2. Project managing your postgrad research
Introductions
CJ
Group
Moodle PhD resources – a quick tour
Vitae setup by Research Councils UK
and Career Development Organisation
guidance, resources, discussion groups
Wednesday 13th February 2013
3. Project manage your
Project managing your postgrad research
PhD/research?
What defines a project?
Why do you need to project manage
your research?
Because you are probably facing:
A research deadline
Professional and domestic commitments
Resource limitations
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4. Outline
Project managing your postgrad research
(in Project Management speak)
Scoping - overview of what you are
hoping to achieve
Business case – underpinning rationale
Requirements – essential elements
Design – tools and techniques
Resources – time, consumables, etc.
+
PM methodology and tools
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5. Project managing your postgrad research
Scope
What is your project about?
What do you want to achieve?
Business case
Why are you doing it?
How will it benefit you
professionally/personally)?
Analogies (CJ’s examples – UoP
projects, own PhD and research)
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6. Project managing your postgrad research
Practical (10 mins in total)
Take 5 mins each to explain your
research to the person sitting next to
you including:
1. What your project is about
2. What you want to achieve
3. Why you are doing it (how will it benefit
you professionally/personally)
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7. Project managing your postgrad research
Project managing your postgrad research
Business Case
The overall aim is to achieve your postgrad
qualification, but how does it fit into your
longer term plan for the next 5 years?
Consider your own 5 yr objectives for 5 mins:
What are they?
Are they achievable? Realistic? Are they
SMART?
What will stop you achieving your
objectives?
What will help you achieve them?
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8. Project managing your postgrad research
Project managing your postgrad research
Identifying requirements
Getting the grasp of key concepts
What is the difference between
methodology and methods?
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9. Project managing your postgrad research
Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
Getting the grasp of key concepts
What is ontology?
What is epistemology?
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10. Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
What is ontology? Your view of the world
What is epistemology?
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11. Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
What is ontology? Your view of the world
What is epistemology? How knowledge is
acquired
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12. Project managing your postgrad research
Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
Ontology View of your research world -
Do you think the world exists externally to
human beings?
or.....
Do you think that people contribute to a
constantly changing world?
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13. Project managing your postgrad research
Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
Epistemology How do I think knowledge is
acquired?
By gathering data and seeking out
rules/patterns or cause/effect (positivist)?
Or interpreting and taking into account
context, experience and views
(interpretivist)?
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14. Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
Why is this important?
Your view of the world and how you consider
knowledge is acquired impacts on your research.
Examples:
Effect of volcanic activity on rocks
objectivist?? research design??
Impact of social networking on integration
constructivist?? research design??
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15. Project managing your postgrad research
Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements
Does your research topic:
Exist outside the influence of human beings?
or
Do humans influence your area of research?
Will you:
Gather data, seek out patterns and/or cause and
effect?
or
Look for context and interpretation? Are you: ‘viewing
events and social world through the eyes of the
people being studied?’ (Bryman, 2008)
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16. Project managing your postgrad research
Methodological approach
Quantitative
Experiment, historical, correlational (using
reports, logs, data)
Qualitative
Ethnographic research, action
research, survey, case study.
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17. Project managing your postgrad research
Design
The tools and techniques you use depend
on your approach
….examples from CJ
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18. Project managing your postgrad research
Identifying your methodology
Is your research:
Scientific/positivist or interpretivist?
Why?
Will you a:
Quantitative or qualitative approach
Why?
What tools and techniques?
(Discuss in groups of 3/4 for 20 mins max in
total)
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19. Project managing your postgrad research
Break
10 minutes
Vitae setup by Research Councils UK
and Career Development Organisation
Guidance
Downloads
Discussion groups
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20. Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements 2
After determining your approach, what
next??
What distinguishes doctoral research
from other research?
How do you find out if your research is
unique?
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21. Project managing your postgrad research
Requirements 2
Which literature resources are available
for your research?
How can you find out about other
sources?
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22. Project managing your postgrad research
Design
How will you undertake your research?
How will you identify literature resources?
What approach will you use?
experiment?
case study?
ethnographic research?
survey?
Who or what is the population/data source?
How will you choose the sample? (How do you know it is
representative and not bias?)
How will you gather the data? (interviews, online
questionnaires, etc.)
Thinking time (5 mins)
Sharing your thoughts and ideas (10 mins)
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23. Milestone
Project managing your postgrad research
(completion deadline)
Gaps in the literature
Identifying your research questions
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24. Project managing your postgrad research
Recap
We have considered:
Your approach/methodology
Literature review
Research design
(population, sample, tools and
techniques)
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25. Project managing your postgrad research
Other areas to consider
How will you analyse your data?
How will you report your findings?
How will you disseminate your findings?
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26. Project managing your postgrad research
Resources
Will you need to spend any money?
What resources will you need?
(printing, postage, online s/w)
How much time will your research take?
(longer than you expect!)
How much time can you allocate?
(less than you expect!)
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27. Project managing your postgrad research
Managing your time effectively
Prioritise
Recognise strengths and weaknesses
Be realistic
Plan ahead, take all your activities into
account and building in some flexibility
Create weekly or monthly plans, plus a
‘to do’ list
Be generous with your timings.
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28. Managing your time effectively
Project managing your postgrad research
(example)
List 9 research activities for the next
week/month
Rank in order of as A−B−C,where:
A priority = high value goals (urgent activities)
B priority = medium value goals (important activities but
not urgent)
C priority = low value goals (activities without deadlines)
Within in each category order e.g.
A1, A2, A3, B1, B2, etc.
(max 10 mins individually)
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29. Reflecting on your
Project managing your postgrad research
PhD/research experiences to
date
The highs and lows (30 mins in total)
Individually (5 mins):
○ write down 3 of your highs and lows (use yellow
sitcky notes for highs and green for lows)
Together (20 mins):
○ Look for common themes
○ Sort on large sheets of paper
○ Discuss and note how
to resolve the lows (small green notes)
highs can be used in future research or your practice
(small orange notes)
Group discussion
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30. Project Management
Project managing your postgrad research
methodology
Agile
Flexible system with short deadlines for
tasks, self-organisation. Include frequent
meetings and visible tracking
Waterfall method
More structured with clear project stages
Prince 2 methodology for technical projects
For your research you are likely to take the relevant
elements and manage in your own way.
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31. Project managing your postgrad research
Planning tools
MsProject
Gantter
Smartsheet
Excel
Paper
It doesn’t really matter. It is the thinking and
organising in your mind that is important….
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32. Project managing your postgrad research
Practical (20 + mins)
Identify:
The key stages of your project
Likely timescales
Milestones (key completion dates)
Use one of the project tools to create an
outline project plan
But remember this is a working document and
will change – frequently!
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33. Project managing your postgrad research
Ending with…
New ideas and thoughts about how you will
approach your research
Comments?
Questions?
Wednesday 13th February 2013
34. Project managing your postgrad research
Thank you
Dr Carolyne Jacobs,
Department of Curriculum and Quality
Enhancement
University of Portsmouth
Carolyne.jacobs@port.ac.uk
www.port.ac.uk/victory
Wednesday 13th February 2013
35. Project managing your postgrad research
SMART
Specific: in both meaning and focus.
Measurable: so that you know when you are achieving
progress and can declare success.
Advantageous: what's in this for you? If you can see no
personal advantages, don't waste your time; you won't be
seriously motivated towards success.
Realistic: make sure that you are being realistic: you can get
feedback to help you do this. Setting learning targets in this way
will, through experience, gradually improve your ability to
manage your own self-development and learning.
Time limited: set deadlines and 'milestones', times when you
will sit down and reflect on and review your progress
(Ref: www.vitae.ac.uk/researchers/1221/Setting%20objectives.html)
Go back
Wednesday 13th February 2013