LCE 501 SUMMER RESIDENTIAL 2: PREPARATION FOR DISSERTATION (2 ECTS)
Part 1 - Comprehensive Examination
The comprehensive examination will examine knowledge, skills and experiences covered in all modules (LCE 500, 510, 511, 512, 513, 514, 515, 516, 517).
Part 2 - Dissertation preparation
1. Finalisation and approval of proposal draft
After the completion of the taught part of the course, students will need to select their dissertation supervisor and have their topic approved. One week prior to the second in-residence summer seminar they will submit a draft of their dissertation proposal (2-3 pages) to their supervisor. This text will include the rationale and aims of the proposed study, specific research questions, as well as a short bibliography.
2. Meetings with assigned supervisor
Students will meet individually with their dissertation supervisor to discuss and improve their proposal, e.g., to ensure that their research topic is original, that it is manageable in the time allotted, that the work previously done in their chosen area is accessible, that the data can be easily collected, etc.
3. Dissertation workshop
Students will be given information and advice to support the preparation and writing up of their dissertation. They will learn how to set an outline for the dissertation, respecting the practice in applied linguistics, typically with the following steps: aims of the research undertaken, research questions to be answered, literature review (i.e., relevant readings and research applying to the topic), methodology (qualitative, quantitative, case study, etc.; site of the study, informants/learners involved; the data and the way of collecting them), data presentation and results, analysis and discussion of data, findings and implications of the study. The technical aspects of the dissertation presentation will also be dealt with: title page, acknowledgements, chapters and paragraphs within chapters, footnotes, referencing, bibliography and sitography (presentation and size), etc.
4. On-site assignment
Based on the guidelines provided in the dissertation workshop, students will expand their dissertation proposal into a 5-6 page outline and begin to fill out their reference bibliography. This will be submitted to their supervisor and discussed in a final meeting. Students will be required to set action plans with specific timelines for submissions and resubmissions of drafts and of the final version of the dissertation.
The comprehensive examination will examine knowledge, skills and experiences covered in all modules (LCE 500, 510, 511, 512, 513, 514, 515, 516, 517).
Part 2 - Dissertation preparation
1. Finalisation and approval of proposal draft
After the completion of the taught part of the course, students will need to select their dissertation supervisor and have their topic approved. One week prior to the second in-residence summer seminar they will submit a draft of their dissertation proposal (2-3 pages) to their supervisor. This text will include the rationale and aims of the proposed study, specific research questions, as well as a short bibliography.
2. Meetings with assigned supervisor
Students will meet individually with their dissertation supervisor to discuss and improve their proposal, e.g., to ensure that their research topic is original, that it is manageable in the time allotted, that the work previously done in their chosen area is accessible, that the data can be easily collected, etc.
3. Dissertation workshop
Students will be given information and advice to support the preparation and writing up of their dissertation. They will learn how to set an outline for the dissertation, respecting the practice in applied linguistics, typically with the following steps: aims of the research undertaken, research questions to be answered, literature review (i.e., relevant readings and research applying to the topic), methodology (qualitative, quantitative, case study, etc.; site of the study, informants/learners involved; the data and the way of collecting them), data presentation and results, analysis and discussion of data, findings and implications of the study. The technical aspects of the dissertation presentation will also be dealt with: title page, acknowledgements, chapters and paragraphs within chapters, footnotes, referencing, bibliography and sitography (presentation and size), etc.
4. On-site assignment
Based on the guidelines provided in the dissertation workshop, students will expand their dissertation proposal into a 5-6 page outline and begin to fill out their reference bibliography. This will be submitted to their supervisor and discussed in a final meeting. Students will be required to set action plans with specific timelines for submissions and resubmissions of drafts and of the final version of the dissertation.