Research overview tool
At the beginning of a PhD, the focus of attention should be on the research overview tool. This is a discussion tool to enable the supervisor to effectively mentor the student in the development of the research proposal. The supervisor and student consider the answers to various questions to ensure there is sufficient consistency. When it "all adds up" this is a strong indicator of success for the project. When things don’t gel, then there needs to be more discussion and/or reflection on the topic. Details of the template can be found here (this will appear in a new window) or a download of a word version document can be found here. It discusses the thinking relating to each question in the template. Note that much of the information from the overview can be used in the thesis outline, and ultimately in the thesis.
The Student’s name needs to be in big lettering on the top right hand side so that the document can be easily found in the file along with the other students.
The Student’s University ID number is needed so that it is available should the supervisor ever have to complete a form relating to the student. Almost every University form relating to a student needs the Student ID number. By including it here, it is in a place that is readily available to the supervisor.
The contact phone numbers are needed again as a matter of convenience for the supervisor. Having them here just makes it easier that looking up other databases.
The version date is really important because this is a working document that changes frequently. A supervisor (and a student) needs to be sure that they are looking at the most recent version. For this reason, it is important that the version date is typed in afresh each time, and is not done using Word’s auto date facility. If you use the auto date facility, the date changes when the supervisor opens the document or prints it. It must be the correct date as per when the version was written, not when the supervisor looks at it.
By the same token, it is strongly encouraged that the specific naming convention be used. It is suggest that the file be named: <Thesis Outline Studentsurname YYYYMMDD.doc>. The reason for using the (what might at first appear unusual) YYYYMMDD format is that it produces date-ordered lists when doing an alphabetical sort. Other naming conventions create confusion about which version is most current. Using this naming convention is good practice for all documents relating to the thesis. Version confusion is very frustrating and can lead to a lot of wasted time.
The general topic of the thesis and the specific title are listed first in the Overview because it is obvious to start with what the thesis is about. However, deciding on a specific title can be hard and may not occur until sometime into the research. Rather than getting bogged down with a specific title, I encourage students to start with a general statement of what the research is about. The title can come later, and might very well change several times during the candidature. I also suggest that the general topic is what is used on the student’s enrollment so that the university records don’t have to be changed every time there is a change of thesis topic. I tend to suggest that students use meaningful titles rather than esoteric ones.
Passion and future Positioning are included to get a sense of where the PhD (both as a qualification and as a topic of study) fits into the life trajectory of the student. If there is no fit, the student and supervisor need to talk about why the student is doing the PhD. If the student has no idea about their passion or what they want to do, perhaps they should be encouraged to do some personal development courses. If the passion and positioning are substantially different to the topic of the PhD, perhaps there should be a discussion around changing the topic. I believe that it is important for the supervisor to know the student’s passion and positioning so that when there is a crisis in the PhD (which invariably happens at some time or another for most students) the supervisor can counsel the student and restore their confidence by reminding them why they are doing the PhD.
In addition to passion and positioning, the personal and professional aims (and objectives) in doing a PhD should be listed. This might help the supervisor identify particular opportunities that might benefit the student. It might also be an easier way of including all the things that a student wants to say about themselves that are relevant to their doing a PhD.
One of the things that might be hard to do, and it is OK to leave blank at first or if you don’t want to do this, is to be able to write a short statement about your personal purpose, or a Personal Mission. This can be done by drawing on your passion, positioning and personal aims. There are times, such as applying for a job, when it might be useful having a personal mission statement to recite.