This course includes an overview of the comprehensive examination process, the university’s expectations of academic honesty and integrity.  The course-room mentor provides three questions addressing the core themes. Learners write answers to the comprehensive examination questions. Answers are evaluated by faculty readers using point-scale scoring rubrics. Upon passing the comprehensive examination, learners are eligible to register for the first dissertation course after Completion of all required and specialization coursework with a cumulative GPA of 3.0 or better. Completion of practicum courses, if applicable. And finally, fulfillment of all residency requirements.

Learning Outcomes

• Demonstrate ability to write scholarly on any given theme 
  
• Demonstrate critical intellectual thinking and analysis of given themes
  
• Demonstrate knowledge in current literature in relation to area of specialisation
  
• Apply appropriate writing and referencing styles in scholarly reports
  

This is an intensive eight-week programme that shall blend both an online course-room and a face-to-face weekend residency experience. Learners interact with peers and faculty as they participate in online course-room and weekend residency activities that emphasize applying the research skills necessary to detail a methodological design, sampling plan, and strategy for data analysis. In Track 3, learners complete PhD Research Plan Approval. Following the weekend residency experience, learners complete a final assessment that demonstrates Track 3 learning outcomes.

Learning Outcomes

• Apply research skills to develop methodological design for the topic
  
• Develop sample plan for the study
  
• Discuss issues of instrumentation as related to the topic of study
  
• Identify strategies for data collection and Analysis
  

This is an intensive eight-week Seminar that includes both an online course-room and a face-to-face weekend residency experience. Learners interact with peers and faculty as they participate in online course-room and weekend residency activities that emphasize applying the research skills necessary to develop a research question and to select an appropriate dissertation topics, conducting preliminary literature review on the topic, and developing initial research proposals. In Track 2, learners complete PhD Dissertation Milestone 2 (Topic Approval). Following the weekend residency experience, learners complete a final assessment that demonstrates Track 2 learning outcomes. 

Learning Outcomes

• Refine research topic in track 1 for approval
  
• Conducting literature review to support topic approval
  
• Developing initial research proposals for consideration
  

The PhD Dissertation Research Seminar Track 1 is an intensive 8 weeks programme that includes includes both an online course-room and a face-to-face weekend residency experience. Learners interact with peers and faculty as they participate in online course-room and weekend residency activities that emphasize applying the research skills necessary to initiate the development of a dissertation research plan. Throughout the course, learners focus on identifying a theory, topic, and research problem appropriate for their specialization. Track 1 learners must also complete Research Ethics Education. Following the weekend residency experience, learners complete a final assessment that demonstrates the following Track 1 learning outcomes.

Learning Outcomes

• Developing a Research Plan
  
• Identifying research problem appropriate to learners' specialization
  
• Developing a research topic based on the research problem
  
• Complete research ethics education 
  

Course Description:

This is an advanced-level course in Research Methods designed to provide postgraduate students with the foundations needed to undertake quantitative scholarly research in social science disciplines. The course also offers students the approaches, tools and techniques required to undertake quantitative research in any management or business field.  students are also introduce to writing quantitative research objectives, questions and or hypothesis. Others topics to be covered in this course shall include: the quantitative research process as it relates to conceptualization and design of appropriate research methodology to achieve the desired research objectives, techniques of data collection and analysis, and drafting and writing a research report. This Course will be learner-centred and therefore shall use a combination of strategies such as assignments, proposal development, seminar presentations, and hands-on practice with statistical packages to achieve the intended goal.

Course Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, students should be able to:

• Outline and explain the types of research and the reasons for carrying out research
• Develop a quantitative research proposal that communicates clearly the research problem, research question(s)/hypotheses, research objectives and methodology
  
• Explain the various quantitative research paradigms and approaches
  
• Explain the relevance of philosophical perspectives such as positivism, realism, pragmatism, interpretivism, objectivism and constructionism in quantitative business research
  

• Explain the ethical obligations of a researcher towards respondents or research participants  and vice versa and why such obligations must be observed
  
• Undertake a critical review of theoretical and empirical literature in quantitative research 
  

• Plan a primary data collection procedure that will assure both reliability and validity of the data
• Explain the suitability of the various quantitative sampling techniques for different types of research
• Prepare quantitative data collected for analysis and reporting
• Statistical Reporting 

Course Description:

This is an advanced-level course in Research Methods designed to provide postgraduate students with the foundations needed to undertake qualitative scholarly research in social science disciplines. The course also offers students the opportunity to begin research on their thesis and dissertation by providing clear and holistic guidance on how to generate and refine a research idea into a clear and unmistakable research topic with relevant, specific, measurable and realistic objectives or research questions. Specifically, the course will cover topics such as what is research? Why do we conduct research? How to generate research ideas, how to evaluate research topics, how to plan a research, the sources of knowledge and the process of critically reviewing the relevant literature, the theory of Knowledge, the philosophy and ethics of research.  Others topics to be covered in this course shall include: the research process as it relates to conceptualization and design of appropriate research methodology to achieve the desired research objectives, techniques of data collection and analysis, and drafting and writing a research report. This Course will be learner-centred and therefore shall use a combination of strategies such as assignments, proposal development, seminar presentations, and hands-on practice with statistical packages to achieve the intended goal.

Course Learning Outcomes

At the end of this course, students should be able to:

• Outline and explain the types of research and the reasons for carrying out research
• Develop a research proposal that communicates clearly the research problem, research question(s)/hypotheses, research objectives and methodology
  
• Explain the various research paradigms and approaches
  
• Define key terms such as epistemology, ontology and axiology and explain their relevance to business research
  
• Explain the relevance of philosophical perspectives such as positivism, realism, pragmatism, interpretivism, objectivism and constructionism in business research
  
• Explain the ethical obligations of a researcher towards respondents or research participants  and vice versa and why such obligations must be observed
  
• Undertake a critical review of theoretical and empirical literature
  
• Plan a primary data collection procedure that will assure both reliability and validity of the data
  

• Explain the suitability of the various qualitative sampling techniques for different types of research
• Prepare Qualitative data collected for analysis
• Examine Qualitative research approaches

Course Description

This course provides an opportunity for students to develop and nurture the skills for academic writing. It is an intensive analysis of the principles of academic writing aimed at equipping learners with effective scholarly writing competence as well as their communication skills. This module is intended help learners write clearly, logically, comprehensively and structurally appropriate. It introduces writing as a way of developing, exploring and testing ideas. Emphasis is placed on critical thinking, grammar, usage and mechanics (GUM), referencing, good paragraph development, essay and report writing. The course is also expected to help learners acquire appreciable narrative and paraphrasing and summary skills. ; Therefore, learners shall be required to read selection of short stories and summarize some of them as part of the course. The course shall engage learners in critical academic discourse, drawing from journal articles, textbooks and videos.

COURSE OUTCOMES

At the end of the course, learners shall be able to:

• Write acceptable academic reports.
  
• Organize their ideas coherently and clearly in paragraphs.
  
• Apply citations and references in academic writing. 
  
• Summarize a given passage by extracting the relevant information from it.
  
• Demonstrate effective summary skills in report writing
  
• Apply critical thinking in scholarly writing
• Explain the types of report
• Develop good thesis statements
• Demonstrate the ability to present data using graphics