Page 70 - The Human Resource Development - New Student Orientation Handbook (REVISED)
P. 70
The Human Resource Development
Orientation Handbook and Research Guide
o Experimental results
• Communicate clearly – If you disagree with your advisor, state your objections or concerns
clearly and calmly. If you feel something about your relationship is not working well, discuss
it with him or her. Whenever possible, suggest steps they could take to address your concerns.
• Take the initiative – You do not need to clear every activity with your advisor. He/she has
a lot of work to do too. You must be responsible for your own research ideas and progress.
Conducting Research
Conducting quality research is one of the most important things you can do for yourself. It will save
you time and money (when making copies, etc.). Develop habits that will help you get the most
from your time.
Getting the most out of what you read:
Be organized
o Keep an electronic bibliography with notes & pointers to the paper files
o Keep and file all the papers you have read or skimmed in 3-ring binder
o Categorize articles, summaries, etc. based on content, relevance, etc.
• Be efficient – Only read what you need
o Start by reading only the conclusion, scanning figures & tables, and looking at their
references
o Read the other sections only if the paper seems relevant or you think it may help you
get a different perspective
o Skip the sections that you already understand (often the background and motivation
sections)
Take notes on every paper/article you find worth reading
o What problem are they trying to solve?
o What is their approach?
o How is it different from other approaches?
o Highlight areas of interest for compare/contrast, argument, focus, etc.
• Summarize what you have read on each topic – After you have read several papers
covering some topic, note the:
o key problems
o various formulations of the problem they are addressing
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