DE7028 - MRes Dissertation

This is an individual project which is negotiated between you and your appointed tutor/supervisor. Throughout the module, you will meet with your supervisor(s) on a one-to-one basis for developmental supervision meetings, to help support your progression and scaffold your academic experience. The taught seminars and supervisions are paced throughout the module to offer regular opportunities for formative feedback, constructive discussions, critical progression and research-led discussions that will inform your future direction, post MRes. During the module, you will be encouraged to:
• interrogate research texts
• think critically about the specific problems raised by research and its connection to society
• apply appropriate methodological and theoretical approaches to underpin your research
• demonstrate acuity in selecting design or arts approaches, methods, concepts and theories.
• formulate a clear research design for the project
• submit an ethical approval application for your planned research project
• balance critical research thinking and writing
• create an editorial thesis structure that reflects the methodological and critical research approach
• develop a practice-led/based portfolio of work (if applicable)
• develop, design, realise and complete an extended research thesis

Supervision will support learning and help direct your research. You will keep a written record of supervisory meetings as part of engaging in reflexive thought and documenting your progression. Informal and formal feedback is provided at stage points through the module by tutor(s)/supervisor(s), and builds upon the feedback you will receive from your MRes core modules, as you develop your research project. The 'feed forward' nature of the feedback is designed to constructively support you in refining your academic skills towards summative submission of work. Wider support is available to you as a student at Northumbria University through Library Services, Employment and Careers Service and your individual guidance tutor.

All modules at Northumbria include a range of reading materials that students are expected to engage with. Online reading lists (provided after enrolment) give you access to your reading material for your modules. The Library works in partnership with your module tutors to ensure you have access to the material that you need.

Knowledge & Understanding:
1. Plan and execute a sustained piece of literary research on a chosen topic and to communicate that plan in appropriate media form.

2. Interpret and analyse texts in a sophisticated and complex way and maintain coherent arguments based on a sustained piece of original research;

Intellectual / Professional skills & abilities:
3. Demonstrate an ability to work independently on a sustained piece of research.

4. Demonstrate advanced self-management skills, including the ability to take responsibility for a large scale project, make editorial choices, and produce an extended piece / portfolio of research to high scholarly standards using academic conventions

Personal Values Attributes (Global / Cultural awareness, Ethics, Curiosity) (PVA):

5. Produce research which conforms to ethical standards of scholarly practice and the conventions of academic presentation.

Summative (graded) Assessments
Either:
• an extended dissertation thesis of 20,000 words

OR

• a portfolio of practical work (practice-led or practice-based research) supported by a 10,000 word dissertation thesis.

Formative (practice) assessment
Continuous formative assessment is part of the module through supervision discussions, recording of progress and conversations with tutor(s).

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Please find details of this module in the other sections provided.