Programmes & Modules Handbook

The dissertation provides students with an opportunity to write a substantial piece of academic work on a topic of interest to them.  It is an opportunity to produce a work of scholarship, using the academic skills and knowledge  that students have developed. Masters students are required to submit a dissertation of not more than 10,000 words.  This word limit includes all words used in tables, but excludes the preliminaries section, bibliography and all appendices. Dissertations must demonstrate ‘evidence of judgement and of marshalling of relevant materials, systematically and clearly presented’ and be the student’s own work. 
 

A dissertation submitted for these programmes should demonstrate:

• Competence in the chosen academic area.
• The relevance of the proposed study topic to policy / practice area.
• An understanding of research philosophy, methodology and ethical issues appropriate to their research topic.
• Competence in practical research skills where appropriate.
• The ability to analyse data and present findings.