The first things you will need to do when starting your research are to think of a subject or topic for your writing project and design either a hypothesis (a statement for investigation) or question that you will address. Let's start with picking the subject.
When embarking on a thesis or dissertation, you can find the inspiration for your research topic from anywhere: for example, the media, current affairs, art, literature, technology, or your course notes and general reading interests. Above all, it is important that you are interested in and enthusiastic about your topic. You will be a more successful researcher if you care about your project.
If you are starting an essay rather than a final project, odds are you will be assigned a general subject. However, within the broad essay title/instructions, there may be scope to tailor the focus.
– Our Understanding the Assignment guide goes into more depth about unpicking and responding to assigned essay titles.
You needn't discuss your approach to every essay with the lecturer ahead of time. However, if working on a major project, make sure you discuss your topic with your supervisor. This includes chatting with them about changes to, expansions of, etc. your topic. Academic supervisors might do some of the following:
Supervisors vary in how directive they get with student projects: there are many valid approaches to supervision. However, if you are ever concerned about the supervision you're receiving, consider discussing this with your Personal Academic Tutor.
In any case, you should not expect your academic supervisor to simply give you a 'good topic' – learning to develop research questions is a vital part of independent study, so while it can take trial and error, the process is worth it to improve as a scholar in your field.
Once you have decided upon the general topic and the main issues you wish to address, then you can think about developing your hypothesis or question in a more detailed way. Hypotheses need to be carefully phrased as the wording is an indication of what will be discussed in your essay. The hypothesis not only gives the reader information about the content you will write about, but also how you will approach the topic.
We'll explore an organised way to begin developing your hypothesis/question on the next tab.
