Overview
The AIMS Ghana Taught Master’s Program includes a research project, which makes up one third of the course. Proposal submissions using the form below close on February 28, 2020, and are reviewed by AIMS Ghana academic staff. Approved topics are made known to current students by March 9, 2020. Each student will select a topic by March 13, 2020. Early interaction between students and supervisors often informs the choice of a topic. The actual research project phase of the program is from April 4 to June 1, 2020. The research projects are examined externally and oral defense sessions are scheduled for 1 to 5 June, 2020. Lecturers and industry researchers are invited to propose essay topics for the 2019/2020 academic year.
Project Description
The purpose of an AIMS Ghana research project is:
- to give students the opportunity to work with an expert supervisor on a research project
- to go through the process of reviewing, understanding and explaining scientific or mathematical material
- to optionally do experiments – on a computer or otherwise – and report the results
- to write a scientific report
This Research Project Phase is three months long. Projects should be of an appropriate scope to allow students to do the necessary reading, work, and writing in this time. The level of the project should be at the Ghanaian Taught Master’s degree level and in some cases may lead to further work which could grow into a more substantial research project leading to a Research Master’s degree or exceptionally towards a PhD degree. The recommended length of the research project is between 25 to 35 pages, and it is emphasised that the project should not exceed this number of pages.
The proposal must contain references of which at least one should be to a textbook, chapters from a textbook or a general review article. Further selected references to journal articles can be included where appropriate. The research project should be on a topic in the mathematical sciences and contain at least some parts that are formulated in terms of mathematics.
Students are not expected to do original work to achieve a passing grade. However, the criterion for an outstanding research project is broadly that it could constitute the early part of a Research Master’s thesis. For example, it could be publishable in a journal, or form an outstanding introduction to the field that could be used by other students entering the area.
Supervisors should be well versed in the field within which the project is proposed. They are expected to guide students in their research projects and to help clarify difficult concepts. A supervisor should not take an excessive number of students -typically this would mean no more than 5 students. Supervisors who are not resident in Ghana should be prepared to visit AIMS Ghana in order to interact sufficiently with a student. An honorarium is paid to those whose topic is chosen by a student and who subsequently become a supervisor for the duration of this essay phase.
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