Dissertation Guidelines for MSc Programmes

Dissertation Guidelines for MSc Programmes 2011-2012 NOTTINGHAM UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL MSc PROGRAMMES DISSERTATION GUIDELINES DISSERTATION REQUIREMENT AND ASSESSMENT All MSc candidates must undertake a dissertation to complete their degree This dissertation is normally written in the summer leading up to the end of the course You must achieve a minimum mark of 50% in your dissertation and an average of at least 50% across all course modules to be awarded the degree of MSc OBJECTIVE OF DISSERTATION The purpose of the MSc dissertation is to provide you with the opportunity to undertake independent research in a topic appropriate to the title of the degree for which you are registered In undertaking the dissertation, you should look to draw on and extend material covered in the course Normally dissertations should have a significant empirical component (whether quantitative or qualitative) aimed at providing further understanding of key theoretical concepts The typical dissertation is likely to be structured around a review of the relevant literature, an outline of methodology and a presentation and analysis of empirical results However, this does not preclude the use of alternative formats for the dissertation Your personal tutor or the Course Director can provide further guidance on the suitability of dissertation topics CHOICE OF TOPIC You are encouraged to begin thinking about a suitable topic for your dissertation as soon as possible Some members of staff will put forward dissertation topics in relation to areas in which they are specifically interested and a list will be placed on the NEXUS; others will normally be available to supervise projects which fall broadly within their subject area In general, the dissertation would be expected to include both conceptual and practical analysis While it is possible to prepare a dissertation based exclusively on conceptual analysis or one which relies purely on desk research, you should understand that dissertations of this nature depend upon thorough analysis and criticism and are by no means an easy option To complete a dissertation successfully you must check that the topic is realistic in terms of the time available for completion, the scope of the problem and the availability of information and other resources It is important at an early stage to define the specific issues to be addressed, the research methods that you expect to adopt and the specific resources required to complete the work Please note that is not the policy of the Business School to fund these dissertation costs RESEARCH ETHICS Where a particular topic requires primary research (interviews, questionnaires, focus group discussions) involving human participants or their data, you must receive ethical approval for your project before the research can start There are two standard research protocols under review by the School Research Ethics Committee at the moment – one for interviews and/or focus groups, and one for web-based surveys If your proposed research fits the criteria for these standard protocols, you may (with your supervisor’s agreement) use the advance approval granted to these protocols rather than submit your own individual application If your project does not fit either protocol, you will have to apply for ethical approval for your individual project Copies of these protocols will be made available after they have been approved by the Ethics Committee You will be asked to specify on the ‘Agreed Dissertation Proposal Form’ whether your project requires ethical approval, and if so, whether you will be using one of the pre-approved protocols or applying for individual project approval Further information on this can be obtained from your supervisor or the School’s Research Ethics Officer, Adam Golberg (adam.golberg@nottingham.ac.uk) The process of ethical review and approval is an important part of safeguarding participants, but at least as important is for researchers to be aware of ethical issues when planning and carrying out their research The following additional guidance is adapted from the Economic and Social Research Council (ESRC) Framework for Research Ethics (2010) http://www.esrc.ac.uk/about-esrc/information/research-ethics.aspx There are six key principles of ethical research that the ESRC expects to be addressed whenever applicable: The six key principles: Research should be designed, reviewed and undertaken to ensure integrity, quality and transparency Research staff [including students undertaking research] and participants must normally be informed fully about the purpose, methods and intended possible uses of the research, what their participation in the research entails and what risks, if any, are involved The confidentiality of information supplied by research participants and the anonymity of respondents must be respected Research participants must take part voluntarily, free from any coercion Harm to research participants must be avoided in all instances The independence of research must be clear, and any conflicts of interest or partiality must be explicit To implement these principles: • • • The responsibility for conduct of the research in line with relevant principles rests with the principal investigator and the research / employing organisation Risks should be minimised Research should be designed in a way that the dignity and autonomy of research participants is protected and respected at all times More information about research ethics and things to consider when planning your research can be found in the module handbook SUPERVISION ARRANGEMENTS When you have decided on the subject area of your dissertation you should submit an Initial Dissertation Proposal Form with attachment (see page of these notes) to the Postgraduate Office Please ensure that you sign this form before submitting it You should submit this form to the Postgraduate Office no later than Monday 26th March 2012 Please note that the form MUST be submitted by this date if your dissertation is to be allocated to a supervisor by the dates given below If you not submit the form by this date there will inevitably be a delay in the allocation of your dissertation to a supervisor If you have applied for a Dissertation Placement, you are still required to submit an Initial Dissertation Proposal to ensure there are no delays should you be unsuccessful in your application There is a box for you to tick on the Initial Proposal Form so that we can easily identify if you have applied for one of the available placements Your dissertation project will be assigned to a supervisor and you will be notified of the name of your supervisor by the Postgraduate Office no later than Friday 4th May 2012 It is then your responsibility to make the initial contact with your supervisor within one week of this date and develop a lengthier proposal to the satisfaction of the supervisor before proceeding with your work The agreed proposal should then be attached to the Agreed Dissertation Proposal Form (see page 11 of these notes) which should be signed by the student, countersigned by the supervisor and submitted to the Postgraduate Office no later than Monday 11th June 2012 While the dissertation is an individual piece of work, the supervisor may undertake the following: (i) to offer guidance in the specification of the dissertation topic and the formulation of the problem as well as providing some suggestions for preliminary reading; (ii) to offer assistance in outlining an appropriate structure for the dissertation and to review the outline structure of the dissertation; (iii) to help in relation to any specific problems encountered in the course of the research and discuss ideas of possible approaches with you; and (iv) to communicate with you on at least three occasions via face-to-face contact or other form of communication with regard to your progress Following each meeting, your supervisor will ask you to sign a record of what was discussed and agreed It is not the job of the supervisor to read each and every draft of your work, nor to correct English grammar or spelling Normally, a supervisor will only read the complete dissertation report after the work has been submitted by you for marking Normally, the supervisor will also be the first marker of your dissertation Please understand that most supervisors have research, teaching, conference and management commitments over the summer period It is not normally anticipated that there will be regular contact during this period, so it is important to organise your work to ensure that the dissertation structure and method have been agreed early on In the event of an emergency, you should contact your supervisor through the Postgraduate Office It is your responsibility to maintain contact with your Supervisor, and to notify the Postgraduate Office should you experience any difficulty maintaining contact with them You should also ensure that you are able to access your University email account during the summer period as your Supervisor or the Postgraduate Office may wish to contact you concerning your dissertation Should you have difficulty doing this you should inform both your Supervisor and the Postgraduate Office OUTLINE OF YOUR FULL DISSERTATION PROPOSAL You should provide an outline of your dissertation proposal for the first meeting with your assigned supervisor Here are some of the issues that you might wish to consider: Title Why have you selected this topic? What particular knowledge or skills you have to complete this project? Why is this topic interesting to you? What particular question(s) are you trying to answer by carrying out this work? What has already been written about the topic? What theoretical framework can you follow for this work? Where you expect to find information about previous research into this topic? What sources of information might there be practical / empirical aspects of this topic? Information requirements What is the nature of the information and evidence that you will need to complete this work? How you expect to obtain such information and evidence? Research methodology and assumptions What approach you expect to take to provide you with evidence on which to support your eventual conclusions? What assumptions underlie your approach? Description of proposed chapters Can you put together a description of the expected chapters of your dissertation and justify the logic of the proposed structure? An outline could be written up in the form of an introductory chapter to the dissertation Whatever your approach, the outline of your full dissertation proposal is a critical stage at the end of which both you and your supervisor should be convinced as to the feasibility and suitability of the dissertation However, many dissertations change shape as the research proceeds Although the agreed outline of your full dissertation proposal forms the basis of an agreement between the supervisor and student as to the viability of the proposed dissertation, the details remain flexible providing you consult with your supervisor as to the nature of proposed changes PRESENTATION AND LENGTH OF YOUR DISSERTATION Length The length of your dissertation should not be more than 20,000 words, excluding your references Discuss this with your supervisor as some dissertations, particularly those with a high quantitative element, may be of a shorter length It should be typed (11 or 12 point font), double or one and a half spaced on A4 paper with margins of approximately 2.5 centimetres (1 inch) The dissertation should be single sided and pages should be numbered straight through, not on a chapter by chapter basis Binding Dissertations should either be hard bound in a black binder with gold lettering, or soft bound using a comb spine Please note that it is not compulsory for students to submit a hard bound version Whilst students can choose to submit via this method it is not required as part of the assessment regulations and a bound version that is heat sealed or spiral cone bound is also acceptable The front cover of the dissertation should contain: University of Nottingham Title of Dissertation Author's Name Name of MSc degree The spine of the hard bound copies should read: MSc Author's Name Year Title Page and Following Pages The first page of the dissertation should be a title page, formatted as shown below: ───────────────────────────────────────── Full Title of the Dissertation by Author's Name Year of Publication A Dissertation presented in part consideration for the degree of "Title of MSc Degree" ───────────────────────────────────────── The title page should be followed by a one page summary, the table of contents and the acknowledgements (if any) Chapter Structure and Appendices A clear chapter structure is important to reinforce the line of argument; appendices can be used for the presentation of certain types of factual material, mathematical/statistical proofs, survey results etc., since where to include these in the text would distract from the general argument References All work done by other people - either published or unpublished - must be acknowledged and clearly referenced, as should the source of any published data, diagrams or photographs Failure to so may constitute the academic offence of plagiarism References to the work of others should be made in the text, citing author and date, for example: 'Tellis (1986) argues that ' A comprehensive bibliography, with references sorted alphabetically should be included at the end of the dissertation It is important that these references should be accurate and include all the information required to enable a reader to find the references cited We recommend that you follow the Harvard system for referencing This entails the author(s) name(s) cited in the text (as above) and a list of references giving full detail of the source at the end of the dissertation in the form shown below Where possible the use of footnotes should be avoided when referencing The following formats in the list of references should be acceptable: For a journal paper: Tellis, G J (1986), 'Beyond the Many Faces of Price: An Integration of Pricing Strategies', Journal of Marketing, vol 50, pp 145-60 For a book: Kotler, P (1980), Marketing Management Analysis, Planning and Control, Prentice Hall, New Jersey For a chapter in an edited book: Fenn P and Hodges R (1997), 'Long-tail liabilities and Claims Management in the NHS', in Baldwin R (ed.), Law and Uncertainty: Risks and Legal Processes, Kluwer Law International, London For a conference paper: Knight, J A G and Lebrecht, H M (1979), 'Tool control and distribution and work-holding requirements in flexible manufacture', Proceedings of the second Joint Polytechnic Symposium on Manufacturing Engineering, Coventry, Guilford, IPC, pp 14-24 More detailed statements on referencing systems and practices are available in University Libraries Footnotes While the use of footnotes is not generally encouraged, they may be used to highlight important points that would otherwise break the flow of the text They should be identified numerically and presented at the foot of the page to which they refer Endnotes should not be used Diagrams and tables Diagrams and tables should normally be included in the text as close as possible to the point at which they are discussed All diagrams (figures) and tables should be consecutively numbered In the case of dissertations that contain an unusually large number of diagrams, it may be preferable to group these diagrams at the end of the relevant chapters or in an appendix Dissertations containing information that is commercially sensitive There is provision for dissertations considered commercially sensitive to be classified as confidential In these circumstances they are not placed upon public record for a number of years Please discuss this with your supervisor if you consider that this may affect your dissertation WORKING TOWARDS COMPLETION It is strongly recommended that you plan your workload so to be completing your dissertation at least weeks before the actual deadline There are at least two good reasons for following this practice: (a) it is likely that you will have had little prior experience in managing a project of this magnitude, and therefore you may have a tendency to underestimate how much time each stage of your research will take; (b) many accommodation contracts terminate about two weeks prior to the deadline so you will probably wish to avoid the disruption which would be caused by having to relocate over this period We know from experience that with a reasonable level of organisation students should be able to complete two weeks prior to deadline quite comfortably SUBMITTING YOUR COMPLETED DISSERTATION The submission deadline is Friday 21st September 2012 Submissions made later than this date will be subject to a mark deduction of marks for every working day late, unless valid documentary evidence in support of an extenuating circumstance claim is supplied to the Student Support Officer prior to the deadline date (please see Section 10) Whether or not you have valid extenuating circumstances, it will not normally be possible for any dissertation submitted later than the deadline to be examined in time for December graduation Two copies of the dissertation are required One hard or soft bound and one in electronic format The hard, printed copy should be handed in to the Postgraduate Reception (Room A70, Business School North Building) When submitting the printed copy of your dissertation you will also need to submit the dissertation submission form, which can be found on page 14 of this booklet, additional copies will also be available on NEXUS Please note that a bound version is a version that has been bound in some way i.e spiral bound/ heat sealed or hard back bound Loose or stapled sheets are not acceptable The electronic copy must be submitted on-line at the following web-address Full details on how to upload your work will also be provided at this address: http://edissertations.nottingham.ac.uk/deposit.html It is important that when you upload your work, that the drop down option for whom the dissertation will be visible and to is selected as ‘registered users only’ (NB, if your dissertation is confidential then please instead choose the option ‘repository staff only’please see the section below on ‘Confidential Dissertations’ for more information) Students will be regarded as having fulfilled the submission requirements only when both hard copy and electronic copies have been received Students may also post their dissertations to the postgraduate office on the address as below However, dissertations MUST BE RECEIVED by the submission date Therefore if you are posting your dissertation please allow enough time for it to arrive in the UK It is recommended that you use Recorded Delivery or a Tracked Courier Service if posting your dissertation No allowances will be made for submissions that arrive late in the postgraduate office due to postage times and late arrivals may therefore be penalised Address to post dissertations to: MSc Postgraduate Office Nottingham University Business School Jubilee Campus Business School- North Building Room A74 Wollaton Road Nottingham NG8 1BB ENGLAND 10 CONFIDENTIALITY If you are using sensitive information, obtained from a company that you have been in contact with, they may ask you not to place your finished dissertation in the public domain without their authorisation The University has a standard confidentiality agreement that can be used in such instances, which will require the signatures of both the student and the company You will also need to indicate when you submit your dissertation that there is a confidentiality agreement in place, and that your work must not be available to the public domain Please see the Postgraduate Reception (Room A70, Business School North Building) to obtain a copy of the Confidentiality agreement, and stickers to put on both copies of your dissertation to identify its status Students with confidential dissertations must also still post a copy of their work to the on-line system (web- address http://edissertations.nottingham.ac.uk/deposit.html ) The dissertation will still remain confidential and will not be moved into the library or any other public domain, but the University require an electronic copy from students in order to fulfil submission requirements Please note that in order to ensure that this on-line version remains confidential, there will be options when you up-load your work to choose to place an 'embargo' on the work This means that you can set a time limit for how long the work is to remain as confidential Whilst this time limit is in practice, only those connected to the assessment of your work will be able to access your document via a password protected system You will note that you will get asked to choose who can access you work so please also choose’ repository staff only’ as this will ensure that only assessors and other relevant individuals can access your work during your set time frame It is a student’s responsibly to ensure that they have completed the upload and embargo correctly If you have any questions though please ask via the Postgraduate Reception 11 EXTENSIONS Please refer to the University Quality Manual at http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/quality-manual/assessment/pro-guid-ext-cir.htm (in particular Sections, 4, and 6) to see what constitute allowable extenuating circumstances In addition, to those listed in the Quality Manual, the School will also consider applications for an extension on the following grounds: where a student has accepted an offer of long-term full time employment and where the employment contract begins prior to 21st September; where a student is required to undertake more than two reassessments during the Summer period In either case, it would be advisable to discuss this with the Student Support Officer as soon as possible Please note that extensions cannot be awarded for computer failure or loss, loss or damage to storage media, problems and delays collecting data and so on So keep plenty of backups and stay organised! 12 GUIDELINES FOR ASSESSMENT OF MSc DISSERTATIONS Assessment Criteria The assessment of the dissertation will be based on the academic quality of the work Particular attention will be paid to the ability to integrate conceptual and empirical material, the depth of understanding of the literature, the appropriateness of the methodology and the suitability of methods of analysis In addition, the following factors will be taken into consideration: (i) (ii) of the (iii) the extent of self organisation and ability demonstrated by the student; the effectiveness, quality of work produced and the extent to which the objectives project were met; the organisation and structure of the project; (iv) (v) the quality of referencing, appendices, figures and programs where relevant; the quality of the project as a source of clear, concise, interesting information The supervisor gives marks out of 100 based on the quality of the dissertation Level of pass guidelines The Postgraduate taught programme marking scheme used within the Business School may be significantly different to that you have experience of elsewhere As a consequence, you should not be alarmed if you are awarded marks in the 50s or 60s, as these are perfectly respectable grades The complete range of marking standards and associated classifications is as follows: Classification Mark/Comments Distinction 80+ Outstanding piece of work All major and minor objectives achieved Excellent comprehension and informed criticism and analysis Evidence of outstanding work beyond question and some originality Free from errors and showing advanced analytical skills Distinction 70-79 Excellent piece of work All major and some minor objectives achieved Very good comprehension and analysis of the issues involved Excellent familiarity with the source material No major errors and only occasional minor errors Merit 60-69 Careful and clear piece of work Most major objectives achieved Good understanding of the topic Good grasp and analysis of major issues No major errors though some minor errors Pass 50-59 Middle of the range piece of work Basic question answered with relevant analysis Discusses and understands most relevant issues Material a bit thin and/or poorly focused Possible major and some minor errors Fail 30-49 A failed piece of work Poor understanding of the chosen subject area Not a full analysis of the problem/topic Shows some understanding of the general field Inadequate reading/research/preparation Major errors Fail 0-29 A badly failed piece of work Very poor arguments and analysis Completely inadequate reading/research/preparation Generally unsound NOTTINGHAM UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL MSC PROGRAMMES 2011/12 INITIAL DISSERTATION PROPOSAL FORM Name: ………………………… Contact Details (Email and Telephone number): …………………………………………… MSc degree registered for: Main discipline of Dissertation (please tick one only as the most appropriate): Accounting / Finance Corporate Social Responsibility Entrepreneurship / Innovation Industrial Economics Marketing Operations Management Organisational Behaviour / Human Resource Management/ Information Systems Risk & Insurance Strategy Travel and Tourism Other (please specify) If you have also applied for one of the Placement Projects, please tick this box Please note that the central focus of your chosen Dissertation topic should reflect the named degree you are registered for Please attach a typed A4 page detailing all the following: The proposed title of your dissertation One or more research questions (ones that you think are realistically answerable by research) together with an explanation of why you think these questions are worth trying to answer Proposed research method(s) (and why you have chosen this (these) Five academic sources that have influenced your choice of dissertation topic Confirmation of access, if needed What contribution – however modest – you hope to make to our understanding of management or business Significant resources required (please note it is your responsibility to investigate this and to ensure that the necessary resources are available to you in order to complete the project): Your Signature: ……………………………………… Date: ………………………………… This form must be returned to the Postgraduate Office no later than Monday 26th March 2012 10 11 NOTTINGHAM UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL MSc PROGRAMMES 2011/12 AGREED DISSERTATION PROPOSAL FORM Name: ………………… MSc degree registered for: Assigned Supervisor of Dissertation: Proposed Title of Dissertation: Does your dissertation require ethical review? Y/N If so, please enter the name of the pre-approved protocol, or enter ‘individual project review’ Please note that the central focus of the Dissertation topic should reflect the student’s named degree and should only be agreed and signed if the dissertation topic meets this requirement PLEASE ATTACH YOUR AGREED OUTLINE OF YOUR FULL DISSERTATION PROPOSAL (APPROX 500 – 1,000 words) Supervisor: …………………………………………………….(Signature) (date) Course member Signature: ……………… ……………… Date: …………………………… This form must be returned via the Postgraduate Posting Box no later than Monday 11th June 2012 12 13 NOTTINGHAM UNIVERSITY BUSINESS SCHOOL MSc PROGRAMMES 2011-2012 DISSERTATION SUBMISSION FORM Please complete the below and return this form when you submit your dissertation Copies of this form are also available on NEXUS SECTION Student to Complete Last Name First Name Student ID Dissertation Title Supervisor Date Work Handed in Signed _ I have read the section relating to Plagiarism in the University’s Regulations and confirm that the attached dissertation is my own work If ethical approval was required for the project, I confirm that I carried out the research in accordance with a pre-approved protocol or in accordance with the protocol agreed by the School REC I also understand that if I submit my work late, for each working day, or part day, work is submitted late, marks will be deducted from the final marks unless an extension form has been authorised and is attached, e.g a mark of 42 minus changes to 37 SECTION Office use only Date Received Received after Deadline Yes / No Does Student have Extenuating Circumstance Is evidence attached Yes / No Yes / No SECTION Student to Complete a) This information is required to help us complete information about your dissertation research: Have you spent any time overseas (i.e apart from in the UK) undertaking research relating to your dissertation, e.g collecting data? (Please tick) YES NO If ‘yes’ in which country did you complete your research in: ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… How long did you spend in the above country in order to complete your research? (Even if it is your home country please specify the research time period): ……………………………………………………………………………………………………………… b) YES Is your research based within a company (ie either a placement Project/Internship organised by the Business School or alternatively arranged by yourself) NO If ‘yes’ please state the name of the company and the country in which it was based …………………………………………………………………………………………………………… c) Did your research require ethical review? If yes, please state the name of the pre-approved research protocol that you used, or enter the reference number for the individual project approval Please return this form at the same time you submit your dissertation 14 15