Undergraduate Course: Dissertation (MA Social Anthropology) (SCAN10036)

Course Outline
School	School of Social and Political Science	College	College of Humanities and Social Science
Credit level (Normal year taken)	SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate)
Course type	Dissertation	Availability	Not available to visiting students
SCQF Credits	40	ECTS Credits	20
Summary	This course provides students with the opportunity to undertake a project of their own design and to submit a written dissertation based on their research. This work will initially be supported by the course convenor and subsequently a member of the teaching staff in Social Anthropology, who will be assigned to supervise the studentżs research and writing and guide them towards the submission of their dissertation.
Course description	In addition to one-to-one supervision, writing up of the dissertation will be supported by a series of workshops on the writing process in the first half of Semester 1. These will be on themes such as: working with your data and finding your argument, situating your argument within a wider literature, drafting an outline and composing your narrative, and the art of layout and proofreading. Peer support will also be actively facilitated, with students being made aware of each otherżs projects so that they can work together in groups based on common research interests.

Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
Pre-requisites	Students MUST have passed: Imagining Anthropological Research (SCAN10037)	Co-requisites
Prohibited Combinations		Other requirements	None

Course Delivery Information

Academic year 2017/18, Not available to visiting students (SS1)		Quota: None
Course Start	Semester 1
Timetable	Timetable
Learning and Teaching activities (Further Info)	Total Hours: 400 ( Lecture Hours 2, Dissertation/Project Supervision Hours 5, Supervised Practical/Workshop/Studio Hours 7.5, Programme Level Learning and Teaching Hours 8, Directed Learning and Independent Learning Hours 377 )
Assessment (Further Info)	Written Exam 0 %, Coursework 100 %, Practical Exam 0 %
Additional Information (Assessment)	The Dissertation is assessed in two parts. The first part is the Research Proposal, which is given a weighting of 10% and is handed in during the second semester of the Junior Honours Year. The second part is the actual Written Dissertation, which is given a weighting of 90% and is handed in during the first semester of the Senior Honours Year. In addition to one-to-one supervision, writing up of the dissertation will be supported by a series of workshops on the writing process in the first half of Semester 1. In addition to one-to-one supervision, writing up of the dissertation will be supported by a series of workshops on the writing process in the first half of Semester 1. These will be on themes such as: working with your data and finding your argument, situating your argument within a wider literature, drafting an outline and composing your narrative, and the art of layout and proofreading. Peer support will also be actively facilitated, with students being made aware of each otherżs projects so that they can work together in groups based on common research interests.
Feedback	Students will receive written feedback on their research proposal, which is submitted second semester of the Junior Honours year, and written feedback on the dissertation which is submitted in the first semester of the Senior Honours year.
No Exam Information

Learning Outcomes
On completion of this course, the student will be able to: Make a real and substantial contribution to anthropological understanding based on their own research. Gain a practical familiarity with all phases of the research process from the formulation of a research idea, to the design of a research process, to the actual undertaking of the research itself and through to the analysis of the finding and the writing of the results as an anthropological argument that proceeds from original research. Refine their ability to integrate original research with existing literature relevant to their topic so as to formulate an anthropological argument that represents a substantial contribution to the field. Learn about the complexities, practical and ethical, limitations and possibilities of social research through the process of actually doing social research. Enhance their skills as a researcher, skills which are transferable to a number of settings within and but also beyond academe.