7 Mistakes That Students Make while Creating & Submitting IGNOU MTM Project

Selection of the Topic: A large number of students make a mistake in selecting the topic itself. Some choose a topic based on hearsay, while some go for a topic, they hardly know about. Some pick a topic that his or their best friend has suggested while others start preparing on a topic as they are told that this topic will give maximum marks and it will be rejection proof. However, the fact of the matter is that you should select a topic that best interests you and you love the contents of the topic. Importantly, there is a guide you should seek help with while selecting a topic. This is one of the 7 prominent mistakes that students make while creating and submitting the IGNOU MTM Project.

• Not following the format: Some students tend to ignore the significance of the format of the IGNOU Project. A format is as important for an IGNOU Project, as is a gift pack. As a gift is not given without wrapping it, an IGNOU Project should also not be submitted without following its proper format.

The Title of the Proposed Project

• Background of the Study
• Literature Review
• The rationale of the Study
• Objectives of the Study
• The hypothesis of the Study If any
• Research Methodology: Sample, Tests/Tools, Statistics to be used
• References/Bibliography
• Necessary Inclusions are Skipped: A large number of students, either out of ignorance or not knowing the importance of submitting a project as instructed, skip the necessary inclusions in the IGNOU MTM Project. If you are preparing for this project, make sure that you have included the following while submitting the proposal:

Pro forma for Approval of Project Proposal duly filled and signed by both, the learner and the guide/supervisor.
Detailed Bio-data of the Supervisor/Guide duly signed by him/her (in the case where the Academic Counselor is not the Guide), Consent letter of the Supervisor/Guide and
Synopsis of the Project.

• Skipping the last day of submission: Some students, despite working day in and day out in the preparation of a perfect project report, make the grave mistake of not submitting their project on time. They do not keep an eye on the last date of submission and they mistake a particular date(which is not true) as true. Subsequently, they fail to submit their project on the date mentioned and hence pay a heavy price.

(July Batch)
IGNOU Proposal/Synopsis: 30th November
IGNOU Project Report/Dissertation: 31st May
(January Batch)
IGNOU Proposal/Synopsis: 31st September
IGNOU Project Report/Dissertation: 30th November
However, you are requested to keep on visiting the website of IGNOU so that you can be able to avoid any confusion about the last date of submission.

• Conclusions are left blank: Some students do not find it necessary to include conclusions in their project reports. However, the conclusion happens to be an integral part of a project. If you give it a miss, you may miss the approval. The inclusion part of your project report should contain the findings of your research.
• Suggestions not included: Some students leave the suggestions part blank under the belief that "students can't suggest anything." They think that it is they who can be suggested, not the examiner. But, the suggestion part should never be left blank. In the "suggestions" column, the learners should give suggestions for further research in a particular area.
• Overlook the style of report writing: Some students, in a quest to impress their examiner, tend to make the excessive use of difficult words, jargon, passive voice, etc. However, all these efforts prove to be counter-productive for the learners. The examiner does not get impressed(rather gets irked) and punishes the learner with poor marks. Therefore, you are requested to use simple words whenever possible and avoid passive voice, jargon, etc. Moreover, the tense in the report matters a lot; it should be in the present tense.