Admission requirements
Admission to the MA Asian Studies (research) or the MA Middle Eastern Studies (research) and successful completion of the course Critical Area Studies: Placing your Research. Students from other Research MA programmes can only be admitted, if there are places left. Please contact the education coordinator if you are interested and not a student of one of the two Research MA programmes mentioned above. Students who have not completed the Critical Area Studies course, but are interested in this course, should also contact the education coordinator prior to registration.
Description
This twelve-week course organised by the Leiden University Institute for Area Studies in collaboration with LeidenGlobal allows beginning scholars to develop a critical understanding of methodologies in the social sciences and humanities (SSH).
Methodology refers to the logical and developed coherence between research question, theory and methods. Rather than a fixed set of rules, methodology is based in an ongoing conversation among scholars in the SSH on data collection and analysis. During this course, participants engage in this conversation with their peers as well as experienced researchers in the SSH. Throughout the course, they become acquainted with the main epistemological debates and the choices they need to make and self-critically support in their own research.
Course objectives
At the end of the course, students will be able to reflect on an motivate their individual methodological choices within the broader context of methodologies in SSH. To develop this motivation participants will critically review the methodologies of their field of research in general, and their respective research projects specifically, in a written report. Guest lectures by established scholars, class discussion and state-of-the-art literature help participants form a critical basis for both current and future research. Through a collaborative process of peer review, students go through multiple iterative rounds in rewriting their methodological framework, which serves as a basis for their ResMA research proposal.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
The deadline in MyTimetable is set for administrative purposes only. The actual date(s) will be communicated by the lecturer(s) in Brightspace.
Mode of instruction
5 Seminars and 7 lectures (2 introductory, 5 expert lectures)
Attendance is compulsory for all sessions. Students must prepare well and contribute to in-class discussion. If a student cannot attend because of illness or misadventure, they should promptly inform the convener. Extra assignments may be set to make up for missed class time, at the convener’s discretion. Absence without notification may result in lower grades or exclusion from assessment components and a failing grade for the course.
Assessment method
Academic integrity
Students should familiarize themselves with the notion of academic integrity and the ways in which this plays out in their own work. A good place to start is this page. Plagiarism will not be tolerated. Students may not substantially reuse texts they have previously submitted in this or other courses. Minor overlap with previous work is allowed as long as it is duly noted in citation. For information on plagiarism (in the context of academic writing at large), see clips 4-5-6 in this series of video clips.
Students must submit their assignment(s) to Brightspace through Turnitin, so they can be checked for plagiarism. Submission via email is not accepted.
ChatGPT: What is possible and what is allowed? Dos and Don'ts.
Assessment
ResMA participants are graded pass/fail for their short assignments. The final grade is based on the final assignment, which takes shape over the course of the semester through multiple rounds of peer and lecturer feedback on components A-D.
Assessment focuses on evaluation of the participant’s understanding of relevant material, critical thinking, logical and coherent argumentation, effective use of course literature, effective use of lectures, effective use of literature from their own field of study, and effective use of feedback.
The final assignment is graded only if:
The work is an original, authentic reflection of the writer’s skills and knowledge. All assignments are checked for plagiarism and, in case of suspicion, the use of writing software. Suspicion of fraud is reported to the Board of Examiners immediately.
The assignments meet the general requirements for academic work at this level of studies (wordcount, structure, language, deadline, references, etc.).
The participant completed all course components (attending lectures, attending peer review sessions, completing WD components, other assignments, feedback for peers - all meeting relevant deadlines).
Weighing
Assignments: Pass/Fail.
Final assignments (componen.ts. A-D): 100%.
Resit.
The final assignment can be rewritten and resubmitted if the first attempt is a fail. The deadline for this resit will be determined by the course convener in consultation with the student.
Inspection and feedback
Feedback will be supplied by the course convener primarily through Brightspace. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the assessment results, a review will be organized.
Reading list
Most readings are available online through the digital library, other readings will be shared with you by the course convener.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website.
PhD candidates are required to register through Leiden Global.
Contact
For substantive questions, contact the lecturer listed in the right information bar.
For questions about enrolment, admission, etc, contact the Education Administration Office Herta Mohr