Introduction
In this course you will learn how to design a quantitative survey. A survey is one of the most important and widely used quantitative data collection tools. It enables researchers to collect data about the backgrounds, behaviours and attitudes of relatively large samples of respondents in an efficient and structured way. Collected data can be subsequently assessed through statistical methods.
Course information
ECTS: 1.5
Number of sessions: 2
Hours per session: 4
Key Facts & Figures
- Type
- Course
- Instruction language
- English
- Mode of instruction
- Online
What will you achieve?
- After this course, you will know what a survey is and when to use it.
- After this course, you will know how to ask questions and present a survey to respondents.
- After this course, you will be able to evaluate survey questions and a survey’s structure.
- After this course, you will know where and how to find respondents.
Start dates
Session 1
September 28 (Thursday) 2023
09.00-13.00
Online (Teams)
Session 2
October 5 (Thursday) 2023
09.00-13.00
Online (Teams)
Entry level
This course is designed for people who have no or little experience with survey design. This course is for instance not suitable for people who already did a Master or Research Master with a course on survey design, or for people who already have experience with making a quantitative survey.
Relevance
Learning how to design a survey is of great importance for everyone (from all disciplines) with an interest in quantitative research, especially researchers who are planning to collect data themselves.
Please note that this course is about survey design, not about data analysis. Although we will discuss how you can prepare collected data for further analysis, we will not discuss how you can do actual analyses. Please find various courses on quantitative data analysis in our course guide (here).
Working method
This course comprises a mix of lectures, exercises, discussions and reflections. Participants will learn about all important theoretical and practical aspects of survey design.
Session descriptions
In the first session you will learn about the fundamental methodological aspects of a quantitative survey (in relation to other approaches and tools for data collection) as well as how a survey is designed for a particular research purpose. We will also discuss different ways of phrasing survey questions and how to avoid issues regarding validity, reliability, sensitivy, non-response and memory.
The second session discusses the presentation / structure of a survey and how you can evaluate the clarity and functionality of a survey. We will also discuss how you can administer a survey, in particular with the program Qualtrics.
In the two sessions we will go through the full survey design process. Participants will be invited to develop a survey of their own, preferably for their own research.
Note for if the course takes place offline, on campus: We will do exercises in both sessions. Some of these exercises require or can be done more efficiently with a laptop, so please bring one (fully charged) with you.
Instructor
Dr. Fadi Hirzalla is the Graduate School senior lecturer and methodology consultant. He specialises in quantitative and qualitative methods and methodology, next to his substantive interests in citizenship and new media, with a particular focus on intercultural relations and young people. Prior to joining the Graduate School, he worked at the University of Amsterdam and Utrecht University.Email address
Contact
- Enrolment-related questions: enrolment@egsh.eur.nl
- Course-related questions: hirzalla@egsh.eur.nl
- Telephone: +31 (0)10 4082607
Facts & Figures
- Fee
- free for PhD candidates of the Graduate School
- €300,- for non-members
- consult our enrolment policy for more information
- Tax
- Not applicable
- Offered by
- Erasmus Graduate School of Social Sciences and the Humanities
- Course type
- Course
- Instruction language
- English
- Mode of instruction
- Online