RESEARCH AND PROJECT DEVELOPMENT METHODOLOGY: APPLICATIONS

The course is an e-learning activity based on the use of Moodle platform and continuos interactions between the students and the teacher as well as among students. The exam is based on the evaluation of students performance both during the online activities and the submission and discussion of a final assignment, to be completed individually.
The main contents are the following:
1. Research methodology: How to select the topic of the thesis, The Research Process (types of research, research steps, etc.), What it is and how can be developed a research synopsis.
2. Thesis development and structure: How to carry out the literature review, How to access and use AIRE (the portal of the University of Padova to access the scientific literature - thousands of journals available full text) and other important scientific publications databases (e.g., SCOPUS), How to organize the bibliography, Technical writing: how to structure and write the MSc thesis, from the formulation of a problem statement to the formulation of research objectives.
3. Research ethics: plagiarism, tools useful to prevent the risk of plagiarism, intellectual property rights (co-authorships, primary data collection from rural areas, ...).

The e-modules are arranged as described in the following:
Module 1: "Warming up!" (e-lessons: 1. Log in and answer the welcome letter; 2. Introduce yourself to the e-moderators and e-fellows by creating your own profile; 3. Don't you feel a scientist... do you?)
Module 2: "The first steps: literature analysis, problem statement and objectives definition" (e-lessons: 1. How to draft a literature analysis; 2.Drafting your own problem statement and MSc thesis objectives).
Module 3: "The second step: developing a draft research synopsis and thesis structure" (e-lessons: 1. Develop your own draft/preliminary research synopsis; 2. The importance of thesis index; 3. Ethics: an overview).