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Major Research Paper Option
The Major Research Paper (MRP) is the default option for admission. All students are accepted to this option and may apply to change to the thesis or coursework options after consultation with the graduate co-ordinator.
Under the MRP option, students will take the two required courses (CS600 and CS601) and four elective courses in Communication Studies or a related area plus CS695* - Major Research Paper. You will take three courses in both the fall and winter terms. Under faculty supervision, you will complete your MRP in the Spring term.
The MRP is an independent research project that presents an articulate, thoroughly substantiated argument on a topic within the field of Communication Studies. The MRP should demonstrate familiarity with the relevant academic literature and should be clearly situated in terms of one or more trajectories in Communication Studies research and theory.
The MRP is considered to be similar to a thesis in the quality and originality of research, but less than a thesis in scope. Research topics will be approved by the student’s advisory committee, which will normally consist of a supervisor and a second committee member (or reader).
On completion of the MRP, the supervisor, any readers, and the Graduate Coordinator will determine if any revisions or further drafts are required. The MRP is graded on a pass/fail basis and there is no oral defence.
Requirements
MRPs should be 50-60 pages in length, not including bibliography and notes, and follow the formal guidelines outlined below. Students may pursue any or all of interdisciplinary research, empirical research, and theoretical argumentation, and may also engage in creative projects (i.e. some students may want to create a film, web-based or print-based project that may be considered part of the MRP).
Although the form and content of the MRP will vary between students, a typical MRP includes the following:
- statement of the problem / issue
- theoretical and methodological framework
- literature review
- analysis and argument
- limitations of the project and avenues for further inquiry
Graduate Advising
Dr. Jonathan Finn is your graduate co-ordinator.
To request information or an appointment, send an email to CSgrad@wlu.ca
- Dec. 1-15: Students can arrange to meet informally with faculty throughout December. Informal contact can be made during this time period, so that students may begin discussing their proposals with a faculty member.
- Jan. 15: Outline of topic due. After preliminary research, students submit a brief (250 word) outline of their proposed topic to the graduate co-ordinator. The outline should briefly identify the primary issue(s) to be addressed along with the rationale for the project. Students may indicate their preferred supervisor and reader; however, the graduate committee is ultimately responsible for assigning these roles.
- Feb. 1 to March 15: Announcement of supervisory committees. Advisors are formally assigned. Students begin working on their proposal with their advisor.
- March 15 onward:
- Students, supervisors and readers meet to discuss project and develop timeline.
- Students submit ethics review materials to supervisors and ethics review board if necessary.
- Proposal draft due. Students will submit the draft to their respective advisors for comment.
- April 15: Final proposal due. The proposal is a substantial, well-researched, formal document which provides a detailed outline for the MRP (10-12 pages in length). To this end, the proposal must accomplish three things:
- The proposal must identify the particular topic or issue(s) you are addressing and clearly situate it within the relevant academic literature. It is not expected that the student will have read all of the material cited in the proposal; instead, the proposal identifies both sources consulted and those that will be consulted as part of the project. The proposal will therefore include a working bibliography.
- The proposal will document the personal standpoint, theoretical perspective and methodological approach, values and ethics pertinent to the proposed MRP, and will indicate, to the best abilities of the student, the assumptions and exclusions that the project makes. Note: Students who intend to work with human subjects must receive ethics approval and should consult with their supervisor prior to submission of the proposal.
- The proposal will include a clearly articulated schedule of research and writing for the project which is in keeping with the timeline provided below.
- May to June: Research, Writing, and Revisions. In continued consultation with the supervisor and guided by the proposal, students will research and write the MRP in spring and summer. It is important that students pay particular attention to the possibilities of racism, heterosexism, sexism and other forms of oppression within the language or the design of the MRP.
- June 15: An initial draft of the MRP is due to the supervisor. This draft should be a complete, formal document with full citations. It is expected that the supervisor and student will meet shortly after the submission date to discuss the draft and plan for subsequent research and writing.
- Aug. 1-15: MRP Evaluation. The final draft of the MRP should be submitted to the supervisor by August 1. The MRP draft will be evaluated by an evaluation committee made of up the supervisor, reader, and graduate coordinator or designate. The evaluation committee will determine whether or not the MRP is to be passed, the extent of revisions (if any), and will inform the student of the results at the conclusion of the evaluation.
- Aug. 21: Final submission. The final copy of the MRP must be submitted directly to the Communication Studies office by Aug. 21. You must submit an electronic copy. Consult the department office for more detailed instructions. It is expected that this final copy will take into account the criticisms and suggestions made on the final draft of the MRP. Note: The final copy of the MRP must be approved by the supervisor before submission to the department. It is therefore recommended that the document be submitted to the supervisor in advance of the deadline. The student will have the option to submit their MRP to Scholars Commons for publication.
- Dec. 1-15: Students can arrange to meet informally with faculty throughout December. Informal contact can be made during this time period, so that students may begin discussing their proposals with a faculty member.
- Jan. 15: Outline of topic due. After preliminary research, students submit a brief (250 word) outline of their proposed topic to the graduate co-ordinator. The outline should briefly identify the primary issue(s) to be addressed along with the rationale for the project. Students may indicate their preferred supervisor and reader; however, the graduate committee is ultimately responsible for assigning these roles.
- Feb. 1 to March 15: Announcement of supervisory committees. Advisors are formally assigned. Students begin working on their proposal with their advisor.
- March 15 onward:
- Students, supervisors and readers meet to discuss project and develop timeline.
- Students submit ethics review materials to supervisors and ethics review board if necessary.
- Proposal draft due. Students will submit the draft to their respective advisors for comment.
- Sept. 15: Final proposal due. The proposal is a substantial, well-researched, formal document which provides a detailed outline for the MRP (10-12 pages in length). To this end, the proposal must accomplish three things:
- The proposal must identify the particular topic or issue(s) you are addressing and clearly situate it within the relevant academic literature. It is not expected that the student will have read all of the material cited in the proposal; instead, the proposal identifies both sources consulted and those that will be consulted as part of the project. The proposal will therefore include a working bibliography.
- The proposal will document the personal standpoint, theoretical perspective and methodological approach, values and ethics pertinent to the proposed MRP, and will indicate, to the best abilities of the student, the assumptions and exclusions that the project makes. Note: Students who intend to work with human subjects must receive ethics approval and should consult with their supervisor prior to submission of the proposal.
- The proposal will include a clearly articulated schedule of research and writing for the project which is in keeping with the timeline provided below.
- September to October: Research, Writing, and Revisions. In continued consultation with the supervisor and guided by the proposal, students will research and write the MRP in spring and summer. It is important that students pay particular attention to the possibilities of racism, heterosexism, sexism and other forms of oppression within the language or the design of the MRP.
- Oct. 15: An initial draft of the MRP is due to the supervisor. This draft should be a complete, formal document with full citations. It is expected that the supervisor and student will meet shortly after the submission date to discuss the draft and plan for subsequent research and writing.
- Dec. 1-15: MRP Evaluation. The final draft of the MRP should be submitted to the supervisor by December 1. The MRP draft will be evaluated by an evaluation committee made of up the supervisor, reader, and graduate coordinator or designate. The evaluation committee will determine whether or not the MRP is to be passed, the extent of revisions (if any), and will inform the student of the results at the conclusion of the evaluation.
- Dec. 21: Final submission. The final copy of the MRP must be submitted directly to the Communication Studies office by December 21. You must submit an electronic copy. Consult the department office for more detailed instructions. It is expected that this final copy will take into account the criticisms and suggestions made on the final draft of the MRP. Note: The final copy of the MRP must be approved by the supervisor before submission to the department. It is therefore recommended that the document be submitted to the supervisor in advance of the deadline. The student will have the option to submit their MRP to Scholars Commons for publication.
The MRP (or thesis) must be formatted according to these guidelines:
- The MRP must be double spaced throughout and not less than 11 point.
- Margins must be one inch on each side, the first line of every paragraph should be indented a standard five spaces or half inch.
Abbreviations may be used (if conventional in the particular discipline) but must be defined the first time they are used. - If there are alternative correct spellings of a particular word, either form may be used, but such use must be consistent throughout the MRP.
- The pages should be numbered in consecutive order with Arabic numerals, starting with the first page of text and continuing through to the last page of the entire MRP, including endnotes/footnotes, appendices and references. Pages preceding the text, starting with the first page of the abstract should be numbered consecutively with lower-case Roman numerals.
- The title page of the MRP must contain the Universal Copyright Notice©.
- The organizational sequence should be as follows:
- title page of the MRP
- abstract
- acknowledgments
- table of contents
- list of tables (if appropriate)
- list of figures (if appropriate)
- text of the MRP
- endnotes and/or footnotes (may be included in the text)
- appendices (if appropriate)
- references
The title page must be organized as follows:
(TITLE OF MRP)
by
(full name of the author)
(undergraduate degree, university, year)
MAJOR RESEARCH PAPER
Submitted to the Department of Communication Studies
in partial fulfillment of the requirements for
Master of Arts
Wilfrid Laurier University
© (full name of the author) 20XX