Lecture 1
Zubia Azeem is now preparing a breakdown of this lecture into smaller parts, for easier comprehension. She will be posting lectures on my blog AZ Students, on the page RM2010
The full lecture is given in you-tube video below. It has been chopped into smaller pieces to make it easier to understand, and to do in parts. The outline of lecture is given below, and each piece is linked to a short video lecture.
A short summary of Lecture 1 is given below:
Course description:Three formal courses shall be taught simultaneously in separate sessions. Students themselves are responsible for their studies and therefore are required to work hard.
Plagiarism: While writing a thesis, ensure your work is not plagiarized. Sentences should be in your own words. Even if you copy a single line of another author, remember to put reference/footnote since plagiarism detector soft wares are now capable of doing their job with greater precision. Additional EXTERNAL RESOURCE for this section: Avoiding Plagiarism: A Resource.
Choosing Topics: One has to choose topics with Novelty, Relevance, and Sufficient Specialization so that there is only a SMALL amount of literature on the topic. The student must KNOW nearly all of the literature on the topic of choice, which is why a NARROW topic is necessary.
Annotated Bibliography: The first step to do research is to make an annotated bibliography (a list of articles) on the research topic. Read as well as understand the articles. Try to get the essence of the writing even if you can’t understand the mathematical model. Find research gap.
Next, the topic you choose has to be an open question. Make certain that there is a fair chance of finding data on it. Find someone of relevant expertise to supervise you in the thesis topic of your choice. This process is followed by forming a methodology that is to construct a theoretical background in the social science framework. And then technical skills are developed to analyze data and put the methodology into effect.
One of the goals of writing a thesis is to become adept at the research topic you choose. e.g if you are writing on FDI (foreign direct investment), its basic that you have gone through all the literature that is available on the topic. Strictly speaking, 25-150 is the range for articles to be read on the subject. Last five years literature must be read.
The purpose is to solve a real-world problem. Micro/macroeconomic theories that are being taught have very little to do with reality. So the good news is you do not require a theoretical framework to guide you through the process. Anyone willing to put their mind to work can get the job done.
Intend to do research to please God and follow the sunnah of Prophet Muhammad SAW. Do not use knowledge as a tool for worldly gains instead become a dedicated learner in the way of pleasing God.
Assignment: learn excel solver. Excel solver will be used as a tool for data envelopment analysis.
*Link to Recommended books on social science research methods.