Research Skills for PGR

Find out more about research skills for doctoral candidates, including data management, utilising resources, and referencing systems.

Research Administration and Data Management

Introducing an effective style of research administration that works well for you at the beginning of your doctorate can help streamline and simplify tasks like referencing, creating your bibliography and preparing for thesis submission during your final stages.

All PGRs at NTU are required to submit a Data Management Plan as part of their Project Approval. The Data Management Plan outlines how you will handle the data generated in the course of your research project and what will happen to it afterwards. You can find more information about Research Data Management and the function of a DMP on the website.

The Open Research Team can support you with developing your Data Management Plan, and you can use the web-based tool DMP Online to help you write your DMP. Many funding bodies now require a DMP as part of their grant applications, so this is a good skill to develop.

Research Ethics

Ethics in research exist to ensure that research does not harm individuals, communities, or the environment, and that researchers undertake their work in a way that considers not only the safety of participants, the environments, etc., but also themselves and their colleagues. According to Vitae, 'ethical research situates the pursuit of knowledge within a broader framework of human flourishing and societal benefit.'

Whilst not all PGR will need to seek a favourable Ethical Approval for their doctoral research, all PGR should consider the ethics of the project and discuss this with their supervisors. For full guidance on Ethics in doctoral studies, visit the PGR Guidance page.

Referencing Your Work

There is no specific referencing system mandated for doctoral candidates at NTU. You should choose the referencing style that is the most appropriate for your field of study: your supervisor will be able to advise you on whether there is a preferred style within your academic school.

Your references must be consistent throughout your thesis, so you may wish to use a referencing manager to ensure you have an accurate record of your reading and sources. You can access RefWorks with your NTU account, or you could choose an alternative referencing manager such as Zotero or Mendeley. Referencing can be a time-consuming process, so we recommend maintaining good records to minimise any stress when preparing your thesis for submission!

You can find further guidance and support on referencing on the Library webpages.

Understanding Self-Plagiarism

Self-plagiarism is where a researcher publishes work that is overly similar or identical to work that they have already published.

Whereas plagiarism involves the presentation of others’ ideas, text, data, images, etc., as the products of our own creation, self-plagiarism, occurs when we decide to reuse in whole or in part our own previously disseminated ideas, text, data, etc without any indication of their prior dissemination. Perhaps the most commonly-known form of self-plagiarism is duplicate publication, but other forms exist and include redundant publication, augmented publication, also known as meat extender, and segmented publication, also known as salami, piecemeal, or fragmented publication. The key feature in all forms of self-plagiarism is the presence of significant overlap between publications and, most importantly, the absence of a clear indication as to the relationship between the various duplicates or related papers. (Miguel Roig, 2010)

If your final thesis contains work that you have already published, you should clearly indicate what was published and where. For most PGR, this might be a chapter of your thesis that has been published as an article in an academic journal. In this case, you should include a note at the beginning of the chapter with the publication details. If you have any worries about self plagiarism or including your published work in your thesis, you can visit the Library for support.

Research Software

Depending on the nature of your research project, you may require the use of a specific research programme, such as a qualitative data analysis tool. Digital Technologies provides access to research software, including NVivo, for you to use during your studies. You can find details on how to access software on the DT SharePoint.

For more information on software usage, including transcription software, and for more IT guidance, you can also visit the PGR section on the DT support site. There will also be training offered throughout the academic year on different software, which will be advertised to your supervisors.