Dissertation (MA HE)

The Dissertation is taken as the last unit of the MA HE. There are three enrolments per year, in September, January and April. Please contact the Programme Leader, Dr Eileen Pollard (E.Pollard@mmu.ac.uk) to discuss eligibility and enrolment.

NB: to register for the Dissertation unit (60 M level credits), you must have completed the PG Diploma (120 M level credits) stage of the MA in HE programme. 

The Dissertation should focus on an area of Higher Education academic or professional services policy and or practice. It can be composed of one of three formats:  

• A traditional research-based Dissertation using primary research or a combination of primary and secondary research.
• A structured and critical examination of a topic/material/issue.
• A product plus accompanying narration.

Where participants elect to produce a research-based Dissertation the work will normally follow the traditional pattern of rationale, conception, literature review, methodological design, data collection, analysis, and synthesis of outcomes.

Where participants are conducting a structured examination of existing data this may take the form of a systematic review of literature, a case study of intervention, an organisational study or a study of an aspect of curriculum or professional service delivery. 

Where participants elect to produce a product this will be narrated via a written introduction, methodology and bibliography with a brief executive summary. 

These are only examples and participants are encouraged explore any aspect of their Higher Education practice in a variety of ways. During the Researching Higher Education unit which precedes the Dissertation unit, there will be discussions on possible topics and formats. An individual supervisor will be allocated at the start of the 12 month period of registration for the Dissertation.

Non-desk literature based Dissertations are strictly subject to MMU’s Ethics Procedures.