• tips for MScs/ PhDs
• essential writing guide
graduate studies - a survival guide
http://homepages.ed.ac.uk/martinc/msc/ (click ‘news’)
some eternal truths
• you didn’t get here by mistake
• MScs work disproportionately harder– MScs are advanced UGs, but expectations are FAR higher
• you don’t need to be a genius– MSc/PhD = reasonable intelligence + tenacity + interest
UG
MSc
PhD
higher education effort scale!
some eternal truths (cont)
• you’ll probably get miserable!
• writing-up makes you fat!
– Langdridge, D. (2004). Research Methods and Data Analysis in Psychology. London: Pearson Prentice Hill.
• stats are tough
– you will get over it
– http://www.student-counselling.ed.ac.uk/
so why put yourself through it ??!?!!????
• to enrich your life
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressorare needed to see this picture.
QuickTime™ and aTIFF (Uncompressed) decompressor
are needed to see this picture.
tips
• ask someone– head of PG studies, lecturers, post-docs, older post-grads, peers
– The Advice Place: www.eusa.ed.ac.uk/advice/
• academic issues, accommodation, council tax, harassment, health, legal, money, sexuality, sexual health, disability
– Centre for Teaching Learning & Assessment: www.tla.ed.ac.uk
• one-to-one sessions on study difficulties• workshops this term on:
– Reading/Lectures/Your Time/Your Studies/Essays/ Long Essays and Dissertations/Exams/Procrastination
tips (cont.)
• beware isolation!– take time to socialise: come to the BP!
• keep a routine– stop work-time spreading over into rest-time
– uni diary £5.70 (7-11 Nicolson Street)
• take initiative– supervisors have more work that you imagine
– choose essay/thesis titles early (talk to lecturer)
– for changing courses etc. act early, act quickly!
politics
• foster good relations
– don’t forget that the person you clash with today will be the reviewer of your paper tomorrow
– appreciate the support staff
“your success in graduate school and beyond depends a great deal upon your ability to build and maintain interpersonal relationships, with your adviser, the research staff, the support staff and your fellow students.”
tips: tension with supervisors
• it happens! assess how serious it is…
– let off steam to your peers? (but remember the politics!)
• if detrimental– protocols for switching supervisor
– Code of Practice for Supervisors & Students
– departmental PG contact points: Louise Kelly; Sergio della Sala; MSc’s: Martin Corley
– School/College level: Ronnie Cann/Chris Clarke
• irritating but not detrimental?– take the time to explain how you feel (your supervisor
can’t read your mind.. so say it)
how not to get a PhD/MSc
• not WANTING one
• underestimating it– be prepared to work
• overestimating it– your thesis should be your 1st piece of work, not your best!
• losing contact… with your supervisor/peers– don’t get lost!
• supervisory problems (see above!)
• Phillips, E. M. and Pugh, D.S. (1987) How to get a Ph.D. A handbook for students and their supervisors. OUP Milton Keynes.
References
and finally…
• be enthusiastic about your strengths
• find someone to complement your strengths
• don’t struggle in silence
A guide to essay writing. Or...
how not to throw away marks…
finding references
• helpful on-line resources– web of science
– http://wos.mimas.ac.uk/
– click ‘login WoK’, then ‘ISI Web of Science’
– science direct– http://www.sciencedirect.com/
– google scholar– http://scholar.google.com/
APA format
• APA = American Psychological Association– provide a guide for formatting journal articles
– you’re required to follow this for MSc/PhD
– APA style guide can be found:– in detail in
– Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th edition)
– Concise Rules of APA Style (2005)
– in brief
– in MSc handbook
– as follows…
citing others
• must cite with surname(s) and year– Ward and Simner (2003) show blah blah blah …
1st mention: in full
2nd/3rd/4th etc. mention: et al.
• If 3 or more authors (up to/incl 5)– Simner, Glover and Mowat (2005) showed that...– Simner et al. (2005) showed that...
• If 6 or more authors– Simner et al. (2005) showed that... all instances: et al.
referencing others
mention: in full• If 1 or more authors (up to/incl 7)– Simner, J., Ward, J., Lanz, M., Jansari, A., Noonan, K., Glover,
L., & Oakley, D. A. (2005). Non-Random Associations of Graphemes to Colours in Synaesthetic and Non-synaesthetic Populations. Cognitive Neuropsychology, 22, 1-17.
• If 8 or more authors– Simner, J., Mulvenna, C., Sagiv, N., Tsakanikos, E.,
Witherby, S. A., Fraser, C., Scott, K., & Ward, J. (in press). Synaesthesia: The prevalence of atypical cross-modal experiences. Perception.
6 authors et al.
referencing articles vs. books
Journal title: all words start uppercase• Articles– Simner, J., & Pickering, M. J. (2005). Planning causes and
consequences in discourse. Journal of Memory and Language, 52, 226-239.
Book title: first word only starts uppercase• Books– Cytowic, R. E. (1993). The man who tastes shapes. London: Abacus
books.
• Chapters within Books– Day, S. (2005). Some demographic and socio-cultural aspects of
synesthesia. In L. C. Robertson & N. Sagiv (Eds.), Synesthesia: Perspectives from cognitive neuroscience (pp. 11-33). New York: Oxford University Press.
Editors: initials precede surname
citing inside and outside brackets
– Blah blah blah (Ward & Simner, 2003).
– Ward and Simner (2003) show blah blah blah …
and outside brackets; & inside brackets
comma before date no double brackets (Ward & Simner (2003)) NO
abbreviations
– Simner et al. (2005) have shown that verbs have typical agents (e.g., doctor is more typical than waiter for the verb heal; see also McCrae et al., 1999).
full stops + comma
full stop + comma
italics
full stop
• give page numbers for direct quotations
• caption and number tables above each table
• caption and number figures below each figure
• and much, much more– see handbook, and guides…
Also
• absolutely never use an exclamation mark.
style
• scientific writing– not chatty!
• no jokes, no puns• no amusing titles• no emotionally-laden terms (this is shocking/amazing…)• no abbreviations (e.g., a.s.o.; don’t/won’t/can’t)
–Never–Ever
–Never
structuring your essay
simple rule:
1. say what you’re going to say
2. say it
3. say what you said
introduction
1. say what you’re going to say
– state structure the essay will have
a critique of methodology?
a comparison of 2 approaches?
a review of the literature? (Boring! lose marks)
• what you’re examining (e.g., rel clauses)
• AND what you’re showing about it
– state aims of the essay
body of essay
– if you want a 1st - include your own ideas
2. Say it
Provide a coherent argument– make sure the examiner knows your viewpoint
– not just a neutral description
– Evaluate! Compare! Assess!
– state exactly what you said you would in the intro
– follow exactly the structure described in your intro
• For every point you make, state:– your claim– your example– your evidence
content
• Always all 3... for every argument
– your claim• centre embedded relative clauses are difficult to process
– your example• The house the man the dog the cat scratched bit built fell down
– your evidence– name of study– task + materials– results/interpretation
– PLUS! your own interpretation, if different» your own ideas will help you get a 1st
content. eg.
all of these, every time
conclusion
– sum up exactly what was said in the essay
– don’t introduce new findings
– include your own ideas!
Rule: Don’t include anything that could fit into the conclusion of an entirely different essay
• don’t include ‘undergrad style’ vagaries– Many questions remain unanswered…
– This is an area of much debate…
3. say was you said
non-native english speakers
• marked at (approx) same standard as native speakers– slight dispensation for spelling errors
– e.g., those overlooked by ‘spell-check’ (e.g., two vs. too)
• ask a native English speaker to proof-read– they can comment only on your grammar, not content
(i.e., BEWARE PLAGERISM!)
resources for non-native english speakers
• English Language courses run throughout the year.– Contact: via International Student Homepage
(http://www.ed.ac.uk/internat/ Click on: ‘English Language Courses’ )
– e.g., “IALS (Institute of Applied Language Studies) runs a special programme, free of charge, on behalf of the University, for postgraduate students registered for a degree who need help with their English” (see: http://www.ed.ac.uk/studying/postgraduate/international_students/lang_requirements.html)
Good luck
Top Related