Universität Wien
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150093 SE Research Seminar and Monitoring Class for the Master's and PhD Thesis (2022W)

10.00 ECTS (2.00 SWS), SPL 15 - Ostasienwissenschaften
Continuous assessment of course work
ON-SITE
Moodle

Registration/Deregistration

Note: The time of your registration within the registration period has no effect on the allocation of places (no first come, first served).

Details

max. 25 participants
Language: English

Lecturers

Classes (iCal) - next class is marked with N

  • Monday 03.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 10.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 17.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 24.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 31.10. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 07.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 14.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 21.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 28.11. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 05.12. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 12.12. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 09.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 16.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 23.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05
  • Monday 30.01. 18:30 - 20:00 Seminarraum Ostasienwissenschaften 1 UniCampus Hof 5 2I-O1-05

Information

Aims, contents and method of the course

As of now, the COVID-19 situation in Austria and on campus is stable. Classes are being held on campus and in person. However, the situation may change during the winter semester. Accordingly, please be prepared for synchronous webinars, should we need to transition to an online format. In such cases, you will need a computer with a webcam, headphones with a microphone (or speakers and a mic), and a stable internet connection. The ability to access Moodle is essential. Please ensure you meet these requirements. Watch Moodle and course announcements for more information.

*Aims, Content, and Methods*
The first class will be on October 3. You will be provided a syllabus and together we will go over the course outline and expectations. I will introduce myself and ask you to do the same. All minimum requirements and assessment criteria will be discussed in the first lecture. Questions related to these criteria (defined and discussed below) should be raised then. By continuing this course after the first lecture, students indicate they understand class requirements and expectations. Attending the first class is thus essential. For those students unable to attend the first class but who wish to continue with the course, it will be assumed they have read this syllabus and accepted the expectations of the course.

The objective of this course is to prepare the student to write their MA (or Ph.D.) thesis in East Asian Economy and Society (EcoS). In theory, it should only be attended in the third or fourth semester of the program for EcoS students and at the beginning of the Ph.D. program. Students enrolled in language courses and regular seminars (e.g., first and second-semester EcoS students) are not advised to enroll in this course. You should already have a topic in mind for your thesis. This course will guide you in properly developing this topic for thesis writing.

Throughout the course, you will review the basic components of social science research design, from research question development to the literature review and analytical framework. By the end of the course, MA students will be in a position to submit an exposé for approval and then register their thesis with the StudiesServiceCenter (SCC). This is not a requirement for the course, but it will be strongly encouraged.

Given typical student backgrounds, this course is designed mainly to assist with qualitative research designs, especially the case study technique and the comparative method, although students with appropriate backgrounds in quantitative methods will not be discouraged from using such approaches (the instructor is a quantitative social scientist, after all). We will complete assigned readings and assignments related to this task. We will focus our attention on the following:

- What makes a good research question? Why is research question relevance so important, and what exactly does it mean to “fill a gap” in the research?
- What is the logic of case selection? Can a comparative study have only one “case”? (Spoiler: yes.)
- What is a literature review? Why and how do we write these?
- How and why do create an analytical framework?

The content posted here is subject to change.

Assessment and permitted materials

You will complete a total of four (4) assignments. The assignments (and their weighted percentage of your final grade) are as follows:
1. Assignment #1: Research proposal, including presentation (30%)
2. Assignment #2: Structure of literature review and annotated bibliography (15%)
3. Assignment #3: Literature review (30%)
4. Assignment #4: Analytical framework (25%)

Minimum requirements and assessment criteria

Each assignment counts as a minimum requirement (“Mindestanforderung”) and must be graded at least “4” in order to pass the course. All assignments will be assessed out of a total of five points. Rubrics and details will be provided in due course.

Assignment #1 (research proposal): This will be a one-two page document that identifies the research topic, states the research question clearly (the WHAT), explains why the research question is relevant and situates it within an existing body of literature (the WHY), and proposes a viable research strategy/analytical framework for resolving the question and contributing to the literature (the HOW).
Assignment #2 (structure of literature review and annotated bibliography): This will be a document that identifies the literature in which the research question is situated and outlines in bullet point or prose form how the thesis will engage the literature. Headers/sub-sections are a must and should help structure the direction, flow, and purpose of the literature review. A minimum of eight (8) annotated and relevant sources must be included.
Assignment #3 (Literature review): Building on and following the structure laid out in the second assignment, this assignment will constitute the first draft of the literature review. Students will be encouraged to show, clearly, how the literature reviewed informs the analytical framework.
Assignment #4 (Analytical framework): This final deliverable will serve as the foundation for the rest of the thesis. Ideally, the student will finish this assignment, and the course itself, ready to conduct original empirical research. The analytical framework will show how data will be generated or information collected and, importantly, precisely how it will be analyzed. A discussion of case selection is also appropriate here.

Examination topics

See assignments above.

Reading list

Will be provided by the instructor.

Association in the course directory

WM5

Last modified: Tu 14.01.2025 00:16