Agraduate student conducts a study on the attack patterns of al qaeda terrorists around the world. this work is not initially published, but instead used for his dissertation. this student's primary goal most likely is to:

This student's primary goal most likely is to "Obtain an academic degree".

A dissertation is an archive submitted in help of candidature for a scholarly degree or expert capability introducing the creator's exploration and discoveries. As in the given scenario, a student study on the attack patterns of al qaeda terrorists for obtaining academic degree.