Q: Can anyone share with me an example of the scope of a research?
I am preparing a research proposal for a Master's degree in project management.
Scope sets the boundaries for your research. It establishes the extent you will be studying the research problem. This is done for several reasons (such as constraints of time and finance), but mainly to make your research feasible or ‘doable.’ If not, it would consume a lot of effort and energy, which may not be practical.
Establishing the scope typically comes from or drilling down or distilling the problem you plan to study. Presently, you have only mentioned ‘project management,’ but let’s say you were studying delegation. Within that broad subject area, you would need to first work out a problem statement and then arrive at a research question. As you narrow down your research area, you would also be narrowing down the scope of your study.
You would need to talk about the scope in the Methods section of your proposal as well as the actual paper.
For examples (though from different fields and domains) and for more insights on scope and a related term, delimitations, you may refer to the following resources:
- Can you give an example of the scope of a study?
- What is the meaning of scope and delimitations of a study?
- How do I write about the scope of my case study?
As this is for your Master’s, you may also find the following resources helpful (apart from the ones linked inline):
- How do I develop an outline for a Masters thesis proposal?
- How to write the introduction of a research proposal?
- How to write the expected results and discussion in a research proposal?
All the best for your proposal – and research!
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