Postgraduate Course: MSc in Persian Civilisation Dissertation (IMES11047)

Course Outline
School	School of Literatures, Languages and Cultures	College	College of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 11 (Postgraduate)	Availability	Not available to visiting students
SCQF Credits	60	ECTS Credits	30
Summary	Students must gain an overall pass of 50% or above at interim assessment in order to proceed to dissertation. Candidates who gain between 40% and 49% at interim assessment will be awarded the Diploma. The dissertation will be 15,000 words in length (excluding footnotes and bibliography). Students will receive regular supervision and will be expected to submit a detailed plan and at least one draft of their dissertation to their supervisor.
Course description	The dissertation is expected to tackle a research problem, engage the relevant literature, and build upon the relevant concepts and theories introduced in the taught elements of the degree. Students will deploy a range of primary and secondary sources as well as appropriate data-analytic and bibliographic skills. Each student will be allocated a research supervisor from either IMES or SHCA during the second semester to advise on and oversee her or his research progress.

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites		Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Course Delivery Information
Not being delivered

Learning Outcomes
Students will: ¿ learn to undertake a sustained piece of independent research within the disciplinary fields of Middle Eastern studies and/or Classics that demonstrates the research skills, training and knowledge acquired in the previous coursework; ¿ refine their abilities to engage critically and analytically with the significant literature in the field of their specialist interest; ¿ train to formulate a research problem; ¿ utilise relevant theories, theoretical frameworks and concepts in tackling a research problem; ¿ learn to develop a systematic research design; ¿ demonstrate scrupulous attention to the relevant data-analytical, referencing and bibliographic conventions.