INSTITUTE OF DISASTER RISK MANAGEMENT AND FOOD

SECURITY STUDIES
PhD PROGRAM IN DISASTER RISK SCIENCE

GRADUATE SEMINAR I (DiRs7131)

BY:
Mossa Endris (PhD, Associate Professor in Social Anthropology)
2023

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 Course objectives
• To introduce candidates to simple techniques of
presentation and communication

• To help them learn the methods of reviewing,

analyzing, compiling and presenting most recent
research works and findings

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 Course description
• A PhD candidate will select
– relevant current scientific topic in consultation with the
seminar advisor;
– sets the structural contents of the work;
– make exhaustive literature review on the selected
seminar topic and analyze scientifically;
– summarize the review and present the relevant data in
tables and figures;
– the candidate presents his/her observations and
– review facts (related to his/her field of specialization but
not from his/her dissertation) to the audience within the
registered time frame or semester.

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 Mode of delivery
 PhD seminar presentation
 Announced to all interested participants and
 The candidate is expected to present his/her
observations in the seminar on the selected topic
related to his field of specialization other than his
dissertation research topic.
 Presentation will be conducted using
audio-visual aids like Power-point in a meeting hall
for one hour (20 to 25 minutes presentation by the
student and 20 to 30 minutes for discussion (questions and
answers).

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 Assessment methods
• Evaluation of the content and presentation by professionals and
peers.
• School Graduate Council members and graduate students will
evaluate the course based on
– the organization of the compiled review paper;
– manner of presentation and response of the candidate to questions.
• An evaluation form prepared for this purpose will be used.
– Paper quality = 50%
– Presentation = 30%
– Responding to questions = 20%
– Total = 100%

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 Grading

• Grading will be done as per the university’s

regulation.

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 Literature Searching and Review
• is the documentation of a comprehensive review
of the published and unpublished work from
secondary sources of data in the areas of specific
interest to the researcher.

• The literature review is an integral part of the

entire research process and makes a valuable
contribution to almost every operational step.

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 Functions of literature…
• Bring clarity and focus to your research
problem
•  Improve your methodology
• Broaden your knowledge base in your
research area
• Contextualise your findings

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 Steps of reviewing literatures
• search for existing literature in your area of
study;
• review the literature selected;
• develop a theoretical framework;
• develop a conceptual framework;
• writing up the literature reviewed

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 Plagiarism
• Students must write their essays and
assignments in their own words.
• Whenever students take an idea, or a
passage of text from another author, they
must acknowledge their debt both by using
quotation marks where appropriate and by
proper referencing such as footnotes or
citations.
• Plagiarism is a major academic offence
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 Plagiarism Checking

• All required papers may be subject to submission

for textual similarity review to the commercial
plagiarism detection software under license to the
University for the detection of plagiarism.
• All papers submitted for such checking will be
included as source documents in the reference
database for the purpose of detecting plagiarism of
papers subsequently submitted to the system.

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 Thesis Guideline

 IDRMFSS Thesis Guideline

F:\IDRMFSS_Final-Research-Guideline_May-2020.pdf

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 How to Prepare for and
Present a Seminar

Some Advice…for professional

life

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 Power of effective communication

 Leadership
 Inspire colleagues
 Power of analysis and synthesis
 Simplify complex issues … explain
 Recognition within organization

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 General and specific rules in making a presentation

1. KNOW YOUR AUDIENCE

2. BE PREPARED
- confidence
- mechanical issues
- notes/no notes?
3. BE ON TIME
- slides or no slides?
- how many slides?
- remember: Effective is
the key word

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 General…

4. HAVE A MESSAGE
HAVE A STORY TO TELL
(make sure it is clear to you!)

5. TELL THE AUDIENCE

WHAT YOU WILL DO
DO IT
TELL THEM WHAT YOU DID

6. NO COMMERCIALIZATION
& GIVE CREDITS
- co-authors
- sponsors
- slides “borrowed”
- data

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 General …

7. LESS IS MORE
(BEAUTY IN SIMPLICITY)
8. NO JOKES
- fine line between being
entertaining and unprofessional
USE PERSONAL STORIES THAT
STRENGTHEN MESSAGE

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 General…
9. ENGAGE THE AUDIENCE
CONNECT WITH THEM
10. BE EXCITED ABOUT
THE SUBJECT; BE POSITIVE

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 SPECIFIC SKILL SETS
1. DO NOT LOOK AT SLIDES/SCREEN
LOOK AT THE AUDIENCE
IMPORTANCE OF EYE CONTACT
2. ATTENTION SPAN OF AUDIENCE
(1/3rd RULE)
DO NOT BARRAGE THEM WITH SLIDES

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 Specific …

3. CLARITY

- in writing
- in graphs and tables
- color scheme
- sentences vs bullets
- photos
- margins
- Movies
4. VOICE, TONALITY,
LOUD ENOUGH? …………ETC

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 RESEARCH PROPOSAL WRITING

• Research proposal is an overall plan, scheme, structure and

strategy designed to obtain answer to the research problems/
questions that constitutes your research project.
• A research proposal should outline the various tasks you plan to
undertake to fulfill your research objectives, test hypotheses or
obtain answers to your research question and reasons for
undertaking the study.
• Broadly, a research proposal main function is to detail the
operational plan.
• In doing so it ensures and reassures the readers the validity of the
methodology.

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 Research proposal
• A research proposal must tell you, your supervisor and reviewers the
following information about your study.
 What you are proposing to do
 How you plan to proceed; and
 Why you selected the proposed strategy.
• Therefore, it should contain the following information about your study
– Statement of the problem
– Objectives of the study
– A list of hypotheses, if you are testing any
– The Methodology (including study design, data collection methods, data collection
tools/instrument(s) you are planning to use, Sampling size and sampling design, Data
processing/analysis procedures, etc)
– Review of related literature (include Theoretical and conceptual framework)
– The setting for your study
– Online of the proposed chapters for the report
– The proposed timeframe, work plan and budget

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Research proposal
• The research proposal should communicate the purpose and plan of
the research in such a way that it;
 Enables a researcher to return to the proposal for his/ her guidelines in
decision making at different stages the research.
 Convinces your supervisor or reviewer that your proposed methodology
is meritorious, raid, appropriate and workable interims of attaining
objective/ question.
CONTENT OF RESEARCH PROPOSAL
1. INTRODUCTION
• In writing this section the literature review is of central importance.
• Start with a very broad perspective of the main subject area before
gradually narrowing the focus to the central problem under
investigation.

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 Research Proposal
• In doing so, cover the following aspects of your study
area.
– An overview of the main area understudy
– Historical perspective ( development, growth, etc)
pertinent to the study area
– Philosophical or ideological issues relating to the topic
– Trends in terms of prevalence, if appropriate
– Major theories, if any
– The main issues, problems, and advance in the
subject area
– Major findings relating to the core issue
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 Research Proposal
2. THE PROBLEM STATEMENT
•Here focus on issues relating to the issues central theme, identifying
some of the gaps in the existing body of knowledge; Identify some of
unanswered questions.
•Here some of the main research question that you like to answer should
also raised, and a rational for each should be provided.
•Specifically, this section should:
 Identify the issue that are the basis of your study
 Specify the main gaps in the existing body of knowledge
 Raise the main research question that you want to answer
 Identify what knowledge is available concerning your question and specify
difference of opinion in the literature, if any
 Develop rational for your study with particularly reference to how your
study will fill the gaps.

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 Research Proposal
3. OBJECTIVE OF THE STUDY
•In this section both main and sub-objectives should be
stated.
•Your main objective indicate the central thrust, whereas the
sub- objectives identity the specific issues you propose to
examine.
•The objectives of the study should be clearly stated and
specific in nature.
•Each sub-objectives should delineate only one issue.
•Use action oriented words like “to determine,” “to find out,”
“to ascertain,” “to explore” etc in formulating your objectives.
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 Research Proposal
4. THE HYPOTHESES TO BE TESTED
•A hypothesis is a statement of your assumptions about the
prevalence of a phenomenon or about the relationship
between two or more variables that you plan to test within
the framework of the study.
•Hypothesis has a particular style of formulation.
•In a study you may have as many hypotheses to test.
•However, it is not essential or mandatory to have a
hypothesis in order to undertake a study.
•You can conduct a perfectly satisfactory study without
formulating a hypothesis.
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 Research Proposal
5. THE STUDY DESIGN
•Describe the study design you plan to use to answer research questions (eg. a
cross- sectional, longitudinal, before and after, and experimental design).
•Explanation of sampling : The size of the sampling population (if known) and
from where and how this information on is obtained; the size of the sample you
will select and your reasons for choosing this size, etc
•Identify the strength and weakness of your study design.
•Your study design should include information about:
 Who makes up the study population
 Can each element of the study population be identified? It ‘yes’, how?
 Will a sample or the total population be studied?
 How will you get in touch with the selected sample?
 How will the sample’s consent to participate in the study be sought?
 How will the data be collected ( by interview, survey, or by observation)?
 How you the confidentially be preserved?

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 Research proposal
6. THE SETTING
•Briefly describe the organization, agency or community in which you
will conduct your study.
•If the study is a bout group of people, highlight some of the silent
characteristics of the group (e.g. locaton, History, size, composition,
structure, etc) and draw attention to any available relevant information.
• If your research concerns an agency, office, or organization, state:
 The main services provided
 Administrative structures
 Types of clients
 Other information about the issue that are central to your research

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 Research Proposal
7. MEASUREMENT PROCEDURE
•This include you instruments and detail of how you operationalize the
variable.
•To start with, justify your choice of the researches tools, their strength
and weakness; if you are using standardized instruments discuss the
availability of evidences on its reliability and validity.
•If you adapt or modify, describe and explain the changes you have
made.
•You should discuss how you are going to operationalize the major
concepts.
•Ideally, you should attach a copy of research instruments to your
proposal.

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 Research Proposal
8. ANALYSIS OF DATA
•In general terms, describe the strategy you intended to use for data
analysis.
•Specify whether the data will be analyzed manually or by computer.
•For computer analysis, identify the software’s and statistical procedures
you plan to perform on the data.
•Identify the variables for cross-tabulation.
9. WORK SCHEDULE
•You must set your set dates as you need to complete the research within
a certain time frame.
•List the various activity plans you need to undertake and indicate against
each date by which you aim to complete the task.
•Develop Chart as Follows
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 Research Proposal
Tasks Months or Weeks
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12

Proposal writing                    
 

Instrument                        
construction

Data collection                      

Codding                      

Analysis                    
Report                      
Typing                        

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 Research Proposal
10. Reference and Bibliography
•References provides readers with precise details of the literature you have
cited so they are able to find these papers with ease.
•References are the source material that you have referred to quoted in your
paper.
•It might include books, periodicals, published reports, proceedings of
conferences, theses + dissertation + or other academic papers, personal
communications, websites, etc.
•Bibliography lists materials that you have used but not referred to directly
in your paper.
•You might include material that you think your reader may find useful
interesting.
•Structure items in bibliography exactly as in reference without the number.

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 Research Proposal
10. APPENDIX/ ANNEX
•These are useful information/materials that do
not directly related to the main ideas in your
document but might get the attention of some of
your readers.
•Example, detailed statistics, complex diagrams,
charts and other graphic information, extracts,

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 Seminar topics
No Name Topic
1 Tesfahun Telake Admasu DRM policy and strategies in Ethiopia

2 Gebremichael Kassa Patterns & consequences of drought in Ethiopia

3 Mihret wodage Developmental impacts of PSNP: success and
failure stories in Ethiopia

4 Mohamed Abdullahi Omer Livelihoods and climate change in East

Africa/Somaliland
5 Melkamu Sete wereta Social protection for Rural Ethiopia
6 Fentahun Gebrie Mucha Women, youth and peace building in Ethiopia
7 Dayib Abdi Adan Resilience to drought: experiences of
Somaliland

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 Assignment
• Systematic reviewing of literatures based
on the identified topics
• Deadline for submission and presentation
– Submission 30/12/2022
– Presentation 02/01/2023 every Friday

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 Steps of reviewing literature
1) Topic
2) Background
3) Objective
4) Methods/inclusion and exclusion criteria added
5) Results (findings)/discussion
6) Summary
7) Recommendation
8) References

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 Tips
• Number of articles to be reviewed should be not less
than 25.
• The year of publication for each articles should be 2015
on.
• The page of the assignment is not less than 20 including
all parts
• Citations and referencing should be in line with the
Thesis Guideline of IDRMFSS.
• Sources of references should be reliable and credible.
• Using Endnote software is recommendable.

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THE END!!
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