A dissertation is made up of different chapters and formats that one needs to follow. It is not an easy task that anyone can do. So, before going for it, you should cover the areas starting from the introduction to the conventional headings and subheadings. You must be aware of the Methodology, Review of Literature, Findings, Summary/Conclusions/Implications, etc.  Before starting your write-ups, you must take a look for sample of Appendices (copies of instruments and permission letters). You can choose from different references list.  A dissertation can be written in the number of formats, where you can write it in APA, MLA format that are the popular ones.