PhD students in the GSMHS are required to submit a thesis proposal within the first six months of registration as a PhD student. This course supports students in developing a strong PhD thesis proposal by focusing on both the structure and process of proposal writing, ultimately leading to a successful submission.

• Identify the research problem with a sound research question
• Define general and specific objectives
• Develop an appropriate methodology to investigate the research question by addressing the objectives and underlying hypotheses
• Understand the emphasis on ethical research conduct and the timeline to submit a proposal to the relevant commission(s)
• Write and revise more confidently in English

Through individual document review with the instructor, students will be able to:

• Receive detailed feedback twice on their own proposal drafts
• Complete the thesis proposal within the first six months of their program
• Prepare a five-slide summary of their thesis project

Students in the first year of their PhD.

Maximum 14 participants per course.

Carol Leininger (MPH Biostatistics, PhD Rhetoric and Professional Communication) is a writing coach and has been teaching this course since fall 2019.

• Three in-class sessions (~75-105 min each)
• One presentation session – students presents their proposal in 5 slides/5 minutes (~90 min session)
• Independent work on students’own proposal between sessions (~ 20-25 hr)
• One face-to-face online individual review session between student and lecturer after lecturer review of student’s advanced proposal draft (45-60 min)

1 ECTS, learning contract required