Getting a postgraduate degree is a very challenging task. To get this degree, you have to pass the postgraduate research projects and coursework writing assignments. Both these things are used to evaluate the student’s knowledge and skills. Most of the students take them as similar kinds of texts and hence fail to grab good grades. In actuality, research projects and coursework are two different aspects of a master’s degree.
Keeping in view that you are unaware of the differences between postgraduate research projects and coursework, today’s post is all about discussing their differences. However, before we get to the differences, let’s have a look at their definitions.
What Is A Postgraduate Research Project?
A postgraduate research project is a project that you complete as part of your master’s by research degree. This could be a research project like a thesis or a dissertation. in addition to this, it could also be a design project that you complete under the supervision of an academic supervisor. Such a project is a lengthy task that takes months and years to complete. The reason is that it is based on original research and design. As the researcher, you just cannot copy the ideas of others and present them as yours.
What Is Postgraduate Coursework?
On the other hand, postgraduate coursework is a task assigned to students in order to fulfill their academic requirements. The Oxford Dictionary defines postgraduate coursework as “A written or practical work done by the student as part of its degree, and that counts towards his final grade.” Some examples of coursework are art and craft projects, essays, assignments, and practical works of different kinds. Well-designed coursework help teachers evaluate the learning skills of a student. Hence, this is what postgraduate coursework is.
Major Differences Between Postgraduate Research Projects And Coursework
One difference, i.e., the difference in the definition of both aspects of a master’s degree, is already mentioned above. However, there are much more differences between master research projects and coursework than definitions. Hence, a brief description of all those is as follows:
The Difference In The Complexity
The first difference lies in the complexity of both documents. A research project is a lengthy, time taking, and complex writing project. It includes different chapters which require proper research on the subject matter and a vast amount of credible and amount data. On the other hand, coursework is not that complex. If you take classes regularly, you can easily complete it.
The Difference In The Length
The difference in length is the most obvious difference between postgraduate research and coursework. The master’s research project is usually 15,000 to 20,000 words long. If you convert it to the number of pages, it becomes about 100 pages of MS Word. In contrast, the coursework length is no more than 10 to 15 pages, including figures, tables, etc.
The Difference In The Structure
Both postgraduate research projects and coursework differ in their structures. The structure of a research project consists of different chapters. The main chapters of the project are the introduction, literature review, research methodology, results and analysis, and conclusion. In the meantime, the coursework’s structure depends on the type of coursework. If it is an essay, you only need to provide an introduction, body paragraphs, and a conclusion.
The Difference In The Writing
The 4th difference between research projects and coursework is about writing guidelines and end product. When you work on the research project, you have the liberty to choose the topic, and also your results do not matter a lot. On the other hand, coursework has strict writing guidelines. The teacher wants you to write what is expected of you. If you refrain from following the writing guidelines, you may get an F. Well, you can save yourself from an F grade by taking authentic and credible coursework writing services.
The Difference In The Duration
A huge difference lies in the duration of the completion of both documents. A Postgraduate research project normally takes one to two years to complete depending on its topic. At the same time, the coursework writing duration is only limited to several weeks. For example, if your teacher has assigned you a topic today, he may ask you to submit it in the next week. Hence, there is a difference in the project completion duration.
Conclusion
Resultantly, postgraduate research projects and coursework are two different documents. Although both are necessary to complete your master’s degree, still, they are different in their definitions, way of doing, length, way of writing, and duration. The major differences between both are mentioned above. As a postgraduate student, you must give proper attention to all the differences mentioned above. Hence, read them, understand them, and write them accordingly.