Editorial Policy
Academic session 2026-2027
How topics are selected
Topics listed on medicalthesistopics.in are written to be feasible within a standard Indian PG residency or fellowship. Feasibility means the data required can be collected at a single teaching hospital using routinely generated clinical material — without multicentric collaboration, specialised equipment unavailable in most departments, or follow-up periods longer than the training period allows.
Design preferences
Approximately half of all topics follow a cross-sectional or observational design. Around a quarter use comparative or cohort designs. The remainder cover diagnostic accuracy, correlation, and audit designs. Experimental and interventional designs are included only where they are standard practice in the specialty.
Language and style
Topics use British spelling conventions standard in Indian medical writing. Abbreviations are avoided in topic titles — conditions and investigations are spelled out in full. Every title is at least seven words and does not end with a full stop.
Limitations
Topics listed here are starting points, not finished protocols. A topic that appears on this site may not be appropriate for every institution — local patient volume, equipment availability, ethics committee requirements, and guide expertise all affect feasibility. Candidates should discuss any topic with their guide before committing.
Topics are not verified against current ethics committee requirements at any specific institution. This site does not provide ethics approval, guide allocation, or institutional affiliation.
Updates
The topic list is reviewed and updated periodically. Specialties added by the National Medical Commission or the National Board of Examinations after the last update may not yet be represented.
Thesis and protocol questions
How is a thesis topic different from a thesis protocol?
The topic is the title — the question a study sets out to answer, together with the population and the design. The protocol is the full document built around it: background, review of literature, aims and objectives, inclusion and exclusion criteria, sample size calculation, methodology, statistical plan, ethics considerations, consent documents and references. A topic is agreed with a guide first; the protocol is written afterwards and submitted to the institutional ethics committee.
When does a postgraduate thesis have to be submitted?
For most Indian postgraduate programmes the protocol is submitted within the first six months of joining, and the completed thesis is submitted at least six months before the final examination. Exact deadlines are set by the university, so the departmental circular for the current session takes precedence over any general timeline.
How is sample size decided for a postgraduate thesis?
Sample size follows from the primary objective, not the other way round. A prevalence study is powered from an expected proportion and an acceptable margin of error; a comparative study is powered from the expected difference between groups, the standard deviation, alpha and desired power. The figure should then be checked against the institution's actual case load for the study period, because a statistically ideal sample that cannot be recruited in the time available is not a workable plan.
Does a thesis topic need ethics committee approval?
Yes. Every postgraduate thesis involving human participants, human data or human samples requires clearance from the institutional ethics committee before data collection begins. Approval is granted on the protocol rather than on the title, and the submission usually includes the protocol, the participant information sheet and the consent form in English and in the local language.
What makes a topic realistic for a three-year postgraduate programme?
A workable topic can be completed at a single centre, with equipment and investigations that are already available in routine practice, within roughly eighteen months of data collection. Topics that depend on external funding, specialised assays, multicentre coordination or long follow-up tend to stall. Choosing a condition the department already sees in volume matters more than choosing a novel one.
Can a thesis be published as a research paper afterwards?
Yes, and it is generally expected. A thesis is usually condensed into a paper of around three to four thousand words, restructured into the standard introduction, methods, results and discussion format, with the review of literature shortened considerably. Journals differ in their requirements, and the ethics approval number from the original thesis is normally cited in the methods section.