288ACC

Research Proposal Coursework and the Marking Criteria

The research proposal should consist of a maximum of 2500 words. Any data, or other appendices, are
not included within this word limit.

You are required to produce a research proposal in the finance area. It is designed to provide the basis
for your dissertation in year 3. The required topic sections that you need to cover, along with indicative
marking criteria, are shown below.

The assignment is designed to access the following learning outcomes 1 and 2 of conducting an
effective literature review and demonstrating an understanding of the research process.

Submission date: 23/04/2018

First= First Class (70%+); Up2 = Upper Second Class (60% - 69%); Lw2= Lower second Class (50%
- 59%); Third = Third Class ( 40-49%); Fail= Fail (0% - 39%).

Category Marks

Research Question and Background

Your research question should be fully stated and you will need to produce a full First
justification of why you have chosen it. For example, it might be a follow-on study that Up2
repeats a study you found in an academic journal but which uses a different data-set. Lw2
Third
The background to the research question identifies why this is an interesting question to Fail
examine. Interest in this topic might, for example, be driven by current political issues like
Brexit.

The scope and limitations of your study should be identified.

Key Literature Papers
First
You should identify key or seminal papers in the literature of your chosen topic. These Up2
might be just 4-5 papers. The focus of the review is to identify where your work will fit in Lw2
relation to the seminal papers. You must identify the ‘gap in the literature’ where your Third
work lies. Fail

Research Methodology

This is the critical section of the proposal and is normally the most detailed section. This
may be in the region of up to 1000 words. If the methodology is not realistic and
workable the proposal will fail no matter how good the other sections are.
First
Econometric based methodologies. Up2
The best papers often use econometric modelling. If you are using this approach you will Lw2
need to give a detailed outline of your model. For example, event studies, market Third
efficiency and runs tests, Altman default z-test or value investing. Fail

Case study based methodologies

If you are doing a case study or similar, the main theoretical model being applied needs to
be identified along with the main variables/factors that you intend to examine in your
analysis. For example, if you are doing an accounting based dissertation on ratio analysis
details of the ratios to be considered, along with the theoretical objectives and the
industries/sectors being examined would all need to be identified.
Data Sources
First
You will not be able to do your research unless appropriate data exists. If you fail to Up2
provide evidence that you have access to adequate data the proposal will be failed. Lw2
Third
Giving general sources such as ‘Bloomberg’ or ‘Reuters’ of ‘FAME’ will not be adequate. Fail
You will need to give precise details of the data series to be used including, for example,
data identifiers, the time period of your data and any issues you might have with it.

For case study based methodologies the full dataset being examined needs to be identified.
For example, the companies being studied, the data being used and the source of this data.

It is recommended that you show a sample of your data in a data appendix (not more than
1-2 pages).
Research Expectations, Ethical considerations and their implications

Before we undertake research we often have some prior expectation s of what we will find.
Briefly identify what these are and give your reasons (theoretical or otherwise). If our
research results differ from these it does not matter and as this can then be used in the
discussion section of the actual dissertation where the results are discussed. First
Up2
Before you do your research you will need to go through the University ethics checking Lw2
procedures. Identify in your proposal whether or not you believe your research will face Third
any ethics related issues that will need addressing. Fail

If your research has any potential implications for, for example, government policy,
corporate governance (or similar) these can be identified in the proposal and discussed in
detail in the actual dissertation.

Presentation and Referencing First

Up2
Referencing style should be consistent and follow a standard academic referencing style. Lw2
Marks will be deducted for poor presentation style. Third
Fail

Total Mark
Out of 100%