How To Pick Up An Undergraduate Dissertation Topic: 11 Great Ideas

For your undergraduate dissertation topic, you are bound by the limitations of your chosen field of study. For example, you wouldn’t write a literature history paper if you are majoring in medicine. Now is the time to start showing and exploring the specific interests you have in your field. Are you having a tough time choosing your topic? Do you feel everything you find online is old and re-hashed? If so, you’ve come to the right place to get some new ideas.

Top 11 ways to find the perfect topic for your paper

  1. 1. Go to the library and browse through some newspapers – local, national and international. Take notes of anything that catches your eye and sparks your interest.
  2. 2. Browse through some magazines and journals. You may be surprised with what you find. These magazines pay a lot of money for their journalists to find what topics are trending now and what is of the most interest to consumers. You may be able to latch onto a very recent event or issue to make into a great topic.
  3. 3. Ask your teacher for some ideas. If they aren’t giving out ideas, ask other teachers and see what they suggest.
  4. 4. Ask your parents or grandparents for ideas – perhaps there was an issue or event going on at the time they were young adults and they never saw the issue solved or the question answered.
  5. 5. Think of a particular interesting bit of knowledge you’ve learned thus far in your educational career. Think of a way to expound on that and turn it into a topic.
  6. 6. Ask your local librarian. They have tons of good ideas for where to look.
  7. 7. Conversations with your friends can turn up a great idea.
  8. 8. Look through the many lists available online and when you find an idea you like, tweak or change it to make it original.
  9. 9. When you’ve settled on a general topic idea, start doing some research. You will undoubtedly uncover additional ideas you can use to narrow down your topic.
  10. 10. Choose a topic you have an interest in, not just any one that’s convenient. Your level of interest is a big part in being able to write a successful dissertation.
  11. 11. Look on several college and university websites and see what they are promoting in your field of study. One of them could be made into a great topic.