The traditional dissertation, a longstanding pillar of higher education, is facing increasing scrutiny. Concerns about its relevance to contemporary career paths, limitations in fostering practical skills and the changing nature of knowledge production in the GenAI age have fuelled discussions about its continued efficacy. So, is the dissertation dead?
The dissertation is facing a number of challenges. It can be perceived as having little relevance to career aspirations in increasingly competitive job markets. According to The Future of Jobs Report 2025 by the World Economic Forum, employers demand and indeed prioritise skills such as collaborative problem-solving in diverse and complex contexts, which a dissertation might not demonstrate.
The traditional dissertation has been criticised in light of increasing calls for authentic assessment, which enables students to apply theory to practice by addressing real-world challenges. Students now have a choice between selecting a dissertation focused on academic research and writing skills, and a more applied assessment aimed at job-readiness. Authentic assessment incorporates feedback from diverse sources and often involves collaborative processes with defined milestones and iterative feedback.
The emergence and rapid advancement of generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) has also had an unprecedented impact on the dissertation as a form of academic assessment. GenAI tools are capable not only of co-authoring text, proposing structures and generating literature reviews but of fabricating artificial data sets, known as “silicon samples”. This capacity raises serious concerns about the authenticity and integrity of student research. The core academic value of the dissertation lies in its emphasis on original, independent inquiry. However, GenAI blurs the line between student-generated and machine-produced work, thereby threatening this foundational principle. While challenges associated with GenAI are not unique to dissertations, the impact on dissertations is particularly salient. This is because of their central role in assessing critical thinking, methodological rigour and the ability to conduct sustained, independent research. These elements are increasingly difficult to test in a landscape where GenAI can simulate these outputs with remarkable sophistication.
Proposed assessment alternatives to the dissertation
To address these challenges, we propose more meaningful, timely and impactful alternatives to the traditional dissertation – options that are more relevant, foster greater student agency and provide authentic assessment experiences. Choices in implementation at undergraduate or postgraduate stages of study will depend on the programme and discipline.
Alternative 1: Applied group-based projects
Group-based alternatives such as applied extended projects can offer a compelling option in place of a traditional dissertation. Typically, students work in teams of five to six on a group project in collaboration with an industry partner to tackle an existing problem. In addition to an academic supervisor, students have an industry supervisor who acts as a point of contact with the company.
Assessment is broken down into a group project and individual reflection. Students also act as consultants by presenting their findings to the company and their academic supervisor.
Group-based applied extended projects effectively enhance student collaboration, build real-world problem-solving skills and strengthen university–industry partnerships, research suggests. They offer a scalable, resource-efficient alternative to traditional dissertations.
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Alternative 2: Capstone projects with options
A capstone project is another excellent alternative to a dissertation. Traditionally used in executive education, contemporary capstone projects support student agency by offering a choice of options such as consultancy, business plans or teaching cases. By doing so, they empower students to take ownership of their learning and align their final project with personal and professional goals.
Option 1: Business consultancy. Students take part in a consultancy project for an existing business to propose an information-based solution to a challenge. Students work with a specific organisation via a collaboration with the university or their own employer (for executive education students, for example).
Option 2: Business plans. This option involves students developing a detailed, research-informed business plan for a new venture. It is particularly valuable for students interested in entrepreneurship, because it provides them with a solid foundation in evidence-based decision-making and strategic planning.
Option 3: Teaching cases. These comprise well-researched, compelling narratives about a real-life organisational challenge, with a teaching note grounded in literature that proposes possible solutions. Students research and collect data on a specific problem in an organisation, then write up a teaching case with research-based solution options.
The dissertation is not completely dead; it still represents critical academic dialogue and is central to those wanting to pursue a career in academia. However, perhaps we are entering an era of dissertation alternatives. These themselves are not without their challenges; agency is always mediated through a learner’s own perceptions, and inequities around group assessment, team dynamics and autonomy are not new. Nevertheless, professionally relevant, applied, timely, collaborative projects that help organisations solve real problems and offer students agency and career opportunities will certainly be on the rise in the next five to 10 years.
Rushana Khusainova is senior lecturer in marketing and education lead for the Marketing and Consumption Group at the University of Bristol. Sarah Sholl is lecturer in research methods and programme director for undergraduate business management, and Patrick Harte is principal fellow of the Higher Education Academy and Head of Taught Postgraduate Programmes, both at Edinburgh Napier University Business School.
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