineated. The problem addressed by the study can have one or more of several forms. It could
be that some existing theories or models seem not to be working as previously held. It also may
be that some phenomena had been understudied in previous studies and thus requires a closer
look. Or there may be a serious situation that requires a more specific profound study.
Furthermore, the students should show that;

1. The problem is so serious that study is worth undertaking by including opinions of

professionals or academics or politicians.

2. The problem is connected to business, technological, political and social issues by presenting
relevant data.

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Finally the student must be able to summarize the study problem statement in a single sentence.

1.3 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

In this part of the project book, the researcher is required to clarify the need for the current
research. Why is it necessary after all? The broader goals that need to be attained at the
conclusion of the study must be shown clear cut.

1.4 RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

The objectives are the narrow goals that derive from the overall purpose of the study. They
include the specific goals to be reached after carrying out the research. Furthermore, the
research objectives themselves must be attainable at the basic level. The aim is like where you
intend to go to, while objectives represent the specific steps taken to reach that place.

1.5 RESEARCH QUESTIONS/ HYPOTHESIS

1.5.1 Research questions

Questions serve as the tools utilised to enquire into the situations described in the research
problems. There can be any number of questions, but they must be focused on the one specific
research problem. There should be some agreement between research objectives and questions.

1.5.2 Hypotheses

Hypotheses are formulated prior to running statistical tests to prove or disprove existing
theories and explanations. If there is no intention to carry out statistical tests, propositions and
assumptions can suffice. Consult your supervisor whether it is appropriate to use hypotheses.

1.6 THE SCOPE OF THE STUDY

The scope identifies the boundaries within which the study is being conducted. Such limits as
content, geography and the period within which the research is conducted form the basic
research scopes which have to be clearly identified and observed.
1.7 SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

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Significance or importance of the study claims that the study is necessary for the improvement
over the existing conditions. The results of your research must help improve the knowledge,
practice and policy conditions of the prevailing context.

1.8 Limitations of the Study

The study's findings may be limited by the sample size, potential biases in self-reported data,
and the specific geographically and so on.

1.9 Operational definitions of variables

The operationalization of the variables at hand is important for delineating the measured
aspects of the study. For instance, if your research has a variable called size, you need to define
how you measure the size. Is it in terms of number of employees, total company assets or
market capitalization or sales volume?

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 CHAPTER TWO
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

2.0 INTRODUCTION

This section outlines what will be covered in this chapter.

2.1 CONCEPTS, OPINIONS, OR IDEAS FROM AUTHORS/EXPERTS

This Section Summarize what previous literature has discussed regarding the topic being
studied. The writing should reflect the student's voice while maintaining the original ideas of
the authors. Literature citations should be organized in the following order: international,
regional, and then local perspectives. The student should focus only on points relevant to the
current study and align them with the research questions, objectives, or hypotheses. The chapter
concludes with a discussion of the literature gap, highlighting what past research has failed to
address or where inconsistencies exist.

2.1.1 Theoretical / Conceptual/Applications Perspectives

This section deals with the theory or theories chosen as a guideline for variable identification.
The theory must be introduced first. Make sure the papers cited are authored by the leading
researchers in the field. In the case where theory is certainly not available to be selected,
conceptual framework with literature support must be constructed. Make sure that the
interactions of your variables are shown in a figure.

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 CHAPTER THREE

METHODOLOGY

3.0 Introduction

This section outlines what will be covered in this chapter.

3.1 RESEARCH DESIGN

This part explains the strategy needed to achieve the research goals. It should indicate whether
a qualitative or quantitative approach will be used. The section must also describe the method
for collecting data, such as experiments, surveys, interviews, or content analysis. The choice
of method will depend on whether the study requires primary or secondary data.

3.2 RESEARCH POPULATION

The population that contains the subjects for the study must be identified. This could be number
of years, companies, transactions, people, or any other similarly observable phenomena. The
selected number of things for study will form the target population. Description of the target
population and why it is chosen is also required.

3.2.1 Sample Size

The sample is a section within the bigger population selected for the study. This smaller section
is chosen normally because it is inconceivable in most of times to study each and every single
unit of the population. The rationale and procedure for sample size must be indicated together
with authoritative support.

3.2.2 Sampling Procedure

To arrive at appropriate number of subjects for study, sampling procedure technique is

employed. Such techniques as random sampling, purposive sampling or stratified sampling
may be used. The student must indicate the rationale behind the choice of the particular
sampling procedure applied with literature support.

3.3 RESEARCH INSTRUMENT

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The particular instrument chosen for data collection must be clearly indicated. The reason for
the choice plus literature support is also required. Instrument chosen can be a questionnaire,
interview, an index score or any other type of instrument.

3.3.1 Validity and Reliability of the Instrument

It is required that the instrument chosen can help acquire the data reliably. This must be clearly
indicated in this part of the book. The results obtained and conclusions drawn as a result of
using this particular instrument must be valid for academic and professional use. The validity
of the instrument can be ascertained by using the help of some experts in the fields studied.

3.4 DATA GATHERING PROCEDURES

This part of the book lays out the plan used to collect the data using the instrument chosen.
This is the time to mention the manner in which the data were acquired. For instance was it
collected by hand or is it a mailed questionnaire and so on? The level of response attained must
also be mentioned.

3.5 DATA ANALYSIS

The data collected above are then analyzed. The analysis is done through the use of some
techniques and applications. These need to be mentioned here: For instance, Microsoft Excel
2007 or SPSS version17.

3.6 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS

The confidentiality of the data collected must be preserved. If the data collected are sensitive
in nature the respondent firms and/or individuals must remain anonymous.

3.7 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY

The limitations of the study certainly limit the reliability of the results produced. These
limitations must be pronounced clearly in this section of the book. This is done to warn the
audience to place limited trust on the validity of the conclusions drawn.

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 CHAPTER FOUR

FINDINGS AND DISCUSSIONS

4.0 INTRODUCTION

This section outlines what will be covered in this chapter.

4.1 DEMOGRAPHIC DATA

In here the students are required to present the general makeup of the sample selected and the
nature of the data collected. Use of table for further clarification is an added advantage.

4.2 DATA PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS

In this part of the chapter, major analysis and presentation of the research data are presented in
detail.

4.2 MAJOR FINDINGS

In this part of the project, Start with narrative statements of the data in answer to the specific
research questions then a graphic or tabular presentation of the data, in addition, the major
findings are presented in summary form.

4.4 DISCUSSIONS

This paragraph analyzes and discusses the data collected. It should frequently reference past
research that has similar or differing findings and arguments. The researcher should explain
the interpretations and real-world implications of the results, considering similar studies.
Additionally, this part should highlight any agreements or disagreements between this study's
findings and those of other researchers. Essentially, the researcher needs to connect their work
with that of others. The findings are presented, but detailed statistics are usually not included.

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 CHAPTER FIVE

CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

5.0 INTRODUCTION

This section outlines what will be covered in this chapter.

5.1 CONCLUSIONS

After the data were collected, analyzed and discussed, then conclusion can be drawn. The
conclusion can be in a bulleted form or laid out in one or two paragraphs.

5.2 RECOMMENDATIONS

The recommendations come after the study was concluded. These recommendations may be
suitable for a variety of audiences such the academics, the industry and the public at large.

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REFERENCES

Guided by American Psychological Association (APA) version Five

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APPENDICES

APPENDIX A: INTRODUCTION LETTER

APPENDIX B: CLEARANCE FROM DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE
APPENDIX C: RESEARCH INSTRUMENTS

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