Thesis or dissertation? The terms, explained

By Dr. Harshad Ramineni · Updated 1 October 2026 · Rules checked against NMC, NBEMS and ICMR documents on 1 October 2026

In short

In Indian MD, MS and DNB training, “thesis” and “dissertation” name the same requirement: the NMC’s PGMER-2023 says “thesis” in its training rules and “dissertation/thesis” in its marking scheme, and NBEMS’s guidelines use both words. The synopsis, which NBEMS calls the thesis protocol, is the plan you submit before the study starts; the thesis is the finished report of that study.

Is a thesis the same as a dissertation?

In Indian postgraduate medicine, yes. The national documents use the two words for one requirement.

The NMC’s PGMER-2023 says students “will do thesis related research and will write thesis” (clause 5.2(iii)), and its marking scheme gives 20 marks to the “dissertation/thesis”.
NBEMS’s guidelines say the aim of “requiring the trainees to write a thesis/dissertation is to familiarize him/her with research methodology”.

Your university’s regulations may use either word; the requirement is the same, a study you carry out under your guide and report in full. Outside Indian medical training the two words are used differently from country to country, which is why general searches for “thesis vs dissertation” give conflicting answers.

Sources: NMC, PGMER-2023, clause 5.2(iii) and the evaluation criteria; NBEMS thesis guidelines (2022), section I.

What is the difference between a synopsis and a thesis?

The synopsis is the plan; the thesis is the finished study. The synopsis sets out the question, the objectives and the methods so that your guide, your department and the ethics committee can approve the study before it starts. The thesis reports what you did and found, chapter by chapter, once the data are in.

PGMER-2023 does not mention a synopsis at all, so for MD/MS its name, format and deadline come from your university. NBEMS calls the plan the thesis protocol, and uses “synopsis” in two narrower senses: a structured synopsis of 250 to 300 words inside the protocol, and a synopsis of the thesis sent with the finished thesis.

Sources: NMC, PGMER-2023, the full text; NBEMS thesis guidelines (2022), sections III and XII.

Writing yours? Synopsis support builds it in your university’s format.

What is a thesis protocol?

NBEMS defines it like this:

“The protocol for a research proposal (including thesis) is a study plan, designed to describe the background, research question, aim and objectives, and detailed methodology of the study. In other words, the protocol is the ‘operating manual’ to refer to while conducting a particular study.”

Source: NBEMS thesis guidelines (2022), section II.

For DNB, each part of the protocol has a word limit, and the protocol is submitted online within 180 days of joining (90 days on the 2-year post-diploma course). Every limit is listed in DNB thesis guidelines.

Synopsis, protocol, thesis and paper: how do they compare?

Document	What it is	When	Who approves or assesses it
Synopsis (MD/MS)	The plan of your thesis study	Before data collection, by your university’s date	Your guide and the ethics committee, then your university as its regulations require
Thesis protocol (DNB)	The same plan, to NBEMS’s word limits	Online within 180 days of joining (90 on the 2-year course)	Your hospital’s IEC; then it is submitted to NBEMS
Thesis or dissertation	The full report of the study	MD/MS: your university’s date. DNB: 26 months from joining (15 on the 2-year course)	MD/MS: an external examiner at the final exam, with a viva. DNB: assessed through NBEMS, which must accept it
Research paper	A journal article	Any time in training	The journal’s peer review. Under PGMER-2023, one first-author paper published or accepted is one route to final-exam eligibility

Sources: NMC, PGMER-2023, clauses 5.2(iii) and 5.2(x), and the evaluation criteria; NBEMS thesis guidelines (2022); NBEMS notice, 30 October 2023.

What is ethics committee (IEC) approval?

Before a study on human participants, their biological material or their data begins, an appropriately constituted ethics committee must review and approve it, and it keeps monitoring the study while it runs. That is ICMR’s national rule. NBEMS makes IEC approval mandatory before any DNB thesis research starts, and a DNB hospital’s IEC must be registered with the National Ethics Committee Registry for Biomedical and Health Research (NECRBHR).

Sources: ICMR ethical guidelines, 2017, section 4.0; NBEMS thesis guidelines (2022), sections III and V.

What is CTRI registration, and does a thesis need it?

The Clinical Trials Registry–India (CTRI), launched by ICMR on 20 July 2007, is a free online public record of clinical trials, PG theses and other biomedical research in India. Registration has been mandatory since 15 June 2009 for clinical trials under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and its Rules; for other biomedical and health research, ICMR’s 2017 guidelines describe it as voluntary. Editors of major Indian journals have said they will consider only registered trials for publication, which matters if you plan to publish a trial from your thesis.

Source: ICMR ethical guidelines, 2017, section 3.7.

What are the research methodology course and BCBR?

PGMER-2023 requires every MD/MS student to complete an online course in research methodology, taken by registering on the portal of the designated training institution and expected in the first year; the certificate is needed to sit the final exam. For DNB and DrNB trainees admitted from the 2025 session, NBEMS requires the Basic Course in Biomedical Research (BCBR), an online course in research methodology and biomedical ethics from ICMR’s National Institute of Epidemiology, before the thesis is submitted.

Sources: NMC, PGMER-2023, clause 5.2(xi); NBEMS notice, 22 April 2026.

Who is the author of a thesis?

You are. ICMR’s guidelines say that research done for a mandatory course requirement, student research included, should have the candidate as the primary author. NBEMS has you declare that the thesis is “bonafide” and was carried out by you under your guide’s supervision, countersigned by your guide, any co-guide and the head of your institution. Your guide supervises the work; a co-guide can be brought in from another department when the study needs specialised laboratory work.

That is how our support works: we help with design, statistics and drafting from your data and your guide’s comments, and you review, change and own every page. Nothing is invented: no data, no results, no references.

Sources: ICMR ethical guidelines, 2017, section 3.5.1; NBEMS thesis guidelines (2022), section VI.3 and the declaration annexures.

Want support with your thesis?

Design, literature review, statistics, drafting support, Vancouver referencing, a plagiarism check and formatting to your university’s template. We draft with you from your data and your guide’s comments; you review, change and own every page.

See thesis support →

Writing your synopsis?

Your dissertation synopsis in your university’s format, with the consent form in every language it needs, ready for your guide and ethics committee.

See synopsis support →

Questions residents ask

Are thesis and dissertation the same in MD?

Yes. In Indian MD, MS and DNB training both words mean the same requirement. The NMC’s PGMER-2023 uses “thesis” in its training rules and “dissertation/thesis” in its marking scheme, and NBEMS’s guidelines speak of a “thesis/dissertation”.

What is the difference between a synopsis and a thesis?

The synopsis is the plan of your study, approved before data collection starts; the thesis is the full report, written once the study is done. For DNB, NBEMS calls the plan the thesis protocol.

Is CTRI registration mandatory for a thesis?

It is mandatory for a clinical trial under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act and its Rules, and has been since 15 June 2009. For other biomedical and health research, ICMR’s 2017 guidelines describe CTRI registration as voluntary.

Who is the author of an MD thesis?

The resident. ICMR’s national ethical guidelines say research done for a course requirement should have the candidate as the primary author, and the thesis declaration states that the work was carried out by you under your guide. Support with statistics, drafting and formatting is legitimate; the data and the final text are yours to check and own.

More thesis guides

Thesis timelineTopic, synopsis or protocol, ethics approval, data, analysis and submission, in order, with the fixed NMC and NBEMS dates.
Choosing a topicHow to pick a thesis topic you can finish: feasibility, sample size and the FINER test.
NMC thesis rulesWhat PGMER-2023 says about the MD/MS thesis: compulsory, 20 marks, the courses you need, and what it leaves to your university.
DNB thesis guidelinesNBEMS protocol word limits, the 180-day and 26-month deadlines, the 80-page layout, and how DNB differs from MD/MS.
Writing chapter by chapterWhat goes in each chapter of an MD/MS thesis, from introduction to references.
Which statistical testChoosing the right test for each objective, and how to report it.

Sources

Every rule on this page comes from the official documents below, read on 1 October 2026. AuraPharmLab is independent and is not affiliated with the NMC, NBEMS, ICMR or any university. Rules and dates change: check the latest notice, and your university’s own regulations, before you submit.

National Medical Commission. Post-Graduate Medical Education Regulations, 2023 (PGMER-23). Notified 29 December 2023; published in the Gazette of India on 1 January 2024. nmc.org.in
National Board of Examinations in Medical Sciences. Guidelines for Thesis Protocol & Thesis Submission. The current version on the NBEMS Digital Thesis Processing Portal (file dated April 2022). natboard.edu.in
NBEMS. Notice of 30 October 2023: Penal provision for late thesis protocol and thesis submission. natboard.edu.in
NBEMS. Notice of 22 April 2026: Implementation of the Basic Course in Biomedical Research (BCBR) for DNB and DrNB trainees. natboard.edu.in
Indian Council of Medical Research. National Ethical Guidelines for Biomedical and Health Research Involving Human Participants. New Delhi: ICMR; 2017. www.icmr.gov.in