Assessment item 3 – Final Research Report
Due: Sunday of Week 13, 11 pm AEST
Length: 7000-7,500 words
Conditions: Individual
Weighting: 50%
Requirements
You are required to present a final written report based on your completed research project. This should follow the structure outlined in the Final Report checklist document. This assignment must be submitted through the Turnitin link for this assignment.
Marking criteria:
Next page
Marking criteria:
Sections
|
Assessing criteria
|
Weightage
|
Executive summary
|
· Informs why and how the research was conducted
· Includes key findings and recommendations
|
2 marks
|
Introduction & Research problem
|
· Includes the context and overview of the industry partner
· Clearly states the research problem, aim and outlines the report structure
|
1 marks
|
Literature review & Research questions
|
· Literature reviewed was relevant to the research problem
· Literature reviewed was comprehensive, clearly identified potential factors causing the research problem/ knowledge gap
· Research question(s) was/were based on literature, and specific to the research problem or the research gap identified
· Presents a conceptual map which clearly explains all independent and dependent factors or the knowledge gap
|
7 marks
|
Research design
|
· Research method adequately justified, sample and sampling method was appropriate, type of analyses conducted were informed and all ethical concerns addressed
|
4 marks
|
Research findings
|
· Analysis was comprehensive
· Properly presented and supported by evidences
|
8 marks
|
Discussion
|
· Included evidence of triangulation (if mixed method was used)
· Findings were compared with the literature reviewed
· Answers to research questions were clearly stated
|
8 marks
|
Recommen-dations
|
· Recommendations based on evidence (research findings)
· Recommendations specific to the research problem
|
8 marks
|
Conclusion and Limitations
|
· Limitations of the research correctly noted
· Summarises the project including major findings, recommendations and potential outcomes if recommendations are implemented
|
2 marks
|
Structure, overall presentation and referencing
|
· Presentation completed within recommended word count
· Good use of visuals (correctly labelled), sentences correctly constructed with no spelling or grammatical errors
· All sources (both in-text and reference list) were correctly cited
· Structure of the report was appropriate
|
10 marks
|
Total:
|
|
50 marks
|
Final report – Checklist
Title page
Ø Choose an interesting and catchy title for your report.
Ø The name of your industry partner should be part of the title or subtitle.
Ø Indicate the nature of problem you investigated.
Ø If you do not wish to disclose the name of your industry partner, you can just write ‘company X’.
Executive summary
Ø Keep it short and simple (ideally not more than 2 pages – well formatted)
Ø Summarise the background of the research
Ø Summarise the research approach
Ø Summarise the findings (dot points is fine, but write full sentences)
Ø Summarise the implications/recommendations (dot points is fine, but write full sentences)
Table of contents
Introduction and research problem
(around 5-10% of your total word count)
Ø Introduction to topic
Ø Overview of the industry partner
Ø What real problem does your research seek to resolve?
Ø Why is this problem such a big issue for your industry partner? Why is it important that you research it? Convince us that your project is important and that it will help your industry partner
Ø State the overall research aim based on this problem
Ø Outline the structure of the report (for the audience/reader)
Theoretical background – Literature review
(around 25-30% of your total word count)
Ø Clearly identify the factors investigated in the project
Ø Discuss what others have found in this research space and individual factors
Ø Link your literature review back to your problem space and use this as a foundation to formulate your research questions.
Methodology
(around 5-10% of your total word count)
Ø Only provide an overview of YOUR research design
Ø Inform and justify the nature of your research approach (qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods)
Ø Describe and justify your sample (who, how did you find them, sampling method and technique used)
Ø Describe how data was collected (in-person/online/..) and which research tools (e.g. interviews, surveys, etc.) were used
Ø Inform how data was analysed (e.g. themes analysis, frequency distribution, mean-score, etc.)
Ø Explain how the research plan addressed all ethical concerns
Findings
(around 10-15% of your total word count)
Ø Present sample characteristics (e.g. age, gender, income...)
Ø Clearly differentiate between quantitative and qualitative findings
Ø Use figures, graphs, tables to visualise findings. Add numbers and titles for all visuals. Be creative in presenting the findings!
Discussion
(around 20-25% of your total word count)
Ø If you are using a mixed method, triangulate quantitative and qualitative findings
Ø Compare findings with the literature reviewed earlier
Ø Clearly state the answers to research questions you found from the findings presented above
Recommendations
(around 10-15% of your total word count)
Ø Clearly list and discuss the recommendations specific to the research problem
Ø Make sure all recommendations are based on findings of your research project
Ø Can also include any suggestions you have for the industry partner in regards to implementing your recommendations
Limitations and Conclusion
(around 5-10% of your total word count)
Ø Inform the readers and management of any limitations that they should be aware of if they are to implement your recommendations
Ø Provide a brief summary of the project including major findings, recommendations and potential outcomes if recommendations are implemented by the management
Footnotes
(as required – avoid if at all possible)
List of References
Appendix
(as required)