This document provides tips and guidelines for creating an oral defense presentation for a research proposal or final study defense. It recommends that presentations be around 20 minutes with 20-30 minutes allotted for questions. Presenters should discuss main points using slides as a guide and follow their school's template if available. The presentation should include an introduction, problem statement, purpose statement, research questions or hypotheses, theoretical framework, methodology, participants and sample size, data collection plans, data analysis plans, results, interpretation of findings, limitations, recommendations, and references.

1. Oral Defense Presentations

2. General Tips for PowerPoint Presentations
• Oral Defense Presentations are typically around 20 minutes
• Followed by 20-30 minutes of questions from committee members
• Do not simply read your slides
• Use bullets with phrases and key terms

3. General Tips for PowerPoint Presentations
• Discuss main points using your slides as a guide
• Follow your school’s template, if available
• Graphics should be appropriate and not excessive
• Don’t be “defensive”

4. Title of Paper
(Identify if Proposal or Final
Defense)
Name
School
Date of defense

5. For Proposal Defense
• The following material should appear on Proposal Defense slides

6. Thank You!
• Thank all committee members and reviewers by name
• At the beginning or end of the presentation

7. Introduction or Background of the Study
• Introduce your topic
• Summarize major research on the topic
• Highlight what has not been done
• Emphasize the need to conduct your study

8. Problem Statement
• Directly state the Research Problem your study is designed to address

9. Purpose Statement
• Directly state the Purpose of your study

10. Research Question(s)
• Research Question 1
• Research Question 2
• Etc.

11. Hypotheses (for quantitative studies only)
• H1o
• H1a

12. Theoretical Framework
• Name of theory
• Theory developed by
• Theory used for
• How does the theory interface with your study

13. Method/Design
• The proposed research will be a (quantitative, qualitative, or mixed
methods) study
• This method allows the researcher to
• The selected research design for this study is
• This design allows the researcher

14. Participants and Sample Size
• The population from which the sample will be drawn
• The sample size will consist of xx participants
• This number is based on ???

15. Data Source and Collection Technique Plans
(think recipe fashion)
1.
2.
3.

16. Data Analysis
• How do you plan to analyze data
• Describe in recipe card type fashion
• See IRB form

17. Summary
• Recap major points of the proposal presentation

18. Closing
• Thank your professors and reviewers here
• if you did not do so at the beginning of the presentation
• This concludes my defense presentation
• I now invite your questions

19. Final Doctoral Study Defense
• Provide key points from proposal defense (not the entire presentation)
• briefly remind the audience of your topic
• why you conducted the study
• how you conducted it
• Continue with the following slides for the final defense

20. Results
• List each research question and hypotheses (for quantitative studies)
• Summarize results for each RQ
• include whether hypotheses were supported for quantitative studies
• include themes for qualitative studies

21. Interpretation of Findings
• How do findings relate to previous research
• support
• not support
• partially support
• or add something new to previous research
• Conclusions
• How do findings relate to the theoretical framework (if applicable)

22. Limitations of the study
• List weaknesses or shortcomings that may have affected the results
• Generalizability of findings

23. Recommendations for Practice
• How do data relate to or inform professional practice
• Implications for practice
• Recommendations for practice

24. Recommendations for Further Research
• List recommendations for further research
• Recommendations based on findings
• Recommendations based on limitations

25. Thank You and Questions
• Thank your committee members and reviewers by name
• This concludes my presentation; I now invite your questions

26. References
• References used for presentation
• Or: “Available upon request”