Weekly outline

  • Course Home Page for BUSI-1415

    Welcome to Business Research Project (MBA)

    nola

    My name is Nola Stair and on behalf of the team of supervisors, welcome to the Business Research Project!  We hope that you find this project a fruitful experience during which you will have the opportunity to implement your research proposal under guided supervision.  Developing a Business Reserach Project provides an opportunity to demonstrate academic competence, develop your in-depth knowledge of a specific area of a specific interest and provide a 12,000 word document that can be used when seeking employment following your graduation. So make it count!

    if you have any general questions, please post them to the Q & A discussion board below and allow at least 24-48 hours for a response. If you have any concerns about the research project or issues that you wish to bring to my attention personally, please email me at sn39@gre.ac.uk

    With support and guidance from your Academic Supervisor, you will:

    • work within the research process to produce an MBA level research project
    • understand how these processes can be used to develop a project and your future
    • acquire research skills and competencies for the world of work and enterprise.
    • learn to manage and evaluate your research project

    The Course Guide is designed to give you:

    • a general indication on how to structure your work, manage your time and steer the project to a successful outcome.
    • the essential information you need to understand the administrative procedures and practicalities that relate to independent research work carried out under supervision in an academic context.

  • September Dissertation Submissions

    • MBA 2013-14 Cohort - Deadline = Sept 12, 2014 at 3pm  **Extended to Sept 15**
    • MBA 2012-13 Cohort - Deadline = Sept 30, 2013 at 3pm

    • January Submission

      If a PAB has indicated you should submit or resit (including deferrals) on January 19, 2015 by 15:00 UK time. Please be sure to include a headsheet..

      • Getting Started - MBA cohort 2014-2015

         

      • Required Readings - To Support Development of Your Project

        These books are available from My iLibrary. You can either read them online or download 10 pages daily. Key topics include:

        • Writing Literature Reviews
        • Developing Research Questions
        • Selecting Research Designs
        • Developing Questionnaires and Surveys
        • Analyzing Data
        • Writing Your Dissertation (Research Project)

        These books are available from My iLibrary, but their  copyright allows you to down load the entire book onto your PC, laptop or electronic device.

        • Looking for some sample dissertations?

           Listed under the UoG online databases, consider browsing through the following:
           
          • EThOS: Electronic Thesis Online Service - EThOS is the British Library's online repository of post-doctoral theses from participating UK universities. Please note that you must log in as a registered user in order to download resources. The EThOS and UoG Library inter-library loans websites provide more information.
          • Index to Theses - Available for on-campus access, this database provides abstract (and some full text theses) that were accepted for higher degrees by universities in Great Britain and Ireland.
          • ProQuest Dissertations and Theses full text: The Humanities and Social Sciences Collection - Over a million full text doctoral dissertations and master's theses are available for download in PDF format from the Humanities and Social Sciences Collection.

          Off-campus and want to use ProQuest? Please follow directions to set up your proxy server at http://www.gre.ac.uk/offices/ils/ls/services/proxy

          • March - April 2015

            Meet with your supervisor to discuss feedback and begin tweaking the project proposal as required.

            This is a 30 credit course and along with Foundations of Scholarship and Research Methods course (15 credits), it covers 25% of your MBA studies. The Business Research Project is a key element of the degree. It is the point where knowledge and understanding acquired through the taught courses is synthesised and applied to a substantial managerial problem. Your academic supervisor is there not only to provide guidance and direction for your research but also act as your mentor. So please make certain that you maintain regular contact and raise any points of concern as soon as they arise.

          • May - June 2015

            Meet with your supervisor to discuss your methodology and data collection strategy.

            All ethical compliance forms have been filed with the Business School Research Committee (FREC).

            Please provide a copy of your ethical compliance form to your MBA supervisor.

            All survey and interview questions should be reviewed by your MBA supervisor before actual distribution. This will help avoid any problems occurring with your data collection.

            Reminder:  You are responsible for carrying out what you have submitted and informing your MBA supervisor of ANY changes to your methodology, in which a NEW ethical compliance form may need to be submitted.

            Be sure to watch the video (at right) and listen to the debate about using Qualitative vs Quantitative data. Which is right for your research project?

             

             

            • July - August 2015

              Email your supervisor to update him/her about your data collection, data presentation and data analysis.

              As you begin compiling your draft document, be sure to review the web resource, located at the top right hand side of the course, the Academic Writing Phrasebank, which is an EXCELLENT resource with specific examples and suggestions to guide the development of each major section of your business research paper:

              Introducing work
              Reviewing  literature
              Describing methods
              Reporting results
              Discussing findings
              Writing conclusions

              • September 2015

                Meet with your supervisor to discuss SPECIFIC QUESTIONS about your final draft for submission.

                **IMPORTANT: You will need to register for the 2014 term in order to submit your dissertation/research project. Contact the Business School Office for details about registering during August 2015. Why? The new academic year begins in July of each year. Your submission actually overlaps academic years and you will submit in the 2015-16 version of this course.****

                • 30 November - 6 December