3000 words not inclusive of references and bibliography.

The topic of an essay/project portfolio, consisting of a detailed research plan for and methodological defence of, a dissertation/ project; and a linked literature review. The topic of the plan will either be an extension of the topic of a essay/ project being written for a concurrent M-level module, or an anticipated master's dissertation. This form of assessment will permit the evaluation of all the learning outcomes. The various components of the portfolio are not individually marked; rather the portfolio is treated as a single entity and marked accordingly. Thus, there is not predetermined weighting of each component.

This module will provide a Faculty-wide introduction to masters level study and research methods. It includes a range of topics that are (a) valid across a range of disciplines; and (b) specifically pertinent to masters level study. None of the subjects will be covered comprehensively, since the purpose of this module is to introduce topics that will then be worked on in more depth in discipline-specific modules. The module will also lead students to a practical understanding of the expectations of postgraduate student, further study and employability opportunities, PDP, and postgraduate level use of electronic research materials.

Seminars may include:
1. postgraduate standards and regulations including ethical approval
2. postgraduate skills audit (start of PDP)
3. electronic resources and searches
4. introduction to designs/ modes of research (quantitative, qualitative, etc.)
5. theoretical epistemological issues 1
6. theoretical epistemological issues 2
7. Visual methodologies
8. introduction to statistical analysis
9. literature review: significance and approaches
10. project planning and management
11. thinking about future research degrees study; funding and career opportunities

The seminar will be conducted in 1hr 30 minutes to 2 hour sessions, by a team of staff drawn from across the Faculty. A typical session would consist of a short tutor presentation, followed by discussion and or practical activities, as is appropriate to the topic in question. It is expected that the skills audit in the second week might well raise additional topics for seminars. The research topic for the assessment will be chosen by a process of negotiation between the student and the module tutor, with input where necessary by the award tutor.

Resources: Library and IT facilities, booking of IT lab, powerpoint and slide projection facilities

APA, 2001 Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association - APA
Berg, Bruce L. 2003 Qualitative Research Methods for the Social Sciences. Allyn and Bacon, 5th ed.
Cresswell, 2002 John W. Research Design. SAGE.
Deacon et al 1999 Resreaching Communications. Hodder Arnold. Hart, Christopher. 1999. Doing a Literature Review. SAGE
Hart, Christopher. 1999. Doing a Literature Review. SAGE
Hollis, M. and Smith, S. 1991. Explaining and Understanding International Relations, Clarendon Press, Oxford.
Resource Discovery Network. 2005. Virtual Training Suite. RDN. http://www.vts.rdn.ac.uk/
Salkind, Neil J. 2003 Exploring Research - Prentice Hall .
Schroder et al. 2003. Researching Audiences Hodder Arnold.Sulivan, Graeme. 2004. Art Practice as Research. SAGE.
Sulivan, Graeme. 2004. Art Practice as Research. SAGE.
UKGRAD. 2005 Just for Postgrads. http://www.grad.ac.uk/cms/ShowPage/Home_page/Online_resources/Just_for_Postgrads/p!edceLii
Webb, K. 1995. An introduction to Problems in the Philosophy of Social Sciences, Pinter, London.