External summary

Educational aims of programme

• To provide students with a critical appreciation of HRM through the delivery of a range of academically grounded courses.
• To provide an opportunity for students from diverse educational backgrounds to develop the theoretical knowledge pre-requisite to a professional career in HRM.
• To provide students with a deep, but balanced understanding of the theoretical foundations of HRM in the light of evolving practitioner applications in core areas (e.g. employee engagement, etc).
• To obtain through elective courses an in-depth knowledge of specific HRM-related theories, skills and practices.
• To provide students with the practical skills required to address HRM and business problems.
• To foster the development of proficiency in communication skills, independent action and team working.
• To produce critical and reflective HRM practitioners able to pursue successful careers in HRM in a variety of contexts; corporate, SMEs, public sector,  third sector.

Programme outcomes: Knowledge and understanding

By the end of the programme, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate an understanding of key terms, theories/concepts and practices within the field of HRM.
• Demonstrate competence in Development and Problem-Solving in the area of HR Management
• Provide innovative solutions to problems in the fields of HRM.
• Be able to identify and appreciate the significance of ethical issues in HRM.

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in research and enquiry

By the end of the programme, students will be able to:

• Critically assess existing theory and practice in the field of HRM.
• Develop an ability to undertake qualitative and quantitative research.
• Apply knowledge about qualitative and qualitative research to an independently constructed piece of work.

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in personal and intellectual autonomy

By the end of the programme, students will be able to:

• Respond positively to problems in unfamiliar contexts.
• Identify and apply new ideas, methods and ways of thinking.

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in communication

By the end of the programme, students will be able to:

• Demonstrate competence in communicating and exchanging ideas in a group context.
• Be able to advanced well-reasoned and factually supported argument in both written work and oral presentations.

Programme outcomes: Graduate attributes - Skills and abilities in personal effectiveness

By the end of the programme, students will be able to:

• Work effectively with colleagues with diverse skills, experience levels and ways of thinking.
• Be able to evaluate HRM related social, cultural, ethical and environmental responsibilities and issues in a global context.

Programme outcomes: Technical/practical skills

These skills are covered under the headings above.

Programme structure and features

Degree Criteria

MSc full-time (12 months). It consists of 180 SQCF credit points, of which 120 constitutes the

taught portion of the programme with the remaining 60 devoted to the dissertation component of

the degree.

Degree Programme Table and Modes of Study:

The Degree Programme Table can be viewed at:

http://www.drps.ed.ac.uk/22-23/dpt/drpsindex.htm

Progression and Exit Awards

The programme conforms to the University's taught Assessment Regulations.

https://www.ed.ac.uk/academic-services/policies-regulations/regulations/assessment

Teaching and learning methods and strategies

Knowledge and understanding are cultivated principally through lectures and project groupings, with directed study of key source materials (including journal articles, business reports, and CIPD reports), explicit guidelines for assessed coursework and formative feedback.

Specific skills in research methods, including statistical and qualitative case investigations, will be developed through the compulsory 20 credit course in Methods of Research, and applied with the 60 credit dissertation scheduled for the summer block. Practical human resource management abilities will be cultivated via the preparation and evaluation of collective case investigations of human resource scenarios, group and individual presentations from appraisals of human resource managerial options, and problem-solving exercises based on contemporary challenges confronting global companies.

Assessment methods and strategies

The assessment strategy for the MSc HRM relies upon a combination of methods to meet the full range of aims and learning objectives and draw maximum advantage from the variety of teaching approaches employed. The assimilation of knowledge, capacity for critical scrutiny and propensity for reflective analysis will be gauged primarily through coursework essays and closed book examinations.

Compulsory courses will also employ group based assessments, requiring joint submissions and evaluating presentations as well as performance. A formal template will be used to provide formative and summative feedback, including a checklist relating to the effectiveness of presentations, content and focused observations about individual performance. Copies of this will be issued to students at the end of each stage of the group-working schedule. Additionally, formative assessment will be provided through verbal and/or written feedback on group reports and presentations, and via written comments on individual essays that will also be returned with a formal report sheet completed by the marker.

Over the summer block, independent learning will be assessed principally by an 15000 words dissertation (worth 60 credits). This must comprise a piece of original research on a topic relating to Human Resource Management. Various types of dissertation are acceptable. A dissertation may critically review theoretical work, analyse problem-specific data or evaluate new modelling approaches. Examples of the aims of the dissertation are: to give the student the opportunity to practise and gain confidence in the use of skills which s/he has acquired in the preceding courses; to provide an opportunity to study a particular topic in depth have an international focus, draw on internationally sourced data and involve an engagement with practice or link to a business problem. Student development towards this will be supported via the 20 credit Methods of Research class. The assessment here will centre on the submission of a research proposal of 3000 words that relates a chosen topic to a summary of relevant literature (to be fully reviewed within the dissertation) and incorporates an investigation of viable methodologies. Computer competence will have been assessed through project based exercises relating to the Computing in Business component of the Developing Skills for Business Leadership course.

Career opportunities

Our aim would is to provide graduates with a broad enough grounding to seek employment with a range of internationally recognised public, private, and charity sector organisations. Graduates of the MSc in HRM would be eligible for, and encouraged to apply to jobs on prominent websites such as jobs.personneltoday.com and generalist and specialist HR roles for graduates as specified on the CIPD careers webpage (http://www.cipd.co.uk/hr-careers/explore-hr-careers/new-graduate.htm).

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