Public Policy Analysis

Week 11 - Essay writing

- Individual consultations with tutors (prior arrangement required)

Instructions for the essay

A general advice

Once you choose a topic, please read the description of the topic carefully. Then, try to find out your personal interpretation of the topic. What’s going to be your major point? What would you like to deal with the most? Can you find enough information, data, and evidence to draw a clear and relevant picture and to support your opinion? Try to make a general outline of the essay. Do not forget to consult with your supervisors, we’re here to assist you.

 

Essay’s Purpose

Submitting the essay, you display an ability to conduct independently a clear, relevant, evidence-based assessment of a selected area or issue of public policy. You are supposed to use the theoretical background provided to you at lectures and seminars.

 

Structure

The general structure of the paper is:

  1. Introduction - what is the aim of the paper and what research question you want to answer
  2. Review of current knowledge status - previous research, short theory review, review of possible research methods used for similar examples. 
  3. An explanation of a methodology you use. Sources of data (if it’s relevant).
  4. Analysis, research, and discussion. Apply your knowledge on the selected problem.
  5. Short summary - what did you find out, and what is your opinion about that.
  6. References

 

Formal aspects of the paper

Please be careful about the correct quotation. Choose any norm, but strictly distinguish among your opinion, your summary of others' opinion, direct quotation of someone else work.

Style - format your text carefully, think about the comfort of your reader. Tables, figures, pictures illustrating the text are welcome when they are essential. You can present extensive evidence in Annex.

 

Evaluation

You can obtain up to 30 points for the essay. It is an essay’s relevance, its logic, creativity, complexness of argumentation, formal requirements compliance what is assessed.

 

You are supposed to provide an oral presentation of your essay and to defend the findings at the end of the semester. You can obtain up to 20 points here.

 

Delivery & Deadline

Upload the file with your presentation (PowerPoint or pdf) into the IS/homework_vaults/presentation. Time for the presentation 10 min. Deadline: 19.5. 2021 (Wednesday). The presentation is scheduled for Friday, 21.5. from 9 a.m.

Essay presentation
PowerPoint or pdf files for your 10 minutes oral presentation in the final week.


Upload the final paper (word or pdf) into IS/homework vaults/paper. The expected length of the paper is about 15 pages.

Deadline: 30.05.2021 (so you can use a feedback from the presentation)

Essay final paper
Final version of your essay. Word or pdf file. Deadline 30.5.2021