1. I want to be able to pick a research project that will validate the work that I am doing in this program. Talking to second year Meredith Wong, I found that being passionate about what you are research is equally important as all other aspects. I really took this advice to heart and I am excited to say that I was able to pick a topic that I am very passionate about and excited to build on the research and knowledge that I have on the topic.
2. I want to be able to be prepared by the time the summer is over to get a good start on my project. Meredith told me that she what she was researching and had done reading over the summer. I want to know if there is more we can do over the summer to prepare us for the upcoming year of research. After having the poster session and listening to what suggestions were giving to me, I believe that there is more that I can do over the summer, and planning a trip to Canada possibly in the Spring is one of them.
3. I liked how Meredith is writing “chapters” for her thesis. I think my main research methods will include written text, and not so much human subjects, but I am still trying to figure out what I want my topic to be. After talking to different people at the poster session, I am actually leaning a little bit more towards possibly adding human subjects into my work. This would be possible with the help of a travel/research grant.
4. A good piece of advice or warning that Meredith gave me was that my work is always going to be formalized and revised. What I start in the beginning of my research may look completely different at the end. I feel like I am doing this already. I keep revising my topic to figure out a way that it will fit into the AAd program and I feel like I am getting closer and closer with that goal. I have narrowed it down to two possible topics.
5. Qualitative and Quantitative research was also brought up in our discussion. I don’t have much experience with quantitative research, but I think that I would like to somehow incorporate it into my research so that I gain experience with it. Since I think I will be adding policy into my research topic, I believe I will be able to add some sort of quantitative data component to my research.