REPUBLIC OF CAM EROON
Peace – Work – Fatherland

REPUBLIQUE DU CAM EROUN
Paix – Travail – Patrie

UNI VE R SI T Y O F BU EAUNI VE R SI T E DE BU EAHI G HE R T ECHN I CA L T EACHE R S’
TR AIN I N G C O LLEG E (HTTTC)EC O L E N O R M ALE SU P ER I EU R E
D ’E N SEI GNE M E NT T ECHNI Q UE (ENSET)---- ---------Director: Prof. Akume Daniel Akume
Deputy Director: Prof. Ebune B. Joseph.
Director of Studies: Dr. Lyonga Agnes N. NgaleSecretary General: Dr. Lissouck Daniel

1---- -------- P. O. Box 249 Buea Road, Kumba,
South West Regi on, Cameroon
Tel: (+237)2 3335 46 91 - Fax:(+237) 2 333546 92
Email: info.htttc_kumba@ubuea.cm

A GUIDE/TEMPLATE FOR WRITING THE DIPET II THESIS FOR H.T.T.T.C.
KUMBA: TERTIARY SCIENCES.
A) Specifications on format
1) Paper size: Good quality white A4 paper.
a. Top margin: 2 cm
b. Bottom margin: 2 cm
c. Left margin: 2.5 cm
d. Right margin: 2 cm.
2) Formatting text:
a. Font type: Times New Roman
b. Font size: 12c. Line spacing: 2 double all through except for quotations.
d. Alignment: Justified
e. Type on one side of the page only.
f. Leave an extra line space between paragraphs.
g. Do not break words at the end of lines.
3) Cover page colour:a. Blue
4) Binding:
Use spiral binding, protected by a sheet of transparent paper, and ends with a blankcard board paper.
5) Numberings in work:a. Number preliminary with roman numerals (i, ii, iii) begin from the certification
page.
b. Number the rest of the work from chapter one with Arabic numerals(1,2,3)
c. Page numbers should appear on the top right hand corner.
6) Number of pages: completed work should be at least 60 and Maximum 85 pages

2B) Structure of Thesis
Cover/Title page in Department colour ; The cover page shall indicate: the name of the Institution,
 College/Faculty and Department;
 Title of the thesis,
 Degree in view,
 Name of Student (Author, Registration number, Degree already obtained) The full name(s) of supervisor(s) and their qualifications; Month and Year of defense.
Fly leaf: An empty sheetTitle page: Repeat cover page in black and white.
Certification: This section contains certification by supervisor and Head of department thatthe work in the thesis was effectively carried out by student and can therefore bepresented/defended.
Dedication: This section contains persons or group of persons in whose honour the thesis iswritten. (This is optional and can be left out)

Acknowledgements: In this section, the researcher show appreciation to supervisor(s) andanyone who gave assistance be it technical (including materials, supplies), intellectual(assistance, advice) or financial (for example, departmental support, travel grants) to therealisation of the work.

Abstract: A good abstract is a synopsis of the whole thesis. It should be concise, but
comprehensive and explicit. Length should be 1-2 paragraphs, approx. 300 words. Single
line spacing.
Abstracts generally do not have citations.
Information in title should not be repeated.
Use numbers where appropriate.
Add a line of key words (on which the work is centered) on a new line at the end of theabstract.
Answers to these questions should be found in the abstract:3

1. What did you do?
2. Why did you do it? What question were you trying to answer?
3. How did you do it? State methods.
4. What did you learn? State major results.
5. Point out at least one significant implication.
Table of Contents: The table of contents shows the preliminary pages with their pagination
indicated in small Roman numerals; all headings and subheadings with pagination and thereferences with pagination.
 list all headings and subheadings with page numbers
 indent subheadings
 The title, heading, and chapter numbers are typed in CAPITALS If the chapter title runs into more than one line, the second line is single spaced butindented.
 Double spacing is maintained throughout the table of content, except for the major
subtitles within the chapter which is single-spaced.
List of Figures: List page numbers of all figures serially from first to last chapter.
All figures included in the main body of the thesis must be numbered and a suitable self
explanatory title of the figure given below the figure on the same page.
List of Tables: List page numbers of all tables serially from first to last chapter.
The list should include a short title for each table but not the whole caption. The legend ordescriptive title of the table shall be centered above the body of the table.
CHAPTER ONE
INTRODUCTION

Introduction: Simply announce what will be seen in the chapter.
Background of the study: This part of the introduction helps the researcher to situate thetopic. Here the researcher should give the general context of the topic by adopting ahistorical approach. Clearly show the historical evolution of all the variables in the study
from a certain period of research that can be verified. He/she should also state the reasons

4that led to the topic by answering questions like; what is happening with the variables in yourarea of study at the time of your study? Give the reader a picture of the state of affairs.
The introduction should be focused on the thesis question(s). All cited work should bedirectly relevant to the goals of the thesis. Student needs to avoid general statements at thebackground. The concepts under examination must be properly linked with facts and figures
at the background.
Statement of the Problem: The problem under study must be clearly stated and efforts thathave been put in place to resolve the problem should also be chronologically reviewed orstated. Show how your dependent variable and its attributes are suffering in the area of study.
Express it in sentimental terms to attract the sympathy of the reader. Do not accuse any
forces to be responsible for the suffering of your dependent variable. The problem statement
should end with the main research objectives.
Objectives of the study: The main objective should be the re-framed from the topic and thespecific objectives should be framed using action verbs and must have of a one-to- one
relationship with the research questions. The specific objectives should result from theindicators or attributes of the independent variable, and should not be more than four (4).
You must state what you aim to achieve by carrying out the research, i.e. what you intend todo.

Research Questions: Convert the objectives into research questions. Do not state them insuch a way as to elicit yes or no answers.
Hypothesis: The hypothesis of the study should be stated in the null form and should be tied
to the research questions and specific objectives of the study. Remember that the concept ofsignificance must be portrayed in the hypothesis to show that you recognize there is a chancefor errors in your results.
Scope of the study: State the reasons why you are limiting your work to the independent
variable why you are also limiting yourself to the area of study selected.

Significance of the Study: The significance of the study should

clearly show who thebeneficiaries of the work will be. There should also be focus on its usefulness in teachingand learning. For who is the study carried out and how shall they exploit the results?

5Operational definition of terms: Here, the researcher needs to operationalize the key words
or expressions found in the research topic (that is explaining their meaning and how they areused in the study). It is not to give the textbook/Dictionary meaning of the words.

CHAPTER TWO
LITERATURE REVIEWIntroduction: State what you will write in the chapter.

Conceptual Framework/ Issues: Analyse all the concepts in your topic so that the reader
understands what they are all about. Develop the concepts or variables as the textbooks,
internet or other sources say. This should be done for all your variables and other related
concepts that give a better understanding of the topic of problem. Researcher can design aconceptual diagram showing the relationship between the variables (optional).
Theoretical Literature/ Framework: Here we examine the theories that are related to thestudy. Two or three theories can be reviewed depending on the needs of the research. For
clarification, the theories used in the study ought to be presented following the following
format; The statement of the theory must be clearly stated.
 Who propounded the theory and when?
 Explain what the theory is about(content) but not in a note or points forms
 Justify how the theory is related to your work.
 Critical appraisal of the theory (importance of the theory to your work).
Note that the following format should not be presented as topics but in a paragraph forms.
Too many sub-headings must be avoided in chapter two. A new idea should take the form ofa paragraph. All presentation must feature under the above listed sub-headings, if not thenthey are not needed in the work.
Empirical/Literature Review: Under this sub heading we review the works of others
authors taking into consideration the; Surname of the author and the year of publication
 The topic and the sample size
 The methodology used6 The findings and the recommendation
 A critical appraisal of the work where necessary is needed

Summary of literature: make a summary of the literature reviewed showing the gap you
think your findings will fill.
CHAPTER THREERESEARCH METHODSIntroduction: The whole of chapter three is dedicated to describing the methodology used in
the research process. This section introduces the content of the chapter.

The research design: Research design is a framework, blueprint or road map for theresearch study which guides the collection and analysis of data. Select an appropriate
research design and explain why it is good for your study. Also say how it will be used. It isnecessary to state whether your design is descriptive, correlation, causal-comparative,experimental and exploratory with justification.
Area of Study: The research is supposed to clearly review the area within which the study is
to be carried out. Describe the area in such a way that a stranger can read and have animaginary image of the area. The topography, vegetation, social amenities, major
institutions, agricultural activities etc are some of the aspects that could be used.
The population of the study: The study population, which might be finite or infinite,
consists of items or elements with similar characteristics from which the research draws
sample items to be studied.
Sample and the sampling technique (Procedure): The research is expected to indicate thesample size and describe the procedure used in selecting the samples. Again, the decision forchoosing a particular sample size should be clearly justified. Identify the sampling techniquethat suits your work and describe how you will use it. The research should also not fail toindicate the population from which the sample is drown.
Instrument for data collection: The research instrument or statistical tool used in collecting
the data should be described. This instrument might be a questionnaire, observation orinterview. It should be designed in such a way that it will provide answers to the researchquestions, objectives and hypotheses. Justify the use of any instrument you end up with.

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Validity of Research Instrument: Here, the researcher should be concerned with providing
answers to whether the instrument can measured what it is actually supposed to measure.
One way to determine this is to carry out a pre-test of the instruments. Show proof of
consultations with others( supervisor, colleagues, specialists etc) for validity.
Reliability of Instrument: Select the most appropriate reliability tool that suits your study
and say why you are using it. Trial - test the instrument and do analysis. This will help you
do corrections if any before administering the instrument.

Administration of the instrument: Describe how you administered the instrument.

Method of data analysis: State the method you used for data analysis and why you used it.
Explain how data was analysed.

Ethical considerations: The researcher is supposed to respect the institutions and people
they work with, hence they are expected to explain what they did to ensure collaborationfrom all the people they interacted with during the research process.

CHAPTER FOURPRESENTATION OF FINDINGS / RESULTS

Introduction: Announce what will be seen in the chapter.

Present findings related to Demographic Data: This section has to do with thedemographic facts on the sample which are; ages of the respondents, sexes, gender, size ofhouseholds, occupation, income level etc. This is presented in a tabular format. It could bereported in histograms, Pie charts or even frequency distribution tables.
Presentation and interpretation of results: The results may be presented in tables, or any
other format depending on the nature of the results to be reported. This section presents thesummary of quantitative results from primary or secondary data or both. The quantitative
results must be in agreement with the objective(s) of the study and must be out to provide atrue value for the parameter(s) under study. It is advisable to present the results according tothe research question or hypotheses. ie one question to another.

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Summary of Results/Findings:

CHAPTER FIVEDISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS, RECOMMENDATIONS AND
SUGGESTION FOR FURTHER STUDIES.

Discussion of Findings: Discussion of results should adopt the logical building argument
approach which draws inspirations and supports from a priori theoretical expectation andprevious studies. This is done research question by research question. The results of thestudy are compared to results of other scholars as reported in the empirical review in chapter
two. On this bases, the work seeks ways to justify the nature of the findings thus, showing
how it adds value to the existing knowledge about the phenomenon or problem underexamination.
Conclusions: Under conclusions, a clear cohesive statement linking the main objective of
the study, its results and the ultimate policy option to address the phenomenon under
examination makes meaning under conclusion. The researcher needs to make short briefs ofeach chapter including the findings.
Elements that may help in writing the conclusion
What is the strongest and most important statement that you can make fromyour observations?

If you met the reader at a meeting six months from now, what do you wantthem to remember about your paper?

Refer back to problem posed, and describe the conclusions that you reachedfrom carrying out this investigation, summarize new observations, newinterpretations, and new insights that have resulted from the present work.

Include the broader implications of your results. .

Recommendations: These are policy options prescribed to the audience of the work. They
should not only be directed to the government should target the identified audience(beneficiaries of the work); e.g importers, exporters, councillors, urban planners,
environmentalists, students, principals, editors, manufacturers etc. What do you advice thatthey do with your results?

9Suggestions for further studies: During your study you surely discovered some othervariables or problems that need answers that could improve your recommendations, you canadvice other studies to be carried out in such areas.

Limitations: This section is optional, it is where you outline the difficulties you encounteredduring the process.

Summary

References: This refers to the detail inclusion of all cited sources of material for the thesis.
For the thesis of the Tertiary departments of our institution, the APA referencing style isacceptable. Examples include;Book:
Strunk, W., Jr., & White, E. B. (1979). The guide to everything and then some more stuff.
New York, NY: Macmillan
Chapter of a Book:
Bergquist, J. M. (1992). German Americans. In J. D. Buenker & L. A. Ratner (Eds.),
Multiculturalism in the United States: A comparative guide to acculturation andethnicity (pp. 53-76). New York, NY: Greenwood.
Online Newspaper Articles:
Becker, E. (2001, August 27). Prairie farmers reap conservation's rewards. The New York Times.
Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com
Encyclopedia Articles:
Brislin, R. W. (1984). Cross-cultural psychology. In R. J. Corsini (Ed.),
Encyclopedia of psychology (Vol. 1, pp. 319-327). New York, NY: Wiley.

Further Rules can be gotten from;
Concise Rules of APA Style, 6th ed. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association, 2010.
Reference Desk Reserve 808.06615 C744r 2010 (at Reference Desk)

Appendixes: All the documents that you used and think it can help understanding of some aspectsof your work should be attached to the work. They might include pictures, letters of authorisation,
documents from administrative offices out of campus etc.

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