The topic of the dissertation should be related to business or management. Students must use cognitive skills of analysis, synthesis, evaluation, and application. They must demonstrate research skills, and adopt a relevant research methodology, drawing on a range of sources, and employing different information search strategies, enabling them to arrive at valid and reliable research conclusions. This will assess their ability to demonstrate written communications skills by applying theories and concepts to financial services organisations within the changing business environment. Summative feedback will be provided after the submission of the report.

Guidance for Assessment: Research report – 4500 words

The research report should include the following:

1. Title Page/Cover Page (indicating title, number of words, name and ID number of student)
2. Acknowledgements (optional)
3. Introduction (stating the research question investigated, and the reasons for choosing it)
4. Literature Review (references to the literature, including scholarly journal articles, relevant to the research question investigated)
5. Research Approach/Methodology (e.g., inductive, deductive; theoretical framework, grounded theory; quantitative, qualitative; exploratory, experimental, observational, causal; survey, case study)
6. Data Sample and Sources (e.g. Bloomberg, Bankscope, ONS, survey data),
7. Data analysis and Results (Charts, tables, numerical analysis)
8. Conclusions and Recommendations (contribution to the topic area)
9. References (Harvard referencing style should be used) Appendices (including a Self-Reflective essay of 500 words)
10. Appendices (including a Self-Reflective essay of 500 words)

The report length should be a minimum of 4500 words. The Word count includes everything in the main body of the text (including headings, tables, in-text citations, quotes, etc). The end-list of references, appendices and footnotes are NOT included in the word count.

The number of words should be clearly indicated in the title page. The Harvard referencing system should be used, and references should be shown both within the text as well as at the end of the proposal.

The Final Research Report will be expected to meet the following criteria which will be used in the assessment process. The research report will:

• Identification of a relevant and appropriate topic area in Business or Management and a research problem/ issue
• Critical review and synthesis of existing literature, that includes scholarly journal articles, in the area so as to situate the problem/topic within a theoretical / practical context.
• Presentation of a research methodology, research design and use data sources and evidence to investigate the problem/issue and support central arguments/ideas.
• Research analysis and presentation of a coherent set of recommendations/ conclusions.
• Quality of Communication: Language and clarity