How to Frame Your PhD Research Topics With the MPSA Framework for Easy Approval

Ferdinand | EducationGhana | January 15 | How to Frame Your PhD Research Topics With the MPSA Framework for Easy Approval

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Frame Your PhD Research Topics With the MPSA Framework for Easy Approval

Meta Description: Many PhD and Master’s research topics are rejected due to poor framing. Learn how the Method, Problem, Solution, and Application (MPSA) framework improves topic approval and academic clarity.

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Why Many PhD Topics Are Rejected Before Proposal Stage

Most Master’s and PhD research topics do not fail because students lack intelligence or ambition. They fail because the topic does not immediately answer the questions supervisors and examiners silently ask when they read a title.Approval panels are trained to detect clarity, feasibility, originality, and relevance in seconds. When these elements are missing, even a promising idea is labelled vague, too broad, or non-doctoral.The Method, Problem, Solution, and Application (MPSA) framework offers a practical way to avoid this outcome.

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The Four Silent Questions Behind Every Research Topic

When supervisors encounter a research topic, they instinctively ask:

1. How will this be studied? Method
2. Why does this matter? Problem
3. What new contribution will come out of it? Solution
4. Who benefits, and in what context? Application

A topic that clearly answers all four is more likely to receive quick and confident approval.

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What the MPSA Framework Signals to Examiners

1. Method

The research design or approach used to generate evidence. This may include qualitative inquiry, mixed methods, experiments, econometric modelling, ethnography, or design-based research.Clear methods signal feasibility and academic rigour.

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2. Problem

The specific research gap, limitation, or failure in knowledge or practice that justifies the study. This is not merely a social concern, but a clearly researchable issue.A weak problem statement is one of the most common reasons for rejection.

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3. Solution

The original contribution of the study. This may take the form of a model, framework, theory refinement, strategy, dataset, or empirical evidence.Doctoral research must offer something new, not simply describe what exists.

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4. Application

The population, sector, or context where the findings have practical or policy relevance.Application grounds the study and protects it from being dismissed as abstract or detached.

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Practical Examples of MPSA-Framed PhD Topics

Example 1: Education

Weak topic Teaching methods and student performance in secondary schools.MPSA-framed topic A mixed-methods study of inquiry-based instruction as a strategy for improving conceptual understanding in senior high school physics classrooms in Ghana.

• Method: Mixed methods
• Problem: Poor conceptual understanding in physics
• Solution: Inquiry-based instructional strategy
• Application: Senior high school physics classrooms in Ghana

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Example 2: Educational Leadership

Weak topic School leadership and teacher motivation.MPSA-framed topic An explanatory sequential study of distributed leadership practices and their influence on teacher motivation in public basic schools in the Ashanti Region.

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Example 3: Public Health

Weak topic Maternal health education in rural areas.MPSA-framed topic A quasi-experimental evaluation of community-based maternal health education on antenatal care utilisation in rural districts of Northern Ghana.

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Example 4: Sociology and Development Studies

Weak topic Youth unemployment in Africa.MPSA-framed topic A qualitative analysis of informal apprenticeship pathways as livelihood strategies among unemployed urban youth in Accra.

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Example 5: Artificial Intelligence and Education

Weak topic Artificial intelligence in education.MPSA-framed topic A design-based research study on adaptive AI tutoring systems for improving formative assessment in large undergraduate classes.

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Final Guidance for PhD and Master’s Candidates

Before submitting any topic, ask yourself:

• Can my supervisor identify the method without asking me?
• Is the problem clearly a research gap rather than a general concern?
• Does the solution represent a contribution, not a description?
• Is the application specific, realistic, and defensible?

If the answer is yes to all four, approval becomes faster and more likely.

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Why the MPSA Framework Works

The MPSA framework aligns naturally with proposal chapters, reduces back-and-forth revisions, and signals doctoral maturity. It helps supervisors see immediately that the student understands research logic, not just subject matter.

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