Outline of Proposed Research Topic

							Applicants for MPhil and PhD degrees in the arts and social sciences (i.e. the Departments of
Archaeology, Economics and Related Studies, Educational Studies, English and Related Literature,
Environment, Health Sciences, History, Music, Philosophy, Politics, Railway Studies, Social Policy
and Social Work, Sociology, the Centre for Medieval Studies and the Centre for Women’s Studies),
and for the MSc in Health Services Research, are asked to complete this additional section of the
application form.


Name

Proposed department or centre
    1 You are asked to write a preliminary outline of your proposed research topic. It should be
       between 250 and 350 words in length. Please note that applicants to the Department of
       Philosophy should ensure that their preliminary outline for their proposed research topic is
       between 1,000-2,000 words long.
        It should cover

          the central issue, topic, theme or hypothesis you wish to investigate;
          why it is important and/or original; and
          how, in broad terms, you propose to approach it.

        But please note also

          we are not expecting at the present stage a full and final statement of your research
           intentions which will bind you closely during your period of study here;
          we are not expecting you to undertake a significant amount of reading and background
           research in preparing this statement;
          it will not contribute to the formal assessment of your work here at York.

       The purpose of this exercise is that you, the department concerned and your eventual
       supervisor can be sure that you and the University are well-matched to one another and can
       make progress, through discussion and correspondence, towards defining your research topic
       before you start your course of study here.




                                                     Please continue below or on an extra sheet if necessary
2   You are asked to describe any previous work you have done in this area, with reference to
    relevant literature you have read so far.




3   You are asked to state the academic factors (e.g. University facilities, resources or staff),
    which have led you to apply to this University.