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Single Honours GeographyDissertation Handbook2009-2010

Department of Geography, Exeter University

GEO2310: Human Geography Practice

GEO3301: Dissertation

Table of Contents

Section 1: Aims, learning outcomes & requirements 2

Section 2: Dissertation planning & the proposal. 10

Section 3: Ethical considerations, safety & fieldwork 14

Section 4: Progress monitoring & advice 20

Section 5: Dissertation presentation & layout 23

Section 6: Regulations & procedures 32

Section 7: Three final pieces of advice. 35

Appendix 1: Dissertation proposal guidelines. 37

Appendix 2: Members of staff & subject areas 40

Appendix 3: Risk forms 43

Appendix 4: Ethics form 45

Appendix 5: Dissertation progress form 50

Appendix 6: Specimen front page 52

Appendix 7: Example table of contents 53

Appendix 8: Example list of figures 54

Appendix 9: Dissertation marking criteria 55

Dissertation Handbook, 2009-2010 1

Thisguidecoversthebackgroundinformationyouwillneedbeforeyoustartyourdisserta‐tion in the SingleHonours Geography andGeography withEuropeanStudies degree pro‐grammes.ItisintendedforstudentswhoareregisteredfortheGEO2310:HumanGeographyResearchTrainingmodule. Thisguideshouldbeofconsiderablehelptoyouduringyourdis‐sertationresearchandcontainsthefollowingmainsections:

Section 1:Aims, learning outcomes & requirements

This sectiondiscusses: theaims andoutcomes, andscopeofthe dissertation,whatmakesagooddissertation,andhowyoumightcomeupwithandpresentanideaforresearching.

1.1 Aims

Thepointof thedissertationis to give you anopportunity to display your skills in tacklingspeciIic geographical issues insomedepth. Theessenceof thework is thatyouareabletodemonstrateyourability to undertakeyourown independentand originalpieceof research.Thedissertationmustbeindependentandoriginalinallitsphasesincludingdesign,datacon‐struction,dataprocessingandanalysisanddatainterpretationanddissertationwrite‐up.Theaimsofthedissertationareforyoutodevelop:

1. KnowledgeofaspeciIicgeographicaltopic2. Anunderstandingofthechallengesofempiricalgeographicalresearch3. Theabilitytodealwithpracticalresearchproblems(e.g.constructing,manipulating,ana‐

lysingandinterpretingdatasources)4. Skillsindesigningresearchandlinkingitssubject‐mattertootherbodiesofgeographical

knowledge5. Skillsindealingwiththecomplexinter‐relationshipsofreal‐worldprocesses6. Transferable skills in inter‐personal communication, data construction andanalysis, re‐

portwriting,andeffectivetimemanagement.

1.2 IntendedLearningoutcomes

Onsatisfactorilycompletingthedissertationyoushouldbeableto:

Knowledge&understanding

1. Explainindepththenatureofyourresearchproblemanditsrelevanceto theIield(s)ofstudyandtotherelevantpublishedliterature.

2. Describetheresultsandanalysethemintermsoftheoriginalaims.3. Presentsubstantiveconclusionsandindicatedirectionsforfutureresearchinthearea.4. Discusscriticallytheshortcomingsoftheresearchmethods.

Disciplinespeci5icskills:


1. Plan,designandexecuteapieceofrigorousgeographicalresearch,includingtheproduc‐tionofaIinalreport.

2. Undertake effective Iield work, with due consideration of safety and risk assessment(whereapplicable).

3. Worksafely inalaboratoryandwithawarenessofstandardprocedures(whereapplica‐ble)

4. Prepareeffectivemapsanddiagramsusingarangeofappropriatetechnologies.5. Employappropriatetechnicaland/orlaboratory‐basedmethodsfortheanalysisofspatial

andenvironmentaldata(whereapplicable).6. Employ where appropriate social science/geographical survey techniques for the con‐

structionandanalysisofdata.7. Construct, interpret, evaluate andcombinedifferent typesofgeographical evidenceand

information.8. Recognisetheethicalissuesinvolvedindebatesandenquiries(whereapplicable)andun‐

dertakeIieldworkwithdueconsiderationtoethicalconcerns.

Intellectualskills:

1. DeIineanddefendthepurposeofthedissertation.2. DeIineitsplaceandfunctionwithingeography.3. Identify,formulate,analyseandresolveresearchquestions/problems.4. Demonstrateitsphilosophyandmethodology.5. Demonstratearigorouspatternofexperimentalconceptionand/ordataconstruction.6. Demonstrateanappropriateapproachtoanalysis.7. Provideacriticalinterpretationofdataandtext.8. Abstractandsynthesiserelevantinformation.9. Demonstratearationalsynthesis.10. Demonstratearelevantandrealisticconclusion.11. Developandsustainareasonedargument.12. Judgecriticallyandevaluateevidence/previousresearch.13. Assessthemeritsofdifferenttheories,concepts,explanationsandpolicies.14. Demonstrateanappropriatelyhighlevelofliteracy,graphicacy,numeracyandconceptual

sophistication.15. RealisethedissertationslimitationswithinthespeciIicIieldofresearch.16. Makeclear,logicalandappropriatedecisions.

Transferableskills:

1. Planandexecuteapieceofprimaryresearch.2. Undertakeindependentresearch(e.g. inlibrary,archive,laboratory,andIield),effectively,

responsiblyandwithconsiderationofethicalissues.3. Construct,manipulate,analyse,interpretgeographicaldata/sourcematerial,andcommu‐

nicateIindingsusingnumericandcomputationaltechniqueswhereapplicable.4. Communicateresearchproblemsandaskrelevantquestions.5. Liaiseeffectivelywithpublicandprivatebodieswhereappropriate.6. Structure amajor piece ofresearch work, and present it competently and clearly (e.g.

write coherently, create and use diagrams, Iigures, appendices using appropriate com‐puterandinformationtechnology).

7. Demonstrate competence inworking independently (i.e. personal motivation, decisionmaking, awareness, responsibility, andmanagementskills, includingsettingandworktodeadlines).


1.3 Natureofstudy

Therearegenerallyno restrictionsonthetypeofgeographicalstudythatyoucanundertakeincompletingyourdissertationresearch. Yourdissertationshoulddrawfromareasofstudywithinone(ormore)ofthesystematicbranchesofthediscipline(e.g. tourismgeography,cul‐tural geography). Studies involving theconstructionandanalysisoforiginal data (e.g. ques‐tionnaires, interviews) or sourcematerial (e.g. travel writing, visual images, Iilm)aremostsuitable.StudentsshouldundertakeIieldworktoconstructthisdata/sourcematerialwhetherthis is inanarchive, libraryorIieldlocation. Studentsshouldmakeclearthesourcesofdatathathavebeenconstructed, analysedorinterpreted(seesection6.2). Studentsmustusetheappropriatequalitative and/orquantitativemethodologies for theirresearch. Anydisserta‐tionmustbeanoriginalpieceofresearchandthereforemustbemorethanamerecompila‐tionofexistinginformation.

1.4 Requirements

2ndYEAR

Youare requiredtoproduce awordprocesseddissertationproposal (limit: 2000words)aspartoftheGEO2310:HumanGeographyPracticemodule.SeeSection2forfurtherdetails

Thesubmissiondeadlineforthisisthe7thMay2009.

FINALYEAR

Youarerequiredtoproduceadissertation(GEO3301)ofnomorethan10,000words(exclud‐ingbibliography,tablesandappendices).Yourdissertationis importantasitcounts for25%ofyourIinaldegree.NB.Writingmorethan10,000wordswillresultinmarksbeingdeducted.

ThesubmissiondeadlineforthiswillbethelastThursdayoftheSpringTermoftheThirdYear.

1.5 Dissertationcontent

Yourwrittendissertationshould:

1. DeIineanddefendthepurposeofthedissertation.2. DeIineitsplaceandfunctionwithingeography.3. Demonstrateitsphilosophyandmethodology.4. Demonstratearigorouspatternofexperimental conceptionand/ordataor sourcecon‐

struction.5. Demonstrateanappropriateapproachtoanalysisand/orinterpretationofdata/sources.6. Demonstratearationalsynthesis.7. Demonstratearelevantandrealisticconclusion.


8. Demonstrateanappropriatelyhighlevelofliteracy,graphicacy,numeracyandconceptualsophistication.

9. RealiseitslimitationswithinthespeciIicIieldofresearch.

Itis importantthatyoubeartheaboveinmindwhendesigning,implementing,andreportingonyourdissertationresearch. YoucanusethecriteriaaboveandlearningoutcomesstatedinSection1.2as a list againstwhichyoucancheckyourdissertation. Does yourdissertationshowevidenceof,ordemonstratethesefeatures?

Whatmakesagooddissertation?

1. Agoodproblem.2. Setinitsacademiccontext.3. Aclearstatementofaims,researchquestionsandobjectives.4. Alogicalresearchprogramme.5. AclearlydeIinedandappropriatemethodology.6. The construction of adequate andappropriate data/source material to address the re‐

searchquestion(s).7. Theapplicationofadequateandappropriateanalyticaland/orinterpretativetechniques

tothedata/sourcematerial.8. AclearstatementofIindingsbasedontheanalysisofthisdataanditsrelationto itsaca‐

demiccontext.9. Awellpresented,wellstructuredandclearlywrittenpieceofwork.10. Conclusionsthatrelateto thestatedaimsandresearchquestions,andshowthedisserta‐

tions’originalcontributiontogeographical(andperhapswider)literatures.

Theassessmentofyourdissertationisbasedonthedegreetowhichyourreportmeetsthesecriteria.DetailsofmarkingcriteriaareprovidedinAppendix8.

1.6 GettingstartedYourdissertationshouldbeframedwithinabroadareaofstudy(aresearchtopic).Withinthisyoushouldidentifyaresearch problem, thisisamorespeciIic,smallerissuewithinthetopic.Theresearchproblemshouldleadto theidentiIicationofresearchquestions. Thesearespe‐ciIicquestionsthatyouaskinrelationtoyourproblem,i.e.howyouapproachtheproblem.

Forexample:


As you will appreciate after reading the sample dissertations, dissertations are by nomeansidenticalintheirstructure.Theycanbepursuedandwrittenaccordingtothespiritas well as the letterof the advice that follows. Pleasediscuss your ideas and concernsabout thisadvicewithyourpostgraduateseminar leaders,withstaffwhose interestsyoushare,withyourtutorand(eventually)withyourdissertationadviser.Youwillnotneces‐sarilygetabettergradebytakingthefollowingadvicebytheletter,orconstructingadis‐sertationtopicliketheonesusedasexamplesbelow.Yourtopicand/orapproachmaynotIitcertainaspectofwhatcanseemlike,butisn’tmeanttobe,asinglewayofdoingthings.Alwaysstartoffwiththatblueskiesthinking‐‘Inanidealworld,I’dlovetodoadisserta‐tionon…’.

Inchoosingatopicyouneedtoconsider:

Isitinteresting? Are you interested in your topic inboth a personal andanaca‐demicsense?Howcanthetopicmotivateyou?

Isitrealistic? Isthereenoughtime?Arethedataavailable?IsitIinanciallyviable? Canyouaffordthetransportandmaterials?WherecanIdoit? Can you research at a Iixed location, or is there only a limited

choiceofsites?DoIneedequipment? Doesthedepartmenthaveit?Willitbeavailable?Isitpractical? Istheretimeavailableto constructthedatathatyouneed?What

othercommitments(work,holidays)doyouneedtoconsider? Doyou need permission for access to Iield sites, or unusual datasources?DoyouneedassistanceintheIield?Isthetimerequiredfor analysis reasonable and realistic (i.e. will there be sufIicientaccesstothenecessaryfacilities?)?(checkwithadvisor)

Safety? ArethereanyrisksthatneedtobeidentiIiedintheIieldorlabora‐torywork?DoyouneedassistanceintheIield?

Ethicalissues? Arethereethicalconcernsassociatedwiththisresearch?HowwillIdealwiththem?

Identifyingaresearchtopic

You should choosea dissertation which reIlects your interest in the subject andwhich at‐tempts to address currentdebates ingeography. Examples can oftenbegainedfrom yourmodulelecturesorbyreadingrecentjournal issues(e.g. inArea,Transactionsofthe InstituteofBritishGeographers,ProgressinHumanGeography,ProfessionalGeographer,andtheAnnalsoftheAssociationofAmericanGeographers).

PerhapsthemostdifIicultpartofthedissertationprocessisidentifyingaproblemtoaddress.OnceyouhaveidentiIiedasuitableresearchtopicyouneedtodecidewhatparticularaspectofthetopicyouaregoingtoinvestigate.ThisrequiresyoutobefamiliarwiththeotherresearchthathasalreadybeendoneintheIield. Yourdissertationmustbesetinthecontextofthisex‐istingresearch. Thismeans thatyouneed to carryoutpreliminary researchinthe library,


Topic:Disabilityandhousing. Problem:‘Intentionalcommunities’andsocialinclusion/exclusion.

Questions:What are ‘intentional communities’? What organisations run intentional communities?Howdotheseorganisationsjustifyandexplaintheneedfordisabledpeopletolivetogetherinthesecommunities?Whatdootherorganisationsandindividualssay aboutthesecom‐munities?Whatcritiquesandalternativesarethere?Whatisthehistoryofthe‘Intentionalcommunity’ idea? Where are these communities found now? How many people live inthem?Howmightitbepossibletolearnmoreaboutthem,fromwrittensources,fromvisit‐ingthese communities, fromtalking toand/orworkingwithpeoplerunning andlivinginthem?Whatethicalissuesneedtobeconsideredwhenplanninganddoingthiskindofre‐search?Dothesecommunitiesenabledisabledpeopletobemoreorlessactivemembersofwidersociety?

checking journals, reviewarticles, abstracts anddatabasesto gainanunderstandingof theliteratureinthesubjectareaandrecentresearchbeforeyoustartyourownresearch.

The librarywebpages havehelpful informationguides to using online databases and elec‐tronic search engines (http://www.ex.ac.uk/library). You should familiarise yourself withtheseas soonaspossiblewhenundertakingyour researchforyourdissertation. Ifyouarehavingproblemsusingthewebbasedbibliographicresourcesaskthehelpdeskstaffintheli‐brary.Yourpersonaltutor/modulelecturer/dissertationadvisorwillalsobeabletodirectyoutowiderreading.

FlowerdewandMartin(1997)suggestthefollowingtipsforgeneratingresearchideas:

♦ Thinkaboutyourownoutsideinterests:cantheygeneratearesearchtopic?♦ Beonthelook‐outforideasinthemedia:newspapers,radio,televisionetc.♦ FollowupanideathataroseinalectureorIieldclass.♦ Readarticlesorbooksonatopicthatinterestsyou.♦ Talktoorganisationsorindividualsworkinginyourarea.

Itisalsoagoodideatoexaminetheways inwhichtheauthorsoftheacademicarticles thatyou like and use – and thedissertations that you read for theHumanGeography Practiceseminars‐discussintheintroductionstheir reasonsfordoing that research. Youwillbeex‐pectedtosupplysimilarexplanationsandjustiIications, andshouldnoticethatthereismorethanonewayofdoingthis.

Researchquestions

Researchquestions usually ariseout ofsome kindof context: adiscussionof a recent aca‐demicdebate, a topical issueasrecentlyreportedinthepress, and/or(sometimes)personalexperiences andconcerns.At thebeginningofyourresearchproposalanddissertation, it isimportantto‘setascene’–i.e.describeoneormoreofthesecontexts–andforyourresearchquestionsto emergeoutofthisscene, inalogical andcompellingway.Whatarethereasonsforaskingthequestionsthatyourdissertationwilladdress?Andwhatkindsofquestionsarebesttoask?Thefollowingadviceshouldbeuseful:

♦ Askquestionsthatlookasthoughtheywillhaveinteresting,unknownanswers(see1.6above).

♦ Thebestquestionsarerelativelyeasytoanswerbutallowyoutomakeanoriginalcon‐tributiontotheliteratureinaparticularareaofhumangeography.

♦ Youdon’t have to come upwith thesequestions onyourown: it’s better to addressquestionsthatothershaveaskedandconsiderimportant(andwithwhichyouagree).

♦ Researchquestionscancomefromacademic,popularand/orpersonalsources.

Havingsaidthis, it isn’tnecessarytopresentalistofquestionsthatyourdissertationwillan‐swer.Youcouldpresentaproblemthatyourdissertationwill address, orarelationshipthatyouwishto explore.Researchquestionsandresearchaimscan,asyouwillseebelow,bein‐terchangeable.

Researchaimsandobjectives

Youarerequiredtostateyourresearchaimsandobjectivesinyourdissertationproposal.Youwill also need to state theseclearly andsuccinctly inyour Iinal dissertation. Your research


http://www.ex.ac.uk/library

http://www.ex.ac.uk/library

aimsshouldsetoutclearlythedissertation’smainresearchquestion(s).Yourresearchobjec‐tives are the operational steps, or speciIic tasks, by which these aims/questions will beachieved/answered.A clear statementofaimsandobjectivesisimportantbecause thesede‐terminethedirectionofyourresearch.The typeofinformationyourequireto address themdetermines themethods youneedtouseandthewayyouanalysethedata/sourcematerialgenerated.Theconclusionsshouldshowhowyouhaveachieved/answeredtheoriginalaims/questionsviatheseobjectives. So, bewary ofstartingyourresearchwith ‘woolly’aims andobjectivesasthesecanleadtoramblingdiscussionsthatfailtoreachanyIirmconclusions!

1.8 RecommendedReading

Youshouldnotneedtoreadanyacademicbookstellingyou‘howtodoadissertationingeog‐raphy’.ThebestadviceyoucangetaboutdoingyourdissertationhereandnowwillcomeviatheHuman GeographyPractice lecturesanddissertation seminars, andthroughdiscussionswithyourtutor, staffmemberswhoseinterestsyoushare(seetheminofIicehourstodiscussideas),andyour(eventual)dissertationadviser.

There is howeverusefulacademicwriting aboutwritingresearchproposals, whosesections(re.methodsandethics, forexample)canbe Ileshedoutbyreadingrelevant chapters intherecommendedtextsandreadinglistsprovidedintheHumanGeographyPracticemodule.

Writingresearchproposals:1

Cahill, C. (2007)Doingresearchwithyoungpeople:participatoryresearchandtheritualsofcollectivework.Children’sgeographies5(3),297‐312

Kelly,M. (2004)Researchdesignandproposals.inC.Searle(ed)Researchingsocietyandculture.London:Sage.

Schutt,R. (2006)Investigating the socialworld: theprocessand practiceofresearch. London:PineForgePress

Silverman,D.&Marvasti,A. (2008)Writingaresearchproposal. intheirDoingqualitativeresearch:acomprehensiveguide.London:Sage.

HumanGeographyPracticerecommendedtexts:Blunt,A.,Gruffudd,P.,May, J.,Ogborn,M.&Pinder,D.(eds)(2003)Culturalgeographyinprac

tice.London:Arnold.Bryman,A.(2004)Socialresearchmethods.Oxford:OxfordUniversityPress.Clifford,N.&Valentine,G.(2003)Keymethodsingeography.London:Sage.Cloke,P.,Cook,I.,Crang,P.,Goodwin,M.,Painter,J.&Philo,C.(2004)Practisinghumangeogra

phy.London:Sage.Crang,M.&Cook,I.(2007)Doingethnographies.London:Sage.Flowerdew, R. & Martin, D. (eds) (2005). Methods in human geography (2nd ed.). Harlow:

Longman.Hoggart,K.,Lees,L.&Davies,A.(2001)Researchinghumangeography.London:Arnold.Limb,M.&Dwyer,C.(eds)(2002)Qualitativemethodologiesforgeographers.London:Arnold.


1NBifnotinthelibrary,theshortchaptersbyKelly(2004),Schutt(2006)andSilverman&Marvasti(2008)canbeviewedonlineviahttp://books.google.com.Cahill(2007)makesadifferentargument:thatresearchquestionsshouldbedeterminedinconsultationwiththepeoplewithwhomyouwishtodotheresearch.Thisapproachisappropriateforsometopicsmorethanothers.

http://books.google.com

http://books.google.com

Oppenheim,A.N.(1992)Questionnairedesign,interviewingandattitudemeasurement(2nded.)London:Continuum.

Robinson,G.,(1998)Methodsandtechniquesinhumangeography.Chichester:Wiley.Shurmer‐Smith,P.(ed)(2001)Doingculturalgeography.London:Sage.Wheeler, D., Shaw, G. andBarr, S. (2004)Statistical techniques in geographical analysis. Lon‐

don:Fulton.

Finally,giventhatitwillbeimportanttoconvinceyourreadersthatyourdissertationresearchwilladdressanimportantissueinhumangeography,andprovideanoriginalcontributiontodebatesinhumangeography,youwillneedto readrecentreviewarticlesandchapters whichsummarisethecurrentstateofplayinappropriateareasofgeography, andpointoutnewap‐proachesandnewworkthatneedstobedone. Ifyourdissertationrelatestoanissuethathasbeen covered in anothermodule, youshould consult that module’s reading lists. IfyouareIishingaroundforanappropriatearea(orareas)ofhumangeographythatyourtopiccouldIitwithin,usefulreviewscanoftenbefoundineditedcollectionsofresearchintoaparticularis‐sue(e.g. thegeographyofmusic), andin journalswhichcommissionsuchreviews: e.g.Progress in human geographyorGeography compass. Exeter’s librarysubscribes to the former,andshouldsoonbesubscribingto thelatter. [Ifyouneeda speciIicCompassarticlesbeforethen,pleasecontactIanCook ([email protected])whoeditstheCulturalGeographysectionofthejournal]. Inaddition, academic journalarticles andbook chapters oftenundertakeshortliterature reviews in their introductions and call for new research in their conclusions, sothesearealsoworthreading.Pleasenotethatyoumayneedtoundertakequitealotofread‐inghere,andthatit’smoreconvincingto arguethatyourresearchisnewandoriginalifyoubaseyourargumentsonitsnewnessandoriginalityonveryrecentarticles!


mailto:[email protected]


Section 2:Dissertation planning & the proposal.

ThissectionexplainswhattheproceduresareforsubmittingyourdissertationproposalandtheassigningofaDissertationAdviser.

2.1 DissertationProposal

Thedissertationproposal formspart ofthesecondyearpracticalmodule; yourdissertationproposalcountsas30%ofyourmarkforGEO2310:HumanGeographyPractice.

Itcannotbestatedstronglyenoughthatyoushouldbegintoplanyourdissertationassoonaspossible.DuringtheSpringTermandovertheEasterVacationyoushouldworkonyourpro‐posal, checkingtheideas, potentialliteraturesourcesandIieldareas.Therewillbededicateddissertation‐planningseminarsintheSpringterm,whichyoushouldattend.Youcanalsoseekhelpandadvicefromacademicstaff, andexpecttogainsomeadvicefromyourtutor(seeAp‐pendix2).

GeographywithEuropeanStudiesstudents

Youmustcompleteanassignmentasanalternativetothedissertationproposalwhileinyoursecond year. Themark for this alternative assignment contributes7.5 credits towards thePracticalModule,andhas thesamedeadlineasthesecondyeardissertationproposal. Thealternativeassignmentcomprisesa2000wordliteraturereviewonthetopic thatyouplantoinvestigateduringyouryearabroad. ThereviewshouldresultintheidentiIicationofpoten‐tialresearchthemes. Theaimofthisassignmentistoensurethatyoubeginplanningyourre‐searchbeforeyougoabroad.

YouhavetosubmityourdissertationproposalwheninyourEuropeandestination,followingthesamecriteriaandformatstipulatedfordissertationproposals submittedby secondyearstudents (Section2.2). Theproposalmustbepostedto theHumanGeographyDissertationTutor:DrIanCook,SchoolofGeographyandArchaeologyandEarthResources,AmoryBuild‐ing,RennesDrive,ExeterEX44RJarrivingnolaterthan7thMay2009.YouwillcarryoutyourdissertationIieldworkduringyouryearabroadandwillbeassignedanadviserbyIanCookinMay2009.

2.2 WhenmustIsubmitmydissertationproposal?

Yourdissertationproposal shouldbehand‐intoTracyReeves intheDepartmentalOfIicebe‐tween9am–1pmand2pm‐5pmon7thMay2009.


2.3 Whathappensthen?

Basedonyourdissertationproposal,youwillbeassignedaDissertationAdviser,whowillas‐sess theproposal, andalsoarrangetomeetwithyouinweeks49ofthe SummerTerm.TheDissertationAdviserwillgivecommentsontheproposal,aswellasguidanceonanypossiblemodiIications. The assessingandmarkingofyour proposal ispart oftheapprovalprocess.Your topic maybeapprovedwithout changes,with somemodiIications orrejected. In theevent that yourproposal isrejected, youwill beaskedto re‐work yourideas andresubmityourproposalbyFridayofWeek9oftheSummerTerm. Thiswillgivetheadvisortimetocon‐siderthenewdissertationproposalanddiscussitwithyoubeforetheendofterm. YoumaybeassignedanewDissertationAdvisor. However,the mark forthe originalproposalwillbecarriedforward.

2.4 Preliminary ethics self‐assessmentformforundergraduate dissertations,&RiskAssessmentandWorkingwith3rdpartiesform

Beforecommencingonyourproposeddissertation‘Iieldwork’(i.e. anyresearchundertakenoutsideoftheUniversity)youmust completeaWorkingwith3rdpartiesandRiskAssessmentandaPreliminaryethicsselfassessmentformforundergraduatedissertations(seeSection3&Appendix3&4).Thesetwo formsmustbehandedinwithyourdissertationproposal.Theseformsmust becounter‐signedbyyourDissertationAdvisor,whowillkeepcopiesonrecord.TheDepartmentwill not support research that is deemed to pose an unacceptable risk orhaveunethical practices. Ifyousubsequentlychange topics,youwillneedto completenewRisk, Working with3rd parties and Ethics Assessment Forms. Failure to submit these twoformswillbereportedtotheHeadofDepartmentandthedissertationresearchwillnotbesupportedbytheDepartment. IfyourresearchrequiresapprovalfromtheSchoolEthicsCommit‐teeyouwill not beable to startworkonyourdissertationuntilyouhavethis approval.SeeSection3andAppendix3&4fordetails.

2.5 CanIchangetopiconceIhavesubmittedtheproposal?

Yes,butthereareaseriesofproceduresthatmustbefollowed. Ifyoudecidetochangetopicafter submitting your proposal, youmust contact the HumanGeography DissertationTutor(Ian Cook: [email protected]) as soon as possible. Any substantial change of topic has tobeformallyagreedwithyouradvisor. Ifnecessary,anewdissertationproposalhastobesubmit‐tedandassessedassoonaspossible,followingtheguidelinesinAppendix1.NB.Althoughthisnewproposaldoesnotformpartoftheassessment itisnonethelessextremelyimportant. Itwill help to ensure that you have thought through the design of your new dissertationre‐searchand that it isarelevantandfeasiblestudy. Itwill enable theDissertationAdviser toprovideadviceandmonitoryourprogress.Youwillalsoneedto completenewWorkingwith3rdpartiesandRiskAssessmentandPreliminaryethicsselfassessmentformforundergraduatedissertationsforms.

In exceptional situations youmay feel youhave a case for changing your advisor. In thesesituationsawrittenrequesthastobesubmittedtoDrCookassoonaspossibletoensuresuc‐cessfulcompletionofyourdissertation.Youmusttalktoyourcurrentadvisorbeforerequest‐




ingachangeofadvisor. IfyouIilesucharequestyoumustnotmissanyappointmentswithyourcurrentadvisor,includingIilingaprogressreport.Pleasenotethatachangeisnotguar‐anteedand thatchangesof advisors aremadeonly inexceptional circumstances. Ifyoufeelthattherelationshipwithyourcurrentadvisorhasirretrievablybrokendown,seeyourtutorand/ortheHumanGeographyDissertationTutorimmediately.

2.6 Accessandpilotissues

Itiseasytoplanaresearchthatisimpossibletodo,ifappropriatepermissionsarenotsoughtbefore the research proposal is submitted or, at the latest, before the research starts. It isthereforeessential toseekpriorpermissionforaccess to land, archives,organisations, com‐munitiesorothersourcesofdatabeforeyourIieldworkorresearch isundertaken(seeAp‐pendix4).AstandardletterwillbemadeavailableonrequesttoexplainthatyouarecarryingoutworkthatisanessentialpartofyourdegreeandnotrelatedtoanyofIicialinvestigationonthepartoftheUniversity.

Dependingonthetypeofresearchthatyouintendtoundertake, itcanbeagoodideato un‐dertakeapreliminarypilotproject, to test theviabilityofanapproachordatasourcewhichyouareunsureabout.

2.7 TheMyrtleMurrayAward

Students carryingout Iieldwork abroad can apply for Iinancial support through theMyrtleMurrayAward.ThisisasigniIicantcashawardtoassisttravelabroadforthepurposeofstudy.ItisusuallyawardedduringtheSummerTermandyouareadvisedtoconsultthenoticeboardonthethirdIlooroftheAmoryBuildingfordetailsregardingtheapplicationprocedureandclosingdate(usuallyduringtheSpringTerm).

2.8 Summaryofactionstobetaken

Yourdissertationshouldoccupyyourthoughts overthe followingyearormoreaccordingtothefollowingtimetable:

BeforetheendofSpringTerm:Decideonatopicanddiscussthiswithseminarstaff,yourtutorand/oranappropriatemem‐berofstaff(i.e.apersonwithwhomyoushareaninterest;seeAppendix2).

BytheendoftheSummerTerm:MeetwithyourDissertationAdviseranddiscussyourproposal.CompleteanEthicalandRiskAssessmentformsandcountersignthemwithyourDissertation

Adviser(seeSection3).

OvertheSummerholidays:Undertakeresearch.

BytheendoftheAutumnTerm:1. MeetyourDissertationAdvisertodiscussprogressandwhattodonext.


2. Attendgroupsupervisionmeetingstodiscusscommonissues3. Analyseyourdataandplanyourdissertation

DuringtheSpringtermandEasterbreak:1. MeetyourDissertationAdvisertodiscussprogress.2. Attendgroupsupervisionmeetingstodiscusscommonissues3. Writeandsubmityourdissertation.


Section 3:Ethical considerations, safety & fieldwork

3.1Ethicalconsiderationsindissertationresearch

Allstudentshaveto submitapreliminaryethicsself‐assessmentformforundergraduatedis‐sertationswiththeirdissertationproposal.Youmayalsoberequiredtosubmitaformalappli‐cationto theSchoolEthicsCommittee ifyourresearchraises ethicalconsiderations. Seeap‐pendix4fordetails.

Muchresearchinhumangeography involvespeople,eitherdirectly (assubjectswhowill beinterviewed or surveyed) or indirectly (as members of a broader community inwhichre‐searchinbeing undertaken). It is essential that youconsider theethical implications of re‐searchthatyouareundertakingandtakeallpossibleactiontoensurepeoplearenotharmed,worriedorinconveniencedbyyourresearch.Youshouldalwaysensurethatyougainpermis‐siontoaccessprivatelandandpropertyandthatanyinvestigationsthatyouproposetocon‐ductare fullyexplained.Goodethical researchpracticealsoensures thatthe environmentsinvolvedinyourresearcharenotharmed.

Asabroadruleyoushouldensurethatyoukeeptothefollowingguidelinesindesigningyourresearchandconstructingyourdata:

3.1.1Guidelinesforresearchinvolvingpeople

• Thestudentmust carry identiIicationincluding information that allows apotentialpar‐ticipant to contact theDepartment if she/hewishes, inordertoensure thatthework isbona5ide.StudentswhorequirelettersofintroductionandidentiIicationshouldasktheirdissertationadviserbeforethelastweekoftheSummerterm.

• AllparticipantsmustbeassuredattheoutsetthatinformationtheyprovidewillbetreatedinthestrictestconIidence.Thestudentmustadheretothisthroughouttheresearchproc‐ess includingproductionof thedissertation. Atno stageshoulditbe possibleto link in‐formationwith individual participants. Participantsmay, however, give their consent forthisconIidentialitytobewaivedsothat, forexample, quotationsmaybelinkedwithindi‐vidualconsent.

• Personaland/orsensitivequestionsshouldnotbeaskedunlesstheyaredirectlynecessaryfortheresearch.

• NodatamaybestoredelectronicallyinawaythatallowsindividualsandtheirinformationtobeidentiIied.Namesandaddressesshouldnot,therefore,beplacedoncomputerIile.

• Allparticipants intheresearchmustbeinvolvedvoluntarily. A participantmaywithdrawatanytimeandmustbeallowedtodoso.Nopressuretocontinueasaparticipantmustbeapplied.


• Thepurposeoftheresearchmustbeexplainedtoeachparticipantattheoutsetandshe/hemustnotbemisled.

• Dissertationsinvolvingobservationofbehaviourwithout interactionwiththepeopleob‐served(e.g. counting thenumberofpeople using a particular service)obviously cannotobtain theconsent ofallobserved. However, suchobservationcouldcausesuspicionordistressiftheobservationisunexplained. Youshouldthinkverycarefullyaboutyourob‐servationsite,andifpossibleexplainandseekconsentfromsomeoneinauthorityforthatarea–thiscouldbethelocalpolicestationorthemanagerofashoppingcomplex, forex‐ample.

• YoumayberequiredtosubmityourresearchtotheSchoolEthicsCommitteeforapprovalpriortocommencingyourwork.

3.1.2Additionalguidelinesforresearchinvolvingyoungorvulnerablepeople

There are particular considerations for those intending to work with young or vulnerablepeople.Youareadvisedtothinkverycarefullyaboutundertakingresearchthatinvolvestalk‐ingtoyoungorvulnerablepeopleduetoconcernsabouttheirsafety.YouwillhavetogaintheapprovaloftheSchoolEthicsCommitteebeforecommencinganyresearchinvolvingyoungorvulnerablepeople.

3.1.3Accesstoprivatelandandproperty

Dissertation students must not attempt to conduct investigations onprivate land/propertywithoutthepermissionofitsowners. Thisappliestolandandallothertypesofproperty(e.g.shops, leisureservices, means oftransport). If the property/landispubliclyownedpermis‐sionmustbeobtainedfromtherelevantauthority/management. Ifrequestedtodoso,astu‐dentmustleavetheland/propertyimmediatelyandwithoutprotest.

3.1.4Guidelinesinvolvingrespectingtheenvironmentinvolvedinyourresearch

Youshouldensurethatyoucarryoutyourresearchinamannerthatwill notcauseharmoradversetransformationtoenvironmentsinvolvedinyourresearch.

3.1.5EthicalAssessmentForm

Asmentionedabove,youarerequiredtosubmitapreliminaryethicsself‐assessmentformforundergraduatedissertationswithyourdissertationproposal.ThiswillestablishwhetheryouneedtocompleteaformalapplicationtotheSchoolEthicsCommittee.

Forfurtherguidanceonethicalconsiderationsinresearchsee:

Hay,I.(2003)Ethicalpracticeingeographicalresearch.inClifford,N.&Valentine,G.,(eds)Keymethodsingeography.London:Sage,pp.37‐54.

3.2SafetyandFieldwork

This sectionexplains thesafety considerationsthat youneed to takewhenundertaking anysortofIieldwork. Fieldworkisconsideredanyworkundertakenaspartofyourdissertation.TheDepartmentwill not support subjects for dissertations that involve workingsituations


withunacceptablerisks. Youshouldreadthis sectioncarefullyandtakeactiononany safetyissuesthatmightarise.YouareadvisedtoconsulttheSoGAERSafetyHandbookforfurtherinformationonHealthandSafety

Downloadfromhttp://sogaer.exeter.ac.uk/safetyhandbook.shtml.

These notesare intended toalert you tothe need to take particular care toensure your ownsafetywhenundertakingdissertation 5ieldwork.Theydonotclaimtobecomprehensive,coveringeverypossiblesituation,butallstudentsarestronglyurgedtotakecarefulnoteofthemnow!

3.2.1 Assessmentofpotentialdangers

BeforecommencinganyIieldwork,youarestronglyadvisedtomakeyourownassessmentofanypotentialdangers/hazardsanddecideuponasuitablemethodofworking. ThisshouldbediscussedwithyourDissertationAdviser. Itmaybenecessaryto reviseyourassessmentofdangersorhazardsasyourIieldworkprogresses.AtthebackofthishandbookyouwillIindaRiskAssessmentForm(Appendix3). Youshoulddiscuss anyforeseeableriskswithyourAd‐viser,completetheform,bothofyoushouldsignitands/hewillkeepacopyonrecord. Ifyousubsequentlychangetopics, youwillneedtocompleteanewRiskAssessmentform. FailuretosubmitasatisfactoryRiskAssessmentFormwillbe reported totheHeadofDepartment,andthedissertationresearchwillnotbesupportedbytheDepartment.

NO STUDENTSHOULDGO INTO A DANGEROUSORHAZARDOUS LOCATION, ORUNDERTAKEDANGEROUSTASKS (where ‘hazardous’refers to locationswherepotentialdangersmay fre‐quentlyarise,and‘dangerous’referstolocationswheredangersarealwayspresent)

3.2.2 Preparationfor5ieldwork

BeforestartingyourIieldwork, youmust leave information about yourintendedprogrammeanditinerarywithaparentoranotherresponsibleperson.Youshouldleavearecordof:

• Dateandtimeofdeparture• MethodoftraveltotheIieldlocation,andaroundthesiteoncethere• Proposeditinerary(giveO.S.gridreferenceswhereappropriate)• Anypotentiallyhazardoustechniqueoroperationtobeusedandwhereitisproposedtouseit.

• ExpectedtimeofleavingtheIieldlocationandestimatedtimeofarrivalhome.• Contactdetails

EquipmentandClothing

HumanGeographyresearchtakesstudentstoavarietyofdifferentIieldworklocationsusingarange of research methods. There is therefore a wide variety of Iieldwork equipment andclothingrequirements. Failuretoanticipatebasicrequirements foryour Iieldwork couldputyouatriskinadditiontolosingresearchtimewhichmightotherwisebeavoided. Youshouldensure in advance that you have suitable clothing and equipment for your proposed Iieldwork.

Equipment:TheequipmentrequiredforconstructingandanalysingdataandsourcematerialusedbyHu‐manGeographersisoftenveryfamiliartostudents.Mostwillbefamiliarwithvoicerecorders,


http://sogaer.exeter.ac.uk/safetyhandbook

http://sogaer.exeter.ac.uk/safetyhandbook

goodqualitymicrophones,photocopiers,transcribingmachines, stillandvideocameras,DVDorvideoplayers, computerswithappropriatesoftware,internetaccess,printersandburners,etc. which couldbe used in dissertation research. You will, however have to carefully andimaginativelyassesswhatequipmentwill beneededtoconductyourresearchwell,andhowyoucangainaccesstoitthroughbuyingorborrowing.

Alwaystryandthinkaboutpotentialpitfallswhenusinganypieceofequipment.Forexample,ifitispoweredbybatteries,alwaysensureyouhavespareswithyoujustincasetheyrunoutin–say–themiddleofanimportantinterview.Or,ifyouareusingacomputerinanarchiveortobackupdigitalphotosorvoicerecordings,alwaysensureyoubackupyourIilesonamem‐orystickorotherexternalstoragedevice.

Ifyouborrowunfamiliar equipment,makesureyouknowhow to useitproperlyby experi‐mentingwithityourself–and/oraskingatechnicianifit’sborrowedfromtheDepartment‐beforetheresearchisformallyunderway.Forexample,tryoutthevoicerecordingcapabilitiesofyourmobilephoneorMP3playerbyinterviewingfriendsorfamily,backinguptheIileonacomputer,andlisteningtotherecordingtoassesswhetheritisclearenoughforyoutobeabletotranscribeit.

Suppliesoffoodanddrinksshouldbetakenwhenworking intheIieldoveralengthyperiod,unlesseasilyavailablenearby.Althoughitisunusual inhumangeographyresearch, ifyouareworkinginremoteenvironments,youmustcarryamapandcompass(andknowhowtotakeabearing),awhistle,awatch, a torch,andinpotentiallycoldenvironments,youmustcarryanemergencysurvivalblanket.

Clothing:Clothingsuitablefortheclimateintheplace(s)whereyourresearchwilltakeplaceandatthetime(s)ofyearitwewillbeundertakenmustbeworn.Extraclothingshouldbecarriedincli‐maticallyunpredictableareaswherethereisriskofexposure. Inhotweather, theriskofsun‐burnmustbeconsidered.Alwayswearfootwearappropriateto theterrainandweathercon‐ditions youarelikely to encounter. Ifnecessary,wear appropriatesafety clothing (thehardhatsandhighvisibilityvestswornbypeopleshowingyouaroundabuildingsite,forexample).

3.2.3 Workingalone

Although your dissertation research must be thework ofa single person, Iieldwork oftenneedstobeundertakenincompany.WhenundertakingIieldwork inunfamiliarorremotelo‐cations, another person (or more)may be able to help if anydifIiculties arise. Never placeyourselfinsituationswhereyoursafetycouldbecompromised,forexample,byacceptinganinvitationinto anunfamiliarperson’shouseto conductaninterview. Ifyou feel theslightestbitnervousaboutsuchsituations,donotgetintothemforthesakeofyourresearch!Workinginapublic place,withknownpeople,and/orincompanycanreducerisksofpersonalharm.NBalthoughitisrecommendedthatyouconductyourresearchincompany,youaloneshoulddotheresearch. Justasyoucannotasksomeoneelsetositanexamforyouorwriteyoures‐says, youshouldnot ask or let anyoneelse (to)do anyofthedataconstruction, reading orwritingforyourdissertation.

3.2.4InternationalDistressSigns

Ifyouplantowork,or Iindyourself, inremoteandhazardous locations,youwill needtobeawareofinternationallyrecogniseddistresssignalsasfollows:


Onmountainsandotherterrestriallocations,givesixlongIlashes/blasts/shouts/wavesinsuc‐cession&repeatatone‐minutelengthintervals.[NBalwaysensurethatsomeoneelseknowsinadvancewhereyouaregoing]

Atsea, usingawhistleoratorch, sendtheMorse‐codeSOSsignal (3shortblasts/Ilashes–3long – 3 short), pause, then repeat, etc. Alternatively, use red Ilares, orange smoke, out‐stretchedarms, raisedand lowered slowly andrepeatedly, or anoar, with a cloth tied to it,wavedslowly fromside to side. [NB always inform thecoastguardsofyouractivitiesbeforecommencingwork]

3.2.5 Fieldworklocationswherespecialcareshouldbeexercised

Bear inmindthatworkingnear busyroads, nearrailway stations, orat airports can involvehazards.Anydissertationresearchundertakeninornearsuchlocationsshouldbecarriedoutwithdueregardtosafety.Doortodoorcallingtodeliverquestionnairesand‘onetoone’inter‐viewsaresituationswhichcansometimesinvolveanelementofrisk.Asmentionedinsection3.2.3, it istheDepartment’sclearadvicetoIindanotherpersontojoinyou, andalwaysleaveclearinformationaboutyourwhereaboutsandexpectedtimeofreturn.Makesurethepersonwithwhomyouleavethisinformationknowsthatyouhavereturned.

Other potential hazards canbe encountered in remote mountainous terrain, remotemoor‐land, cliffs, caves, quarries, tunnels, pot‐holes, spoil heaps, tips, land‐Iill, sludge lagoons,freshwater lakes and pools, rivers, reed beds, bogs and marshes and sea‐shores. You arestronglyadvisedtomakea judgementabout thepotentialhazardsencounteredinyourpro‐posedIieldworklocation,ifnecessarytoseekexpertguidance,andatalltimestotakeappro‐priateaction.

These notesare intended toalert you tothe need to take particular care toensure your ownsafetywhenundertakingdissertation 5ieldwork. Theydonotclaimtobecomprehensive,coveringeverypossiblesituation,butallstudentsarestronglyurgedtotakecarefulnoteofthemnow!

Youareadvised toconsulttheSoGAERSafetyHandbookforfurtherinformationonHealthandSafety(downloadthisathttp://sogaer.exeter.ac.uk/safetyhandbook.shtml).

3.2.6Diseaseandimmunisation

Studentsintendingtoworkwithplantmaterial,soils,ornearfarmanimals,mustensurethatyourtetanusimmunisation is up‐to‐date. Bearinmindthat agriculturalareasmayharbourdisease. Also, rememberthat someplants andanimalsnative to theUKare poisonous. Insomeoverseaslocations,thisriskcanbegreater.Freshwatermaybeasourceofpollutionandcontainbacteria.Ifinanydoubtaboutapotentiallypoisonoussubstance,takeadvicefromtheNationalPoisonsInformationService(http://www.npis.org/NPIS/uknpis.htm).

3.2.7OverseasFieldwork

Many students decided to undertake Iieldwork overseas. Students should ensure that anyoverseasIieldworkisplannedmeticulouslytoensurethattheresearchaimsoftheirdisserta‐tioncanbefulIilled.Studentsshouldalsoensurethatintheplanningofoverseasresearchat‐tentionisplacedonpersonalsafetyandhealth.


http://sogaer.exeter.ac.uk/safetyhandbook.shtml

http://sogaer.exeter.ac.uk/safetyhandbook.shtml

http://www.sogaer.ex.ac.uk/geography/

http://www.sogaer.ex.ac.uk/geography/

Getting local contacts in the Iield location and establishing a programme of Iield researchpriortoyourarrivalintheIieldwillhelpoverseasresearchtorunassmoothlyaspossible.

AdviceregardingimmunisationshouldbesoughtfromtheStudentHealthCentre/G.P.assoonastheoverseas Iieldworkisplanned. VisasandImmigrationpaperscantaketimeto processandshouldbeappliedforwell inadvance. Students shouldconsultandfollowthetravel in‐f o r m a t i o n o n t h e F o r e i g n a n d C o mm o nw e a l t h O f I i c e w e b s i t e –http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travelling‐and‐living‐overseas/travel‐advice‐by‐country/ ‐ andbeawareoffastchangingsituationswhilsttheyareoverseas.

Forfurtherinformationonthisissue(andforausefulguidetofurtherreading),see:Smith,F.(2003)Workingindifferentcultures.inClifford,N.&Valentine,G.,(eds)KeyMethods

inGeography.London:Sage.


http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029390590

http://www.fco.gov.uk/servlet/Front?pagename=OpenMarket/Xcelerate/ShowPage&c=Page&cid=1007029390590

Section 4:Progress monitoring & advice

4.1 WhatcanIexpectfrommyDissertationAdviser?

Thedissertation is yourownpieceof independentresearch. Youshould, therefore,expect toundertakethenecessaryactivities‐thinkinganddoing‐independently.YourDissertationAd‐viser'sprincipalresponsibilityistomonitoryourprogress.S/hecanbeexpectedtodothefol‐lowing:

• offer(withotherstaffmembers, )adviceandanswerquestionsontheprocessofdesign‐ing, undertakingandwritingyour dissertationatanttimeduring the thirdyear, e.g. onappropriatemethodologies,logistics,resources,chapterstructure,writingstyle;

• readyourDissertationProgressReportstoensurethatyouaremakingprogress,givead‐viceifsufIicientprogress isnotbeingmade, e.g. tell youthat youneedto 'getcracking',andalert theHumanGeographyDissertationTutor(IanCook) ifunsatisfactoryprogressisbeingmade;

• offer a standard amountof formal supervisiontimeto eachstudent inthe formofpre‐arrangedindividualandgroupsupervisions,plusdrop‐inadviceasnecessary.

YoucannotexpectyourDissertationAdviserto:

• tellyouwhattodo(thisisyourdissertation,s/hewillhelpyoutodevelopyourideas);• givemini‐lecturesaboutthingsthatyoushouldhavefoundandreadaboutyourself;• readdraftcopiesofdissertationchapters(don’tevenask!).

4.2 WhatwillyourDissertationAdviserexpectfromyou?

4.2.1.ThatyouattendformalDissertationProgressMonitoringMeetings.

Youmust have aminimum of three individual meetingswith your Dissertation Adviser, atwhichyourprogresswillbeformerlymonitoredandrecordedonaDissertationProgressRe‐portForm(seeAppendix5).

Monitoringmeeting1:byendofweek9oftheSummerTermtodiscussyourdissertationpro‐posal.Monitoringmeeting2: inweek3oftheAutumnTermofyourIinal yeartodiscussyour400wordprogressreportandtocompleteaDissertationProgressReportForm.Monitoringmeeting3: inweek 3ofSpring Termofyour Iinalyearto discussyour400wordprogressreportandcompleteaDissertationProgressReportForm.


YouwillalsobeinvitedtoalimitednumberofgroupsupervisionmeetingsinyourthirdyearinwhichallofthestudentsadvisedbyyourAdviserwillmeettogethertodiscusscommonis‐suesandconcerns(e.g.researchexperiences,dataanalysis,chapterplanning).

4.2.2. That you complete all required forms– especially those concerning research ethicsandrisksandfollowtheadvicegiven.

Seesection2.4above.

4.2.3.Thatyoumakeprogressonyourdissertation

As far as possible you shouldaim to complete your dissertation 5ieldworkby the end oftheSummervacationthisyear.WhenyoureturntoUniversity,youwill beinvitedtoDissertationProgressMonitoringMeetings during theAutumnand SpringTerms (see above)to discussdissertationprogresswithyourAdviser.S/hewill contactyoutoarrangethesemeetingsandwillmakerecordsofwhatisdiscussedonaDissertationProgressReportForm(seeAppendix5).

Failure makesatisfactoryprogresson yourdissertation, includingnonattendance atDissertationProgressMonitoringMeetingswillbereportedtotheHeadofDepartment.

4.2.4.Thatyoukeeptheminformedofanychangeindirection/topic

Ifyouhavetosubstantiallymodifyyourresearchorchoosetoembarkonadifferenttopicdur‐ingthe vacation, youmustdiscuss thiswithyourDissertationAdviserat the time (yourAd‐viserwillbeatwork inthesummerandable to respondto emails!).Youshouldnotbesur‐prisedifyourresearchdoesn’tquitepanoutexactlyasyouexpect,butstudentstendtostrug‐gleifsuchchanges leadtothemgivinguptheirresearchinthesummer,ordoingitinahalf‐heartedway.Goodpreparation,planninganddeterminationarerequiredtogetgoodresearchdoneduringtheSummerholidays.Thispreparationshouldequipyoutocopewithchangesastheyhappen.Butpleasedon’thesitatetocontactyouradviserintheholidaysifyouneedsomeadviceabout copingwiththesechanges. It isextremelydif5icult and stressful toembarkon anewdissertationatthebeginningofyour5inalyear.

AnysigniIicantchangestoyourdissertationtopicwillhavetobediscussedwithyourAdviserandwiththeHumanGeographyDissertationTutor(IanCook).Fornewtopics,youwillberequired tosubmitanewresearchproposal andwillbe allocated anewAdviser.Thisnewpro‐posal isnotassessedbutisnonethelessextremelyimportant toyourresearch. Itwillhelptoensure thatyouhavethoughtthroughthedesignofthe researchandthat it is relevant andfeasible.ItwillalsoenableyournewAdvisertoprovideadviceandmonitoryourprogress.

4.2.5.Thatyoukeepanarchiveofyourresearchofyourresearchdata

Youshouldkeepapaperand/orelectronicarchiveofallofyourresearchinformation, includ‐ing, forexample, Iieldnotebooks, completed/returned questionnaires, correspondencewithsubjects,recordingsofinterviews,transcriptsornotesonsourcematerialanddraftcopiesofyourdissertationchapters.

The SchoolExaminationBoardand/ortheExternalExaminerreserve theright toconsiderthisarchiveaspart ofyourdissertationmoduleassessment. Failure toprovide thisarchive (ortokeepanadequatearchive)ifasked,mayresultinlossofmarks.


4.3 WhenmustIsubmitmycompleteddissertation?

YourcompleteddissertationmustbehandedinonthelastThursdayoftheSpringTerminyourFinalYear.Failuretomeetthisdeadline(withoutpermission)willbedealtwithseverelyandtheBoardofExaminerswillnormallyimposeapenaltyofareductionbyoneclassofthemarkawarded.It is thestudent’sresponsibilitytobringanypotentiallyextenuatingcircumstancestotheirAdviser’sattention.


Section 5:Dissertation presentation & layout

Thissectionprovidesadviceonhowtoorganiseandsetoutyourdissertation,aswellaswhenandhowtosubmitit.

5.1 Wordlimitandpageformat

Your dissertation should not exceed10,000words (excluding titlepage, contents page, ac‐knowledgements,abstract, listofIigures,appendices, tablesandbibliography)andshouldbeformattedasinstructedinthetablebelow.Dissertationsthatexceedthewordlimitwillbepe‐nalised(seeSection6.4)Dissertationsmust beword‐processedwithdoublelinespacingonsingle sidesofA4andall pagesmust beclearlynumberedinthe top right‐handcorner.Thebindingwill require a1 cmspace down the lefthandmargin ofeachpage so youmustmakesurethatyourmarginsaresufIicientlywideforthis.Studentsbearthecostsoftheirdisserta‐tion’sillustrations,typing,paper,outercover,andbinding.

5.2 Structureandcontents

As youwill see from thedissertations that you read anddiscuss in theHumanGeographyPracticemodule, thereareavarietyofways inwhichagooddissertationcanbeorganisedonpaper.Manystudentsfollowadviceaboutchapterstructurestotheletter, evenwhenthatad‐vicesqueezessomeofthelifeoutofwhat theyhave learnedandwant to convey.Oneofthemostimportantconsiderationsinplanningthewrite‐upofadissertationishowyouaregoingtoengageyourreaderinwhatyouhavelearned;howyouaregoingtoconveywhatwasinter‐esting aboutyour research; howyou aregoing towriteapage‐turningaccount. But, at thesametime,youhavetoconsiderhowareyougoingtoincludealloftherequiredelementsofagooddissertation(e.g. researchquestions,theliteratureyouhaveread,themethodsyouem‐ployed,theethicsofyourresearch,yourIindings,etc.)inthataccount.Therearevariousmod‐elsthatcanbeusedtoplandissertationsinmoreconventionalways(seebelow),butifthese


don’twork foryouoryour research, discusspossiblealternativeswithyourAdviser. Belowtwo conventional dissertationmodels are discussed. You couldchoose to use one or othermodelforyourdissertation,orcouldusetheadvicegivenabouttheircontentsinalooserway:likeachecklistofwhat’s expectedinan alternatively‐organiseddissertation.Whicheverop‐tionyoutake, youshouldtakeitbecause itenables you tomakethemostconvincing argu‐ment.

Therearetwo standardmodelsthatcanbedrawnonto conventionallystructureadisserta‐tion.TheseareshowninthetablebelowasModel1andModel2.Ifyouchooseoneorotherofthese, ordecide onan alternativestructure, youshouldensurethat your dissertationhas aclearandlogicalstructure,andthatitincorporatesallofthecomponentslistedbelow.

Whatever structure you choose for your dissertation, you will have to include the sections above which have a white background in that order. Alternatively structured dissertations can only ex-periment with the sections in white type, bearing in mind that all dissertations needs some kind of introduction and conclusion (it has to start and end somewhere, so your marker can assess if and how you managed to do what you set out to do).

TitlePage

Thetitleofyourdissertationshouldbebothinteresting–itistheIirstimpressionthatyougivetoyourmarker – andprovide someimpressionofthe seriousissues thatitwill ex‐plore.Itisnotagoodideatogiveyourdissertationatitlethatasksaquestionthatseemsonlytohaveayesoranoanswer.Neitherisitagoodideatohavealongwindedfactualtitlealongthelinesof‘Aninvestigationofa,b,candd,inthispartoftheworldusingtheacombinationofresearchmethodsandconcludingthat…’,orashortbutstrangecatchyonelike‘Fish’.Somecombinationofthetwo–acatchy titleofafewwords takenfrompresscoverageoraninterviewthatyoudiscuss, forexample–followedbyasubtitlecontainingfew key academic terms along the lines of ‘something, something and something else’‐usuallyworks better. Look for inspirationand ideasinthe titlesof theacademic studiesthatyouread.Whatkindsoftitlesdoyoulikebest?

Yourtitlepagemust includethetitleofyourdissertation,yourname,thedateitwassub‐mitted,andasignedacknowledgementstatingthat:


Thisacknowledgementmustbetakenveryseriously.SeeSection6forinformationregard‐ingtheSchoolandUniversitydisciplinarypolicyagainstplagiarismandcollusion,andAp‐pendix5foranexampletitlepage.

EthicsForm(seeAppendix4)

A copy of theEthics form approvedby youradviserand/or the Department’s ResearchEthicscommitteeshouldbeincludedhere.

Contentspage

Appendix8provides anexampleofaTableofContents. First, youmust providea listofchapter,sectionheadingandsubheadingtitleswiththeirassignedpagenumbers.Thiswillhelpyourreadertonavigatetheirwaythroughthedissertation.Afterthis,asillustratedinAppendix9,youmustprovideseparatelistsofanyIiguresand/ortablesandthepagesonwhichtheycanbefound. Thiswill allowyourreader toquickly Iindtheillustrationsyouhaveusediftheyneedtoreferbacktothemlateroninthedissertation.

ListsofFiguresandtables

‘Figures’includeallmaps,diagrams,andphotographsincludedinthedissertation.‘Tables’areconsideredandnumberedseparately. Inallcases,anexplanatory titleshouldbepro‐vidednexttotheIigureortablenumber.

All Iiguresandtables mustbenumbered. Tables arenumbered separately from Iigures.For example, using the numerical system, ‘Figure 4.1’wouldbe the Iirst Iigure cited inchapter4and‘Table3.2’wouldbethesecondtablecitedinchapter3.

AlltablesandIiguresshouldbeclosely integratedwith,andreferredto,inthetext,usingappropriatephrasing,forexample.:

‘ThesiteislocatedintheRockyMountains(seeFigure4.1)’or ‘Table3.2providesasum‐maryofthedatafrom…’

Donotwrite,forexample:

‘Thelocationofthesitecanbeseeninthemapbelow’or‘Asummaryoftheresultscanbeseeninthetableonpage31’.

ItisnotsufIicientsimplytoputtextandillustrationssidebysidehopingthatthereader/examinerwillmaketheconnection.Explainwhytheyarethereandhowtheycontributeto


Icertifythatthisdissertationisentirelymyownworkandnopartofithasbeensubmittedforadegreeorotherquali5icationinthisoranotherinstitution.IalsocertifythatIhavenotconstructeddatanorshareddatawithanothercandidateatExeterUniversityorelsewherewithoutspeci5icauthorisation.

(insertyourprogramme,i.e.Arts,Science)withHonoursinGeographyattheUniversityofExeter.............................(yoursignature)March2009

theargument thatyouaremaking. Iftheydonot contributeto yourargument, don’tin‐cludethem.

SomekindsofIiguresrequireadditionalconsiderations:

a)Mapsanddiagrams: MapsshouldnormallybepreparedwithonedimensionequaltotheheightofanA4sheet

and, ifnecessary, may be folded. Maps and diagramsmust either be drawnby hand inblack ink,or becomputer generated(inthe lattercasecolourmay beused).Thephoto‐copyingofsomematerialmaybepossible(pleaseseek advice intheRodneyFryMapLi‐brary,drawingofIiceorcomputerunitasappropriate).Mapsshouldhaveadequatescalesandkeys.Eachmapordiagramshouldhaveaframe,withaIigurenumberandtitleoutsidetheframe.Thesourceoftheinformationmustalsobegiven(andlistedfullyintheBibliog‐raphy),e.g.‘Figure1.1:PublicDrinkingSpacesVisited,1980‐1998(source:Kneale,1999)’.

b)Photographs Photographs, digitisedimagesandcolourphotocopiesmayalsobeusedifnecessary, and

theseshouldalsobegivenaIigurenumber, titleandsource, e.g. ‘Figure1.1:VictoriaMe‐morialHall,Calcutta(photo:author).’

NB.pleaseensurethatallofyourIiguresareclearandofsufIicientsizeandresolutionforyour reader to be able to makeout text and important features. Figures that are small,fuzzy,anddifIiculttomakeoutcandetractfrom,ratherthansupportto,yourarguments.

Acknowledgements

Youmaywishtoacknowledgepeople/institutionswhohavehelpedyouduringtheproc‐essofconductingandwritingyourdissertation.

Abstract

Theabstractshouldnotexceed200wordsandshouldbriefsummaryofwhatyourdisser‐tationsetouttodo andhowitdoesthis.Look to journalarticleabstracts forinspirationhere.

Introduction

Thischaptershould:♦ describe thecircumstances and/orcontextsout ofwhichyourresearch question(s)/aim(s)haveemerged(theseshouldreIlectcontemporaryacademic,topicaland/orper‐sonalconcerns,butwhetheryoucallthem‘questions’or‘aims’isuptoyou:chooseonetermandstickwithit)

♦ outlinetheresearchquestion(s)/aim(s)thatyourdissertationstriestoaddress;♦ outlinetheobjectivesthroughwhichyouhavetriedtoaddressthem;♦ indicatewhy this shouldbeofinterestorconcerntoacademicgeographers,andhowyourIindingspromisetocontributesomethingnewandoriginaltogeographicalschol‐arship;

♦ outline how you have organised your dissertation chapters to address thesequestion(s)/aim(s) and to make that case in a convincing and academically‐soundmanner.


LiteratureReview Thischaptershould:

♦ showwhatacademicconcepts(e.g.‘socialexclusion’),studies(e.g. ‘Powers’(2006)ex‐aminationof..’), theoreticalperspectives(e.g. ‘Forpoliticaleconomists,…’),and/orbod‐iesofwork(e.g.‘Inhistoricalgeography,…’)canusefullybedrawnupontomakesenseofthekindofquestion(s)/aim(s)youarepursuing;

♦ show, through critically reviewing relevant academic reading, that your research ismakinganargumentthroughthisliterature(i.e.takingupparticularideas,challengingothers,respondingtoappropriatecallsfornewwork,becausetheyareappropriate).

Pleasebearinmindherethat:♦ anuncriticaldissertationisoneusesa literature/approachhasbeentakenbyothersinanunquestioningway;

♦ thisisrelatedto aderivativedissertation,whichinvolvesanuncriticallychosenlitera‐ture /approachillustratedby aslightly different examplewhich, as a result, cannotraiseanycriticalquestionsaboutthatliterature/approach;

♦ youshouldthereforereadaroundyourtopic‐lookingforelementsthatwillneedtobecombinedtodoitwell‐ratherthangetdisappointedthatyoucannotIindanacademic


Anoteonchapters,sections,subsectionsandtheuseofsubheadings.

At the start ofeachchapter, it is a good idea to include a brief statement statingwhatitisabouttohelpthereaderworkoutwheretheyareinthedissertation, andwhere they aregoing. A chapter couldbegin, for example, with‘This chapterdis‐cussestheresultsof….’A shortsummaryattheendofeachchaptercanbeequallyvaluabletohelpthereaderkeeptrackofwheretheyhaveendedupandwheretheyaregoingnext.A chapter couldend, for example,with‘Thischapterhas discussedthe…’andthensay‘Thisleadsonto….’Youradvisermaydescribethisprocessasthe‘toppingandtailing’ofchapters.

Betweenthesetopsandtails,yourchapterswillneedtobedividedintosectionsandsubsections. Thesecanhelpyoutoorganiseanddecidewheretoplacevarious as‐pectsoftheargumentyouwanttomakeina logicalorder(e.g. differentbodies ofliterature inaliteraturereviewchapter,ordifferentthemes identiIiedinyourdatainan‘analysis’chapter).They canalso enableyourreader tonavigatethroughthechapterwithgreaterease. Sectionsandsubsectionsshouldbeusedinalogicalandconsistentmanner.Abalancemustbeachievedbetweenover‐andunder‐divisionofchapters. Toomanysections andsubsectionsmaybreak upthe Ilow ofyourargu‐mentandmakethechapterappearbittyorfragmented. ToofewmaymakeitmoredifIicult foryourreader to work outwhere theyareinthey argument andwheretheyaregoingnext.

Tosignpostthedifferentlevelsofheadingandsubheadingyoushouldnumberandtitleeachofthem in a speciIic way. TheTableofContents example inAppendix8showshowthissystemworks.Forexample,chapter3couldbedividedintosections3.1,3.2,andsoon, eachwithdifferent titles;andsection3.2couldbedivided intosubsections3.2.1,3.2.2,andsoon,eachwithadifferenttitle.Numberingthingsthiswaycanallowyoutoreferyourreader topreviousargumentsbysaying, forexam‐ple,‘Insection3.1,Itriedtoshow…’

studythatmoreorlessmatcheswhatyouwant todo(ifyoudo Iindsuchastudy,askyourtutor, seminar leader, orAdviserhowcanyoumakesurethatyourownstudyisdifferentenoughtobeoriginal).

Methodology

Thischaptershould:♦ showthat thequestions/aimsthatyoubeganwith,andtheacademicideasthatcould

helptomakeabettersenseofthem,requireparticularkinds(andcombinations)ofre‐searchmethodsinordertoaddresstheminaconvincingway;

♦ show thatyouhavereadenoughofthe literatureon researchmethods(bothgeneraland speciIic arguments) to know both how to choose appropriate (combinations)methods, andhow to use themto construct therightkindsofdataandanalysethemsystematically;

♦ showhowyoutackledpracticalmethodologicalissuessuchashowyounegotiatedac‐cesstoappropriatesourcesofdataand/orIieldsites,ormadeadjustmentstoyourre‐searchdesignascircumstanceschanged;

♦ explainyour researchdesign (whichmay have, for example, involved two phases inwhichyouneedtodoone thingbeforeyoucando another,and/or beundertaken inparticularplacesandtimes);

♦ outlinehowtheanalysisoftheresultingdatawasundertakenandhowitexplainstheorganisationofthefollowingAnalysis/Resultschapter(s).

Analyticalchapter(s)(Model1)or

Results,AnalysisandInterpretationofResults(Model2)

Model1 InsomeHumanGeographydissertations(primarilyqualitativestudies), itiscommonfor

thedataanditsinterpretationtobepresentedtogether.Thiscanbeundertakeninasinglelongerchapterdividedbydifferentthemesthatemergeoutoftheanalysisofthatdata,oraseriesofshorterchapterseachdealingwithonetheme.Thesethemesmaybeanswerstoyourresearchquestions/aims (i.e. theme1addressesquestion/aim1)ormaycross‐cutyourresearchquestions/aims(i.e. ‘Threemajorthemesseemedto ariseinrelationto…’).Whichever approach youtake, youshoulduseyour appropriately analyseddata/sourcematerial to support and illustrate your argument, e.g. by using quotations, maps, tables,Iigures,diagrams,imagesetc.YoumayalsoIinditusefulinplacestoreferbackto,andpickupideasfrom,yourliteraturereview.

Model2 InotherHumanGeographydissertations(primarilyquantitativestudies),itiscommonfor

dataandits interpretationtobepresentedseparately.Here, datageneratedthroughyourresearchcanbepresentedintheformofmaps,tables,graphsand/ordiagrams.Theinter‐pretationsofthisdatethenfollowinaseparatechapter.

Forfurtherreadingonthistopic,see: Bradford,M.(2003)Writingessays,reportsanddissertations.inClifford,N.&Valentine,G.

(eds)KeyMethodsinGeography.London:Sage.


Conclusion

InthisIinalchapteryoushould:♦ Tieeverythingtogether:questions,readings,research,Iindings,etc.♦ Show how your Iindings address the speciIic questions/aims of the dissertation. andhowtheyfeedbackintothebroaderliteratureyourreviewedearlierinthedissertation.How doeswhat you have found out make anoriginal contribution to that literature?WhatimplicationsdoyourIindingshaveforresearchinthisarea?

♦ Showyourunderstandingofthelimitationsofyourresearch(i.e.whatyoucanandcan’tconclude given what you have beenable to do). Dissertations are small pieces of re‐searchdonewell,andcan’tusuallycometobigconclusions.ModestconclusionsareIine.Undergraduate dissertations often raise as many questions as they answer. Researchcouldalwayshavebeendonedifferently.WiththebeneIitofhindsight, ifyouhadyourtime again, howmight youhavedonethings differently? Ifyouhadmore timeandre‐sources,whatwouldyoudotodevelopthisresearchfurther?Knowingwhatyouknow,whatresearchdoyouthinkneedstobedonenext?

Referencingandthebibliography Youmustreferto all referencesinaconsistentandrecognisedfashionusingtheHarvard

system.Thefollowingexampledemonstratesourpreferredpractice:

Inthisexample,thereferencesarelistedalphabeticallyinthebibliographyas:


The‘hourglassshape’ofagooddissertation

Dissertationsshouldbeasbroadintheirconclusions as theyare in their introductions, but shouldbefunneled throughasmall pieceofresearchdonewell. Theopeningchaptersofadissertationshouldplaceaparticularproblemorquestioninawideracademic (andoftenpopular)context (e.g. disabilityand housing). A methodology discussion begins to narrowthingsdown to a speciIic study. That study answers speciIicquestionsindepth. But theconclusionofagooddissertationreturnsto thosewidercontextswithsomethingnewtosaytothem.DissertationsshouldnotIinishwiththeanswers to thespeciIic researchquestions(e.g. ‘intentional communitiesare‘bad’or‘good’).Theyshouldnotcometoasharppoint.

There is only one detailedbook on the subject of dissertations (Ravenhill, 1954), al‐thoughmorerecent researchpapershavetouchedon thesubject(SimonTurner,pers.comm.). Williams (1990, p.10) forexample claims that 'all gooddissertations shouldcontainsomeelementoftourismresearchinawarmcountry'. AdamsandRay(2001),Brown(1991a;1991b;1999),Brownetal.(1994)andRobinson(1991)donotmentiondissertations.

Internetresources:Thesecitations(e.g.AdamsandRay,2001)shouldcomprisetheauthor(s)(ifknown), thefulltitleofthework(i.e.pageheader),thetitleofthecompletework(ifapplicable)inital‐ics,thefullhttpaddress,andthedateofvisit.Theaimistoprovidetheinformationneces‐sarytoenablethereadertoappreciatethethemeofthepageandtoaccessitdirectlyfromtheaddressprovidedinthereference.

Paperresources:Ravenhill (1954)and Brown (1991b) shows the form usedforbooks/theses; Robinson(1991)showsthe formforreferringto chaptersineditedvolumes, andWilliams(1990),Brown(1991a)andBrownetal.(1994)showstheformatforjournalarticles. TheBrownet al. (1994)reference indicates the format formulti‐authoredpapers. Ifthere ismorethanone paperby the same Iirst author they shouldbe listedwith single authoredandoldestpapersIirst, followedbyprogressivelymorerecentsingleauthoredpapers. Multi‐authoredpapersshouldcomeafterthesingleauthoredpapers(andinchronologicalorder,i.e.oldestIirst).Notethatalltheauthorsnamesofmulti‐authoredpapersarelistedinthebibliography(theetal.abbreviationisrestrictedtouseinthetext.)

Personalcommunications:SimonTurner(pers. comm.)refersto informationgainedfromapersonalcommunication(e.g.aletter,emailorverbalconversation)withsomeone.

Quoting: Notethatifyouquotematerialinyourtextyoushouldgivethepagenumbersintherefer‐

ence,asisgivenforWilliams(1990)above. Youshouldalsoplaceparenthesesaroundthequotedsection.

NB:referencesinthebibliographydonotcounttowardtheoverallwordcount.


BibliographyAdams, J.&Ray,N.2001.ReviewerPage.LGMVegetationMap version0.9April2001.

http://lgb.unige.ch/home/ray/LGM_map/lgm.htm(lastaccessed5thJuly2001).Brown,A.G.1991a.LateQuaternarypalaeohydrologyoftheRiverSevern. JournalofPa

laeohydrology7,31‐62.Brown, A.G. 1991b. Floodplain palaeoecology. Unpublished PhD thesis, University of

Southampton.Brown, A. G. (1999)Biodiversity frompollenanalysis:modernpollenstudies andthe

recent historyofa IloodplainwoodlandinS.W. Ireland.Journal ofBiogeography26,19‐32.

Brown, A.G., Keough,M.K.&Rice,R.J. 1994.UnitedKingdom:theLateglacialandFlan‐drianalluvialrecordfromtheSoarandNenevalleys.PhilosophicalTransactionsoftheRoyalSocietyofLondonA,348,261‐293.

Ravenhill,W.L.D. 1954. AGuide toGeographicalDissertations. ExeterUniversityPress,Exeter.

Robinson,M.A.1991.TheNeolithicandBronzeAgeinsectassemblages.InS.Needham(ed.)Excavationsand salvage work atRunnymede Bridge, 1978: the LateBronzeAgeWaterfrontsite,277‐326.BritishMuseum,London.

Williams, A. 1990. Restaurants inPortugal: A spatial analysis. Journal ofGeographicalResearch1,10‐11

http://lgb.unige.ch/home/ray/LGM_map/lgm.htm

http://lgb.unige.ch/home/ray/LGM_map/lgm.htm

Appendices

Appendices are used to include information that helps the reader understand your re‐searchmore fully. Itshouldnotcontainany furtherargumentormaterial thatisnotdi‐rectlyrelatedtoyourresearchquestions.Youshouldensurethatifthematerialisimpor‐tantenoughitshouldgointhemainanalyticalchaptersandnotbe‘dumped’intheappen‐dices.

Appendicesmightinclude:♦ Anexampleofyourquestionnaire,transcribedinterview,focusgroupschedule♦ AGlossaryofTerms♦ Alistofkeydates/policies/people

NB:materialintheappendicesdoesnotcounttowardtheoverallwordcount.

5.3 Checkingyourwork

Beforesubmission, thewholetextofyourdissertationshouldbecheckedcarefullyfortypingerrors. Youshouldalsocheckthatyouhavelistedall yourreferencesandthatall tablesandIiguresareclearlypresentedandreferenced.

5.4 Handinginyourcompleteddissertation

Your dissertation must be handed in between 9.00am– 1pmand 2pm 5.00pmon the lastThursdayoftheSpringTermofyourFinalYear.

Youwillneed tosubmitone copyofyourdissertation,whichwillberetained intheDepartmentforoneyear.YouarerequiredtosubmitancopyonCDRom.

Youwillberesponsibleforbindingyourdissertation.YoushouldaskthePrintUnitoncampustocomplete thistask foryou.Please ask themforthermal binding.Thisprocesstakesa fewminutes.ThelasttimeforbindingatthePrintUnitis4pm.

SeeSection6oftheHandbookfordetailsoflateornon‐submissionprocedures.

YourdissertationarchiveYoushouldkeepanarchive(i.e.portfolio)ofallyourdissertationresearchinformationforin‐spectionbytheSchoolExaminationBoardand/ortheExternalExaminer(Section4.2).Failuretomaintainandprovidethisarchiveonrequestcouldresultinlossofmarks.


Section 6:Regulations & procedures

ThissectiondescribestheDepartment'sandUniversity'sproceduressubmissionofthedisser‐tation. Thesectiondrawsattentiontoregulationsconcerninglatesubmission,plagiarismandcollusion,andpenaltiesforexceedingthewordlimit.

6.1 Your dissertation must be handed in between 9.00am‐1pmand 2pm ‐5.00pmonthelastThursdayoftheSpringTermofyourFinalYear.YouwillreceiveinformationaftertheChristmasvacationdetailingtheexactproce‐dure.

YouneedtosubmitonecopyofyourdissertationandoneelectroniccopyonCDRom whichwillberetainedintheDepartmentfortwoyears.Afterthattimeyoumayrecoveryourdisser‐tationbysendingtheappropriatepostageandpackingfee.Otherwise,ifspaceisrequired,dis‐sertationsmaybedisposedof.Wereservetherighttorevealyourdissertationmarktofuturestudentcohortsalthoughthiswillbeanonymous. Ifyouwishyourmarkto remainconIiden‐tial,youmustinformtheDissertationCo‐ordinatorinwriting.

Youshouldsignadisclaimerthat,exceptwherereferenced,thedissertationisyourownwork(seeAppendix7fordetails).Thisistoavoidplagiarismandcollusion.

Youshouldkeepanarchive(i.e.portfolio)ofallyourdissertationresearchinformationforin‐spectionbytheSchoolExaminationBoardand/ortheExternalExaminer.Failure tomaintainandprovidethisarchiveon requestcouldresultin lossofmarks. Thisis toassistinvestigationofsuspectedplagiarism.

6.2 Plagiarismandcollusion

Youareremindedthatthe failuretoreferencethepublishedandunpublishedworkofotheracademicsmayresultinachargeofplagiarism. This iseffectivelypassingoffsomeoneelse’sthoughts, ideas,writings andwork asyourown. People can beguilty ofplagiarism if theycopy,withoutproperattribution(i.e.acknowledgingbyreferencingtheauthorappropriately),fromabook,scholarlyarticle, lecturehandout,electronically‐storedtextoranotherstudent’swork.

CollusionisaidingorattemptingtoaidorobtainingorattemptingtoobtainaidfromanothercandidateinthisUniversityorelsewhereoranyotherperson.Inthecaseofadissertationthismight include obtaining unauthorised help with preparation of the report or with Iield/laboratorywork. It is not permissible for candidates to constructcommondata orto share


datawithothers inExeterorelsewherewithoutspeciIicauthorisationandsuchpracticewillbedeemedcollusionandsubjecttopenaltyasacademicmisconduct.It is recognisedthatanimportant skill developedduring thecourseofyourdissertationre‐searchis the forgingofcontacts withvariouspeoplewithinandoutside theGeographyDe‐partment. Someofthesecontactsmayofferyoupractical assistance. Ifyouareinanydoubtyoushouldseek guidancefromyourDissertationAdviser onwhatmaybedeemedinappro‐priateaid.Youmayseekassistancefrom parents, siblings, friends orotherstudents inIieldandotherformsofdataconstructionforhealthandsafetyreasons(seesection3.3onloneworking)orwhereatechniquerequirestwopersonstoundertakeit, forexamplewhensurveyingphysicalfeatures. However,whereanotherstudent at thisUniversityorelsewhere is involvedintheassistance,commondatacannotbeconstructedanddataarenottobeshared.Ifyouintendtoworkwithanyotherpeopleinanyphaseofyourdissertation,youmustdis‐cussthiswithyourDissertationAdvisorandoutlinethenatureofthishelp. Ifnecessaryyouwillbe requestedto seekwrittenpermissionfromtheDissertationCo‐ordinatorbeforepro‐ceedingtoworkwithotherpeople. Inparticular,ifyouareplanningtoundertakeadisserta‐tionaspartofaprogrammeorganizedbyanothercompanyororganization,(e.g. anoverseasexpedition)thedetailsofyourdissertationmustbediscussedwithandauthorisedbytheDis‐sertationCo‐ordinator.

N.B.Failuretoadheretotheaboveguidelineswillbetakenasevidenceofcollusion.

ThedissertationformsamajorpartofyourdegreeandanybreachofUniversityRegulationswillbeconsideredveryserious. Pleasenotethatbothplagiarismandcollusionareveryseri‐ousoffences,whichcanresultintheoutrightfailureofyourdegree.Youaredirectedtowardsthe Undergraduate Handbook for further details of University regulations and proceduresconcerningacademicconduct.

For furtherdetailsofdeIinitionsandprocedures concerningplagiarismandcollusioncanbefound in the University's Teaching Quality Assurance document (web address:http://www.admin.exeter.ac.uk/academic/tls/tqa/plag1.htm).

6.3 Lateornonsubmission

TheproceduresforlatesubmissionaresetoutintheUndergraduateHandbook.Latedisserta‐tions,orpartsofdissertations,arenotbeacceptedbyStaffandshouldnotbehandedtothem.Anylateworkshouldbehandedto theDepartmentalSecretarytogetherwithaLateSubmis‐sionformthatyoumustcomplete. This formwillallow youto stateanymitigatingcircum‐stancesthat theDepartmentmaytakeinto consideration.Wheretherearenomitigatingcir‐cumstancestheUniversitypolicyforlatesubmissionpenaltiesareapplied:

• workuptotwoweekslatewillreceiveamaximumof40%.• worksubmittedmorethantwoweekslatewillreceiveamarkofzero.

N.B.Latesubmissiondue toproblemswithprintersorlossofmaterialthroughmismanagementwillnotusuallybeconsideredreasonablemitigatingcircumstances(seeSection7).

IfeventsorcircumstancesbeyondyourcontrolariseduringthecourseofyourIinalyearthatwilldelaysubmission,afullwrittenaccountshouldbegivenaheadofthesubmissiondateto


http://www.admin.exeter.ac.uk/academic/tls/tqa/plag1.htm

http://www.admin.exeter.ac.uk/academic/tls/tqa/plag1.htm

theChairoflearningandTeaching.PleaseseeTracyReeves fordetails. TheDepartmentwillthenconsiderthesecircumstances.

In theeventofnonsubmission, youwillnormallybe deemedtohave failed thispartoftheexamination.

6.4 Penaltiesforexceedingthewordlimit

Yourdissertationshouldnot exceed10,000words (excluding titlepage, contentspage,acknow‐ledgements, abstract, listofIigures,appendices,tablesandbibliography).Dissertationsthatexceedthewordlimitwillbepenalisedasfollows:

• 5%forupto2500wordsoverthelimit.• 10%formorethan2500wordsoverthelimit.

6.5 Summaryofdissertationprocessandtimetable*

*Europeanstudiesprogrammestudentsseesection2.1fordetailsofprocess.


Section 7:Three final pieces of advice.

One speciIic intended learning outcome of the dissertation (see Section 1.2) is to developcompetence in working independently, including management skills, such as setting andworkingtodeadlines. Poormanagement skills frequentlyresult intherushedproductionoftheIinaldissertationreport, because importantbitsofinformationare lostordestroyed, orthereisinsufIicienttimetoprintoutasatisfactoryIinalcopy. Ifyouhavemanagedyourdis‐sertationeffectively,youwillhavekeptback‐upcopiesandleftenoughtimeto copewithanyproblems thatmightariseduringreportproduction.Consequently, lateorincomplete submissionduetoproblemswithprinters,orlossofmaterialthroughmismanagement,arenotusuallyconsideredareasonableexcuse.

Thefollowingpiecesofadviceshouldhelptopreventtheseproblemsarising.

1.Keepatleast3back‐upcopiesatalltimes.

Always remember to keep back‐upcopies ofyourdissertation and the data youhave con‐structed!YoushouldkeepatleastthreecopiesofrelevantIiles,e.g.oneonharddisc,andtwoonseparateIloppydiscsstoredindifferentplaces. Thiswillreducetheriskoflossofimpor‐tant text anddata throughcarelessness, mismanagement, malfunctioning, theft, Iire and soforth.

2.StoretextanddatainmanageableIiles.

Thedissertationtext anddiagrams are likely to takeupa largenumberofbytes/disc space.Some images may be too large to store on a single Iloppy disc (e.g. digital camera photo‐graphs). Inaddition, youmayhavedifIicultyprinting out images storedincertainformats.Theentiretextofadissertationwillprobablybetoobigto storeorprintas oneIile,ormayoverloadsystemswhenyoucometoprintout.Youshouldstorecomponentsofyourdisserta‐tionas separateIiles (e.g. chapter1, chapter 2, bibliography, tables, Iigures)andprint themseparately. Labelsshouldindicateclearlytheversionofthetextonthedisc.Thiswillreducethemistakeofprintingoutsupersededversions.Printoutdraftversionsoftextanddiagramswell inadvance, sothatyoucanidentifypotential problemswithproduction, formattingandprintercompatibility.

3.Allowplentyoftimeforeditingandprinting.

Donotleaveprintingtothelastday.Donotunderestimatehowlongitwilltaketoprint,checkandcollatetheIinalversionofyourdissertationreport.Youneedtogiveyourselfenoughtimeincaseprintersareinheavydemandoryourprinterbreaksdown. Allowplentyoftime(i.e.


daysnothours)to check over thereportandcorrectanyproblemswithformatting, pagina‐tionandsoforth.


Appendix 1:Dissertation proposal guidelines.

ThedissertationproposalmustbetypedandsubmittedtoTracyReeveson7thMay2009be‐tween9.00–1.00and2.00–5.00.Threecopiesarerequired, two ofwhichcanbeblackandwhitephotocopies.Theworkwillbemarkedandonecopyreturnedtoyouwithcomments.Agradewill be awardedwhichwill count towards the GEO2310:Human Geography Practicemodule.

Dissertationproposalstructure

Thedissertationproposalshouldbeorganisedwiththefollowingsectionheadings.

1. Title2. Abstract3. Introduction4. Reviewoftherelevantliterature5. Methods6. Ethicalissues7. Disseminationpolicy8. Timetable*9. References*10.Completedethicsform*11.Completeriskform*

Dissertationproposalcontent

GiventhatthisisyourIirstattemptatdissertationwriting, theadvicegivenonpages24‐31isrelevant formostofthesections inyourdissertationproposal. Obviously,whenyouhandinyourIinaldissertation,thesesectionswillbemuchmoredetailedandaccomplished.Thepro‐posalwillbeyourIirsttentativegoatputtingthesekindsofideasandtogether,inawaythat


showsthatyouhavethoughtthroughyourdissertationresearchinenoughdetailtogiveyour‐selfandyouradviserconIidencethatitwillwork.Alotofworkneedstogointothisproposal‐lotsofreadingandthemakingoftentativecontactswiththosewhocanhelpyouwiththere‐searchbygivingpermissions, allowingaccess, etc. ‐but itwillhaveatentativeair(‘This re‐searchaimsto’,‘Ihopeto...’,‘Themethodsbestsuitedtosuchaprojectare...’).

AdviceoncompletingthevariousproposalsectionswasgivenintheIirstlectureofthedisser‐tationblock.Muchoftheadvicewascopiedandadaptedfromearliersections ofthisHand‐book,asfollows:

1.Title“Thetitleofyourdissertationshouldbebothinteresting–itistheIirstimpressionthatyougive to yourmarker – andprovidesome impressionof theserious issues that it will ex‐plore. Itisnotagoodideatogiveyourdissertationa titlethatasksaquestionthatseemsonlytohaveayesoranoanswer.Neitherisitagoodideatohavealong‐windedfactualti‐tlealongthelinesof‘Aninvestigationofa, b,candd, inthispartoftheworldusingtheacombinationofresearchmethodsandconcludingthat…’, orashortbutstrangecatchyonelike‘Fish’. Somecombinationofthe two –acatchytitle ofa fewwords taken frompresscoverage… – followedbyasubtitlecontaining few key academic termsalong thelines of‘something,somethingandsomethingelse’‐usuallyworksbetter.Lookforinspirationandideas in thetitles ofthe academic studies that you read. What kindsof titlesdo you likebest?”(p.24).2.Abstract“Theabstractshould...beabriefsummaryofwhatyourdissertationsetsouttodoandhowitdoesthis.Looktojournalarticleabstractsforinspirationhere”(p.26).

3.Introduction“This… should[brieIly]:… [a] describe the circumstances and/orcontexts out ofwhichyour(proposal)question(s)/aim(s)haveemerged…;[b]outlinetheresearchquestion(s)/aim(s)that yourdissertation[will]… address… [c] outlinetheobjectives throughwhichyou[will]… address them; [d] indicatewhy this shouldbeof interest orconcern to aca‐demic geographers, and how your Iindings promise to contribute something new andoriginaltogeographicalscholarship;[e]outlinehowyou[plan]…thesequestion(s)/aim(s)…inaconvincingandacademically‐soundmanner”(p.26).4.Reviewoftherelevantliterature“This … should: [a] show what academic concepts (e.g. ‘social exclusion’), studies (e.g.‘Powers’(2006)examinationof...’), theoreticalperspectives (e.g. ‘For politicaleconomists,…’),and/orbodiesofwork(e.g.‘Inhistoricalgeography,…’)[will]…bedrawnupontomakesenseofthekindofquestion(s)/aim(s)youarepursuing;[andb]show, throughcriticallyreviewingrelevantacademicreading,thatyourresearch[willmake]anargumentthroughthisliterature(i.e.takingupparticularideas,challengingothers,respondingtoappropriatecallsfornewwork,becausetheyareappropriate)”(p.27‐8).

5.Methods“This…should:[a]showthatthequestion(s)/aim(s)…, andtheacademic ideas[outlined]… , requireparticular kinds (andcombinations)of researchmethods in order to addresstheminaconvincingway;[b]showthatyouhavereadenoughoftheliterature…toknowhowtochooseappropriate…methods,howtousethemtoconstructtherightkindsofdata,andhow to analyse them systematically; [andc] show [that youknow how to tackle]…


practicalmethodologicalissuessuchashow[to]negotiate…accesstoappropriatesourcesofdataand/orIieldsites…”(p.28).6.EthicalissuesIngeneral, youwill needto explainhowtheconIidentiality andprivacy ofyour researchparticipants will be preserved, andhow your researchwill not be harmful to those in‐volved.But,ethical issuesoftendependonthetopicandthemethod(s)used,soanethicalstatementwill have to betailoredtoyourproposal. Seethe issues raisedonpages14‐15above andreadand refer to the researchethics chapters in the recommendedtexts onpages 8‐9. All research projects haveethical issues to tackle and it is essential that youthinkthesethroughattheearlieststagesofyourwork.7.DisseminationpolicyHowwillyoucommunicateyourIindingstorelevantaudiences?Thesewillalwaysbeacademic(it’s foryourdegree), but sometimes– forgoodreason (often‘ethical’)–youmayalso want towrite themwith/forother publics: e.g. researchparticipants, policy‐makers,‘thepublic’(talks,reports,exhibitions,etc.)asappropriatetoyourproposedresearch.

8.TimetableHowmuchtimewillbedevotedtoeachstageoftheresearch,andwhatdatescanyougive?Be reallycareful aboutthis–tryto think ofeverythingandbe cautious abouthowmuchtime it takes to, for example, recruit peopleor transcribeandinterview. Timetables areusuallypresentedaslists.

9.ReferencesListall‘intext’referencesinfull,usingtheHarvardreferencingsystem.Seepages29‐31.

10.CompletedethicsformSeeAppendix4.Thisformasksyoutoconsiderthenatureofyourresearchandanyethicalimplicationsishas.Afteryourproposalismarked,youmayberequiredtosubmitaformalapplicationtotheSchoolEthicsCommittee.

11.CompletedriskformsSeeAppendix 3. Pleasecomplete these to thebest ofyourability and submit themwithyourdissertationproposal


Appendix 2:Members of staff & subject areas

Membersofstaffinthedepartmentarepartofoneormoreresearchgroupswhich,together,claimexpertiseinanumberofkeyareas.Belowisanoutlineoftheseresearchgroups,whoisinthem,andwhatkindsofresearchtheydo.IfyourresearchideaIitsinwiththetopicslisted,thatis goodnews.Youcanfollowupsomeleadsandidentifywhototalktoaboutit. Forde‐tailsontheresearchinterestsofindividual membersofstaff,checktheirpersonalweb‐pagesathttp://www.sogaer.ex.ac.uk/geography/people/index.shtml#acaIfyourresearchideadoesnot Iit thesegroupsandtheir themes,all isnot lost. Youmayhavehadan ideainalecture,seminarortutorial. Ifso,approachthe lecturer, tutor, PhDstudent,etcconcerned. Any ideacanbecomeadissertationtopic, andstaffareusedto‐andlike‐supervisingdissertationsontopicstheydon’tknowmuchabout.Pleasebearinmindthatdissertationsupervisionissome‐thingthatstaffenjoydoing! It is fascinatingfor us toseehowstudentsturn theirideas intofullyIledgedprojectsintoIinisheddissertations.

HumanGeographyresearchgroupsInhumangeography, research groups concentrate on thebroad areas ofHistoricalCulturalGeography,SocietyNature,Governance,EthicsandSocial JusticeandClimate Change andSustainability. Inaddition to theteaching staff, theHumanGeography researchgroups includeresearchfellowsworkingonavarietyofexternally fundedprojectsplusresearchpostgradu‐atesandmastersstudents.Theresearchgroupsmeetregularlytoencourageresearchactivity,andallhumangeographerscometogetherweeklyforseminarsandreadinggroups.GroupmembersworkatboththeDevonandCornwallcampusesoftheUniversity. Someareinmorethanonegroup.YoucanonlybesupervisedbythosebasedinExeter.1.Historical‐CulturalGeography

Exeterbasedmembers:DavidHarvey,SeanCarter,IanCook,RogerKain,MarkPaterson,NicolaThomas,JohnWylie.Description:HistoricalGeographyis a long‐standingareaofresearchactivity inExeter. Well‐establishedspecialismssuchas thehistoryofcartographyhavebeenaugmentedinrecentyearsbyworkinformedbydevelopmentsincriticaltheoryandculturalgeography, includingissuesofland‐scape and identity, power and authority and geographies of imperialism, colonialism andpostcolonialism.


http://www.sogaer.ex.ac.uk/geography/people/index.shtml#aca

http://www.sogaer.ex.ac.uk/geography/people/index.shtml#aca

Researchthemes:‣ Landscapeandregionalidentities‣ EnvisioningEnglishness‣ CelticGeographies‣ Geographiesofheritage‣ Ancientmonumentsandnotionsofthepast‣ HistoryofCartography‣ Geographiesofreligion‣ Geographiesofcolonialismandimperialism‣ GenderandHistoricalGeography‣ SpaceandidentityinIilms‣ Oralhistoriesoflandscapechange‣ HistoricalGeographiesofcostume‣ HistoricalGeographiesofFieldExplorationandScience2.Society‐Nature

Exeterbasedmembers.PaulCloke,StewartBarr,HenryBuller,IanCook,MarkGoodwin,JoLittle,JohnWylie.Description:GeographyatExeterhaslongbeenoneoftheleadingresearchdepartmentsinthecountryin‐vestigatingissuesofnature,societyandruralityandofferingawiderangeofexpertiseandresearch interests in rural social science. The Society‐Nature research group is organisedaroundthreebroadandinterlinkedresearchthemes.TheIirst,Nature/Society:Human/Nonhuman, explores dimensions to nature/society interactionwithin the rural context andbe‐yond, includingbiodiversitystrategies andgeneticmodiIication, animalagenciesandanimalwelfare, ethical relations withinthe food chain and the shifting constructions andco‐ con‐structionsofruralnatures.Thesecond,Culture,IdentityandCommunity,examinesthepoliticsofruralchange,theconstructionandrepresentationofruralityandtheperformanceofruralidentities, includinggenderandyouth,drawingonissuesofculturalidentityandpracticeandthemeanings of countrysideas social space. The third, Rural and AgroFood Sustainability,workspredominantly inthe areasoffoodrelocalisation, sustainable lifestyles, andruralde‐velopment.Researchthemes‣ Socio‐Naturalconstructionsofrurality‣ NewAgro‐FoodGeographies‣ EmbodimentandPerformanceinNature‣ Technologiesofpracticeinthecountryside‣ Animalianruralities‣ Nature,landscapeandtheruralenvironment‣ Farmeconomiesintransition‣ RuralIdentities‣ Agricultureandtheenvironment‣ Ruralgovernanceandcitizenship‣ Ruralpolicy‣ Touristicconstructionsoftherural


3.Governance,EthicsandSocialJustice

ExeterbasedmembersMarkGoodwin,StewartBarr,IanCook,SeanCarter,PaulCloke,KeithWoodwardDescriptionThis research groupseeks to take forward recent researchwithin human geography in thethreeinter‐linkedareasofgovernance,ethicsandsocialjustice.Thiswillallowafocusonnewintellectual currents around thenotions ofethical geographies and also prioritisea link tocontinuedpost‐structural investigationsofgovernmentality atanindividualandcommunitylevel.Membersofthegroupalsohaveinterestsintheongoingdebatesontheroleofgeogra‐phy in publicpolicy, andhaveactivelyresearchedissuesof governance, policyandstate re‐structuring.

Researchthemes‣ Theshiftinggeographiesofgovernance‣ Statetheoryandstaterestructuring‣ Nationality,identityanddiaspora‣ Environmentalbehaviourandpolicy‣ Sustainabilityandenvironmentalgovernance‣ Homelessnessandgeographiesofcare‣ Ethicalconsumption‣ Geographiesofethicsandcharity‣ Directaction,activismandsocialmovements4.ClimateChangeandSustainabilityExeterbasedmembersStewartBarr,SurajeDessai,ChrisFogwill,ChrisTurneyDescriptionTheSchooliscurrentlydevelopinganewresearchgroupwhichintegratesnaturalandsocialscienceresearchontherelatedissuesofclimatechangeandsustainabledevelopment.Theseincorporate research on climate prediction; climate modelling; environmental and socio‐economicimpactsofclimatechange;riskperceptionandcommunication; socio‐technical ad‐aptations to climatechange; the politicsandpolicy of climatechange; sustainable lifestylesandbehavioural change; climateandsustainabilitypolicy;energypolicyandregulation; themedia,artandcultureofclimatechange;andsustainablecommunities,mobilitiesandplan‐ning.


Appendix 3: Risk forms

Workingwiththirdparties&Risk,healthandsafetyassessment

Theworkingwith3rdpartiesandriskassessmentinvolvedinthedissertationresearchshouldbediscussedwithyourDissertationAdviserandyoushouldbothsigntheform.

1.Workingwith3rdparties

Are youplanning onworkingwitha3rd partyor getting helpwithyour dissertation in anyform?

Yes

No

Ifyes,outlinethenatureofthishelp:

Advicegivenbydissertationadvisorand/orco‐ordinatorconcerningissuesarisingfromthishelp:

Name


2.RiskAssessment

YouDissertationAdvisershouldidentifyareasofworkinthefollowingriskcategories:

A.Thoseinwhichworkmaynotbeundertakenwithoutseniorsupervision.B. ThoseinwhichworkmaynotbestartedwithoutDissertationAdviser’sadvice.C. Thosewithrisks (other than categoriesA orB)whereextra caremust be observed, butwhere it is considered thatworkers are adequately trainedand competent inthe proce‐duresinvolved.

Riskcategoryapplied

SignatureofDissertationAdviser

SignatureofStudent

Date

Natureofwork:

Listhazardsinadvance.ThenatureofanyrisksmustbedeIined,andreferencemadetoanyinstructionsand/orsafetynotices.Adviceshouldincludeanysafeguards.


Appendix 4: Ethics form

GuidanceNotes

This formmustbe completed foreveryUndergraduateDissertationProposal intheDepart‐mentofGeography,UniversityofExeter StreathamCampus. It is usedto identifywhetherafullapplicationforethicsapprovalbytheSoGEAREthicsCommitteeneedstobesubmitted. Ifafullapplicationisrequired,Appendix4oftheSoGAEREthicsGuidelinesshouldbeused(Ap‐pendix5isanillustrationofafullethicsapplication).

See http://www.ex.ac.uk/sogaer/EthicsGuidelines.pdf

Beforecompletingthisform,pleaserefertotheUniversityCodeofPracticeonEthicalStandardsforResearchInvolvingHumanParticipantsand/orAnimals.

See http://www.ex.ac.uk/admin/academic/ethics2/

Forundergraduatedissertationstheallocatedadviserisresponsibleforexercisingappropriateprofessionaljudgementinthisreview.

Thisformmustbe completedbefore potentialparticipantsareapproached to take part in anyresearch.

Pleasecompleteandsubmittwocopiesofthisformwithyour full dissertationproposal.Theformwillbecheckedbytheallocateddissertationadviser.Onecopywillbekeptbythedisser‐tationco‐ordinator,thesecondcopywillbereturnedtothestudent.Thestudentshouldretainthiscopyandsubmititwiththe5inaldissertation(boundinatthebeginningfollowingthetitlepage).

Anydissertationproposal thatissubmittedwithout theappropriateethicsformwillbeconsideredincompleteanda lateworkpenaltywillapplyunlessevidence ofmitigatingcircumstancesissubmitted(seeUndergraduateHandbookfordetails).

Ifyouhaveanswered‘no’to all questionsyoumust still submittwocopiesoftheformwithyourdissertationproposal.

Ifyouhaveanswered‘yes’toanyofthe questionsin Section III,youwillneedtodescribemorefullyhowyouplantodealwiththe ethical issuesraisedbyyourresearch. Thisdoesnotmeanthatyoucannotdotheresearch,onlythatyourproposalwillneedtobeapprovedbytheSoGAER


http://www.ex.ac.uk/sogaer/EthicsGuidelines.pdf


http://www.ex.ac.uk/admin/academic/ethics2/

http://www.ex.ac.uk/admin/academic/ethics2/

ResearchEthicsCommittee.Youwillneedtosubmityourplansforaddressingtheethical issuesraisedbyyourproposalusingtheethicsapprovalapplicationformsinAppendix4oftheSoGAEREthicsGuidelines.

Appendix4canbeobtainedfromtheSchoolwebsite:http://www.ex.ac.uk/sogaer/EthicsGuidelines.pdf

Ifyou have answered ‘yes’toanyof the questionsinSection III youmustsubmitAppendix4withyourdissertationproposal (two copies). There is nowordlimitforthese forms. At theIirstmeetingwithyourdissertationadviseryouwillbeabletodiscusstheethicaldimensionsofyourresearch.YoumayIindyouwishtore‐draftyourapplicationtotheEthicsCommitteefollowingyourdiscussionwithyouradviser.YoumaydothisisconsultationwithyouradviserbeforesubmittingyourethicalapprovalapplicationformstotheSoGEARResearchEthicsOfIi‐cer.

YoumustsubmityourIinalEthicalApprovalFormstotheSoGEARResearchEthicsOfIicer(DrNicola Thomas)by the Thursday ofweek 10 in the Summer Term. Youmust havediscussedyourapplicationwithyouradviserpriortothisdate.

Ifyouanswered‘yes’toquestion11,youwillalsohavetosubmitanapplicationtotheappro‐priateexternalhealthauthorityethicscommittee,afteryouhavereceivedapprovalfrom theSoGAERResearchEthicsOfIicer.

Pleasenotethatitisyourresponsibilitytofollow theUniversity’sCodeofPracticeonEthicalStandardsandanyrelevantacademicorprofessionalguidelinesintheconductofyourstudy.Thisincludesproviding appropriate information sheetsand consent forms, andensuring con5identialityinthestorageanduseofdata.AnysigniIicantchangeinthequestion,designorcon‐ductoverthecourseoftheresearchshouldbenotiIiedtotheSoGAERResearchEthicsOfIicerandmayrequireanewapplicationforethicsapproval.




Ethicsself‐assessmentform

SectionI:ProjectDetails

SectionII:ApplicantDetails

2.Nameofstudent

3.Emailaddress

4. a.ContactAddressYoumaybecontactedbytheEthicsCommitteeduringthevacationregardingtheoutcomeofyourapplication

Term

Vacation

4. b.TelephoneNumberAmemberoftheEthicscommitteemaywishtodiscussyourapplicationorofferadvicebyphone.

Term

Vacation

SectionIII:ResearchChecklist

Pleaseanswereachquestionbytickingtheappropriatebox:

Yess No

1.Doesthestudyinvolveanimalsorparticipantswhoareparticularlyvul‐nerableorunabletogiveinformedconsent?(e.g.children,peoplewithlearningdisabilities,victimsofabuse)

2. Willthestudyrequiretheco‐operationofagatekeeperforinitialaccesstothegroupsorindividualstoberecruited?(e.g.pupilsatschool,membersofself‐helpgroup,residentsofnursinghome)

3. Willitbenecessaryforparticipantstotakepartinthestudywithouttheirknowledgeandconsentatthetime?(e.g.covertobservationofpeopleinnon‐publicplaces)

4. Willthestudyinvolvediscussionofsensitivetopics(e.g.sexualactivity,sexual,physicaland/orpsychologicalabuse,druguse)?

1.Project.tle


Yess No

5. Aredrugs,placebosorothersubstances(e.g.foodsubstances,vita‐mins)tobeadministeredtothestudyparticipantsorwillthestudyin‐volveinvasive,intrusiveorpotentiallyharmfulproceduresofanykind?

6.Willblood,hairortissuesamplesbeobtainedfromparticipants? 7. Ispainormorethanmilddiscomfortlikelytoresultfromthe

study?

8. Couldthestudyinducepsychologicalstressoranxietyorcauseharmornegativeconsequencesbeyondtherisksencounteredinnormallife

9. Willthestudyinvolveprolongedorrepetitivetestingonanimalsorvulnerablepeople(e.g.children)?

10. WillIinancialinducements(otherthanreasonableexpensesandcom‐pensationfortime)beofferedtoparticipants?

11.WillthestudyinvolverecruitmentofpatientsorstaffthroughtheNHS?

SectionIV:Tobecompletedbytheallocateddissertationadviser

DissertationAdviser’sname

Emailaddress

Adviser:pleaseticktheappropriateboxes:

" Thestudenthas ticked ‘no’to all questions inthe checklist (section III)andis not re‐quiredtocompleteanEthicsApprovalapplication.

Thestudentplanshasticked‘yes’toonequestionormoreinthechecklist (sectionIII)and is required to submit an Ethics Approval application form to the SoGEAR EthicsCommittee

IFASTUDENTHASTICKED ‘YES’TOANYQUESTIONTHESTUDYSHOULDNOTBEGINUNTILALLTHEFOLLOWINGBOXESARETICKED:

ThestudenthasreadtheUniversity’sCodeofPractice

Thetopicmeritsfurtherresearch

Thestudenthastheskillstocarryouttheresearch

TheparticipantinformationsheetorleaIletisappropriate


Theproceduresforrecruitmentandobtaininginformedconsentareappropriate

ThestudenthascompletedanapplicationformtotheSoGEAREthicsCommittee

ThestudenthasgainedtheapprovaloftheSoGEAREthicsCommitteefortheirwork.

Student

Signed

Date

Adviser

Signed

Date

PleaseensurethatfullethicsapplicationstotheSoGEAREthicsCommitteearesubmittedtotheSoGEARResearchEthicsOf5icerbytheThursdayofweek10intheSummerTerm.

Adviser:pleaseretaina copyofthisformforyourrecords.Please return the signedoriginaltothestudent

Student:pleaseretaintheoriginalsignedcopyofthisformtosubmitwith yourbounddissertationinyour5inalyear

Commentsfromadviser


Appendix 5: Dissertation progress form

Nameofstudent

Nameofadviser

Dateofmeeting


400wordProgressreporttobecompletedbythestudent

Nameofstudent

Nameofadviser

Dateofmeeting

Topicsdiscussed

Actiontobetaken


Appendix 6: Specimen front page

Titleofyourdissertation

YourName

IcertifythatthisdissertationisentirelymyownworkandnopartofithasbeensubmittedforadegreeorotherqualiIicationinthisoranotherinstitution. IalsocertifythatIhavenotcon‐structeddatanorshareddatawithanothercandidateatExeterUniversityorelsewherewith‐outspeciIicauthorisation.(insertyourprogramme, i.e. Arts, Science)withHonours in Geographyat theUniversity ofExeter.............................(yoursignature)March2010


Appendix 7: Example table of contents


Appendix 8: Example list of figures

Aseparate‘ListofTables’shouldbeformattedasbelow.


Appendix 9: Dissertation marking criteria

Theaimofthedissertationistogiveyoutheopportunitytodisplayyourskillsintacklingspe‐ciIicgeographical issues insomedepth. Theessenceofthework is thatyoushoulddemon‐strateyourability to undertakeyour own independentandoriginal piece ofresearch. ThespeciIic aims and learningoutcomes of thedissertationaresetout inSections 1.1and 1.2.Youroverallperformance in thedissertationis assessedon thedegree towhichthese aimsandlearningoutcomeshavebeenfulIilled,evidenceforwhichisprovidedbyyourreport.

Thesuccessofyourdissertationisassessedonevidenceofdepthofknowledge, understand‐ingandanalysis.Inessence,youshoulddemonstratethatyouknowenoughaboutthesubjectareato understandandidentifyaworthwhiletopic anddesignanappropriatemethodologyforits investigation. Your depthofknowledgeandunderstandingdetermines yourability toanalyse, interpret,discussanddrawconclusions fromyourresults. InordertocommunicateeffectivelytheIindingsofyourresearch,youneedtoproduceareportthatisstructuredlogi‐cally,well‐writtenandpresented,withappropriateillustrationsandreferencing. Yourgoalistoproduceadissertationthatresembles,intermsofmethodologicalandanalyticalrigour,andqualityofpresentation,apublishedacademicpaperorreportinyourchosenIieldofstudy. Itisexpectedthatalldissertationsshouldbewell‐written,structuredlogically,thoughtfullypre‐sented,andincludeeffectiveillustrations,withfullandaccuratereferencing.

Table1:Dissertationassessmentcriteria.

%&

degree

class

Topic:identiIication&deIinitionofworthwhile

topic

Methods:appropriate‐ness&imple‐mentation

Presentation:communicationskills,useofterminology

Analysis:appropriateness,accuracy&depth

Discussion:relatingofownIindingstootherrelevantresearch&

drawingofconclusions

80%+

strong1stExcellentallcriteria

7079%

sound1st

Excellentinthreecriteria,atleastgoodinothers

6069%2.1

Goodinatleastthreecriteria,atleastmoderateinothers


%&

degree

class

Topic:identiIication&deIinitionofworthwhile

topic

Methods:appropriate‐ness&imple‐mentation

Presentation:communicationskills,useofterminology

Analysis:appropriateness,accuracy&depth

Discussion:relatingofownIindingstootherrelevantresearch&

drawingofconclusions

5059%

2.2

Moderateinatleastthreecriteria

4049%

3rd

Weakinatleastthreecriteria

39%

failUnacceptableinthreeormorecriteria

YourdissertationwillbeclassiIiedaccordingtotheextenttowhichitfulIilstheIivemaincri‐teria.ThefollowingwordsareusedtodescribefulIilmentofcriteria:excellent,good,moderate,weakandunacceptable. Togainagivenclass,yourworkmustbeattheappropriatestandardforthat class,withrespect to aminimumofthreecriteria (i.e. excellent in three criteria forIirst class, good in three criteria for 2.1 etc.). This system allows some compensation ofweakeraspectsbystrongerelements.


dissertation handbook 09-10 - university of exeter · final year you are required to produce a...

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