Postgraduate Course: Introduction to Research Methods (MSc) (PGEE11172)

Course Outline
School	School of Engineering	College	College of Science and Engineering
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)	Availability	Not available to visiting students
SCQF Credits	20	ECTS Credits	10
Summary	The objective of the course is to prepare a student for the summer dissertation project by providing training in research methods and associated skills.
Course description	This course consists of the two main components: a study project and a series of workshops with a focus on literature survey methods; problem solving, creativity and critical thinking; technical writing and presentation; dissemination and communication. An individual study project can be a literature survey, a self-study module or an experimental or computational investigation related to a research topic. The study project may contain elements of more than one type of activity under these heading.

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites		Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Course Delivery Information

Academic year 2025/26, Not available to visiting students (SS1)		Quota: None
Course Start	Full Year
Timetable	Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info)	Total Hours: 200 ( Lecture Hours 10, Dissertation/Project Supervision Hours 20, Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 32, Feedback/Feedforward Hours 6, Formative Assessment Hours 2, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 4, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 126 )
Assessment (Further Info)	Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment)	Written Exam: 0% Coursework: 100% Practical Exam: 0%
Feedback	During the regular meetings with the supervisors, during the workshops.
No Exam Information

Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to: Ability to use published reference material, including textbooks, technical journals and web articles as the study project requires Ability to write a substantial technical report Ability to explain a scientific problem/concept in lay terms; formulate essential message of their research Understanding how to avoid plagiarism, how to speed up reading a paper to get important information, how to assess paper quality