Upon successful completion of the course, students should be able to:
- Recognize the differences between academic and non-academic texts - Master the basic conventions (e.g. use of language) and formats (e.g. for referencing) associated with academic writing within the social sciences - Provide a critical analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of academic arguments, and the implications (research & practice) of academic findings - Develop a well-structured, clearly articulated and analytically sound academic essay or research proposal - Grasp the essence of various theoretical traditions within the social sciences (and in the context of the master program in political science and management)
Sisältö
The course provides graduate, master-level students with knowledge on various approaches, techniques, methods and strategies for scientific writing within the social sciences. Students learn to conduct rigorous academic research and to express their ideas both clearly and succinctly in an academic format, i.e. addressing an academic audience. The course adopts a hands-on approach, with students engaging, both individually and in groups, both in the analysis and re-construction of existing scientific texts as well as the development of new ones (own written essays). What is more, students will be stimulated to be critical, from a constructive view point, of their own work as well as that of their peers. Finally, students will also be exposed to the ways in which theories are used in scientific knowledge production (and writing), as well as to an array of existing theories in the field of organizational studies and public policy/administration.