ABSTRACT
The second of the Dublin Descriptors states that a successful doctoral candidate will have ‘demonstrated the ability to conceive, design, implement and adapt a substantial process of research with scholarly integrity’. The ability to construct an achievable, viable, tractable research question is a rare skill. Few have this skill naturally, and it is frequently an iterative process, demonstrating the ability to ascertain what in the area is important, disentangling the chaos of related issues by trial and ‘error’. This chapter examines this skill, as well as the ability to select appropriate methods and techniques to answer the research question effectively; to design, possibly by tweaking selected methods in order to suit the question or questions perfectly. Of course, there is a need to put those methods into practice and carry the research out with honour and reliability, upholding the standards both the academic and wider community hold to be significant. This is a learning experience for anyone, but for a doctoral candidate from an educational system where questioning of any kind is not encouraged, this is represents a significant challenge.
