Dissertation Proposal Writing Guidelines

9.2.4       Assessment of Proposals and Dissertations

Research proposals and dissertations, which are submitted in fulfillment of the requirements of an MSc or Postgraduate Diploma, are assessed using the following criteria:

The Research Problem

The research proposal and dissertation should have an introduction that:

  .         provides the background to the area of the research, including a literature review;

•         explains the organizational setting for the research;

.         justifies why the proposed research is important; and

.         explains the aims and objectives of the proposed research.

 

Theoretical Perspectives and Concepts

The research proposal and dissertation should show that the student has:

•                  researched, selected and justified the chosen theories;

•                  considered the relationships between theories and the research methods; and

•                  developed a coherent and reasoned theoretical framework for the proposed research.
Research Methods

The research proposal and dissertation should show that the student has:

•         understood the principles of research design;

•                applied an appropriate methodology to the research problem;

•                considered feasibility issues, such as access to subjects and organizations for
the collection of data;

.         considered sampling, measurement, validity and reliability issues;

•        discussed the advantages and disadvantages of various data gathering
techniques; and

•         considered the constraints of time and effort in the research project.
Anticipated Problems

The research proposal and dissertation should demonstrate that the student has:

•                anticipated problems in conducting the research, such as whether there are
ethical, data, access or other issues; and

•                considered ways to resolve anticipated problems and discussed the limitations
of the results.

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