Your statistical approach should be considered even before you begin your thesis and while you write your literature review. Your statistical approach must consider:
-Your skill level.
-The topic you are discussing.
-Your hypotheses. If your hypotheses mention one variable causing another variable, correlation analysis may not be enough.
-Are you creating latent variables. If you are formalizing concepts that by themselves are not measurable, then you may find yourself dipping your feet in skills that, without our help, may be more than a standard student can handle.
- Model articles. Are there articles from other countries that attempted to take the approach you wish to take? What limitations did these authors face?
-The culture within your country. For a previously established questionnaire, reliability and validity may not exist because of local norms.
In other words, think about your methodology consistently and change it as information comes in.
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Key words: thesis, topic, methodology, statistical, statistics discipline. 

​As I write today’s blog, I am watching a popular show called Saturday Night Live. The show has an entertainer who invited a famous vocalist to sing one of his songs. The vocalist’s hay day is gone, but when he starts singing, I know who he is. Not his name, but his sound. The main entertainer, however, sounds like every other young rapper in America. The music is great, but the talent is not there. Anyone can replace the main entertainer, and the performance would not have made a difference. I think about how we write our thesis. Do you want to write a document that stands out? Or do you want to repeat the same topic and approach done before? This is not about doing complex statistics but creating a topic that addresses real issues in a way that is solid in methodology. Don’t be the rapper, be the vocalist, your supervisor may not remember you but he will remember your voice.
 
Key words: Thesis, dissertation, methodology, topic.

 

Well, some basic statistics may be required to support your introduction, but if one is speaking about the data analysis and findings of the thesis, it is possible. For example, a student can conduct document analysis. As a form of qualitative research, not one individual would have to be questioned. Texts are analysed for their content to answer research questions. This may be beneficial to students with little time and resources.
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Key words: analysis, thesis, statistics, qualitative research.

 

​The simple answer is “no”. The Literature review provides information that may craft the theoretical model the analysis model may be based on. It is also a form of secondary research.
 
Key words: literature review, thesis, dissertation, secondary research, analysis.

It does not have to be. The thing about a thesis is it challenges everything about you, even your personality. If you are disorganized, you will feel overwhelmed. If you were unsuccessful in understanding the research methodology classes, the dissertation may force you to learn some of them. Even with the current Covid-19 situation it also reveals the quality of your supervisor. Is he/she supportive and responsive to your inquiries?
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That is why Data Minders Student Services was created. To make your thesis/dissertation easier.

Key words: thesis, hard, difficult, dissertation. 

​No. It is marked by your supervisors and signed examiners in most tertiary education institutions.
 
Key words: thesis, tertiary.

​Basically, you don’t want to wait to code until after you administer your questionnaire. Place the coded within the questionnaire to make sure that the potential values, if there are values to assign, are useful and sensible. Also consider:
-Assigning the number 9 for “Don’t know” responses
- Leaving space for “Other” responses to be filled in. Then group these responses and apply a code after the data is collected.
- Assigning a value for any question that does not get a response, for example “99”. (Leaving a blank space can affect your programme outputs)
 
Key words: survey, questionnaire, thesis, quantitative research. 

Many students and even employed persons believe that you must pay for a platform to conduct a survey or develop a questionnaire. So let’s talk about relatively free platforms from my experience:
-Google forms. This platform is so much better than it used to be. The challenge is making sense of where to enter what for more complex questions. If it is too difficult, for a small fee, we can guide you.
- JotForm. Very diverse in its offerings, and they give enough free forms for you to get your survey done. My only challenge has been the implementation. For some reason, when questionnaires are sent, there are glitches in questions and responses. The headache to fix these forms alone makes me avoid this platform.
- Microsoft Forms.-If you have access to this in the workplace, with a little practice, you can easily become an expert. Information is easily transferrable into an excel sheet and the process of formatting complex questions is easy to figure out on your own. The platforms present possible data analyses that you may not have considered in your data analysis plan.
-QuestionPro. The lowest level package used to come at a cost, but now it is free. The challenge with this platform is the time differences of your settings to one of the platform’s main offices. So you may think you are closing off the survey at 10 am your time, and really, you are at the platform’s time. This may cause problems in the number of responses you expect to receive if your survey ends too early. Otherwise, it is a great platform that brings quality to your work.
 
There are many other questionnaire platforms, but I encourage you to research them first. Also, take the opportunity to do a test run of your questionnaire with friends and family to ensure proper questionnaire distribution.

​Key words: survey, questionnaire, thesis, dissertation, research, Microsoft Forms, QuestionPro, SurveyMonkey, Google Forms.

 

​This does not exist. In fact the thesis requires you to have the ability to develop a methodology of acquiring information.
 
Key words: thesis, methodology, dissertation.

 

Your school librarian is so essential. I remember my days, many moons ago, at the Alma Jordan Library, as a student and a staff member. There was a floor with “delicate” documents that, to me, kept secrets of Trinidad and Tobago’s past. The librarian there was always patient and welcoming as she understood the work done with the documents given went to grades or to articles to be published or presented internationally. They also have information on the most recent items. For example, a student came to me for APA styling edits. I scoured the internet and swore that I found the most recent version of APA referencing (Yes, they update it regularly, so don’t be fooled). He went to the librarian, and just with a few weeks difference, the Alma Jordan Library at the University of the West Indies required the newest APA style. A lesson learned of Data Minders’ side.
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Honour your librarian. They may be the only thing to get you completed in your thesis (other than Data Minders, of course).
 
Key words: thesis, University of the West Indies (UWI), Alma Jordan Library, dissertation, APA reference style.