Tips for Your Research Project

For Graduate Students in the HED Program
Virginia Tech

Your advisor will be glad to meet with you at anytime to discuss your thesis, independent study, or dissertation. But before you meet, you should have a good idea of what you want to study and how you are going to go about finding the answers to your questions. Here are a few tips to make the time your spend with your advisor more productive.

Early on in your discussions, include the following eight items in a three-page mini proposal.

  1. You should identify the problem that you want to study and tell why it is important to do so (Statement of the Problem)

  2. You should identify the purpose of your project (Purpose Statement).

  3. You should identify at least 12 pieces of literature that will be relevant to your study (Literature Review).

  4. You should identify the individuals who will be studied (Sample).

  5. You should state one or more research questions that you will answer at the conclusion of the study (Research Questions).

  6. You should identify the independent and dependent variables in your study (Identify the Variables).

  7. You should identify in broad terms how you are going to collect data (Data Collection).

  8. You should identify how you will analyze your data (Data Analysis).

This information identifies WHAT, WHY, WHO, and HOW. If you can't answer these questions for yourself, then you need to think a little harder about your project. Remember, these are independent research projects. In them, you need to demonstrate: (a) your knowledge of the field, (b) your understanding of contemporary issues in student affairs, and (c) your knowledge of research methods.

When you submit anything for review by your advisor or your committee; it should represent your BEST WORK. Everything you do should conform to the APA Manual, 5th edition. Don't submit incomplete or sloppy work and expect your advisor or committee to fix it. Remember that all work must be double-spaced (including the abstract, tables, and reference list). An advisor should never have to correct a table or a reference list. See Tips for Improving Your Writing for more information.

For Masters students, keep in mind that it never too early to start. Everyone should be working on her or his topic, justification, and method during the first summer session. Ideally, proposals should be well defined in early to mid-fall of your second year. Proposals should be defended in mid to late fall. Data should be collected in late fall or early winter. Final exams should be scheduled in mid-spring.

Finally, please note that I expect all students working with me to complete the free, web-based course, Human Participant Protection offered by the National Institutes of Health. This six-module course takes about 90 minutes to complete. Once a student takes the multiple choice quizzes at the end of each module and completes a course evaluation, he or she will receive a certificate of completion. This certificate will certify you as a trained researcher and will speed your IRB approval.

Posted: April 22, 2003
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