The CIPQ Guide: Road to Academic Research — Academic Reading
The Cambridge International Project Qualification (CIPQ) is an independent qualification where candidates undertake a research project on a topic of choice, and write a 5000-word essay on it. The current issue of this guide takes you along arguably the most labour and time-intensive stage of desk research: academic reading.
Truth be told, undertaking such an intense research project may seem daunting and overwhelming, especially if the CIPQ is your first exposure to it. When I started my own CIPQ journey, I had no idea how demanding academic reading could get. Needless to say, academic reading plays a significant role in ensuring a successful research outcome, so long as you are committed and patient, your time and effort will be worth it.
Searching for and collecting journal articles
In general, Google Scholar is your safest, most reliable academic search engine as they have the most diverse and updated repository of academic publications. For the CIPQ, the volume and diversity of research articles you pull from Google Scholar will more than suffice. That being said, it is still wise to use alternative sites like BASE, ScienceDirect and Semantic Scholar.
How to use Google Scholar
In simple terms, Google Scholar works the same way as the non-academic counterpart: you search via keywords of the topic you want, not full sentences. Searching for suitable papers takes up the bulk of your time. Here is how you can tailor your search queries in 3 simple tips:
- Search using keywords instead of sentences: For instance, if your query is on the effects of AI on education, type in ‘AI and education’ in the bar, instead of ‘what are the effects of AI on education?’
- Year specific articles: Include the year in your search if you are looking for time-specific publications.
- Utilise the Boolean operator: The Boolean operator is a useful tool to allow you to specify your search.
(i) Placing AND in the middle of two words or phrases will specify your search to include both of its mention in your search results.
(ii) Using NOT in front of a word or phrase will exclude articles with the word(s).
(iii) Typing OR between two words or phrases will show results that mention either one of the two.
Additional Tips:
(1) Obviously it will always be ideal to read as many articles as you can. However, the time restraint that comes with the CIPQ means that you should realistically aim to read around 100 articles, i.e. skim 50 of them and read the other 50 thoroughly.
(2) Start broad as you begin to search for articles, then only specify your search by clicking on recommended queries. This way, it is easier to discover articles that way.
(3) Use the latest articles: Academic research moves fast; it is imperative that you cite recent articles instead of old articles so that your arguments are supported by the latest developments in the field. Having said that, it is okay to cite decades-old hallmark articles by well-known researchers. Just make sure to check the validity of the theories presented in the study.
(4) Angles matter: it is futile to base your search only on your research question. Your research question is the conclusion you want to come to; your actual research and analysis should be based on your argument angles, derived from the subject(s) of your research.
For instance, had I narrowed my search to only my topic of car prohibition, my essay would consist mainly of an amalgamation of third party results and findings. This is not what Cambridge is looking for — CIPQ is intended to spur candidates’ own interpretation and synthesis of ideas, aided by research articles.
The component that I based my search on was automobiles, specifically privately-owned cars, because that was the subject of my research. Knowing their merits and disadvantages allows me to argue why cities should and should not ban them. Because the prohibition of automobiles must be implemented through some form of policy like pedestrianisation, some parts of my essay also included my own analysis of policy research as secondary evidence.
To sum up, candidates should angle their research accurately, to prevent rehashing journal articles of the same premise.
Note: a lot of research journals are blocked by a paywall. If you intend to download a paper that requires purchasing, send the DOI link to your supervisor, or head to your college library department, who may be able to obtain the paper for you.
Organising journals
Due to the volume of journals one has to sift through and read for research, it can get overwhelming if you do not have a good filing system. For starters, always categorise your downloaded articles according to the perspective. You can also add hashtags to the PDFs for finer sub-categories.
Having said that, it would be remiss of me to not recommend reference management softwares. These software ease the process by not only organising your downloaded articles, but also automatically generating citations based on your chosen format.
I use Zotero as my preferred research assistant (not affiliated). Upon adding an article, the system automatically indexes and organises it. Keyword tags are generated automatically, but you can always add yours. Additionally, you can read, highlight, and make notes of your PDFs natively within the app itself. If you are using Chrome as your browser, there is even a plug-in to save articles with a single click. You do not even need to download the article onto your own computer.
Reading the articles
Now that you have acquired and sorted through the relevant articles, it is time to commence reading.
The biggest tip I can offer is one that most, if not all, other researchers will also echo: never read chronologically (i.e. in order from start to finish). An efficient and knowledgeable researcher always reads the abstract and conclusion first and foremost before delving into a paper, so as to vet the validity and strength of the paper. A well written research paper should always have a solid abstract that clues you into the premise of the paper, the issues they address, and sometimes the conclusions they find.
Once you understand the basic goal of the paper via the abstract, scroll all the way to the end of the paper to find the conclusion. There you will obtain the result and findings of the paper, which will inform you whether this paper is useful for your study. Most of the time, the conclusion of a paper will more than suffice to support your arguments in a CIPQ essay. That being said, I personally recommend deep diving into papers that you will be citing frequently throughout your essay.
Once you are done with the abstract and the conclusion, it is also worthwhile to read the introduction/background section(s) to deepen understanding of your research topic; you might sometimes even find new issues in the field that need addressing. Besides, the introduction of a paper also lays out the definitions of jargon used in the paper, which is crucial for certain social sciences and humanities fields where definitions vary.
When delving into a paper you want to cite in your study, one thing to always do is highlight, highlight, highlight. You do not want to miss out on a good point to cite. As you read on, the context in which the paper is based will be clearer to you — you should start mentally evaluating whether the social, political, economic, cultural, and geographic context align with your study. By the end of it, you will be able to determine whether to include the paper for your citation. The limitations of a paper you intend to cite should also be considered in your essay as certain shortcomings may influence research outcome.
Final tip: While reading papers, do give the references list a glance through. You might find extremely useful papers for follow-up research!
TL;DR Essence
In distillation, academic reading is a crucial skill to master during your CIPQ endeavour. At this level, Google Scholar will more than suffice for acquiring research articles for your research. Zotero is highly recommended for article organisation and referencing. When reading, always start by skimming the abstract and the conclusion to clue yourself into the research premise, then decide whether to read the paper in its entirety. Crucially, always remember to consider the weaknesses and limitations of a paper, as well as the context on which the paper was based — context specific data may not be transferable to your own research.
Throughout this process, you must regularly update your supervisor on your progress. Should you have any doubts, or if any issues arise, always seek help from your supervisor; they will be the best authority to refer to for guidance.
Resources
- Guide to academic reading (highly recommended read):
Keshav, S. (2007). How to read a paper. ACM SIGCOMM Computer Communication Review, 37(3), 83–84. https://doi.org/10.1145/1273445.1273458
Disclaimer: Any information given is based on the author’s own experience; the author’s views are personal and do not represent the opinions of any other entity. Every effort has been taken to ensure resource links and information provided in this article are up to the date of publishing and comply with fair use standards.
