Global Economy Dissertation
(SPS 5010P)
Course Guide 2024/25
Course Overview
This dissertation will allow students to explore an area of particular interest, using a combination of primary and secondary research material. Working closely with a supervisor, they will develop the topic, undertake the research and submit a dissertation of 12,000 - 15,000 words.
Aims
The MSc Dissertation option offers students the opportunity to identify an original research proposal and to conduct independent research on their chosen topic. This allows students to conduct research on a topic under the guidance of a supervisor and will acquaint them with a wide variety of research methods and encourage their use. The aim is to prepare students for further postgraduate research or employment in jobs related to the material covered elsewhere in the programme. Students will benefit both from the specialised knowledge of staff in areas where they have made a particular research contribution and provide a specialised education in the study of the Global Economy in both its empirical and theoretical aspects.
Intended Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the dissertation, students will
· have a specialised and detailed knowledge and understanding of a particular issue relating to the global economy.
· be able to apply a range of research methodologies and able to apply them in pursuit of a particular topic or question
· be able to evaluate competing theories and analyse critically the arguments of a range of scholars;
· have acquired the ability to approach any subject of enquiry in an open-minded, rigorous and undogmatic manner and the skill to construct arguments and express their own views in a logical and lucid fashion
· an ability to work independently using their own initiative to produce work containing a substantial element of originality
· be able to identify, gather and interrogate research data from a wide variety of sources.
Course Requirements
The Global Economy Dissertation is a sustained piece of independent research and writing. Students will identify a topic of interest that relates to the global economy and design research to address the topic. They will work closely with a supervisor to refine the research design, conduct the research and write it up as a dissertation. The MSc Global Economy is a global degree, so students must either:
a) choose a topic that covers more than one country, or
b) choose a topic that relates one country to issues of globalisation (e.g., global capital flows, global regulatory institutions, corporate social responsibility, international supply chains, technology transfer, international finance, etc.).
Students must use empirical materials in their project. This will help to provide evidence to support the argument. Examples of suitable empirical materials for the dissertation include:
· Reports produced by organisations or governments
· Congressional/Parliamentary reports and transcripts
· Company materials, e.g. annual reports, CSR reports
· Industry association data and marketing research
· Archival sources
· Press media reporting (but not social media posts)
· Statistical data obtained from a database, e.g., Statista, World Bank.
There are two important restrictions regarding empirical materials:
1. Data collection involving human participants is not permitted as part of the dissertation. This means students cannot conduct surveys, interviews or focus groups. This is because there is only limited time available to design and complete the dissertation, and this does not leave enough time to complete the ethics approval process.
2. We do not permit econometric and advanced statistical methods in the research project. Past students have found that there is insufficient time available in the research project to obtain raw data of sufficient quality, to complete database construction and data cleaning, and to conduct the necessary validity tests. We have also found that students run correlations that lack explanatory power, resulting in low grades. Please note: Any student may use descriptive statistics (e.g. graphs, percentages).
The supervision process is organised through a series of group supervision meetings in which students receive guidance from their supervisor on specific steps in the research process, discuss their work with other students and with their supervisor, and provide constructive peer feedback on the work of other students. The group supervision meetings are participatory and designed to build teamworking skills including presenting ideas, active listening, and providing peer feedback. The role of the supervisor in the group supervision meetings is to facilitate discussion around key issues and provide additional insights. You will also have a one-to-one meeting with your supervisor, midway through the dissertation process, to receive additional, tailored guidance.
Your supervisor will inform. you of the dates, times and locations for your supervision meetings. Supervision meetings are mandatory and in-person. They are used by the university to monitor for Tier 4 visa compliance. You must be present in Glasgow to take part in these required supervision meetings.
Your supervisor is an expert in their field and has extensive experience in the design and conduct of research. To make best use of your supervisor’s knowledge, skills and time, we have provided a list of your responsibilities and those of your supervisor.
Responsibilities of the student:
· Identify a topic of interest relating to the global economy
· Design, conduct and write-up the research project
· Come to supervision meetings with questions, problems or difficulties encountered
· Deliver written work by the date agreed with the supervisor
· Manage time effectively and maintain a schedule of work as agreed with your supervisor
· Provide constructive feedback to other students in the supervision group
· Submit the completed Dissertation via Moodle by the deadline
Responsibilities of the supervisor:
· Set dates for supervision meetings and communicate these to students
· Provide guidance about the nature of the research, how to plan and manage time, and the expectations of the Dissertation
· Review and comment on the research proposal, including the suitability of the research approach
· Monitor progress with the project and provide feedback on issues relating to research design and implementation, to help improve the quality of the work
· Review and comment on the following draft chapters (if submitted on time): literature review, and first and second empirical chapters
· Mark the final Dissertation
Assessment
The Global Economy Dissertation is assessed by submission of a 12,000-15,000 words dissertation. A pass mark (D3 or higher) must be achieved in order to gain the MSc degree. The dissertation should be typed, left-aligned and 1.5-spaced. You are responsible for all errors in your papers, including grammatical and spelling mistakes. Written work should have use an appropriate form. of academic referencing. Students must submit their assignments via Turnitin, using a .docx (but not a .pdf file type).
You should submit your Dissertation via Moodle .
Assessment Submission Warning
Students must submit their coursework assignments to the correct summative assessment link on Moodle, usually named "FINAL."
· Penalties for late submissions: If an assignment is not uploaded to the correct submission link, penalties will be applied for up to five working days.
· Draft submissions: Uploads to the "Draft" submission link are not considered final and will not be accepted, even if uploaded before the due date and time.
· Non-submission after five days: If the correct submission link is not used within five working days, the assessment will be treated as a non-submission and receive a grade of 0.
Standard late penalty submissions are a deduction of 2 points per day, up to 5 working days, at which point late submissions are a 0.
Penalties for assignments that exceed word counts. The word count should be stated on the assignment. For assignments which are more than 10 per cent over the word limit, the penalties are:
· 10-15 per cent over – 1 point
· 15-20 per cent over – 2 points
· 20-25 per cent over – 3 points
· More than 25 per cent over – fail (zero) and where allowed resubmit as a second attempt.