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German University in Cairo
Faculty of Postgraduate Studies and Scientific Research
Master of Business Administration Program
Thesis Manual
May 2014
2
Table of Contents
MBA Thesis ........................................................................................................................ 4
Part I: Thesis Content Recommendations ........................................................................... 5
Cover Page ...................................................................................................................... 5
Abstract ........................................................................................................................... 5
Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 5
Literature Review............................................................................................................ 6
Research Question(s) ...................................................................................................... 8
Research Methodology ................................................................................................... 9
Results ........................................................................................................................... 10
Discussion ..................................................................................................................... 10
Limitations .................................................................................................................... 10
Recommendations ......................................................................................................... 10
Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 11
Part II: Thesis Formatting Style Requirements ................................................................. 12
Recommended Printing Houses .................................................................................... 12
Paper ............................................................................................................................. 12
Font ............................................................................................................................... 12
Spacing .......................................................................................................................... 12
Margins ......................................................................................................................... 13
Headings ....................................................................................................................... 13
Page Numbers ............................................................................................................... 13
Language ....................................................................................................................... 14
Parts and Sequence of the Manuscript .......................................................................... 15
Cover Page .................................................................................................................... 15
Dedication ..................................................................................................................... 16
Acknowledgements ....................................................................................................... 16
Abstract ......................................................................................................................... 16
Table of Contents .......................................................................................................... 16
List of Tables and Figures............................................................................................. 17
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List of Abbreviations .................................................................................................... 17
The Text ........................................................................................................................ 17
Tables and Figures ........................................................................................................ 17
Placement of Tables and Figures .................................................................................. 18
References ..................................................................................................................... 19
Arabic Translation of Abstract...................................................................................... 20
Appendix ....................................................................................................................... 20
Use of Copyrighted Material ........................................................................................ 20
Academic Integrity........................................................................................................... 20
Part III: Thesis Registration and Graduation Procedures ................................................. 21
Thesis Registration........................................................................................................ 21
Writing of the Thesis .................................................................................................... 21
Submission of the Thesis .............................................................................................. 22
Thesis Defense .............................................................................................................. 22
Graduation..................................................................................................................... 22
Appendix…………………………………………………………………………………23
4
MBA Thesis
1. The thesis is the culminating activity in the MBA program. As such, the thesis
should only be started after the student has completed all courses successfully.
Through the thesis, the student should demonstrate that he/she is able to conduct a
scientific investigation of business question/problem. The thesis need not
contribute new knowledge or insights; however it must be coherent and well
organized.
2. The amount of time exerted in the thesis project should not exceed a total of 120-
160 hours, while the document itself may range from 50 to 100 pages.
3. Although pure or fundamental research is accepted, students are encouraged to
work on applied research that solves a business problem. More specifically, we
recommend that the student use a scientific research methodology to
systematically investigate and solve a business problem in his or her workplace.
As such, many research methodologies including case studies are welcomed.
4. The criteria used to evaluate the thesis are:
a. Clear and precise research question(s).
b. A literature review that covers some of basic and state of the art relevant
literature.
c. A methodology section that discusses sampling, instruments and
procedures.
d. Use of proper scientific analysis methods.
e. Conclusions based on findings.
f. The document must be formatted according to the guidelines provided in
the thesis preparation manual.
g. Document free of language error.
This document is composed of four parts. The first part provides some recommendations
related to the content and language of the thesis. The second identifies the required
formatting style of the thesis document. The third explains the thesis registration and
graduation procedure. The last part (the appendix) contains all the necessary forms.
5
Part I: Thesis Content Recommendations
Cover Page
Contains short (not more than 15 words), descriptive title of the proposed thesis and
author, institution, thesis supervisor and date of delivery. Abbreviated terms should be
spelled out. Examples of good titles:
The Relationship Between Perceived Organizational Justice and Job
Satisfaction in Egypt
The Implementation of the 5S Methodology in an Egyptian Cement
Manufacturer
Abstract
The purpose of this section is to provide a brief and comprehensive summary of the
study. It should be accurate (do not include information here that is not in the body of the
manuscript), self-contained (spell out abbreviations), concise (250 word maximum), and
specific. As part of the theme of being concise, use digits for all numbers except when
they begin a sentence. Do not cite references in the abstract. Use active rather than
passive voice (but without personal pronouns). Use past tense for procedures and present
tense for results. It is a good idea to write this section last. Specifically, the abstract
should answer the following questions:
1. What is the purpose of the study?
2. What methodology was used?
3. What are the findings?
4. What is the value of the study?
Introduction
The main purpose of this section is to introduce your thesis to the reader. This section
should contain a minimum of five paragraphs:
1. A general introduction identifying the topic of the thesis. Be sure to include a
hook early in the introduction to motivate your reader to read your thesis.
2. A brief reflection on the most relevant and recent literature. Avoid an exhaustive
review (save this for the literature review section).
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3. The importance of the study. Explains why the topic is timely (why should we
study it now?). For example:
The recent corruption scandals in Egypt indicate the need to study the
implementation of the principles of corporate governance in governmental
organizations.
Explain why the topic is important. Importance is shown by referring to
the problems resulting from not solving the problem and/or investments
companies make in the problem area. For example:
Several studies have shown the ERP project failures can be extremely
costly to organizations (David, 2007). In the past decade, US organization
have spent more than ….
4. What are the objectives and the overall approach of the study? For example:
The purpose of this study is to examine the effect of X on Y using…
5. Organization of the sections. Discuss the organization of the thesis. For example:
This thesis is divided into four parts. In part one I will review the literature
covering the relationship between brand management and customer loyalty.
In part two….
Literature Review
In this section you are required to summarize, synthesize and critique the research
(sources) that have been published on the topic. In other words, you report and comment
on the work of others. There is no minimum or maximum number of sources that should
be used. However, if you are writing about a well researched topic such as human
motivation or leadership, your supervisor will expect you to cover many sources.
Although you may use many types of sources (books, journals, internet websites,
magazines, newspapers ... etc), most of your sources should be from quality academic
and professional journals.
A literature review must:
1. be organized around and related directly to the thesis or research question you are
developing.
2. provide a summary of what is and is not known
3. identify areas of controversy in the literature
4. Identify areas that need further research
Start your literature review with basic definitions. Organize your lit review around ideas
not sources. In other words, the literature review section is not a summery of one
publication after another. It is a sign of poor writing to see every section start or end with
a single source. It is also a sign of poor quality to see one or two sources used as the only
references for a complete page. Below is an example of a bad literature review:
Russo and Giovanni (2000) stated that newspaper advertisements enables
employers to gather a larger and more diversified pool of applicants and could
thus ensure higher gains from the recruitment search. In that matter, research
pointed out that newspaper advertisements are expensive. However,
advertisements can attract many applicants; that is particularly if the job
advertised for is of a junior level and the recruiters are seeking a large number of
applicants.
Dessler, Griffiths, Lloyd-Walker, and Williams’s (1999) concept of AIDA (attract,
interest, desire, action) was used to guide several studies on job advertisements.
