You and your mentor should use this form in a step by step way to develop your research plan. The scientific merit review form will be submitted for review and provides the foundation of your research plan for your dissertation. Expect that this process will require revisions and reviews and allocate your time and resources appropriately.
This process is primarily driven by what should be considered formative feedback. There should be an understanding of collegiality and collaboration in this process. The scientific merit reviewers understand that their role is to help provide comments that are substantive and assistive.
- Talk with your mentor about your ideas for your dissertation topic and a possible methodological approach.
- Collaborate with your mentor to refine your topic into a specific educational research project that will add to the existing literature on your topic.
- Complete the sections on topic and basic methodology (Sections 1 and 2) and submit to your mentor for approval.
- Collaborate with your mentor until you have mentor approval for the topic and the basic methodology (sections 1 and 2) you plan to use.
- After you have received mentor approval for sections 1 and 2, your mentor will submit them to your specialization chair for topic approval via Dissertation Support.
- After your specialization chair approves the topic, continue to collaborate with your mentor to plan the details of your methodological approach.
- The specialization chair or reviewer should notify the mentor and learner of approval and send a copy of approval to Dissertation Support.
- After you and your mentor have agreed on clear plans for the details of the methodology, complete the rest of the research plan and submit this to your mentor for approval.
- Expect that you will go through several revisions.
- After you have a polished version, you and your mentor should both review the SMR criteria for each section to make sure you have provided the information needed to demonstrate that you have met all of the criteria.
- After you have obtained mentor approval for the research plan and have copied and pasted your information into the scientific merit review form, your mentor will submit the completed form for scientific merit reviewers via Dissertation Support.
- The scientific merit reviewer will review each item to determine whether or not you have met each of the criteria. You must meet all the criteria to obtain approval. The reviewer will provide feedback on any criteria that you have not met.
- The research plan will be approved, deferred for minor or major revisions, not approved, or not ready for review.
- If the research plan has been deferred, you will need to make the necessary revisions and obtain approval for the revisions from your mentor.
- Once you have mentor approval for your revisions, your mentor will submit your research plan for a second review.
- You will be notified if your research plan has been approved, deferred for major or minor revisions, or not approved.
- You will have up to three attempts to obtain scientific merit approval. Researchers, mentors, and reviewers should make every possible attempt to resolve issues before the research plan is failed for the third time. If a researcher does not pass the scientific merit review on the third attempt, then the case will be referred to the research specialists in the School of Education for review, evaluation, and intervention.
- Once you obtain SMR approval, proceed to write the dissertation proposal and prepare your IRB application. The methodology sections on the Research Plan correspond to the sections that are included in the School of Education Dissertation Chapter 3 Guide.
- Scientific merit approval is required before IRB approval, but does not indicate that IRB approval will follow scientific merit approval.
Doc. reference: soe_diss_m03_research_plan_general_instructions.html