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2013/2014  BA-3QLM  Qualitative Methods

English Title
Qualitative Methods

Course information
Language English
Exam ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Mandatory
Level Bachelor
Duration One Semester
Course period Autumn
Time Table Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Study board
Study Board for BSc in Business Administration and Sociology
Course coordinator
  • Anna Leander - MPP
Main academic disciplines
  • Philosophy and philosophy of science
  • Methodology
Last updated on 14-08-2013
Learning objectives
On successful completion of the course, the student should be able to use different qualitative methods and analytical strategies within organizational sociology and business administration. Specifically, the student should be able to:
- situate specific qualitative methodologies in relation to the theoretical traditions in which they are embedded,
- formulate and operationalise a research problem that is suitable for treatment by means of basic qualitative methods, and account for the relationship between theory and methods in the process,
- use basic qualitative methods such as ethnographic analysis, text analysis and interviews to research problems within organizational sociology and business administration, and
- critically assess strengths and weaknesses of the applied methods in relation to specific research problems.
Course prerequisites
The courses 3AOA, 3QLM, 4CCP, and 4MM have one intergrated exam. The exam is 30 ECTS. You can only participate in 3QLM if you also register for the other courses: 3AOA, 4CCP, and 4MM.
Prerequisites for registering for the exam
Requirements about active class participation (assessed approved/not approved)
Participation in the workshop in the course Qualitative Methods is mandatory in order to participate in the second year project. If a student is unable to participate in the workshop, due to illness, the makeup examination is a 10-page home assignment which is to be approved by the course coordinator. For more details, see separate guidelines.
Examination
The exam in the subject consists of two parts:
Second year project on organisational analysis, contextual company perspective, and research methods:
Examination formOral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance.
Individual or group examIndividual
Size of written productMax. 40 pages
Assignment typeProject
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
30 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Preparation timeNo preparation
Grading scale7-step scale
Examiner(s)Internal examiner and external examiner
Exam periodMay/June
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
The re-take takes place according to the same rules as the regular examination. However, the following supplementary rules apply:

•For projects where some of the group members are awarded the grade 00 or below at the oral examination, the failed students must submit individually, before the re-take, 2-3 pages on aspects of the project, as specified by the internal examiner.
•For projects where all members are awarded the grade 00 or below at the oral examination, the overall project is deemed unacceptable. Before the re-take, the project must be revised and improved. For supervision in this respect, the internal examiner will give a brief written critique of the project within eight working days after the regular oral examination.
Description of the exam procedure
  • The two third semester courses ’Qualitative Methods’ and ’Applied Organizational Analysis’ and the two fourth semester courses ’Mixed Methods’ and ’The Company in a Contextual Perspective’ are assessed at the second year project examination.
  • The examination is an individual oral examination of 30 minutes, including the examiners’ discussion and awarding of the grade. It is based on the second year project, but the syllabi of the four courses assessed at this examination may be drawn in by the internal examiner.
  • The student will be awarded one grade according to the 7-point grading scale, reflecting an overall assessment of the project, the oral presentation and the defence. The student’s proficiency in spelling and fluency in writing will also be taken into account in the assessment. However, most emphasis will be put on the academic content. 

Learning objectives for the exam
On completion of the course, the student must be capable of explaining, comparing, and integrating the course’s concepts and theories as well as illustrative cases. Integration involves the ability to construct an argument that logically utilises the course’s concepts and theories, and explain how the course’s concepts and theories are rooted in empirical studies.

The student should demonstrate ability to:
  • work in an interdisciplinary way,
  • formulate, delimit and analyse an academic problem,
  • select and apply theories and methods relevant to the project,
  • select and apply fundamental qualitative methods and some mixed methods,
  • show practical knowledge of fundamental organisational analysis and theories about evaluation and assessment, and
  • structure the layout and present the material in a clearly formulated and accessible way in terms of both language and content.
Workshop:
Examination formOral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance.
Individual or group examIndividual
The written part consists of the slides uploaded for presentation in the workshop. The oral part of the examination is the participation in the inclass presentation and discussant assignment.
Assignment typeProject
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
30 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scalePass / Fail
Examiner(s)Internal examiner and external examiner
Exam periodDecember/January
Make-up exam/re-exam
Another examination form
If you fail the workshop or if documented illness prevents you from participating, you can register for the retake. The retake is a 10-page written home assignment.
Course content and structure
The course focuses on three qualitative methodologies: discourse analysis, observation and
interviewing. It situates each methodology in context, it goes through a classical example of its usage and it
discusses the application of the technique in practice. In the exercise classes related to each bloc, students will have the possibility to discuss their own usage of the methodologies, and develop a sense of the possibilities and limits of the methodology.
Teaching methods
The course combines lectures, exercise classes and workshops. It is structured in three blocs—discourse analysis,
observation of practices and interviewing—all following the same logic. The first lecture will introduce and contextualize the broad methodology (discourse, observation and interviewing). The second lecture will look at the theoretical roots of the respective concept/method focussing on an authoritative example of its application. Finally, the third session will introduce one of the practical “tool kits” used to conduct research using the methodology. Each bloc also has two exercise classes: one formulating the core aspects of the method and the second discussing an assignment in the method. The course concludes on a full day workshop during which a assignments carried out by groups of students are discussed in a conference like setting.
Expected literature

Texts include texts by Bourdieu, Foucault and Elias as well introductory writings on qualitative methods. A compendium is published for the course.
 
Last updated on 14-08-2013
 



Course information
Language English
Exam ECTS 7.5 ECTS
Type Mandatory
Level Bachelor
Duration One Semester
Course period Autumn
Time Table Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Study board
Study Board for BSc in Business Administration and Sociology
Course coordinator
  • Anna Leander - MPP
Main academic disciplines
  • Philosophy and philosophy of science
  • Methodology
Last updated on 14-08-2013