This course equips students with the necessary knowledge and skills to undertake research on the global economy. It provides an introduction to some of the methodological approaches and tools used in social science research on the global economy, and then takes students through the key steps involved in successfully designing and conducting a research project. 

2 hours per week over 11 weeks

Designing Your Media Project

Designing Your Politics/Security Project

Designing Your Urban Studies/Policy Project

Designing Your Sociology/ Criminology Project

Designing Your Area Studies Research

[Exact titles to be confirmed by School lead]

N/A

Written critical analysis of research based on existing literature, 1,500 words (30%)

Research proposal, 2,500 words (70%)

This course aims to support students to develop understanding of principles and methods that are involved in social science research on the global economy, and to conduct critical analysis of methodological approaches and empirical materials used in this research. The course will equip students with the skills and confidence to design and conduct independent research on complex issues in the global economy and will develop their knowledge and ideas in a peer group setting.

By the end of this course students will be able to:

■ understand key steps involved in social science research on the global economy and how these are communicated in academic literature

■ evaluate research designs, methods and choice of primary and secondary data used in the social science study of the global economy

■ identify and communicate a research question and potential contribution to knowledge for a complex issue or idea in the global economy

■ produce a viable research proposal that selects and justifies a research design, methods and choice of primary and secondary data appropriate to the research question(s) being asked

Students must submit at least 75% by weight of the components (including examinations) of the course's summative assessment.