Introduction -- pt. 1: Starting research -- Starting your postgraduate research -- Choosing the right research degree -- Choosing your supervisor(s) -- Researchquestions and hypotheses -- Research methodologies -- Conceptual frameworks -- Ethics and confidentiality -- Writing a research proposal -- pt. 2: Getting going: Supervisors, time and communities -- Managing your supervisor(s) -- Managing the balancing act -- Managing your time and tasks -- Learning as a research student -- learning approaches, styles and pitfalls -- Developing a supportive research culture locally and at a distance -- pt. 3: Carrying out the research and starting to write -- Methods in brief -- Using grounded theory, case studies, journals and synectics -- Action research and practitioner-based research -- Problem-based research and problem solving -- Research methods for the arts and humanities -- pt. 4: Support, progress, analysis, writing up, the viva, presentations and afterwards -- being organised, keeping records, writing up, stage by stage -- Writing the thesis or dissertation -- Overcoming writing blocks -- Analysing data and thinking about findings -- Learning from feedback -- Writing transfer documents and progress reports for MPhil and PhD thesis -- Writing up: Definitions and qualities of a good MA, MPhil and PhD thesis -- Preparing your thesis -- Preparing for and undertaking your viva -- Presentations, conferences and publishing -- Life after the research -- Index.