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MSc Dissertation Project
SOC11101
Lecture 1: The Supervision Process
Dr Imed ROMDHANI
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
Outline
 Problem Space of Supervision
 Project Lifecycle
 Supervision Actors
 Expectations
 Required Skills
 Issues
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
2
Project Lifecyle
Development of Project Proposal
Development of the Problem
Description
Following the Objectives
QC of Project Proposal
QC of Problem Description
Presenting and Analysing the
Data
Drawing Conclusions and
Indentifying Future Work
QC Before Presenting Project
Presenting and Defending the
Work Oraly
Development of the Final Version
of the Report
Examination
Activity Performed By the Student
Edinburgh Napier
University
Quality Control (QC) Performed By
Supervisor and/or Examiner
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
3
Project Lifecycle
Student
Gu
ida
nc
e
M
Su
p
on por
ito t a
rin nd
g
rd
ina
t
ion
at
ion
Administrators
Co
-o
rd
in
Co
-o
Assessment
Standards
Regulations
Best Practice
Supervisory
Team
Examiners
Conformity and Validation
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
4
Student Expectations
Students expect from their supervisors in the following things:
 To read work well in advance;
 To be available when needed;
 To be friendly, open and supportive;
 To be constructively critical;
 To have a good knowledge of the research area;
 To structure meetings so that it is relatively easy to exchange ideas;
 To have sufficient interest in their research to guide the student towards
more information;
 To act as a model;
 To help their academic role development.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
5
Supervisor Expectations
Supervisors expect from their students the following things:
 The students should be independent;
 The students should produce good quality written work;
 The students should have regular meetings with them;
 The students should be honest when reporting on their progress;
 The students should follow the advice given to them when they request it;
 The students should be enthusiastic about their work.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
6
Examiner Expectations
Examiner expects:
 A good level of creativity in the process;
 Student’s ability to analyse and reason in different situations;
 Clarity in written presentation (i.e. dissertation report);
 Good student’s oral presentation skills and ability to defend the work;
 Good relevance and originality of the problem and the topic;
 Student’s ability to separate his work from the work of others;
 Good project management with respect to time and project plan;
 Conformity to academic regulations and standards;
 Success of the process and the student.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
7
Student Skills
Mechanical Skills
• Specific skills
(Referencing, literature searching, etc.)
• General IT skills
Personal Skills
• Lecture and seminar skills
(Note taking, participation)
• Personal skills
(identifying strengths/weaknesses,
Working with others, management,
etc.)
Edinburgh Napier
University
Research
(Accessing electronic databases/journals,
library catalogues)
Academic Skills
• Academic Writing
(assignment planning/writing)
• Academic Reading
(Effective reading and critiquing)
• Reasoning skills
(Analytical thinking, arguments, etc.)
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
8
Proposal Writing
 Developing Project Proposal
 Literature Search
 Proposal Writing
 Proposal Checklist
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
9
Project Lifecyle
Development of Project Proposal
Development of the Problem
Description
Following the Objectives
QC of Project Proposal
QC of Problem Description
Presenting and Analysing the
Data
Drawing Conclusions and
Indentifying Future Work
QC Before Presenting Project
Presenting and Defending the
Work Oraly
Development of the Final Version
of the Report
Examination
Activity Performed By the Student
Edinburgh Napier
University
Quality Control (QC) Performed By
Supervisor and/or Examiner
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
10
Information searching
 Referencing: Check the IEEE standard :
http://www.ieee.org/documents/ieeecitationref.pdf
 Other useful materials for the whole process are available on Moodle
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
11
Choosing a Subject Area
 You should strive to choose the subject area that you are most interested in.
 Choose the subject area where you have the necessary skills.
 Your initial ideas can be further refined by asking yourself: what type of
project would I really like to do?
 A descriptive project
 A theory oriented project
 An applied project
 A comparison of theory and practice
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
12
Descriptive project
 Present the state of the art of a given subject
 It is NOT just a summary of the literature, you need to highlight your
analysis of the literature. Objectives may include
 Categorising previous work
 Selecting comparison criteria
 Comparing previous work with respect to the comparison criteria
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
13
Theory Oriented project
 Deal with extending or comparing existing theoretical models without testing
them in practice
 Objectives may include
 Identifying the details of the extension
 Introducing the extension to the original theoretical model
 Comparing the original theoretical model with the extended version
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
14
Applied project
 Deal with conducting experiments and building proof-of-principle
implementations and gathering evidences from them.
 The aim may be gaining experience from implementing a new algorithm or
protocol
 Objectives may include:
 Setting up a simulator
 Implementing the new algorithm or protocol
 Testing and analysing the results obtained
 Suggesting improvements to the algorithm or the protocol
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
15
Project Structure
 Project Title
 Introduction
 To the subject area;
 To the problem within the subject area
 Reasons why it is important to investigate the chosen problem
 Aim of the project
 A short description of what you intend to do.
 Objectives
 How (by what steps) do you intend to achieve the aim of the project.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
16
Project Checklist
 Paper language: it is clear and concise?
 Mandatory Information: does it contain the required information?
 Quality Assurance: Have you discussed the project proposal with a
competent person or a potential supervisor?
 Skills and Resources: Do you have the necessary background and
resources to do the project?
 Time: Have you estimated the time it takes to complete the project?
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
17
Developing the Aim
 Activities that you need to perform when developing the aim of your
project
Refine the Initial Aim
Develop the Arguments
behind the Aim
Write the Introduction
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
18
Refine the Aim
 The aim is a short statement in the form of a clear, unambiguous
sentence describing the overall goal of the project
 Use the write wording and terminology
 It is important that you check and evaluate every word of the aim:
 Are all words clear, or can some words be interpreted to mean
different things?
 Does your aim promise too much?
 Are there any restrictions on the aim (time, space, etc.)?
 Have you explained all the concepts that are used in the aim
clearly?
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
19
Argument Behind the Aim
 The project aim needs to be supported by proper arguments which
explain why it is important to investigate the topic
 The arguments should relate to relevant theory and should have
clear links to the aim
 Using the literature to support the aim is an efficient way of
strengthening your arguments
 First, find important concepts or factors in the aim or in the
arguments. Then find the appropriate literature for these concepts
and factors
 As you develop the motivations behind the aim, you may need to
adjust the wording of the aim
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
20
Write the Introduction
 Write a high level introduction to introduce the work and present the
overall picture
 Subject Area
 Sub-Area
 Problem
 Aspect of the problem
 Aim
 Introductory chapters are sometimes written so that they resemble a
funnel
 Use standard template forms: check Moodle
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
21
The first sections of the form identify
you, and allow you to provide
information that confirms your
eligibility to take the module.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
22
Titles need to mean something.
Take care with title length.
Titles should be precise.
Questions as titles should be avoided.
Students who work with staff
when putting together their
proposals usually submit higher
quality work and are registered
on the module more quickly than
those who do not.
In the brief description of the
research area you demonstrate
that there is a context into which
your proposed work will fit.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
23
In the proposal outline you
are selling your project idea.
Where it is appropriate your
proposed project, use the
emboldened text to put your
detail together.
Fill in this section as though you'd expect someone else to carry out
the work. If you are so clear about what your study is going to involve
doing that you could give instructions to somebody else, and have that
person carry out your research (instead of you) you will have a good
proposal. Your ideas should be clear and straightforward, easily
articulated on paper (and not something in your head!)
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
24
Your research questions should
provide an indication of the
contribution your work will make to
the subject area (as outlined in
section 6 above). Use a
straightforward question format. Avoid
“crystal ball” speculation-type
questions that cannot be addressed
in this type of work.
Possible output/deliverables may
include development of software, a
feasibility study, a comparative
evaluation, an extensive survey, a
design, a set of recommendations.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Take special care with aims.
Aim for three or four and use
terms such as “critically
evaluate”, “analyse”,
“investigate”, “determine”,
“elicit” when composing them.
Details of specialist
hardware and software are
important for technical
projects: we need to be sure
that we have access to the
resources to support you.
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
25
Your references provide evidence that you have read
around your topic. The references should include high
quality material (not Wikipedia, not text book chapters, not
articles from trade magazines). Use a recognised
referencing format.
It is in your best interests to
have the agreement of a
supervisor before submitting
the form – but do not name
anyone without permission.
Completed proposals (but not
drafts) should be submitted to the
module leader in time for the
deadline.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
26
• Completing the proposal form
• Fill in the sections
– The order of filling it in is unlikely to be linear
– Make sure that it all makes sense as a “whole” document
Attention to writing style
– Academic tone
– Logical ordering of elements
– Attention to detail, e.g. Harvard for in-text citations, APA for listed
references
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
27
• What to avoid when writing a proposal:
• Failure to do the preparatory reading, for example
– No evidence of familiarity with the literature of the research domain
– Methods proposed do not make sense
Inappropriate “research” proposed, for example
– Research questions too broad, too trivial, impossible to answer
– Aims not linked to research questions
– Proposal is focused on development, rather than Masters level
research
Poor presentation, for example
– Written style (use of “I”, contractions, journalistic tone), formatting
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
28
Make a final check of the work
that you produce for the
proposal against the content of
the feedback form.
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
29
• Convince us
•
•
•
•
•
Why it is worth undertaking this project
What you propose to do
How you intend to go about it
What it will deliver
The potential impact/importance of this proposed work
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
30
• Reasons why a proposal would be rejected
• If the proposal is incomplete
• If the proposal sections 6-8 contain less text than asked for
• If the proposal is very similar to another student's proposal
(current or past)
• If the proposal contains large amount of text that has been
copied from the web or other plagiarised material
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
31
Questions?
Thanks !!
Edinburgh Napier
University
Imed Romdhani • November 2012•
• Module SOC11101 •
32