Student and Supervisor Progression Report - Essay Example

In the past 12 months, I have made progress by developing my thesis into a chapter layout. I have collected initial data and have carried out 3 stages of interviews. These interviews were meant to find out how stakeholders perceive decision-making. I focused on the literature review and have written a new chapter “Big Maneuverers”. I have also extended my literature review on decision-making models. I have managed to complete finished these chapters:
- Introduction;
- Literature review;
- Methodology;
- Data collection.

I have been regularly meeting my supervisors who have been giving me valuable advice. I have additionally attended and spoken at a research symposium organised by Leeds Beckett in June 2014.

I feel I have achieved a fair amount of gain in writing during the last 12 months; however, I am certain I can work a lot harder. I intend to write more and also have more discussions with my supervisors.

Due to the understanding that I do possess about the importance of having accurate, valuable and informative information, currently, I am currently undertaking the task of reviewing the previous chapters that I had completed as stipulated in the timeline. The review of the chapters is of great importance as it will ensure that the information contained in the chapters such as introduction, literature review, methodology and data collection are free of errors and are relevant and a true reflection of the status of the study. In addition, it will enable in inclusion of some omissions that might have been overlooked during the writing of the chapters. The review of the chapters might take a considerable time since at times I will be required to research to correct some errors that might be present.

Some of the writing obstacles include plenty of materials that one has to undergo before coming up with the data required and at times the information received is irrelevant or outdated. Additionally, there exists time deadlines that one has to meet hence one has to balance time accordingly. For the analysis stage, the preparation that is required to be done is familiarising oneself with the different analysis techniques that can be employed and ensuring one clearly understands the data to be discussed.

The chapter on analysis and discussion is expected to take about a month starting the month of September. The reason why it will need to consume this amount of time is mainly because, during the discussions and analysis, different available information will need to be compared and verified before a certain position is adopted. Additionally during this stage, in most cases there exists contradicting information that might result in new research hence consuming quite a lot of time. Also, the analysis and discussion might involve ideas from different individuals and hence require time to reach a middle-accepted middle ground.

June 2015 –August 2015 - During this period, the finished chapters on introduction, literature review, methodology and data collection are to be reviewed. It should be ensured that they are free of errors and relevant representation of the actual information.

September 2015-October 2015 - During this period the chapters on discussion and analysis of the chapters are to be written. In addition, they are to be reviewed to ensure that the conclusions and recommendations drawn from them are accurate and relevant.

December 2015 - Writing of the conclusion and recommendation chapter. These are to be reviewed to ascertain they are free of errors.

January 2016 -Finalizing the review of the final draft of the thesis. Ensure it is free of errors and contains relevant information. Ensure it is submitted on or before the 25th of January 2016.

I completed the requirements of the programme of undergoing a research training programme. The training was very valuable and informative since it helped me improve key skills of research that are vital in the writing of many academic papers. Additionally, it helped improve my fluency in written and spoken English since it was interactive and required me to actively participate. In the future, I look forward to mentoring others by teaching them about the vital skills that I was able to develop in the Research Training Program. Read More