Last modified: 24 Mar 2025 14:46
Students are introduced to relevant research methods for the analysis of rural, land, property, and environmental resources. The course is the fundamental building block for the substantive dissertation or partnership project that students undertake over the summer. Topics studied in detail include strategy formulation for effective literature review, various methodological approaches, the selection of appropriate methods for carrying out specified research exercises and the production of feasible research proposals and programmes of work.
| Study Type | Postgraduate | Level | 5 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Term | Second Term | Credit Points | 15 credits (7.5 ECTS credits) |
| Campus | Aberdeen | Sustained Study | No |
| Co-ordinators |
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This course will enable the student to appreciate the nature and purpose of academic research, will provide a systematic route through the initial stages in the preparation of a feasible research proposal and identify the investigative, evaluative and research management skills essential for the successful completion of a dissertation or partnership project.
Information on contact teaching time is available from the course guide.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 40 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback | Word Count | 2000 | ||
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | To evaluate the relative merits of different research designs and their utility in sustainability and MLE-aligned research |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | To identify and evaluate attributes of different methodological approaches |
| Factual | Apply | To demonstrate knowledge of different data/information collection and analytical/ interpretative techniques |
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | 60 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
The Literature Review, Research Proposal and Plan is a 3,000 word piece of work. The Literature Review should be around 2,000 words and the Research Proposal and Plan should be around 1,000 words. |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Conceptual | Evaluate | To evaluate the relative merits of different research designs and their utility in sustainability and MLE-aligned research |
| Factual | Apply | To demonstrate knowledge of different data/information collection and analytical/ interpretative techniques |
| Factual | Apply | To design and execute a literature search and prepare a critical literature review |
| Procedural | Apply | To demonstrate an ability to define research problems and produce a feasible research proposal and programme of work |
| Procedural | Understand | To demonstrate an understanding of the ethical responsibilities of social science researchers and how to apply these to an independent research project |
There are no assessments for this course.
| Assessment Type | Summative | Weighting | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Assessment Weeks | Feedback Weeks | |||
| Feedback |
Students must pass each element of the assessment. The resit arrangement is (a) if the student fails the essay they are must complete an essay on an alternative research contexts question as a resit and (b) if the student fails the Literature Review, Research Proposal and Plan this work must be revised and resubmitted (note that this work is essential preparation for the disseratation). |
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| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Knowledge Level | Thinking Skill | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| Factual | Apply | To design and execute a literature search and prepare a critical literature review |
| Procedural | Apply | To demonstrate an ability to define research problems and produce a feasible research proposal and programme of work |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | To evaluate the relative merits of different research designs and their utility in sustainability and MLE-aligned research |
| Procedural | Understand | To demonstrate an understanding of the ethical responsibilities of social science researchers and how to apply these to an independent research project |
| Conceptual | Evaluate | To identify and evaluate attributes of different methodological approaches |
| Factual | Apply | To demonstrate knowledge of different data/information collection and analytical/ interpretative techniques |
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