INTBUS 7505 - Research Project in International Business (M)

North Terrace Campus - Trimester 1 - 2022

This course provides students with the opportunity to undertake a supervised, structured literature review and research project on an approved topic. Topics will be selected depending on the availability of appropriate staff expertise. Special projects may be organised by the Business School to include the opportunity for a student to travel through the Study Abroad Program or Internship Program to another country and conduct various case studies of individual business. As well as being of interest to those intending to work internationally in the industry, the course is appropriate for students preparing for a career in research. The broad projects themes may include, but are not limited to, understanding why business may choose to internationalise their activities; what selection criteria might be used to evaluate various overseas market locations; and what entry mode choices are likely to best suit the business given its age, size, product/service and organisational structure. The project topic must be approved by Program Coordinator - Master of International Business or Master of International Management.

  • General Course Information
    Course Details
    Course Code INTBUS 7505
    Course Research Project in International Business (M)
    Coordinating Unit Management
    Term Trimester 1
    Level Postgraduate Coursework
    Location/s North Terrace Campus
    Units 6
    Contact Up to 36 hours per Trimester
    Available for Study Abroad and Exchange Y
    Prerequisites MARKETNG 7104, ECON 7200, ACCTNG 7025, INTBUS 7500, COMMERCE 7039, COMMGMT 7006, INTBUS 7501, INTBUS 7506
    Incompatible INTBUS 7510 & INTBUS 7511
    Restrictions Available to M.International Business students only who present a credit average across their studies
    Course Description This course provides students with the opportunity to undertake a supervised, structured literature review and research project on an approved topic. Topics will be selected depending on the availability of appropriate staff expertise. Special projects may be organised by the Business School to include the opportunity for a student to travel through the Study Abroad Program or Internship Program to another country and conduct various case studies of individual business. As well as being of interest to those intending to work internationally in the industry, the course is appropriate for students preparing for a career in research. The broad projects themes may include, but are not limited to, understanding why business may choose to internationalise their activities; what selection criteria might be used to evaluate various overseas market locations; and what entry mode choices are likely to best suit the business given its age, size, product/service and organisational structure. The project topic must be approved by Program Coordinator - Master of International Business or Master of International Management.
    Course Staff

    Course Coordinator: Dr Olga Muzychenko

    Course Timetable

    The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

    This course will be delivered through consultation with the research project supervisor. In addition, synergies with the Honours / MBR program will be exploited whenever possible. 
  • Learning Outcomes
    Course Learning Outcomes
    On successful completion of this course, students will be able to:
    1 provide critical insights into business literature and research methodologies
    2 express personal opinions and participate in group discussion
    3 chair a research seminar
    4 research, identify, evaluate and analyse relevant business literature, and collect, analyse and interpret empirical data
    5 write a mini critique on business literature
    6 write a conference manuscript
    University Graduate Attributes

    This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

    University Graduate Attribute Course Learning Outcome(s)

    Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth

    Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.

    CLO 1, CLO 4

    Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving

    Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.

    CLO 1, CLO 2

    Attribute 4: Professionalism and leadership readiness

    Graduates engage in professional behaviour and have the potential to be entrepreneurial and take leadership roles in their chosen occupations or careers and communities.

    CLO 3
  • Learning & Teaching Activities
    Learning & Teaching Modes
    Participation in seminars, weekly supervision of the research project by the student's supervisor, self-study and individual data collection.  
    Workload

    The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

    Very high workload (312hours = 6 units course). Course should be taken only by students with a very strong interest and motivation to develop a research career. This course prepares such students to enrol in a research degree (e.g., Master or Doctor of Philosophy) after graduation as Masters of International Business (MIB). 
    Learning Activities Summary

    No information currently available.

    Specific Course Requirements
    This course should only be taken by those students who have already passed Business Research Methods (COMMERCE 7039), International Business Strategy (INTBUS 7506) and Global Business Analysis (INTBUS 7501). Before enrolment, student needs to contact his/her future supervisor and get written consent for the individual research project supervision. 
    Course should be taken only by students with a very strong interest and motivation to develop a research career. This course prepares such students to enrol in a research degree (e.g., Master or Doctor of Philosophy) after graduation as Masters of International Business (MIB).
  • Assessment

    The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

    1. Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
    2. Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
    3. Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
    4. Assessment must maintain academic standards.

    Assessment Summary
    *Weekly One-on-One Meetings with Student-Supervisor (Discussion)

    Assessment Task Due Weighting Learning Outcome
    Summary Research Report End of Semester 50% 1,4,5,6
    Seminar Presentation Agreed date 20% 1,2,3,4
    Assignment 1: Mini Literature Review Week 8 20% 1,4,5,6
    Assignment 2: Extended Literature Review Week 13 15% 1,4,5,6
    Assignment 3: Conference Paper  Week 15 5% 1,4,5,6
    Total


    Assessment Detail
    In Weeks 10 to 12, students will be responsible for finalising their Research Report Presentation to the Seminar Series and will chair the seminar. The more clustered around a topic the better (a sub-topic of your research project). Students are assessed on how well they identify their research project problem as well as how well they discuss their preliminary findings.
    Students are required to write a mini critique/ literature review on the knowledge obtained from up to 10 articles specific to their own International Business Research Project topic to date. There is no set length for this mini literature review (recommended 15 to 20 pages double-spacing, excluding references), and students can use headings and subheadings to assist the structure and flow of the arguments. The students should provide their own critical review and insights on what they have learned from these specific papers, by commenting on the nature of literature as well as research methodologies undertaken.
    The review will be by the Course Coordinator, using the assessment criteria in Appendix B. A successful completion of this assignment will contribute to the writing up of the International Business conference paper required for the next assignment. 
    When critiquing the articles, you may consider the following issues:
    • The research purposes
    • The research gaps are being identified
    • How the central research questions were formulated
    • The theoretical foundations
    • The scope, nature, and quality of the literature reviewed
    • The research methods employed and their appropriateness to the research question
    • The research results. Are they reliable and valid? Why? Why not?
    • The development and presentation of a conceptual model
    • Their main strengths and weaknesses of the article
    • Ideas from the studies that might be used to frame or guide an honours dissertation
    Submission
    All written work has to be submitted through turnitin. 
    Course Grading

    Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

    M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
    Grade Mark Description
    FNS   Fail No Submission
    F 1-49 Fail
    P 50-64 Pass
    C 65-74 Credit
    D 75-84 Distinction
    HD 85-100 High Distinction
    CN   Continuing
    NFE   No Formal Examination
    RP   Result Pending

    Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

    Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

    Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

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    SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

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