Getting Started on your Thesis
Prior to your enrolment in either Research Methods in Education or in the thesis component of your degree, you should:
- Make informal contact about thesis supervision with a member of staff whose expertise is in your area of interest;
- After discussion with the staff member write a research proposal of approximately 500 words;
- Forward the proposal with the signature of your supervisor to the Head of the relevant Department for approval who will forward it to the Melbourne Education Student Centre for updating on your student file;
Study Tips
The following is a guide for candidates embarking on an education research project. Clearly this is a general approach and candidates have flexibility to make their own plans about how to proceed. The following is, however, an approach endorsed by the Graduate School. Further advice for students seeking guidance on addressing a research project can be sought from other sources at the University including the Graduate Students Association and the Academic Skills Unit.
Begin work immediately. Make regular space in your life to set the research project in train at the beginning of your thesis candidature. Timing is crucial. Writing a thesis demands a high level of commitment, and it requires late nights and weekend work.
Meet with your supervisor at least once a month, on average, during your research. At times, such as when the completion of the thesis is imminent, you may meet much more frequently. You should expect to be able to make an appointment to see your supervisor with one or two weeks' notice in advance. You can expect that your supervisor will read and comment on your work promptly. You should maintain a brief written record of your meetings with your supervisor and the decisions that are reached.
Planning your Thesis
Read up on the literature in and around the area in which you want to write your thesis, but do not over-read. Focus in on one specific aspect, and then begin to define your topic; this is the most difficult task because it requires you to identify the problem. Problems may be of an empirical or theoretical nature. As you are writing your thesis in education (within the field of humanities and social sciences) theoretical problems are as important to analyse as empirical ones. Provide the reasons why you are doing what you are doing. When you have identified a topic/problem you think is worthwhile, write out your thesis proposal. This may differ in length and detail from department to department, or from supervisor to supervisor. Before you write your proposal you should consider the following questions:
- WHAT do you want to research?
- WHY do you want to research this particular topic, e.g. the under-representation of women in administrative positions in education? It is most important that you are able to give your adviser, and thus yourself, some solid reasons for doing the research envisaged. This is also the justification for undertaking the research, a necessity sometimes forgotten. Remember: this is your thesis, you will be spending long hours, weeks and months working on the topic, so make it worth your while! Do not work on a paper tiger and never assume that a topic is self-evidently important. No topic is. Just how important your topic is can be gauged by studying the relevant background literature, and should be clearly evident from your literature review (see below).
- HOW do you want to go about researching your topic, or solving the particular problem you have identified? This amounts to explaining what methodology, or combination of methodologies, you think are appropriate to investigate your topic or solve the problem you have identified. Candidates are sometimes confused if their topics are non-empirical and don't involve statistical or experimental techniques. Your methodology may consist in applying the concepts of a particular philosophical or historical school of orientation. Generally speaking, your choice of methodology depends on the kind of problem you want to solve, and the kinds of questions you want to ask. The same problem may be tackled by different methodologies. It just means that you will get different answers. Your supervisor's advice will be crucial here.
Finally, what do you expect will happen as a CONSEQUENCE of having tackled this topic or problem? Will it matter? And if so, to whom will it matter?