Research Proposal for a Dissertation in a Management

As part of the formal assessment for the Master of Business Administration you are

required to submit a Research Methods assignment. Please refer to your Student

Handbook for full details of the programme assessment scheme and general

information on preparing and submitting assignments.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this module the student will be expected to:

1. Critically appraise and evaluate the contribution primary and secondary data

sources can make to research studies, particularly with respect to sampling,

statistical analysis and data presentation techniques.

2. Critically appraise and evaluate research undertaken by others.

3. Undertake multidisciplinary research through the acquisition of skills relevant to

the context of business and management.

4. Effectively plan and undertake personal development including the awareness of

an ethical and socially responsibly dimension to decision making.

Assignment Task

You are required to produce a research proposal for a dissertation in a management

related field. The proposal prepared may be the one which you follow for your

dissertation but this is not essential. If you eventually choose another topic for your

dissertation you will have to go through a similar process as that required for this

assessment on that topic. It would therefore be sensible to think carefully about the

topic choice and decide now what your dissertation will be about.

Your answer should include the detail below.

Format:

The format should broadly follow the plan provided below. Diagrams and charts may

be added to clarify and illustrate points.

Research Questions & Objectives

Explanation of the problem/issue and justify why it is important, both from an

organisational and a personal perspective, and a series of precisely written

objectives, to include observable outcomes, that flow from this.

Literature review

Demonstrate knowledge of relevant literature by identifying key debates: concepts

and theories within the topic area and how the literature will be utilised to inform your

research.

Methodology

Explanation of fundamental issues in methodology followed by a full description of

the methodological approach to be adopted. This and your data collection methods

should be justified and you should explore issues of validity, reliability and

generalisability of the research proposal.

Reflections & Resources

Appraisal of resource and ethical implications, including an audit of researcher’s

knowledge and skills, and an action plan that demonstrates the sequence of the

research and shows the viability of the proposal.

Overall Structure of Proposal

Appropriate use of references. Harvard referencing to be used in both the text and

bibliography – all detail to be included. Logical structure, report format.

Practical Issues

The assignment is to be submitted in a single word-processed format. For more

information please see the “Guide to Submitting an Assignment” document available

on the module page on ilearn.

Including quotations, but exclusive of the bibliography and appendices, the

assignment must not exceed 4,000 words in length.

You are required to state the word count on the front page

The word count excludes the title page, executive summary, reference list and

appendices. Where assessment questions have been reprinted from the

assessment brief these will also be excluded from the word count. ALL other

printed words ARE included in the word count. Printed words include those

contained within charts and tables. See ‘Word Count Policy’ in My Resources for

more information.

Assignments submitted late will be marked as a 0% fail, unless you have withdrawn your

intent to submit for this module in advance of the deadline.

You MUST underpin your analysis and evaluation of the key issues with appropriate and

wide ranging academic research and ensure this is referenced using the Harvard system

(See ‘Referencing Guide’ in the Study Skills Guide in My Resources). You must use the

Harvard referencing method in your assignment.

Assessment criteria

The proposal will be assessed for its overall quality; in particular the extent to which

the components fit together and its suitability for masters level research. You will

need to demonstrate that you have withheld pre-conceived ideas and organised your

arguments logically. The proposal needs to convince the reader as to its suitability

and your ability to undertake the work. A mark sheet and marking criteria are

attached. The work will be marked on a percentage basis, with 40 percent being the

pass mark. You should take careful note of where marks are allocated and ensure

that you address these areas in your proposal.

Once you have identified your area it is worth contacting your tutor with a brief outline

of what you intend to do with your objectives clearly set out in order to receive some

feedback before you undertake the main writing up.

Marking Scheme and Feedback Sheet for Research Proposal

Student’s Name: ………………………………………………………………………

Date: ………………..….

Key to marking scheme in each section: 0 = no evidence of meeting criteria; full

marks = criteria is fully met

Research Questions and Objectives

Clearly explains problem/issue, justifying why it is important both from an

organisational and a personal perspective and provides precisely written

research questions and observable outcomes that flow from this

15%

Indicative Literature Review

Demonstrates knowledge of the relevant literature by identifying key debates,

concepts and theories and explains how the literature will be used to inform the

research design

25%

Methodology

Provides an explanation of fundamental issues of research methodology. 10%

Explains and justifies the research strategy and data collection methods to be

used and in relation to the proposed research explores the concepts of validity,

reliability and generalisability

25%

Reflections and Resources

Fully appraises the resources needed (including an audit of the researcher’s

knowledge and skills) and ethical implications associated with the proposal and

provides an action plan, or chart, that demonstrates the proposal is viable, given

the available resources – time, researcher skills, access to data etc.

15%

Overall Structure

Uses report format and presents items in a logical structure. Uses Harvard

referencing in text and bibliography

10%

Numerical grading relates to the ‘grading criteria’ handout, whilst comments below

provide qualitative feedback on your research proposal. It is strongly suggested that you

use the marks allocated to each section to guide the number of words allocated to each

part of the mark scheme.

Key strengths of this proposal:

Main areas for improvement:

Final Mark: ……… (subject to the approval of the External Examiner)

First Marker ………………………… Second Marker …………………………..