Methodology for preparing thesis at the University of Miami (UM)

Known by its acronym UM, the University of Miami was founded in mid-1925; is located in Coral Gables in the state of Florida. In 2,019 alone, it had more than 18,000 students from 12 faculties. In turn, with more than 3,000 teachers and more than 10,000 full-time employees. This is one of the institutions with a high research activity, to be more specific R-1.

Careers

UM has more than 12 faculties and schools, among which are undergraduate and graduate centers. These in turn have a School of Architecture, School of Business Administration, School of Education and Human Development, Faculty of Arts and Sciences, School of Communication, Faculty of Engineering and many more. There is also the Graduate School, the University of Miami School of Law, and the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine. All centers are located on the main campus. Except for the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science located in Virginia Key and the Leonard M. Miller School of Medicine, located in the Civic Center area.

UM methodology

The methodology used to carry out the degree thesis at UM is presented in 4 phases:

• Phase 1 (Chapter I)

Statement of the problem: Section in which the existing problems and the reason why the degree project is carried out are detailed. This, in turn, must answer questions such as What for? and What benefits can the execution of the degree work provide?

Research Objectives: In the case of objectives, these are classified in General objective and specific objectives. The general objective is related to the title of the thesis, and must contain a special verb for the type of objective. For their part, the specific objects refer to the activities that will be carried out during the execution of the project. Similarly, there are verbs for each.

Justification: This has a small but detailed description of the existing problem. At the same time, it is specified why the thesis is carried out.

Hemerographic Research and Digital Research

To end this phase, there are the limitations, in them the stipulated time to carry out the degree project is disclosed.

• Phase 2 (Chapter II: Theoretical Framework)

Background of the investigation: These should be exposed topics made and related to the project in execution. This will allow the work as a whole to have greater credibility. The number of records used is generally 4, and these should be placed according to the year of execution.

Theoretical bases: At the UM, they encompass the body of the degree work, in it all the information related to the subject in progress is disclosed, be it history, types, classes, formulas used, and other points that are considered important. Definition of basic terms: It is a glossary that, as its name indicates, has the significant terms for the project. This section is carried out so that the reading is not interrupted by an erroneous interpretation.

• Phase 3 (Chapter III: Hypothesis)

Only if it exists, this chapter at the UM consists of the hypotheses and variables, these are not more than the possible ways used to respond to the problem raised. An analysis of all available routes is made, they are detailed and only the one that has provided positive results is executed.

• Phase 4 (Chapter IV: Methodology, Schedule, Bibliographic References)

In chapter IV at the UM, all the tools used for the preparation of the degree work are disclosed, this includes the type of research used, whether descriptive, field or combined, the techniques, the population and the sample at the which study was done, and the resources used. The schedule includes the activities to be carried out during the execution of the project, these will allow to finalize and solve the exposed problem.

The schedule must be governed by the Gantt chart, and must include the start and end time of each activity, as well as the project completion date. Finally, there are the bibliographic references, these are the sources used to carry out the theoretical part of the degree work, they must be governed by the rules of the institution, they must contain the date of publication and research of the work or selected source; This applies to all types of sources, be it from a book, a magazine or a web portal.

Writing Format at UM

The project in the UM must have a maximum of 32 pages and without the information sources it must have at least 28, which will be distributed as follows:

• Arial number 12 should be used,
• The problem statement must have 3 pages
• Addittionaly, he objectives of the investigation must be exposed in a single page
• The justification or importance must be 1 page
• Study limitations must have 1 page.
• The background of the investigation should be exposed in only 3 pages.
• Theoretical framework must have 10 pages
• The definition of basic terms should only have 2 pages.
• Also, the schedule of activities should be displayed on one page.
• The cover must have the university logo, the name of the institution, the title, and the purpose of the thesis.
• At the time of opting for the title or academic degree, it must also contain the name of the author or authors, the advisor’s data and the place where the thesis is carried out.
• The project must also contain dedications and acknowledgments.
• There must be two indexes, one for the content and the other for the tables and graphs exposed in the degree work.

The printing of the final project must be impeccable, it is worth mentioning that this will only be carried out once the project has gone through the review process and does not need any correction.

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