MALAVIYA NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY JAIPUR

Department : Department of Management Studies

Course Code : BMD413

Course Name : Applied Management Research Project (AMRP)

Credits : 3 L- 0 T- 0 P- 4
Course Type : Core
Prerequisites : none

GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR SUMMER INTERNSHIP

Planning for the research project

All student are required to work independently on individual research project. Each student will
be assigned by the Office/ Course Coordinator a faculty mentor under whose supervision the
student shall carry out his/her research project.
It is recommended that the students begin working on their research project immediately after
second term. The courses BMT107 Statistics for Decision Making, BMT205 Business Research
Methods and BMT207 IT for Data Visualization enrolled during the first and second semesters
of the program are useful in helping students to plan background material and to choose
research methodology.
Further students are advised to meet respective faculty supervisor on a regular basis – as
recommended by supervisor or at least once every week in the beginning. It is also advisable to
start working as soon as possible.

The Role of Supervisor

a) Suggest some general areas of research for consideration and where possible, any
examples of current research relevant to the topic.
b) Discuss possible directions for the study and advise on aims and objectives c) Be available
for regular meetings
c) Examine written work and provide constructive criticism. It is not the responsibility of the
supervisor to correct spelling mistakes, etc., other than to point out these are present: nor
is it the duty of the supervisor to organize the presentation content of the work, although
advice may be provided if enough work has been submitted.
d) Make student aware of inadequate progress or any other facts which could impede the
completion of a successful piece of work.
Student's Responsibilities
a) To make appointments on a regular basis. If facing any difficulty in arranging appointments
the student must contact the Course-coordinator.
b) Provide written work for the supervisor to comment on; maintain proper log of own
progress.
c) Submit written work in advance of appointment in order that the supervisor has time to
offer constructive criticism.
d) Comply with the regulations as detailed in this document.

STRUCTURE OF THE RESEARCH PROPOSAL

The Research Proposal
The areas covered in the research proposal are expanded below.
Title Page
▪ Proposed Title
▪ Name of Student
▪ Course
▪ Supervisor’s Name
The Research Question/Problem/Topic or Hypothesis
▪ identify your area of research keeping it broad enough to embrace existing literature; but
▪ sufficiently narrow to allow a detailed investigation
▪ the area identified could form a working title
Introduction and Rationale for Research
▪ explain why you think this is a valid research topic
▪ what will the research contribute to the field?
Research Aim and Objectives
▪ the aim of the research project should indicate what you wish to achieve
▪ the objectives are a list of goals which must be completed in order to satisfy the aim (usually
about 4-6)
• e.g. to provide a state of the art review
• to determine how a particular market operates to establish a typology
• to assess the impact of something
Research Methodology
▪ choose methods which will allow you to meet each of the objectives listed above; justify
your methods chosen and the disadvantages of the methods rejected
▪ try to use a mix of methods
Proposed Timeline for various activities
▪ A schedule of activities to be completed along with specific milestones and timelines

SPECIFIC ASPECTS OF THE RESEARCH PROJECT

What follows is an attempt to provide with some generic guidelines, and some helpful advice
on acceptable practices in structuring the research project and the subsequent report.
However students are still advised to consult respective faculty supervisors for specific advice
in relation to the research project.
The Generic Structure of the Report
Title Page
Declaration
Certificates (if any)
Acknowledgements
Abstract
Table of Contents
CHAPTER 1 Introduction
CHAPTER 2 Literature Review
CHAPTER 3 Methodologies
CHAPTER 4 Findings and Analysis of Data
CHAPTER 5 Conclusions, Implications and Recommendations
 References
Appendices

GUIDELINES ON SPECIFIC COMPONENTS OF THE RESEARCH PROJECT

The Abstract
An abstract should provide an overview of the study in all its aspects. It should be around 250-
300 in words and should answer the following quest ions.
▪ What does this research set out to do and why?
▪ How did it seek to do it?
▪ What are the general findings?
▪ What do these suggest?
▪ What conclusions are reached?
▪ What are the implications of these?
Acknowledgements
This section should express thanks to those who assisted in the research. These should be kept
to a minimum and include academic supervisors and people who participated in the fieldwork,
any funding bodies and so on.
Introduction
In this chapter, introduce the reader to the background of the study and the nature of the
problem being considered. It should therefore set the study in context explaining why this study
is important, highlighting significant issues, problems and ideas. The basic purpose this section
is to provide the reader a basic idea of what the subject area of the research project its
contents.
Literature Review
In the research project students are expected to provide a critical review of the existing
literature (published and unpublished) on the research area being investigated. This does not
mean that every book and article that has been written on the subject is to be indicated, but
any research article that is read, should be referenced appropriately. Nevertheless, the review
should indicate the studies existing and recent work in the field.
The literature review should be:
▪ Relevant: Literature used should support the arguments relating to the research
question and aim and objectives of the study. It should uphold methodology. In some
cases it may be required to discuss literature review and its relationship to methodology
in a separate chapter.
▪ Up-to-Date: Recent literature (not older than five years) is recommended unless
referring to seminal/classical works in the field of study. Citations used should be from
primary sources, secondary referencing should be avoided.
▪ Comprehensive: Demonstrate that extensively literature has been read without being
over-inclusive. Develop the ability to employ summary statements and to synthesize.
Methodology
The purpose of this chapter is to indicate what actually has been done in the research so that a
reader may evaluate the design procedure and findings of the study. The methodology section
should be well-structured, written in concise, matter-of-fact manner and should provide
answers to the following questions:
▪ What actually happened?
 ▪ How?
▪ To whom?
▪ With what result?
▪ How were problems dealt with?
▪ Approach to data?
The following is an outline of the Methodology Section
Statement of Research Problem
▪ What is the aim of the research study?
▪ What are its major objectives?
▪ Any hypothesis constructed?
Criteria for Sample selection
▪ Who are the research units?
▪ Characteristics of sample units?
▪ What is the sampling frame?
▪ What is the method of sample select ion?
▪ Number of total sample units?
Review of Data Collection Methods
▪ How the data collection methods chosen are best suited to fit the research question?
▪ From which geography the data was collected?
▪ What was the period of data collection?
▪ How primary data was collected? A detailed description of research conducted, design
of the tool, description of fieldwork, and any specific procedures used.
▪ What secondary data was used? How does it feed into the current research?
Pilot Study (if any)
▪ To whom was the study administered?
▪ What changes were made to the research tool?
Methods of Analysis
▪ Briefly explain how statistical analysis was done.
▪ If computer software is going to be used, a description of the type of software has to
be included.
Limitations
▪ What were the major limitations of this study?
Presentation and Analysis of Data
This section is to present the major findings of the research in a summarized form and the
details of the analyses which have been performed. The content and style depends on the
nature of the research method chosen, but in the case of both quantitative and qualitative
studies, the object is to present the data collected to answer the research questions. Students
are required to seek guidance from respective supervising faculty for preparing this section.
Discussion of Results and Conclusions
This chapter should draw together all the issues of the research and link back to the aim and
objectives which were outlined in the Introduction and Methodology. Were the aims set at the
beginning been met? If not, why not?
▪ Evaluate how the findings bear on issues or points raised in the Literature Review.
▪ What are the implications arising from the findings. Be careful with the generalizations and
interpretations. Recommendations should be based on evidence.
▪ What are the suggestions for future research in this area?
References
Full details of all the books and journal articles cited or referenced throughout the research
project should be included in this chapter. A reader should be able to identify the exact source
and refer to it directly. References should be complete in all respects and arranged in
alphabetical order.
Use APA style for referencing. For example:
In-text citation
.....(Neville, 2010) or Neville (2010) stated that " ....." (p. 25)
Reference list
Neville, C. (2010). The complete guide to referencing and avoiding plagiarism (2nd ed.).
New York, NY: Open University Press.
Students are advised to consult their respective faculty supervisors on how to cite and refer
research articles, books and other sources.
Appendices
The Appendices should include selective, supplementary material which is distracting when
placed in the main body of text. Only material which is necessary for a full understanding of the
study should be included. These include important forms, questionnaires or interview
schedules, description of equipment or settings, tables and lists of data supportive of the study.

SPECIFIC MECHANICS OF REPORT WRITING

Presentation Layout
General Text
Text should be one and a half spaced using printing on both sides of the pages and duly
numbered. However, new chapters, sections, etc. should start from odd numbered pages.
Font: Times New Roman, Size 12, Justified (both left and right) alignment
In-text emphasis: Use italics or bold typeface
Paragraphs: 0.5” First line indentation; One and half line spacing with 12point space after
paragraph
Page Margins: Top: 1”; Bottom: 1”; Inside: 1.5”; Outside: 1” (Mirrored layout)
Page numbers:
▪ Centered at the bottom of the page
▪ Roman numerals (i, ii) should be used from the pages preceding Table of Contents
▪ The main body of the text (where the Introduction) commences on Page 1
▪ The pages included in Appendices/Annexure are to be numbered in roman numerals (I,
ii,…)
Headings:
▪ Chapter Headings size 16 in bold typeface
▪ Sub-Headings size 14 in bold typeface
▪ Main Chapter headings in block capitals
▪ Chapter headings left justified at the top of a new page
▪ All other headings justified and followed by a single line space
▪ Use sub-headings together with a numbering system used in this document thus giving
structure to your work.
Quotations:
▪ Single line-spacing
▪ Indented left and right
▪ Justified left and right
▪ Must include author name, date and page number referring to the parent text
Tables, Figures etc.
▪ Must be numbered according to the chapter (e.g. Table 5.1 means that it is located in
Chapter 5 and that it is the first table presented and discussed in this chapter)
▪ Must have a title at the top and key (legend) underneath
▪ The table title must be set in sentence case (only first letter in capital) as follow:
Table 5.1 Summary of sample characteristics
▪ Only the Table index number should be in bold. Rest of the title should be in plain text.
Typing and Proof Reading
Always proof read the copies for good grammar and presentation before handing the report
to your supervising faculty. Special attention should be made to the final draft of the report.
Students are advised to be prepared for the unexpected such as hard disk failure, loss or
corruption of CDs and printer failure. Use back-up disks and always keep (updated) hard copies
of the work in case of an emergency!
Binding
Two hard bound copies and one soft copy of the research project are to be submitted. The
hardbound copies should have the contents of title page inscribed/pasted on them. It is the
students' responsibility to organize the binding and make sure that the copies are ready before
the submission date.
Plagiarism
Plagiarism, that is, the willful representation of another person’s work, without the
acknowledgement or the deliberate and unacknowledged incorporation in a student’s work of
material derived from the work (published or otherwise) of another, is UNACCEPTABLE and
will incur the penalty of outright failure.
Word Length
The total length of the research project should be 15,000-25,000 words (70-100 A-4 size
pages). This length is exclusive of title and contents page, figures, tables, appendices and
references.
Please refer to formats of various components of the report on next pages
 Annexure I

MALAVIYA NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, JAIPUR

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

Declaration
I, (name of student)_______________________ Student ID ________________ of Department of

Management Studies, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur hereby submit this

report titled (report title)____________________________________________________, in partial

fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree of MBA.

I declare that the work presented in this report is my original and is not submitted anywhere else

for the award of any other degree/diploma by any other Institute. To the best of my knowledge

and belief, this report contains no material previously published or written by any other person,

except where due reference is made.

(Signature of Student)
_____________________________
Date: Name of Student

Countersigned: (Signature of Supervisor)

_____________________________
Date: Name & Designation of
Supervisor

Seal/Stamp of the Department/Institute

 Annexure II
Format of Title Page

APPLIED MANAGEMENT RESEARCH PROJECT

TITLE OF PROJECT

Submitted in the partial fulfillment of

requirements for the award of degree of
Master of Business Administration
Session [20_ _ - _ _]

Submitted by
Name of Student
Student ID

Under supervision of
Name of Supervisor
Designation

DEPARTMENT OF MANAGEMENT STUDIES

MALAVIYA NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY JAIPUR
RAJASTHAN-302017