Effective Graduate Research Design

This guide, the product of a Master’s Seminar on Interdisciplinary Case Analysis and Research Design at the University of British Columbia’s Institute for Resources, Environment and Sustainability (IRES), provides guidance to graduate students as they begin their formal explorations of these issues — often the issues that drove them to pursue advanced education in the first place. In just a few short pages, students will find a concise introduction to, and reflection on, key elements of the process of conducting interdisciplinary research, with an emphasis on research in the environmental sciences. By drawing on diverse examples from the fields of environmental planning, resource management, ecology, hydrology, and behavioural sustainability, I hope to leave readers with an understanding of the challenges inherent to interdisciplinary research at the graduate level, as well as a set of tools for overcoming those challenges.