An important requirement every undergraduate must fulfill before he or she can graduate from a tertiary educational institution in Nigeria is writing a research project. Sadly, many students do not know how to go about writing their projects, making an already painstaking exercise more stressful. In this article, we’ll be discussing how to write a final-year project in Nigeria. Keep on reading to learn the format of writing a project as obtained in tertiary institutions nationwide. 
How to write a final year project in Nigeria would be discussed below:
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Preliminary Pages of the Project
The preliminary pages of a final year project include the Title which should not exceed 23 words, Declaration, Certification, Acknowledgement, Table of Contents, List of Tables, List of Figures if available, and Abstract. Although the Abstract page is among the preliminary pages, it is usually written after the entire project is completed as it should contain a brief introduction of the research being conducted, the techniques employed in the study, as well as the results of the study and recommendations.
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Chapter One: Background of the Study
Chapter One is the start of every final year project. This chapter essentially introduces the reader to what the study is all about. This chapter has several components including an Introduction, Statement of the Problem, Purpose of the Study, Research Questions, Hypotheses, Significance of the Study, Scope of the Study, and Definition of Terms.
In the Introduction part of Chapter One, the precise purpose of the study should be stated. This segment should also mention different overlapping views on the subject matter as well as investigations of other researchers in that discipline.
The Statement of the Problem is the part of the project where the specific problems intended to be addressed by the research project are stated. Normally, this segment begins thus: “This project addresses the existing problems of…”.
The next part of Chapter One is the Purpose of the Study. Here, the overall purpose of the project is stated, and this section should answer the questions established in the Statement of the Problem part.
The Research Questions section serves as a guiding light to the study. These are usually ”WH” questions that are structured to provide answers to what the researcher seeks to solve.
In the Research Hypotheses section, the researcher develops statements that predict the nature of the relationship between multiple variables that are expected to happen in the study. The research seeks to determine whether the hypotheses made were right or wrong.
The Significance of the Study focuses on the relevance of the research in addressing the existing problems established in the study.
The Scope of the Study section covers which geographical locality is considered in the study as well as the content scope to be covered in the research. The Definition of Terms section defines essential terms and concepts peculiar to the study so that the readers are not left stranded when they come across unfamiliar words in the project.
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Chapter Two: Literature Review
Chapter Two comprises a Preamble that introduces the concept of the research study, as well Conceptual Review, Theoretical Review and Empirical Review. The Conceptual Review which follows the short preamble of the research study is a section of Chapter Two that captures all explanations related to the study in a logical order.
Theoretical Review focuses on one or more formal theories from the recent past that provide explanations related to the research study in question. On the other hand, Empirical Review involves the critical review of existing literature or academic materials on the research topic. The researcher must include in-text references to the cited materials. The researcher should indicate the gaps in literature from what he or she has noticed from the works of authors and other researchers, hence justifying his or her research study.
The type of literature accepted to be reviewed in Chapter Two must be academic work or articles published in reputable journals.
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Chapter Three: Methodology
This chapter deals with the processes and procedures that were involved during the study. Chapter Three is usually subdivided into Research Design, Population of the Study, Validity of Instruments, Procedure for Data Collection, and Method of Data Analysis.
The Research Design section states the type of design the researcher chooses to use and the justification for using it.
The Population of the Study section contains the totality of the entire respondents that make up the research study.
In the Sample and Sampling Technique section, the researcher states the number of respondents from the entire population that would be used for the study, while justifying the technique that was used in making the selection.
In the Instrument for Data Collection section, the researcher describes the type of instrument employed in gathering data for the study, such as questionnaires, interview schedules, government documents and rating scales, among others. In addition, the researcher should explain how the instruments for the study work.
The Validity of Instruments section of Chapter Three describes the validity of the instrument used for the study, as well as explains how the reliability of the instrument was undertaken.
The section on Procedure for Data Collection explains in detail how data collection for the study was done.
In the Method of Data Analysis section, the researcher states the type of statistical tools employed in the analysis of the data obtained from the study and the justification for choosing such statistical tools. The statistical tools commonly used to analyze data include SPSS, chi-square, standard deviation, analysis of variance (ANOVA), pie charts, t-tests, and much more.
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Chapter Four: Result of Findings
In Chapter Four, the researcher discusses the findings from the study in a systematic manner, which in turn helps justify any conclusions. The format for the introductory statement for Chapter Four is thus: ‘The results of the study are presented in accordance with research, questions and hypotheses” Here, the research questions asked in Chapter 1 are answered while the hypotheses are tested to determine if the educated guesses were right or wrong.
The major results based on the analysis of the data of the study should be summarized and itemized, point by point. The listing of the results should be preceded by an introductory statement like, “Based on the analysis of data the following findings emerged:”.
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Chapter Five: Discussion, Conclusion, and Recommendations
At this point of the research, the researcher can discuss findings, draw conclusions and proffer solutions to the problems that prompted the study. In discussing findings, the researcher is expected to state his or her findings, discuss how each agrees or disagrees with the review of the knowledge on the topic, and state the justification why his or her project’s findings agree or disagree with other researchers’ work.
In this chapter, the researcher is required to state the practical implications of his or her project to their discipline.
Also, there ought to be a Conclusion section where the researcher summarizes what his or her project is all about. The researcher is also expected to propose Recommendations from the project’s findings.
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References
The APA style of referencing is recommended for academic research projects for tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Also, all tables, illustrations, figures, and literature should be cited. Plagiarism should be avoided by all means.