Template – research plan to be submitted on application to a
third-cycle study programme at the School of Health and
Medicine, Örebro University
The research plan is intended to provide the basis for your licentiate or doctoral
thesis. For a licentiate degree, the plan must outline two studies or papers that will be
included in the proposed thesis. For a doctoral degree, the research plan should
generally cover four studies/papers. In the latter case, the last couple of studies may
change during the course of the doctoral programme depending on the outcome of
the first two studies or knowledge gained elsewhere during your studies. Either way,
the proposed plan must contain four research questions complemented with project
plans to safeguard the undertaking of an adequate thesis project. When writing your
plan, please use font size 12. Preferably select line spacing of between 1.2 and 1.5 for
increased readability.
Prior to the decision on admission, the information given in the proposed research
plan will be checked to make sure it is satisfactory. If you submit an incomplete
research plan, your application cannot be processed until the next intake of students
and then only once it has been supplemented.
The information outlined below must be included in the plan, organised according to
the instructions in this document.
Front end paper p. 1
Third-cycle subject area: For information and the correct designation of the subject
area and specialisations, please refer to the school’s webpages for third-cycle courses
and study programmes.
Specialisation:
Title: A preliminary title of the research project should be given, providing guidance as
to the content of the proposed research.
Applicant: Name, professional title, current place of work, school, highest academic
degree
Principal supervisor: Name, professional title, current place of work, school, highest
academic degree/academic title, grounds for nomination, field of expertise
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Assistant supervisor: Name, professional title, current place of work, school, highest
academic degree/academic title, grounds for nomination, field of expertise
(If an additional assistant supervisor is nominated, provide the information above as
needed. Please note that within the subject area of medical science, it has been decided
that should more than two assistant supervisors be requested, the grounds for such a
request must be detailed by the principal supervisor. )
Research environment: Please state if plans have been made for the project to be part
of a specific research environment or if you are able to identify a research environment
(see www.oru.se under Research > Research environments) under which the project
could sort.
Front end paper p. 2
Brief summary of the project: (max. 1,500 characters equivalent to ½ - 1 A4 page)
News value, originality and degree of significance: (max 1,000 characters)
Research plan (start a new page)
Background (max 2,500 characters)
This section should discuss theories, concepts, previous research and the research front
internationally/nationally within the field to be studied. Provide at least 10 references of
current interest. This section is to conclude in a thesis statement which identifies a
knowledge gap. It should also offer an explanation as to why the proposed research is
important. This could for instance concern the benefit generated by the research,
clinically, scientifically or socially. Conclude the background section by clarifying the
overall purpose of the thesis.
Overall purpose of the thesis project
Under this sub-heading, the overall purpose of the thesis should be accounted for.
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There are two main types of theses, the compilation thesis and the monograph. Both of these
variants will be discussed separately in the section on method below.
Compilation thesis
If you will be writing a compilation thesis, you must in the section on method provide
as detailed a description as possible of the studies or papers that make up the thesis.
The description should be arranged according to the sub-headings below, particularly
when it comes to empirical studies. If the thesis papers are of a more theoretical or
methodological nature the sub-headings and content should be adapted accordingly,
making sure however that clarity is still of primary concern in the research plan. If
there is no information to give under any of the sub-headings below, or if it cannot be
provided at the time, the reasons for this must be explained in the text.
The description of each study/paper should not exceed 5,000 characters but each
description should be entered onto a separate page with a clear heading, describing
the content.
The role of the doctoral student must be clearly defined in all studies/papers that
make up the thesis.
Purpose
This is where the specific purpose of the individual study or paper is accounted for.
Remember that the wording of the purpose must be brief and to the point. Research
questions may be included to further illustrate the purpose. For experimental studies, a
hypothesis should be provided.
Method
Design
For instance whether it is a records review, RCT, questionnaire study, interview study,
experimental study etc.
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Participants/sample/data
This is where the sample from among the intended population is described. The sample
size and any background variables relevant to the project must be described.
Background variables relevant to the sample may for instance concern a desired
distribution in terms of sex, socio-economic background, age group etc. Provide details
of the sample size including the reasons for this, e.g. power analysis or saturation
requirements. Provide criteria for inclusion and exclusion. For quantitative studies,
primary and secondary outcome variables must be provided backed up by references.
For qualitative studies, the research problem must be described. Data collection
procedure. Details of analysis method used must be provided, e.g. statistics, data
analysis steps of a specific qualitative method, or specific theoretical analysis tools etc.
Measuring instruments
In this section, the measuring equipment, measuring instruments/questionnaires or
interview guides used in the study must be described. When applicable, an account of
the number of questions in the questionnaire, the possible answers as well as
psychometric aspects (validity and reliability) must be included in this section with
respect to the measuring instruments used. In the case of qualitative research, an
account of the central themes discussed in for instance the interviews must be
accounted for. Within qualitative research, other concepts than validity and reliability
are sometimes used since both these concepts make you think of psychometric
evaluation methods within the quantitative tradition. Instead, concepts such as
“trustworthiness” and “credibility” are normally used to describe how the research
process as a whole will lead to reliable results.
Procedure
Under this heading, the way in which data will be collected and processed is to be
accounted for. For experimental studies it is important to describe the design of the
experiment.
Analysis
In this section, the analysis methods to be used to answer the research questions must
be described. It may for instance concern your choice of statistical analysis (test), a
description of analysis steps of a specific qualitative method, or the use of a certain
theoretical analysis tool. The section is intended as an aid in assessing whether the
choice of analysis method is adequate for this type of study and research question.
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Monograph
For monographs, the section on method must contain an account of methodological
aspects of the field study, arranged according to the sub-headings provided below.
The description outlined below is primarily intended for empirical monographs. If the
monograph or parts of it are of a more theoretical or methodological nature the subheadings and content should be adapted accordingly, making sure however that
clarity is still of primary concern in the research plan.
The description of the method used should not exceed 7,500 characters.
The role of the doctoral student must be clearly defined.
Sample
This section should provide a description of the sample, how many people are part of the
sample, how they will be approached concerning their participation in the study etc.
Data collection method(s)
This heading should be followed by an account of the data collection method(s) that will
be used.
Processing and analysis
This section should describe in detail the methodological approach i.e. the way in which
data will be processed and analysed. It may for instance concern statistical analyses or
different analysis steps of a specific qualitative method, or the use of a certain
theoretical analysis tool. The purpose of this heading is to assist readers not directly
involved in the project in assessing whether the choice of analysis method is adequate
for this type of study and research question.
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Ethical reflections (max 1,500 characters)
In this section, any ethical problems that may be associated with the thesis project and
how these will be handled should be described. It shall further contain an account of
whether the project has or will undergo ethical vetting by a regional ethical review
board. If the project is not covered by the Swedish Act concerning the Ethical Review of
Research Involving Humans and therefore does not need to undergo ethical vetting by a
regional ethical review board, a discussion of the circumstances should be provided.
Costs and funding (max 1,500 characters)
Describe the approximate costs incurred by the project (in addition to the hours put in
by the research student as specified in the table below). How will these costs be
covered?
List of references
The list of references is to be written according to a recognised reference system of your
choice, such as the American Psychological Association (APA) system or the Vancouver
referencing style. The references must be adequate and up to date.
Work plan and schedule
The work plan and schedule are intended to outline the proposed progression of the
thesis project during the time that the doctoral student has at his/her disposal. It may
for example specify when data will be collected for each study/paper as well as the
proposed time for and format of submitted progress reports. The purpose of this is to
assist those not directly involved in the project in assessing if the schedule is
reasonable in relation to the funding held by the doctoral student.
Please use the following design when you draw up your research plan.
Period (from and
until alt.
semesters, e.g.
Spring 2017 etc.)
Degree
of
activity
%
Activity e.g. courses, reading, method
development, data collection, analysis,
writing.
Introductory seminar, mid-way
review, final seminar
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Funding for the
programme, type
of funding and
funding source
Other parallel
activity (if rate of
study is less than
100 %). E.g. work in
addition to studies,
courses on teaching
and learning in
higher education
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