BMO0114 Individual Research Project Student Handbook | University of Huddersfield

Introduction

This guide is designed to provide students with a background to the PGT Individual Research Project (IRP) and information as to what is required from the students as well as supervisors. 

Summer Project Modules

All students on the PGT suite undertake a summer project module. There are three student project module routes: Individual Research Project, Group Consultancy Project and Launch a Venture. This guide is focusing on the Individual Research Project (BMO0114), the module that you are doing.

Depending on which course you are studying, you will take one of the following preparation modules before the IRP Summer Project begins:

BMO0112 Research Methods

BMA0092 Quantitative Financial Analysis (BMA0092)

BME0046 Quantitative Economic Methods

The Role of the Supervisor

Once you have completed the preparation module, you should have the basic skills, competencies and knowledge to undertake the work required for the individual research project. The individual research project is a 45-credit module with a maximum 8000-word assessment and each supervisor is allocated 9 hours of supervision support for each student they supervise. This includes both face-to-face (or virtual) contact and time for reviewing student written work (i.e. a chapter or section) and providing feedback. 

The role of the supervisor is to guide students through the process of undertaking the individual project and offer advice and direction as required. It is not the role of the supervisor to teach students skills and knowledge they should have been delivered in the preparation module. The supervisor will be the first marker for the individual research project. All submissions will be second marked. The marking criteria can be found in the BMO0114 assessment brief on Brightspace. 

Your supervisor is allocated to you by the school and you will be notified of the name and contact details of your supervisor following the BMO0114 Launch Day.

What are the requirements of the Individual Research Project?

The Individual Research project is a small-scale project that is undertaken within a 2-3-month period. It is not a PhD: a contribution to knowledge is not a requirement for this project and students are not expected to demonstrate a high level of philosophical or methodological understanding. However, a clearly formulated and justified methodological approach is important.

The Individual Research Project has been validated to accommodate a range of different research approaches, ranging from a 1) structured literature review; 2) secondary data analysis; and 3) empirical based study. However, the validated document makes clear that the approach adopted should take into consideration the resources, time and skill-set available to the student. 

Generally, speaking, primary data collection should only be permitted where it is:

• Feasible within the limited timescale of the summer project period.
• Likely to produce high quality data that cannot be collected via other means
• Supported by your supervisor as an appropriate and achievable project

Any student wishing to collect primary data must explain the reasons as to why this is necessary to their supervisor and must obtain explicit confirmation from the supervisor that they can collect primary data. Primary data collection will also require ethics approval using an E1 form (see section 11). Permission to undertake primary data collection must be approved by your supervisor via email (and likewise, if rejecting the request, this should be formalised through an e-mail).

All other students should adopt an approach using literature-based or secondary sources only. This could include secondary analysis of data or a structured literature review. This approach will also require the completion of an ethics form signed by your supervisor before you commence your research.