Course
From topic to proposal: Getting started – 2 ECTS
This course targets recently started PhD candidates in the Social/Environmental Sciences working on their research proposal. It contributes to the process of proposal writing during the start of the PhD project. It supports writing a proposal to convey your ideas coherently. Assignments require you to work on your own project proposal.
If you’re fresh into the PhD, this course is there to help you getting started with writing your research proposal. In four interactive sessions we touch on different aspects relevant to formulating your research problem, translating it to research questions and thinking about your research approach. You will also meet with other participants in peer consultation sessions to jointly discuss and reflect on your progress and provide each other with feedback. One of the course coordinators can be present at these sessions as a coach, to provide support from their expertise as social scientist.
This course contributes to the process of proposal writing during the start of your PhD project. It supports writing a proposal to convey your ideas and convince others that these are interesting, coherent and that you have a logical point of view. Assignments require you to work on your own project proposal.
Topics in the course are:
- Research as a way of thinking
- Research as a process
- Formulating a research problem and objective
- Formulating research questions
Please be aware that the previous course Research Methodology: From topic to proposal has been redesigned and split into this course which helps you get started on proposal writing, and a course that goes more in-depth into Research Methodology.
Target group and min/max number of participants:
Recently started PhD candidates in the Social/Environmental Sciences working on their research proposal. Minimum number of participants is 5, maximum number of participants is 20.
Learning outcomes
After successful completion of this course, participants are expected to be able to:
1. Position their research in relation to seminal and current articles from relevant scientific disciplines
2. Describe the societal relevance of their research
3. Formulate research questions and decide on the appropriateness of having hypotheses
4. Identify what type of research approach is suitable for the research
5. Delineate the scope and boundaries of your research project
6. Critically reflect on the coherence of argumentation and justification used in the research proposal
Activities
The course will consist of four plenary sessions with lectures, information and discussion; peer groups (optionally coach) and self study.
Literature (digital access through WUR Library):
Ranjit Kumar (2014). Research methodology(4th ed). London, Thousand Oaks, New Delhi: Sage publications Ltd. ISBN 9781446269978. https://wur.on.worldcat.org/oclc/863173091 (4th ed) or https://wur.on.worldcat.org/oclc/1023528389 (5th ed)
Tobi & Kampen (2018). Research design: the methodology for interdisciplinary research framework 10.1007/s11135-017-0513-8
Other materials will be shared later.
Assessment
The course will be completed upon active participation in the sessions and showing commitment via the assignments.
Preliminary schedule
| Session 1 | 2 April | 9.00-13.00 |
| Session 2 | 3 April | 09.00-13.00 |
| Peer group session 1 | date and time to be agreed within group | |
| Session 3 | 10 April | 09.00-13.00 |
| Peer group session 2 | date and time to be agreed within group | |
| Session 4 | 24 April | 09.00-13.00 |
Course fees
| WGS PhDs with TSP | 175 |
| Other PhDs, postdocs and academic staff | 350 |
| Participants from the private sector | 500 |