Use our PhD Topic Validator to check the clarity, novelty, and viability of your proposed topic before you commit to years of research

Think about it and write down one or more topics that suit you as ideas.

Include:

• Title of the topic
• The subject area, locality, research methodology, the research gap, etc.

What is your initial topic?

01

How much literature have you read before deciding on your initial topic? If the answer is not much, then you’re in trouble. We recommend conducting thorough research on the proposed topic to become familiar with the research area. 

Notably, checking your university library and recent publications journals in the field first.

• Once you have thoroughly reviewed the area, can you confirm the following is true?
• Has this research been done before? 
• Is this research original? 

Novelty

02

One way to ensure originality is to apply your research to current events/experiences, for example, the COVID pandemic.

While reading about your research area, have you noticed any specific event mentions? What are the recent publications in the journals about?

Now that you’ve conducted some research, can you answer the question: Why is this research important and who does it help?

Relevance and Value

03

Before committing to a topic, you need to evaluate the feasibility of the research for you personally. You might not have unlimited resources and this is something you need to consider when deciding on your topic.

Here are some questions to help you clarify the feasibility of your topic idea:

• How are you collecting/gathering data?
• Do you see any hurdles that will prevent successful data collection? 
• Do you have good access to the respondents needed?
• Is the research doable within 2 years? 

How feasible is the research for you?

04

All of these steps, when conducted thoroughly, should help you to refine or change your topic to be more suitable for PhD-level research.

Here are some questions to help you adjust your research idea:

• If you find research that is very similar and prevents originality, can you differentiate the work? 
• Can you apply an alternative methodology? 
• Can you apply the research to particular current events? 
• Can you make the topic more relevant and trending? 
• Not sure if you can finish in 2 years? Narrow the scope of your research so it is more manageable for a PhD-length study. Not sure if your research will last 2−3 years? Broaden the scope of your research topic

05

Choosing a PhD topic for your dissertation is a big decision. Sometimes, you can make that decision yourself or narrow the topic down effectively. However, sometimes you might be unsure if the topic is truly worth your investment. 

Don’t worry! You can get help from a PhD expert for topic formulation and proposal writing help. An expert who has completed a PhD before can help guide you through the topic formulation process and ensure successful research for your dissertation.

Speak to an expert

06

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