Successful MSc Projects
Student guidance for 2012-13
Improving health worldwide
www.lshtm.ac.uk
Successful MSc projects
Based on material and slides provided by:
• Stuart Anderson, Rory Donnelly, Jane Falconer, Anna Foss,
Helen Hogan, Punam Mangtani, Michael Miles, Dorothea
Nitsch, Doug Parkin, and Cathy Zimmerman
• This presentation is intended to be applicable School-wide,
for both F2F and DL projects – it may be further adapted
by individual MSc courses
Outline of this session
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The project as a learning experience
Project approval process
Main project work
Key sections of the report
How projects are assessed
The project as a learning
experience
Outcomes: knowledge and understanding
(relevant to your course!)
• show understanding of a substantive area of knowledge
(including prior literature and project context)
• apply, deepen and develop concepts & skills learnt during the
course – gaining specific real-world experience
• analyse data or literature, and form clear conclusions or
recommendations (while being aware of any limitations)
• show ability to think critically and develop original ideas
• where appropriate, reflect on relevant social, ethical or
scientific issues
Outcomes: skills and competencies
(relevant to your course!)
• demonstrate independent research skills (inc. awareness of
practical issues and potential pitfalls, ability to plan and
organise time)
• apply an appropriate range of investigative and analytical
methods
• show competencies relevant to your project type (whether
literature review, data collection or analysis; desk-based or
fieldwork; in UK or abroad; working with an organisation; etc.)
• present your findings as a clear and coherent long-form report,
carefully structured in a professional style, with accurate and
systematic referencing
Examples of competencies
• For Epidemiology (linked to allowed project types):
i) Data analysis
ii) Protocol for epidemiological research project
iii) Critical review of epidemiological hypotheses/methods
iv) Modelling
Demonstrating your abilities
Skills to demonstrate
Related elements of project report
Critical thinking
Background, literature and theory elements
Independent research skills
Data collection and findings sections
Analysis and evaluation
Data analysis (qualitative and/or quantitative),
conclusions and recommendation sections
Clear coherent writing
The entire written report
Professional presentation
Structure, style and referencing all following
standard conventions
...and many alumni tell us that doing the project has been
very helpful for their professional/career development
Project process vs product
The process – doing the work, e.g.
• a literature review
• study design/research proposal
• data collection / analysis etc.
This is main work – but also leave enough time to write about it!
The product – communicating the results, i.e.
• report in an academic professional format (as per School criteria)
This is the content that will be marked!
A ‘write as you go’ approach is advisable to combine these elements
And good time management is key throughout
Project handbook
• The project handbook – available on Moodle –
contains all key guidance from the School and your
MSc about doing a project
– Aim to at least skim-read the whole thing so you
have an idea of what it covers
– Then go back to specific sections as a detailed
resource during different stages of the project
Key sections of project handbook
– What you can expect from your supervisor
– Guidance on developing your proposal – including specific types
of project for your course (see Part 2 of the handbook)
– How to complete the CARE form and get it approved
– Risk assessment
– Ethics
– Required format for project report, and typical structure
– How to reference appropriately and avoid plagiarism (also see
the Academic Writing handbook)
– Deadlines and how to submit final report
Independent learning
Complex learning is messy, uncertain and ambiguous...
As an independent learner, you should aspire to –
• live with (and ideally enjoy!) this
• show resilience when faced with setbacks
• produce your own results and conclusions
• update and change your conclusions as you continue work
• know what support you need from others throughout (and not
always expect your supervisor to tell you what to do)
Your supervisor
• For fairness, there is a School-wide limit (10 hours
max over the summer) on the time a supervisor can
spend supporting each student.
• Input from personal tutors is also constrained during
the period of project work.
• Support from your supervisor should be to:
– guide you in the right direction
– boost you over hurdles
• It should not be to:
– carry you over the finish line
Project approval process
Identifying project topic
• Some LSHTM MScs offer a ‘menu’ of potential project
topics – but most don’t. Vital to start on this early!
• Think about things like:
– disease area or methodological area of interest
– geographical area
• Talk to tutors and possibly Course Directors
• Examples of past projects can be helpful to give you ideas
about what’s possible in a project – see
www.lshtm.ac.uk/library/collections/mscprojects.html
• Search for relevant literature on PubMed / Medline etc.
(check there’s enough out there to support work,
e.g. at least 5 results on a quick search)
Identifying supervisors
• Your supervisor should be able to provide academic support
relevant to the project topic, and be in a position to have
regular contact with you during it.
• As well as an academic supervisor from LSHTM, students may
also work with external supervisors or technical advisors – e.g.
staff of an NGO or other body working at the project location.
• LSHTM website is a good way to identify staff with research
interests in the same area (www.lshtm.ac.uk/aboutus/people )
• If working overseas, it’s particularly crucial to ensure you have
adequate local support in place.
Proposal development
• Your initial project proposal (put it together using the
CARE form) should give at least a short description of:
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overall aim and specific objectives
methods of investigation
how to analyse and present results
likely outputs and significance
• Also develop an outline project plan and timetable
• Identify key risks and have a back-up project in mind
in case things goes wrong or off-track
• Budget for travel, accommodation, visas and other
expenses, materials, etc.
The CARE form
• This is the Combined Academic, Risk assessment and
Ethics approval form – available on Moodle
• Should be a comprehensive summary of the work you
intend to do in your project, so staff have sufficient
information to give approval
• It should also help you develop your proposal,
prompting on a number of key points to think about
• Examples of past forms are available at
www.lshtm.ac.uk/edu/taughtcourses/studentforms/
careforms.html
Main sections of the CARE form
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Section 1 – Student and course information
Section 2 – Approval and submission status (sign-off)
Section 3 – Academic proposal
Section 4 – Risk assessment details
Section 5 – Ethics details
You cannot start main work on your project until the
CARE form has been fully approved (especially for
Ethics)
Staff input to CARE
• Make use of input from your (potential) supervisor
and other relevant staff like tutors or Course
Directors, as well as using the literature, to ensure
your project design is as good as can be
• You should expect to have some dialogue with staff,
prompting revisions to the form, before a final version
is ready to be approved
Approvals from outside LSHTM
• Vital to confirm whether your intended project needs
local approval, normally for ethics
• If needed, prepare and submit an application for
approval by the appropriate local body
Key milestones for CARE
Milestone
Deadline
Initial planning – identify your project topic and supervisor,
and start putting your ideas together using the CARE form
Late January
Proposal development – prepare a draft project proposal, get
feedback from supervisor and/or other staff, then update and
submit for supervisor approval
Late February
Proposal approval – get approval in series from supervisor,
Course Director, MSc Research Ethics Committee (for projects
using non-public-domain human data), and Faculty Safety
Supervisor (for lab projects with hazardous materials).
Late March
Proposal sign-off – once all approvals received, submit
approved CARE form to TSO or the DL Office. Send MSc Ethics
Committee any further local ethics approval received. You are
now ready to start main project work.
Early May
(ahead of School Ethics
deadline, Fri 05 April)
(standard TSO/DL Office
deadline is Fri 10 May)
Main project work
Last preparations…
• After the CARE form has been fully approved, you can start
main work (data collection/analysis) on your project – though
most F2F MSc students will wait until after the summer exams
• But April and May (alongside last module work) is always a key
time to do last preparatory work – e.g. Literature Review
section, expanding Background/Context section, developing
proposed Methods, conceptual framework, plan for
presentation of Results, outline structure of whole report
• Also crucial to prepare a project plan for doing all main work –
timetable (key stages through data collection, analysis and
writing-up), travel & accommodation, materials, budget, etc.
Project planning and landmarks
• Your project plan should ideally set out clear ‘landmarks’ to be
achieved by different stages
• Undertaking sufficient preparatory ahead of the summer exams is
particularly key, so you can then start main work without delay
• An example of preparatory landmarks for a data analysis project:
“By May 2013, I expect to have
– Finished the literature review
– Cleaned the data
– Outlined a project time-table
– Outlined methods section according to aim/objectives
– Derived empty tables”
Project planning and landmarks
• An example of preparatory landmarks for a systematic literature
review:
“By May 2013, I expect to have
– Defined my search strategy
– Set Inclusion/Exclusion criteria
– Set quality grading criteria
– Have an overall total of papers to review/score”
• And of course the ‘final’ landmarks for every project will be to get
the research completed, written-up, revised based on supervisor
feedback, proof-read, and submitted by the deadline...
Travel
• If you are travelling overseas, make sure your passport is up-todate, arrange necessary visas, vaccinations, prophylactic
medicines (for malaria etc.), and insurance
• LSHTM provides insurance cover for London-based students
carrying out projects overseas – need to complete a form
• Investigate air travel options early (for good value from UK, try
STA Travel, Trailfinders, Journey Latin America, Scotts Travel)
and make preliminary travel reservations. But beware of
cancellation fees if last-minute changes have to be made...
Milestones for main project
Milestone
Associated dates
Last preparatory work – any last follow-up on the proposal
development stage before starting main work. This may include
doing a full background literature review. Also confirm your
overall schedule and any travel arrangements.
April-May (ahead of
LSHTM exams)
Data collection and analysis – the main body of work for your
project. Try to write up as you go!
June-July (after LSHTM
exams)
Final work and writing up – any last elements of data collection
and/or analysis, plus putting together a complete draft of the
full report.
Get supervisor’s comments on full draft, if they haven’t already
given feedback on ‘write as you go’ sections and chapters.
August (as early as
possible!)
Submission – finalise your report, incorporating supervisor
feedback, and submit to TSO or DL Office as per requirements
and deadlines set out in the project handbook.
Start September (don’t
miss the deadline or
you fail!)
Resources for literature
searching & reviewing
• Library help pages at www.lshtm.ac.uk/library/help
include:
– accessing databases,
– running an effective literature search
– citing references properly
• Information Skills tutorials on topics like literature
searching, using databases & the internet effectively,
referencing & citation and avoiding plagiarism.
– www.librarydevelopment.group.shef.ac.uk/isr.html
Presenting a literature review
Methods
• Details on how the search was undertaken: search terms, search strategy,
databases used, inclusion/exclusion criteria, how quality was assessed
• Justification of the methods used (e.g. reasons for including or excluding
specific studies) and consideration of the limits associated with the
approach (e.g. confounding, emphasis on hypothesis generation)
Results
• Overview of the quantity and quality of the literature included
• Present the results in a systematic way, including critical appraisal and a
synthesis of the evidence (not just a description of findings from each
study) – it is about ‘making the whole into something more than its parts’
Discussion / Conclusions
• Demonstrate a clear understanding of the literature and discuss the
implications of findings for future research/policy/practice
• Conclusions should be grounded in the evidence reviewed
Work with supplied datasets
• Many students will make use of datasets collected/supplied by
others (even if they are also collecting their own data)
• Some may be fully public domain – e.g. DHS data
• Other data may be supplied by LSHTM staff (e.g. your
supervisor) or external parties (e.g. a contact at an NGO)
• It’s vital to ensure you get written permission from the owner
to make use of any dataset that is not fully public domain
• Check the ethics implications of using such data – ethics
approval originally granted may not cover your intentions
• Also get advance agreement on when and how the data will
be supplied to you – particularly so you can start work in time,
and work with security restrictions e.g. not being allowed to
make a personal copy of electronic data
• Avoid using data that requires extensive cleaning!
Analysis work
Introduction
• Give a brief description of the specific population, country or region, if
applicable – for example, location maps may be helpful
Methodology
• Literature review, focusing on current knowledge and identifying any
research gaps
• Description of statistical/modelling methods used (including software tools)
• Description of datasets (existing datasets or new data appropriate to a pilot
study): sampling strategy, data collection methods, data analysis,
representativeness, QA/QC, etc
Results
• Good description of quantitative results, including tables & figures (with
appropriate labels) where graphs (scatter plots, histograms, pie charts, etc.)
should be readable and any units clearly indicated
Supervisor input
• Your supervisor should be able to provide feedback on
one full draft of the report
• Make sure you get it to them in time for them to give
feedback, and for you to update it based on this
• Even better, take a ‘write as you go’ approach to send
them a series of draft sections as your work progresses
• Also make sure you are aware of when your supervisor
may plan to be away (doing their own research, or even
on holiday) during the summer
Submission deadlines 2012-13
The following final deadlines (all UK time/BST) apply:
• London-based PHP MScs: Mon 02 Sept 2013, 12 noon
• London-based EPH MScs: Tues 03 Sept 2013, 12 noon
• London-based ITD MScs: Weds 04 Sept 2013, 12 noon
• Distance learning MScs: Mon 30 Sept 2013, midnight
Any extension (e.g. by a few days) or deferral (e.g to the
following year) must be approved in advance by the relevant
Faculty Taught Course Director. This will require supporting
evidence, e.g. re. medical issues.
Key sections of the report
Structure of report
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Title page, Contents, Abstract, Acknowledgements
Introduction
Aims and objectives
Materials and methods
Results
Discussion, conclusions and recommendations
Reference list
Appendices
‘Introduction’ section of report
Introduce the broad topic and its context
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e.g. disease, geographic setting, changing relevance, politics
give definitions of key terms
what is known to date, and what is not known?
how has it been addressed (e.g. concepts, methods, policies
and programmes)?
in which populations and settings?
State the problem, e.g.
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gap in knowledge on the subject area
an operational or analytical problem worth examining
a contested issue for which there are different ‘solutions’
‘Aims & objectives’ section of report
Aim [preferable to just have one overall aim]
• overall aim should be a clearly stated and answerable research
question
• what aspect of the ‘problem’ will your project examine?
• what contribution will this make? e.g.
– ‘to determine’
– ‘to explore…’
– ‘to investigate’
– ‘to better understand…’
– ‘to review…’
– ‘to inform...’
• Be careful not to over-reach in what you are trying to do – your
own aim should be to get an MSc, not write a paper or a PhD!
Example aim
Overall aim of project:
• To determine the relationship between dengue fever
incidence in Malaysia with social and cultural variables
using statistical and geographic information systems
analysis
‘Aims & objectives’ section of report
Objectives (what the project will do to meet aim)
• should emerge clearly from the background (what you know at
this stage on the topic), and be in line with your overall aim
• state as research objectives, not methodological objectives
• typically have 3 to 5 main objectives supporting overall aim
• can break main objectives down into smaller sub-objectives
• As you conduct the main project, you may find you need to
adjust aims and objectives from those originally proposed (but
be careful about ethics...)
Example objectives
Specific objectives of project:
• To access incidence data on dengue fever from the Ministry of Health
• To develop a geo-referenced map with incidence of dengue per region in
Kuala Lumpur
• To develop and conduct a questionnaire to determine social and cultural
factors that may influence dengue incidence, including human dwellings,
awareness/knowledge, mosquito protection patterns, sanitation, water
collection and storage and waste disposal
• To assess spatial social risks related to dengue incidence
• To develop a model that can be used as a predictive tool to forecast the
occurrence of dengue cases in metropolitan Kuala Lumpur for
preparedness and control efforts
Distinguishing aims from objectives
• Which of the following is phrased as an aim and which
as an objective?
– To assess whether the rs17384213 DDAH1 GG genotype is
associated with blood pressure in 5-year old children.
– To establish whether genes associated with chronic kidney
disease (CKD) in middle age cause high blood pressure in
children.
‘Methods’ section of report
Methodology (how you sought to achieve objectives)
- should suggest an appropriate and feasible study design given
scope of topic, type of analysis and duration of study
- methods should be consistent with, and appropriate for,
addressing your objectives (or sub-objectives)
- will vary depending on project type, e.g.:
– for literature review: search terms, search strategy, exclusion criteria,
databases used, etc
– for interviews/questionnaires: sampling strategy, data collection
methods, data analysis, etc
– for monitoring data: sampling strategy, data collection methods and
data analysis
– for modelling: description of models and justification of tools used
- make clear how you considered ethics issues
‘Results’ section of report
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Results should have emerged from the methods described
Format of results section will depend on type of project
(review examples of past projects, available on Library website)
Results are the key evidence to inform discussion/conclusions
Markers will be looking for:
• Overview of the quality and quantity of information / data
• Summary of findings from literature that shows a reasonable
understanding of the topic
• Good description of qualitative / quantitative results
• Appropriate use of tables / figures
‘Discussion/conclusion/recommendations’
section(s) of report
• This should bring your findings together (often useful to
summarise findings briefly at the start of this section)
• Give commentary on the value and applicability of findings
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Review the strengths and weaknesses of your work
Link to original research question(s) – can you now give answers?
Integrate theory into your discussion
Bring in (more?) literature for comparative purposes
• Make overall conclusions
– Again, link conclusions to the original research questions
– Give implications of your findings for research, policy, or other
audiences/purposes
– How realistic/feasible are your recommendations to implement?
Referencing
• You must give clear and consistent citations in a
standard referencing style throughout your report
• Full details of each cited work must then be spelt out in
the reference list (bibliography) at the end
• Further guidance is available in the Academic Writing
handbook and separate presentation on referencing
Appendices to main report
Your appendices should always include:
• The final CARE form and any additional forms (all
anonymised!)
• Other key documents e.g. participant information sheets,
copies of questionnaires and interview schedules, etc.
Appendices might also include:
• Table of studies reviewed, including nature of the population
studied and quality of the study
• Datasets, including detailed quality assurance information
(although this may not be appropriate if the dataset is large)
• Mathematical description of models, statistical techniques, etc
Project submission
Full requirements given in Project Handbook, including:
• Recommended length 7,000 words, with an absolute
maximum of 10,000 words
- Word count covers from Introduction to Conclusions, and INCLUDES
tables (as they should be in the text)
- Word count does not include: Abstract, Acknowledgements, Reference
list, and any Appendices
• London-based students must provide electronic plus 2
paper copies.
• Distance learning students can submit electronic-only
Project deadline
• Deadlines are set out in the project handbook
• Make sure you meet the deadline – any projects
submitted late will receive an automatic fail grade
• Contact your Faculty Taught Course Director urgently
and ahead of the deadline if you are having problems
– only they can authorise an extension or deferral
How projects are assessed
Project marking criteria
Each MSc has specific marking criteria relating to each
different type of project it allows
But all MScs should mark in a manner consistent with
the School’s grading scale
The marking of the project report counts for 30% of the
overall MSc
Criteria for a project pass
General criteria for marking against the LSHTM grading scale:
• 5 (outstanding achievement, distinction level) – A comprehensive
treatment showing in-depth critical understanding of the topic, giving
wholly relevant information, with excellent critical evaluation going beyond
conventional answers and bringing in further relevant ideas or material
• 4 (very good pass) – A comprehensive treatment showing in-depth critical
understanding of the topic, with wholly relevant information and very good
critical evaluation
• 3 (good pass) – A reasonably thorough treatment but which may omit
some (less important) considerations, and/or have less extensive critical
evaluation
• 2 (satisfactory pass) – A sufficiently relevant treatment but which omits
potentially important considerations, and with limited critical evaluation
and/or some errors of interpretation
Criteria for a project fail
General criteria for marking against the LSHTM grading scale:
• 1 (borderline fail) – A flawed or superficial treatment which shows lack of
understanding along with use of irrelevant points
• 0 (outright fail) – A deeply flawed or superficial treatment which shows
serious lack of understanding, does not address crucial elements, and
includes many irrelevant points
• 0 (not submitted) – projects not submitted by the deadline will be given a
fail grade, unless an extension or deferral has previously been granted
One re-sit attempt is allowed for failed projects – normally to be
submitted for the following year’s deadline
Questions markers will ask… (1)
• How clearly does the abstract represent the content and
outcomes of the project?
• How effectively does the introduction summarise context and
relevant literature?
• How clearly and coherently are the aim and objectives stated?
• How appropriately were investigative and analytical methods
applied and explained?
• How rationally were the findings interpreted?
• Does the student demonstrate sufficient understanding of the
limitations of the current project work and show insights into
ideas for future research?
Questions markers will ask… (2)
• How clearly were conclusions, implications and
recommendations made and discussed?
• Have the aims and objectives been met?
• How well has the student sought and identified relevant
references (e.g. to position project within context of broader
research), and cited these appropriately?
• How competent and accurate was the presentation of the
report overall, including structure and the use of tables /
figures / illustrations?
• How much independent and original thought was displayed
throughout the project?
Common problems
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Poor report structure, inadequate headings/sub-headings
Confusion between aim/objectives and methods
Over-ambitious aim or too many objectives
Very broadly described literature review methodology (or not
enough articles in lit review), statistical methods lacking detail
Not all objectives (sufficiently) addressed in results & discussion
Inconsistent datasets, figures / tables without appropriate labels,
units, etc
Too general recommendations, not entirely justified by the results &
discussion
Limitations, strengths & weaknesses of methodology not discussed
Data / information quality & quantity not discussed
Inconsistent or mis-used referencing style
Lack of proof-reading
What makes a good report?
• Well written and well structured throughout
• Abstract / Summary that briefly summares key points from the
methods, results and conclusions
• Good choice of Headings and sub-Headings
• List of abbreviations at the beginning (a glossary in the
appendices may be necessary if there are lots of technical
terms)
• List of tables at the beginning
• Conventional use of referencing
• Any tables and charts well laid out and labelled
Any questions?