Postgraduate Course: Methods of Business Research (CMSE11305)
Course Outline
| School | Business School |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 15 |
ECTS Credits | 7.5 |
| Summary | This course will feature as a core element of the proposed MSc in Entrepreneurship and Innovation to prepare students for the in-company project work, writing and presenting reports (own and for project 'client'), and ultimately for the dissertation.
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| Course description |
This course has three objectives. First, to help the student understand the research process in the broad field of management and the specific requirements of entrepreneurship and innovation research. Second, to facilitate them in planning, carrying out and communicating the research project that will be the basis of their in-company project work and ultimately their Masters dissertation. Third, to assist them in understanding how to read and evaluate research in both entrepreneurship and innovation specifically and management more broadly, as well as write and present reports in this context.
This course is divided into three parts: 'research design', 'qualitative analysis' and 'quantitative analysis'. These are designed to provide students with an overview of the conventions on research in social sciences in general, and entrepreneurship and innovation studies in particular, and the role of qualitative and quantitative research in such work. There will also be a dedicated session on 'ethics' and 'responsibility' in and during research. The course will also discuss the particular problems of contemporary Innovation and Entrepreneurship (e.g., that modern entrepreneurship and innovation projects are often global and international in nature and conducted over multiple contexts).
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to:
- Identify and critically evaluate literature in a given Innovation and Entrepreneurship field;
- Discuss and evaluate how to evaluate, select, justify and apply appropriate qualitative or quantitative data collection, presentation and analysis methods to their chosen area of research, in order to ensure that the evidence generated, its analysis and the conclusions drawn from it are valid and reliable;
- Apply such knowledge to construct an original piece of research of their own, and develop further independent research skills as well as the skills for presenting the findings of their research in a professional manner to both practitioner and academic audiences.
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Reading List
ESSENTIAL READING
Bryman, A and Bell, E (2007) Business research methods, Oxford University Press.
RECOMMENDED READING
Easterby-Smith, M, Thorpe, R and Lowe, A (2002) Management research: an introduction,Sage.
Riley, M, Wood, R, Clark, M, Wilkie E and Szivas, E (2000) Researching and writing dissertations in business and management, Thomson Learning. |
Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Cognitive and Subject Specific Skills:
-Develop research questions and objectives in a chosen research area;
-Critically evaluate both relevant literature and different research design and data collection/analysis methods;
-Write and present reports as well as a sound research proposal;
-Recognise qualitative and quantitative techniques appropriate to the analysis of some particular circumstances, understand their strengths and limitations, and choose between them;
-Design and implement a research project to form the basis of their Masters dissertation.
Transferable Skills:
-Successfully undertake independent reading and enquiry;
-Evaluate and choose between various methods of enquiry;
-Design and plan a research project;
-Write and present reports to academic and practitioner audiences. |
| Keywords | EI-MBR |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Raluca Bunduchi
Tel: (0131 6)51 5544
Email: Raluca.Bunduchi@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Ms Samantha Rice
Tel: (0131 6)51 5332
Email: Samantha.Rice@ed.ac.uk |
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