Unit Outline

This unit is the first of a Research Thesis unit series concerning the development, planning and conduct of a research project in clinical pharmacy, pharmacy practice or clinical pharmacology. This unit is designed to introduce students to the concepts, principles and practical skills required to undertake a literature review and prepare a research proposal and ethics application. Students must undertake all units (Research Thesis 1, 2, 3 and 4) to complete their research thesis in the Master of Clinical Pharmacy. An interim result will be awarded for successful completion and a final result will be issued in the final unit.

Intended Learning Outcomes

As per the Assessment and Results Policy 1.3, your results will reflect your achievement against specified learning outcomes.

On completion of this unit, you will be able to:


1.	Write a literature review within clinical pharmacy or pharmacy practice to identify gaps in the literature through appraisal of literature primarily sourced from bibliographic databases to provide the justification for a research project.
2.	Design a research proposal within clinical pharmacy or pharmacy practice with, research aims and a protocol that outlines the rationale, study design, data collection, data analysis plan and ethics considerations.
3.	Write in a concise and direct style suitable to a standard for scientific publication.

Requisites


REQUISITE TYPE	REQUISITES
Pre-requisite	CSA721
Anti-requisite (mutual excl)	CSA729, CSA730

Alterations as a result of student feedback

Alterations have occurred by introducing assessable items. 

How will I be Assessed?

For more detailed assessment information please see MyLO.

Assessment schedule


ASSESSMENT TASK #	ASSESSMENT TASK NAME	DATE DUE	WEIGHT	LINKS TO INTENDED LEARNING OUTCOMES
Assessment Task 1:	Literature Review	Week 7	0 %	LO1, LO3
Assessment Task 2:	Research Proposal	Week 13	0 %	LO2, LO3

Assessment details

Assessment Task 1: Literature Review

Task Description:

You will write a literature review on a topic in clinical pharmacy or pharmacy practice.

• The assessment must, at a minimum, meet the rubric pass requirements, in all rubric sections, to pass
• This is a hurdle assessment.

Task Length:

2500 words

Due Date:

Week 7

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Source and organise documents for the literature review using a reference management system.	LO1
2	Organise the literature on the topic and analyse the literature to identify a research gap to formulate a research question.	LO1
3	Write using an academic style of scientific review, with citations and referencing in accordance with the Vancouver style.	LO3

Assessment Task 2: Research Proposal

Task Description:

You are required to write a research proposal based on a research question.
• The assessment must, at a minimum, meet the rubric pass requirements, in all rubric sections, to pass.
• This is a hurdle assessment

Task Length:

2500 words

Due Date:

Week 13

Weight:

0 %

CRITERION #

CRITERION

MEASURES INTENDED

LEARNING OUTCOME(S)


1	Construct a title, aim(s) and rationale to articulate the research gap and justification for the research.	LO2
2	Develop a research plan and methodology aligned to the research question including the study design, experimental methods, data analysis plan and justifications for timeline, personnel and ethics.	LO2
3	Compose an academic style of scientific review, with logical headings, within the word limit, citations and referencing in accordance with the Vancouver style.	LO3

How your final result is determined

To pass this unit, you need to demonstrate your attainment of each of the Intended Learning Outcomes, achieve a final unit grade of 50% or greater, and pass any hurdle tasks.

Submission of assignments

Where practicable, assignments should be submitted to an assignment submission folder in MYLO. You must submit assignments by the due date or receive a penalty (unless an extension of time has been approved by the Unit Coordinator). Students submitting any assignment in hard copy, or because of a practicum finalisation, must attach a student cover sheet and signed declaration for the submission to be accepted for marking.

Requests for extensions

If you are unable to submit an assessment task by the due date, you should apply for an extension.

A request for an extension should first be discussed with your Unit Coordinator or teaching support team where possible. A request for an extension must be submitted by the assessment due date, except where you can provide evidence it was not possible to do so. Typically, an application for an extension will be supported by documentary evidence: however, where it is not possible for you to provide evidence please contact your Unit Coordinator.

The Unit Coordinator must notify you of the outcome of an extension request within 3 working days of receiving the request.

Late penalties

Assignments submitted after the deadline will receive a late penalty of 5% of the original available mark for each calendar day (or part day) that the assignment is late. Late submissions will not be accepted more than 10 calendar days after the due date, or after assignments have been returned to other students on a scheduled date, whichever occurs first. Further information on Late Penalties can be found on the Assessments and Results Procedure.

Review of results and appeals

You are entitled to ask for a review of the marking and grading of your assessment task if there is an irregularity in the marking standards or an error in the process for determining the outcome of an assessment. Details on how to request a review of a mark for an assignment are outlined in the Review and Appeal of Academic Decisions Procedure.

Required Resources

Required reading materials

You will need the following text:
https://www.nhmrc.gov.au/book/national-statement-ethical-conduct-human-research