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Dear Eveyone
If you could the below question, I would be grateful,
In RAP- what i s the structure of the research and analysis project, part 1 -1000 words, part 2 2000 words and part 3 – 4500 words, are those criteria how much the words a must? My part 1 already roughly 1400 words , is it a problem?Kind regards
I am choosing Topic 8 with a major steel producer as my organisation. Could you please distinguish the 3 as the topic itself seems to be the objective and question to me.
P.S: The exemplars of SLS provided by OBU for Topic 8 mention the student choosing to pursue 2 research questions instead of 5.
@Abdul Rafay
Project topic is the subject of your research i.e. you will be conducting a research analysis comprising financial and non financial frameworks on an organisation.
Project objectives are the objective that tells the reader what do you want to achieve from this research report.
Research questions are questions that you will answer in SLS. In latest OBU info pack the question is now To what extent do you think you have achieved the RAP research objectives you set?
So, research objectives can be you research questions. No segregation is mandatory.
You are right to the point that topic is your objective but there can be other objectives linked with the topic. I can write 5 objectives as:
– Performing ratio analysis on 3 years
– Performing cross sectional analysis on 3 years for bench marking purpose
– Performing business analysis
– Understanding how to use Harvard referencing system
– Improving my presentation, report writing and communication skills.Thanks…
RAP Aims & Objectives and Research Questions are two different aspects that student need to address in his/her RAP.
Research objectives is a concrete statement describing what the research is trying to achieve. A well-worded objective will be SMART, i.e Specific, Measurable, Attainable,Realistic, & Time-bound.
Research objective should be Relevant,Feasible, Logical, Observable, Unequivocal &Measurable. Objective is a purpose that can be reasonably achieved within the expected timeframe & with the available resources
Research Objectives directly link with overall requirements of selected Topic of the RAP. Objectives must always be set after having formulated a good research question. After all, they are to explain the way in which such question is going to be answered. Objectives are usually headed by infinitive verbs such as:
To identify…..
To establish…..
To describe…..
To determine…..
To estimate…..
To develop…..
To compare….
To analyse…..
To collect…..As far as Research Question is concerned then a research question is a clear, focused, concise, complex and arguable question around which you center your research. Research questions help writers focus their research by providing a path through the research and writing process. The specificity of a well-developed research question helps writers avoid the “all-about” paper and work toward supporting a specific, arguable thesis.
With reference to the Topic 8 ” An analysis and evaluation of the business and financial performance of an organisation over a three year period” I am sharing Aims an Objectives along with associated Research Question for your better understanding.
Aims and Objectives of RAP:
a. To analyze performance of PSO with respect to business and financial perspective.
b. To identify internal and external factors that affect performance of the company is past three years.
c. To analyze major strengths and weaknesses of the company.
d. To analyze opportunities and threats available to my selected company.
e. To analyze different industry factors that can affect sector of my selected company.
f. To draw a reasonable conclusion and recommend some suggestions on the basis of overall learning from this project.
g. To improve my ability to criticize on performance of any company with proper justifications
h. To improve my report writing and communication skillsResearch Questions:
a. What are the major reasons for increase/decrease in different ratios in last three years and their overall impact on performance of the company?
b. How different internal and external factor affect directly or indirectly on overall performance of the company?
c. What are the major strengths and weaknesses of my selected company?
d. What types of opportunities and threats available to my selected company?
e. How different industrial factor can affect my selected company and its associated industry/sector?
f. How can management of the company overcome weak areas of my selected company?Hope I have explained this in detail but still if you have any confusion / queries then do ask.
I would like to thank all three of the mentors for their comprehensive and informative advice on this as it will be very useful for all of those students starting to do their RAPs to help them understand the important differences. These posts will also help students to get Part I of their Research and Analysis project under way and direct their research approach 😀
OT is indebted to our contributors for all of their advice and the time that they devote to helping students on our forums
Trephena – OBU Forum Moderator
Thank you all for your very concise replies, especially Mr. Ahmad as your examples are invaluable and made everything self-explanatory…
Dear Ahmad
Basically,Do the project objectives a, b, c, d, … have to be related to research question a,b,c,d…?
Kind regardsResearch questions must link with all of your set aims and objectives….
Dear Everyone
Please tell me the answer for the above title “Prerequisite questions like below by OBU can be included and counted in our RAP?”
1 The reasons for choosing your project topic area and choosing the particular organisation that was the focus of your research work
2 What you wanted to find out in your research work. i.e. your project objectives and research questions
3 An explanation of your overall research approach. This should provide the reader with an understanding of the overall framework that you developed to meet your project objectives and answer your research questionsThank you
@pinkmonkey – in a word – No!
However it could become a problem later. The most important part of your RAP is the analysis and evaluation section “The main focus of your project research must be an analysis / evaluation of the project topic area issues in the context of your chosen organisation” (see p.24 Info Pack). This is the key to getting a good grade.
Get all your words and ideas down now but be realistic – you will most probably need to review your whole report at the end and edit a lot of Part 1 to ensure that you have dedicated at least 4,500 words to Part 3. Most of the introductory matter is fairly routine and does NOT get you a pass without a good analysis section. The evaluation and analysis shows that you can think for yourself and that is what getting a degree is all about!
Dear Trephena
Than you very much for constant assistance.
So you meant that it would be flexible but make sure that 4500 words for part 3 , right?
Let’s say , if part 1 for 1200 words part 2 for 1300 and part 3 for 5000 which is over 4500, is it still fine/acceptable?Looking forward to receiving your answer
Kind regards
@pinkmonkey – the area you do not cut back on is Part 3 but it is not just words it is quality and effectiveness that matters.
Use graphs and charts etc wherever you can in Part 3 so that you are not wasting words talking about things that can be seen in the charts etc. Movements in the trends, increases and decreases year on year are so obvious if you do a good graph so you don’t really need to say anything. Words should be used to explain significant factors that you have found from your research and link your findings back to the earlier parts of your report (aims, objectives, models and business analysis [Topic 8]) using a good range of sources. This is the evidence of a balanced report that, if it considers and critiques the research and findings from different angles (not just the company’s!), is likely to get a B or A grade.
It will probably be obvious to you when you get to the end of your RAP that a lot of Part 1 material is superfluous in the context it doesn’t add value (so can be trimmed). So when you have done Part 3 you can simply go back and precis. The breakdown in the word counts are a guide – as long as you don’t exceed 7,500 there is never a problem so don’t obsess about words in Part 1 & 2 at this stage just write it! 🙂
Dear Trephena
Thank you very much indeed.
I have another question here:
In part 1 you set your objectives and research questions, how do you answer the questions?Kind regards
@pinkmonkey – your research questions are linked to the objectives and are what defines your research approach and information gathering. Your findings, evaluation and analysis are the way you answer those questions in detail and the conclusion is a summary of what you deduce when you put everything together.
There should be some exemplars on the OBU website.
Dear Everyone
I would like to clarify the below requirements :
Could anyone explain with example for me, please?
1.Identification of any ethical issues that arose during your information gathering and how they were resolved
2. An explanation of the accounting and / or business techniques you have used, including a discussion of their limitation
For 2- business techniques like SWOT , PESTEL or they do not mean that?
kind regards
Yes it does include business model u r right there but also u have to cal some ratios on profitability liquidity n gearing n show % increase n decrease.i suppose u r wking on topic 8.
I did my 2011 n if its topic 8 u r going the right direction.
Good luck n also remember to analyse n compare ur company with competitors
Hope it helpsDear Anjali18
Thank you for your comments . I hate to say this but what you said does not right because like you can see this question title part 2 not talking about part 3 which include ratios and I do think the business models such as SWOT and PESTEL etc in PART3 NOT PART 2.
If anyone think this is incorrect, let me know, thank you .
Kind regards
Answers of your queries:
1) Ethical issues means that what types of issues that you actually faced during your research work and how you overcome such issue to ensure integrity, honesty, professionalism in your research work. I am providing an example here for your better understandign…
“During my vast research on internet, I got some research reports submitted by some universities students on XXX. I used these report to get some new ideas into my research work but I did not copy paste some confidential information provide in these students. It might possible that these student obtained prior approval from management of the company but in my case I was unable to use due to confidentiality and ethical concerns”
2: Here you only need to describne accounting and business models. You need to provide overall introduction of such models along with major benefits and limitations.
here is an example for your better understanding.
“2.4.1 Ratio Analysis
Ratio analysis is a very famous tool that use for analyzing any company from financial perspective. It is a systematic use of different ratios to interpret the financial statements with respect to different stakeholders of any company. Ratio analyses help us to identify strengths and weaknesses of the company along with its analyzing historical performance and current financial condition. The term ratio refers to the numerical or quantitative relationship between two items or variables. This relationship can be expressed as percentage, fraction and proportion of numbers. Broadly these ratio categorized into (1) Profitability Ratios (2) Short Term Solvency Ratios (3) Long Term Solvency Ratios (4) Operation/Activity Ratios and (5) Shareholders’ Ratios.
Advantages of Ratio Analysis
• It helps different stakeholders (i.e. lenders, financial institutions, investors etc) of the company for analyzing financial stability.
• It can be use to compare performance of company with other competitors within same industry and helps for preventive action in advance to overcome weaknesses.
• It is a tool used by senior management for long term planning of the business.
• It helps out senior management of the company in decision making.Limitations of Ratio Analysis
• Limited comparability due to usage of different accounting policies by different companies in same industry.
• It totally ignores qualitative factors which plays very important role in the success of any company.
• It totally depends upon the financial information provided in financial statement. If provided financial data is not accurate then ratio analysis cannot produce reliable findings.
• No standardized ratio are established which can be used for comparison purpose.”Dear Everybody
For below requirement, can I just a list of ratios and business models I used although I assume that we have to mention this in part 3 section so I wonder if I put a list here then it will be duplicate?
• An explanation of the accounting and / or business techniques you have used, including a discussion of their limitationsKind regards
@pinkmonkey please see page 43 of the latest Information Pack.
You outline the techniques & models (and their limitations) in Part 2 & apply them in Part 3.
Unless something is particularly significant regarding the limitations there is normally no need to refer to them again in Part 3. However if the limitations are materially affecting things then you could mention the specific limitation again in the appropriate part of Part 3 and possibly bring it up in your Conclusion & Recommendations
@sadsingh I have moved your query to the Forum on Word count as that is more relevant to your question
I would just like to confirm if the approach I adopted to come up with research questions and objectives makes sense. What I did was write about 3 research questions and then based on them derive 3 research objectives that will in turn help me answer these questions. I believe this was an approach proposed by Saun. Am I right in doing what I am doing?
Or is it a more appropriate thing to do to write an overarching project aim/ objective followed by a set of questions?Would much appreciate your feedback!
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