BA Politics, Philosophy and Economics

Year of entry: 2024

Course unit details:
Dissertation (40 credit)

Course unit fact file
Unit code PHIL30030
Credit rating 40
Unit level Level 3
Teaching period(s) Full year
Available as a free choice unit? No

Overview

PHIL30030 consists of a Dissertation, on a topic of your own choice, produced to a professional level of presentation, due in before the summer examination period.

Pre/co-requisites

Pre Requisites: 40 PHIL credits at Level 2, minimum level 2 grade point average of 60. This course is not available to Maths & Philosophy or Physics with Philosophy students.

40 PHIL credits at Level 2

Minimum level 2 grade point average of 60

At least one level 2 philosophy grade of 70 or over

 

Aims

This course unit aims to:

- Improve students' research, critical analysis, independent study, time-management and presentation skills.
- Provide students with the opportunity for one-to-one philosophical discussions with an appropriate supervisor.
- Allow students to specialise in a topic that interests them and to develop intellectual independence.

Learning outcomes

On successful completion of this course unit, students will be able to demonstrate:

- That they can produce, and present professionally, a substantial independent piece of research into a question of their own design.
- That they can present and defend their own view about a challenging philosophical issue.
- That they have the study skills necessary for focusing their topic and preparing the essay.

Teaching and learning methods

Four introductory lectures followed by 1-to-1 supervision (by appointment with supervisor).

Employability skills

Analytical skills
Innovation/creativity
Project management
Oral communication
Problem solving
Research
Written communication

Assessment methods

One essay of 12,000 words.

Feedback methods

The School of Social Sciences (SoSS) is committed to providing timely and appropriate feedback to students on their academic progress and achievement, thereby enabling students to reflect on their progress and plan their academic and skills development effectively. Students are reminded that feedback is necessarily responsive: only when a student has done a certain amount of work and approaches us with it at the appropriate fora is it possible for us to feed back on the student's work. Feedback on this course will be by 1-to-1 discussion, and written responses to drafts of parts of the dissertation.

We also draw your attention to the variety of generic forms of feedback available to you on this as on all SoSS courses. These include: meeting the lecturer/tutor during their office hours; e-mailing questions to the lecturer/tutor; asking questions from the lecturer (before and after lecture); presenting a question on the discussion board on Blackboard; and obtaining feedback from your peers during tutorials.

Study hours

Scheduled activity hours
Lectures 4
Project supervision 10
Independent study hours
Independent study 386

Teaching staff

Staff member Role
Stephen Ingram Unit coordinator

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