guidelines.doc

EDINBURGH NAPIER UNIVERSITY, THE BUSINESS SCHOOLDISSERTATION MODULE LEVEL 4 STS10130NOTES FOR GUIDANCE - STUDENTS1.IntroductionAll students undertaking an honours degree must undertake a dissertation and this document outlines the formal requirements. A series of research methods seminars will give further information and advice on all stages of the project, from topic definition to data analysis and writing up.2.RequirementsThe dissertation must cover a business-related topic. It may be organisation-based (eg, from placement) or examine an issue from a functional perspective (eg, marketing, personnel, finance).There are several key requirements:(a)Define topicIt is important to focus on a specific issue, question or problem. This should be defined at an early stage; failure to do so may result in a dissertation that is too wide-ranging and lacks focus.(b)Mixture of theory and practiceThere needs to be some form of theoretical or academic base, against which findings from research can be compared and discussed. It may be that a specific model is used as a framework to analyse a companys behaviour or that there is a thorough review of literature in a particular field.(c)Use must be made of primary or secondary information or a mixture of bothPrimary information is that which is collected directly by the student in the course of research. Secondary information is published and available to all and is sometimes referred to as desk research. Ideally the dissertation should make use of both types: some form of fieldwork is often required. However, in some areas notably economics and accounting very good dissertations can and have been produced using soley secondary information. No good dissertations have been produced soley from primary information.(d)Analysis and interpretation of dataResearch findings should not just be presented and described: they must be analysed and interpreted. This aspect is crucial in the assessment of the Dissertation.(e)Draw logical conclusions and make recommendationsConclusions should flow logically from the findings and should not contain any new material. In the conclusions students should include a short critical reflection on the merits of their dissertation and inparticular discuss the reliability, validity and generalisability of their findings. If possible practical recommendations, to the industry, organisation and/or future researchers, should also be made. This emphasises the practical aspect of the project: the results should be able to be applied to a real situation.3.Length and PresentationThe report should not exceed 12,000 words, excluding references, appendices and contents pages. Emphasis should be placed on developing a clear and concise writing style. Excessive length may indicate a poorly-defined topic, a verbose writing style or over-ambitious objectives, and will be penalised.Technical DetailsThe structure of the Dissertation is as follows:FormatFirst Page-TitleSecond Page-Abstract - a 150-250 word Summary of the dissertation and declaration that it is your work - this to be signed and dated.Third Page-Acknowledgements.Fourth Page-Contents Listing.Fifth Page-Chapter1 Introduction.Other Chapters(aim for around five).References.Appendices-if required.TypingThe dissertation must be typed in font Arial 12 and the printed text must be of a suitable quality.The dissertation may be printed on one side of the paper.Double or one-and-a-half spacing must be used.Pages should be numbered consecutively.White A4 paper of good quality is to be used; margins shall be as follows:Left (binding edge)25mmOther margins25mm.Each chapter should be sectioned into subsections, and the subsections numbered and given a title, e.g. section eight in chapter 2 would appear as2.8The Value of the AuditFigures andThese should be included in the main text and referred to by chapter, Tablessubsection and number.For example, referring to a P-chart the fourth figure in Chapter 3 section2, might be referred to asdisplayed in figure 3.2.4. After the figure a legend should appear, i.e.Figure 3.2.4-P-Chart.Likewise for tables.ReferencesThese should be referred by name and date in the text and listed alphabetically in the reference list at the end of the dissertation. Only include articles etc actually cited in the text.For example, the statement may appear:“This finding is supported by Smith (1990) and Jack (1987).”This would appear in the bibliography as:Jack, B. 1987. Quality Improvement, Wiley, Chichesteri.e. for a book, name, date, title, publisher, where published.Smith, V.T. 1990 - Improving Quality, International Journal of Quality Improvement, 6, 2, 10-21.for a journal the layout is name, date, title of article, title of journal, volume number, part number, inclusive page numbers. To reference a web page give author or body, date, title (if any), web address and the date you accessed the page. For example to refer to the General Registar of Scotlands 2003 report on the Scottish population. The the text would appear GROS, 2003 and in the reference list the reference would appear as:General Reigistar of Scotland, 2003, Scotlands Population, .uk/grosweb/grosweb.nsf/pages/03annual-report, 21st Sept. 2004.The references should appear in alphabetical order by surname of lead author and books, web sites and journal articles should all appear in one list.4.Sample dissertation outlineThe dissertation is considered as being more like a short book (with an abstract, contents list, chapters, references and, where appropriate, appendices) than a long essay. The following is a suggested outline for an organisation-based project:AbstractA summary in more than 250 words of your dissertation, state the aim the research method and findings and the value of these findings.Chapter 1 - IntroductionOutline the project, the aims and objectives, the reason for choosing this, the research methodology adopted, any limitations of the research and the main findings.Chapter 2 - Context-setting: the industry/organisationProvide relevant background information on the organisation itself and the industrial sector in which it operates. This will be essentially descriptive and should aim to prove sufficient contextual information to enable the reader to understand the issue more fully and to appreciate the research methodology adopted. Depending on the type of dissertation this chapter may be omitted.Chapter 3 - Theoretical concepts and literature reviewA detailed discussion of the relevant theoretical concepts underlying the topic, including a review of previous research. All dissertations should have this chapter.Chapter 4 Information collectionPresent the approach to collecting information and how you ensured its reliability and validity. The information whether primary or secondary or both should be summarised and desribed.Chapter 5 Analysis and interpretation of the Information collected. The analysis of the information collected from the research shouldld be presented and interpretated. Where appropriate, there should be discussion of primary findings in comparison to published research on the topic.Chapter 6 - ConclusionsConclusions are drawn on the basis of all the above findings and discussed in relation to the literature review. No new material should be presented by this stage. You should undertake a critical reflection on your research inparticular focussing on reliability, validity and the generalisability of your findings. Recommendation arising from your research should then be presented.ReferencesA list in alphabetical order by author of all the works cited in your text and only the cited works.AppendicesAdditional supporting material (such as a copy of a questionnaire or tables of statistics), which is essential but which would interrupt the flow of the text, should be placed in appendices. Try and keep appendices to a minimum.5.Role of supervisorYou will be asked to submit a topic proposal outlining your ideas and based on this information; you will be allocated a supervisor. This will be a member of academic staff from one of the cognate groups in the Business School or sometimes from a department in another faculty. He/she will be an experienced supervisor and have some expertise within your broad area of study (e.g. business policy, marketing, personnel) or on the research methods relevant to your research.It is your responsibility to keep in contact with your supervisor, and not vice-versa. The supervisor will set out his/her expectations of you at the outset. Meetings should then take place at relevant points in time as recommended by your individual supervisor. Mode of contact with the supervisor will vary and may include face-to-face or email discussions, one-to-one meetings or group supervisory meetings. Notes should be taken at each meeting, along with actions agreed for the next meeting. It is a good idea to keep a research diary and it is expected that you will make full use of the Universitys email facilities for communication with your supervisor. However, you should print material and send it to your supervisor rather than considering your supervisor as a free printing resource.The supervisors role is to help you throughout the research process, and to advise you on the standard of your work. The supervisor will give advice, to the best of his/her ability, but will not tell you what to do. The final responsibility for the Dissertation rests with you and not your supervisor!6.Coursework requirement Dissertation Outline (10% of final mark)In order to ensure you make the best possible start and to help you clarify your thoughts you will be required to submit a dissertation outline by week 8. This should contain the following:a)Dissertation Titleb)Aim(s)c)Information to be collected and how it will be collectedd) A time-scheduled action plan through to week 25e)Four example references one to be a text book, one a web site and two journal articles.A proforma exists for you to complete.This coursework must be submitted directly to your supervisor for marking. Failure to do so may result in a mark of 0% being awarded.7.Final assessmentThe remaining 80% of the marks are assigned to the completed dissertation. A mark is initially agreed between the supervisor and a second internal assessor. This mark may then be adjusted by the external examiner.The marking scheme which is used is typically as follows:a)Abstract 5%b)Introductory Chapter 5% c) Literature Review 25% (+/- 10%)d)Research Methods 15%e)Analysis and discussion of research findings 25% (+/- 10%)f)Conclusions and recommendations 15%g)Presentation and writing style 5%h)References 5% 100%8.Submission detailsTwo bound copies of the dissertation must be submitted by week 26 along with an electronic copy, your final Turnitin originality report and your diary/learning log. This deadline is final. One copy will be available for collection after the results of the Programme Board of Examiners have been officially published.9.PlagiarismWhat is it?Plagiarism is against the University regulations and can lead to a student failing a piece of coursework, a module/unit or even the programme itself. Plagiarism is copying someone elses work and passing it off as your own. This is especially relevant in the Literative Review where failure to reference properly may be treated as plagiarism. Even if work is referenced a more than a few sen