RESEARCH_THESIS_ORGANIZATION

SEMINAR-WORKSHOP ON
THESIS/RESEARCH
MENTORING
By:
KENNETH D. CLAUDIO, MBM
Research Director
A.Y. 2020-2021
What is Research and Why Do It?
What?
Investigation of a problem in
scientific manner
Discovery of a solution that
advances state of knowledge in
areas from theory to algorithms to
prototypes to experimentation to
applications
Systematic investigative process
of collecting and analyzing
information to increase our
understanding of the phenomenon
under study.
What is Research and Why Do It?
Why?
Create, have fun,
play
Invent, be on leading edge
of discovery, be a scientist.
Transfer discoveries to
benefit society
Work in interesting and

rewarding careers
Plan for a research
career not only for
a research project!
Classification of Research by
Purpose
1.Basic research
2.Applied research
3.Evaluation research
4.Research and Development
5.Action research
Classification of Research by Methods
A.Quantitative
1.Descriptive
2.Correlational
3.Causal-comparative
4.Experimental research
B.Qualitative
1.Narrative
2.Ethnographic research
Ethical Considerations in Conducting
Research
 Respecting the rights of the participants
Honoring research sites
Reporting research fully and honestly

STEPS IN ADVISING
THESES/RESEARCHES
1. Choosing a Research Area
Criteria
 Exciting and interesting area TO YOU!
 Important problems in area
 Research type is suitable to you
Ways to identify a research area

 Take courses, attend seminars and colloquia
 Talk to professors, visitors, other students
 Consider both applied and theoretical areas
 Read widely
 Learn about yourself, what you like, etc.
 Solve some research problems
2. Identifying a Thesis Problem
You need to be an expert in your area
•Read papers
•Use papers’ references to get to original papers
•Keep an annotated bibliography of papers, note
•Main contribution
•Open questions
•How it relates to your interests, work
•Talk to experts
•At conferences and workshops
•Attend talks, etc.
•Carry a notebook to record notes, thoughts, etc.
•Question previous works’ assumptions
2. Come up with a TOPIC
Persevere—You Will Find a Topic

“ Every morning I would sit down
before a blank sheet of paper.
Throughout the day, with brief
interval for lunch, I would stare at
the blank sheet. Often when evening
came it was still empty… It seemed
quite likely that the whole of the rest
of my life might be consumed in
looking at that blank sheet of
paper…” (Bertrand Russell,
autobiography)
Remember that drive distinguishes the great

scientists (but brains help …)
Some Ways to
Find a Topic
•There is no “one size fits all”
•But, here are six common ways to

find a topic
1) A Flash of Brilliance
• You wake up one day with a new

insight/idea
• New approach to solve an important open
problem
 Warnings:
 This rarely happens if at all
 Even if it does, you may not be able to find
an advisor who agrees

2) The Term Project +
• You take a project course that gives
you a new perspective
– E.g., theory for systems and vice
versa
• The project/paper combines your
research project with the course
project
 Warnings:
 This may be too incremental
3) Re-do & Re-invent
• You work on some projects

– Re-implement or re-do
– Identify an improvement, algorithm,
proof
• You have now discovered a topic
 Warnings:
 You may be without “a topic” for a long time
 It may not be a topic worthy of a College
thesis
4) The Apprentice
• Your advisor has a list of topics

• Suggests one (or more!) that you can work on
• Can save you a lot of time/anxiety
 Warnings:
 Don’t work on something you find boring, badly-
motivated,…
 Several students may be working on the
same/related problem
5) 5 papers = Thesis
• You work on a number of small topics

that turn into a series of conference
papers
– E.g., you figure out how to apply a
technique (e.g., branch and bound) to
optimize performance tradeoffs
 Warnings:
 May be hard to tie into a thesis
 May not have enough impact

6) Idea From A B
• You read some papers from other

subfields/fields
• Apply this insight to your (sub)field to
your own
– E.g., graph partitioning to compiler
optimizations
 Warnings:
 You can read a lot of papers and not find a
connection
 Or realize someone has done it already!
3. Come up a review of Related
literature/studies
• Background Theories
• Empirical Studies
– International Studies
– Asian Studies
– Local Studies
• Research Gap
• Theoretical/Conceptual Framework
• Definition of Terms
– Conceptual and Operational
4. Finalize the Statement of the
Problem (SOP)
• Heart of the study
• The content of Chapter IV
GENERAL STATEMENT
– EX. The study aims to….
SPECIFIC STATEMENT
– In the form of question.
5. Scope and delimitation
SCOPE
Identifies the boundaries of
the study in terms of subjects,
objectives,
facilities,
area,
time frame, and
the issues
to which the research is
focused.
Sample phrases that help express the

SCOPE of the study:
The coverage of the study…….

The study consist of …….
The study covers the …….
This study is focus on ………
DELIMITATION
•Delimits study by geographic location, age,

sex, population traits, population size, or
other similar considerations.
•Identifies the constraints or weaknesses of

your study which are not within the control of
the researcher.
Sample phrases that expressed the

delimitation of the study:
The study does not cover the …….

The researcher limited this research
to …..
This study is limited to ………
6. Significance of the study
To the Industry….
To the Company…
To the Academe…
To the Researcher…
7. Methodology
 Research Design
 Locale of the Study
 Respondents and Informants
 Research Instruments
 Data Analysis
8. Results and discussion: Presenting the
findings of your study
1.Illustrations provide visual information.

2.Effective illustrations improve the
readability of a scientific paper as they
make a visual impact.
3.Prepare legends and label illustrations
clearly so that they are easy to
understand.
4.Narratives.
(Librando, 2010)
9. Summary
It’s a brief description of the

study objective and the
significant findings.
10. CONCLUSION
Brief validation of the

outcome/result of the study.
11. RECOMMENDATION
Recommended course of
action based on the findings
12. REFERENCES
Recommended APA format

CHAPTER 1: The Problem
• Background of the Study

• Statement of the Problem
• Significance of the Study
• Scope and Delimitations
CHAPTER 2: Review of Related Literature and
Theoritical/Conceptual Framework
• Background Theories
• Empirical Studies
– International/Global Studies
– Asian Studies
– Local Studies
• Research Gap
• Theoretical/Conceptual Framework
• Definition of Terms
CHAPTER 3: Research Methodology
 Research Design
 Locale of the Study
 Respondents and Informants
 Research Instruments
 Data Analysis
CHAPTER 4: Results and Discussion
CHAPTER 5: Summary of the Findings,

Conclusion and Recommendations
Thank you!

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SEMINAR-WORKSHOP ON

Work in interesting and

 Respecting the rights of the participants

Honoring research sites

Reporting research fully and honestly

Ways to identify a research area

Persevere—You Will Find a Topic

Remember that drive distinguishes the great

•But, here are six common ways to

• You wake up one day with a new

 Even if it does, you may not be able to find

an advisor who agrees

• You work on some projects

 It may not be a topic worthy of a College

• Your advisor has a list of topics

• You work on a number of small topics

 May not have enough impact

• You read some papers from other

Sample phrases that help express the

The coverage of the study…….

•Delimits study by geographic location, age,

•Identifies the constraints or weaknesses of

Sample phrases that expressed the

The study does not cover the …….

1.Illustrations provide visual information.

It’s a brief description of the

Brief validation of the

Recommended APA format

• Background of the Study

CHAPTER 5: Summary of the Findings,

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