SBM ONLINE: SBM organized the 2nd session of the 3rd series of SBM Postgraduate Talk 2018 on the 27th of March 2018, from 9.00 to 11.00 am at SBM’s Main Meeting Room (Kedah Room). The talk was titled “Organizing Your Social Sciences Research Study: Selection of a Research Topic” was delivered by Dr. Abdul Manaf Bohari, Senior Lecturer from the School of Business Management.

Dr. Abdul Manaf Bohari, started the session by sharing his own experience when doing his PhD where he stressed to the audiences that gaining a PhD is a journey which they need enjoy. He gave examples of the first steps, from choosing his thesis topic until graduation. He emphasized that selecting a good topic is not easy, as it requires finding adequate information and knowing what the final research should look like which takes time. For this to happen, we must know the types of business research e.g. Applied or Basic. Furthermore, he stressed that there are factors related to selecting a topic such as new issues, availability of data, and research methodology to name but a few.

He articulated that students must develop important skills in order to be able to select a good topic such as brainstorming for ideas, choosing a topic that will enable you to read and understand the literature, ensuring that the topic is manageable and that materials are available. Further to this, making a list of the key words, being flexible, defining your topic as a focused research question, researching and reading around the chosen topic and formulating a thesis statement would be crucial. He later went on to explain all these points in detail.

The session was very interesting. Generally, the participants greatly benefitted from the session and the discussions associated with it. At the end, the participants expressed their gratitude towards SBM and Dr. Abdul Manaf Bohari for sharing his extensive knowledge and experience. The session was closed by giving certificates for all staff and postgraduates who participated.