3 credits
The prospectus is a brief document that is critical to articulate the general topic under consideration for a dissertation. Students will align, organize, delineate, and make decisions regarding their dissertation and appropriate research methodology. Students in this course are provided with the opportunity to design the prospectus in collaboration with program colleagues and mentorship from a course instructor. Students learn preferred practices for developing the prospectus and analyze examples of past documents. Students refine their problem and purpose statements along with their research questions. Then they finalize their decisions about the research method and design that may be incorporated into their dissertation. Finally, students engage in the iterative process of writing the prospectus, integrating feedback from peers and the course instructor. Students will incorporate all the skills learned throughout the program and apply them in the development of their prospectus.