Making your research proposal work for you

Introduction

Many PhD candidates start their research journey with an ambitious research question, a first understanding of the relevant literature, and some preliminary notions about the methods to use. During the initial phase of the PhD project, these aspects become clearer and result in a more specific and elaborate proposal that serves as the basis for the actual research work.

This course is intended to guide PhD students in that initial phase, in which preliminary ideas are developed into a more concrete research proposal. As such, the course best fits PhD students in their first year of their project. The course familiarizes participants with a broad range of aspects of PhD research, and thus serves as a linking pin between academic content, research methods and process management. It is designed to help PhD students identify the choices that need to be made to further develop their research project, provide them with a brief overview of the options available to them and how these choices influence and relate to each other.

This course is most suitable for PhD students who intend to use empirical data, although many of the topics addressed are also applicable for more theoretically-based projects.

Course information

ECTS: 2.5 
Number of sessions: 4
Hours per session: 3

Aims and working method

There are four sessions consisting of workshops with mini-lectures, homework assignments and in-class reflection and exercises. In this course, you will use your own research proposal to work on the topics outlined below, and the classes will feature group discussions and reflection on the work of your classmates.

In order to participate, you must hand in a brief description of your research topic or (if available) a draft of your proposal in advance of the first session. The instructor can then confirm whether this course will cater to your specific needs.