Research Skills in Thesis Versus Course‐Based Master's Programs

Abstract

Master’s programs in the anatomical sciences can be either thesis or course‐based, both providing students with opportunities for research skill development through different degree requirements. However, it is often assumed that skills develop naturally during research experiences, such that students may not be aware of the specific skills that they are developing or the experiences that lead to skill development. Explicit research skill development has many benefits in master’s programs, such as a deeper understanding of learning tasks, and is also important for various careers commonly pursued by anatomy graduates. Using online surveys, this study compared past research skill experiences and future career goals of students in a course‐based Master of Science (MSc) in Clinical Anatomy program and six MSc thesis programs. While this research does not lend itself to a hypothesis, it was predicted that the results would highlight areas for curricular updates based on gaps between students’ current research skill competencies and future goals. The study was based on seven research skills identified by an environmental scan and literature review: communication, problem solving, decision‐making, data collection, data analysis, critical appraisal, and information synthesis. Survey respondents from the MSc thesis (n = 11) and MSc Clinical Anatomy (n = 9) programs were asked about their undergraduate research experiences. Seven MSc thesis students (63.6%) completed an undergraduate honours thesis compared to one MSc Clinical Anatomy student (11.1%), a statistically significant difference in proportions of 0.525 (p = .028). The frequency of opportunities for the development of communication and data collection skills was significantly higher for students who completed an undergraduate honours thesis (mean ranks = 9.50, 9.67) than for those who graduated from a non‐thesis undergraduate program (mean ranks = 4.86, 4.71), U= 6, 5, z= ‐2.384, ‐2.401, p= .035, .022. As well, the perceived data collection competencies of students who completed an undergraduate honours thesis (mean rank = 9.75) were significantly higher than of students who took part in non‐thesis undergraduate research (mean rank = 4.64), U= 4.5, z= ‐2.491, p= .014. Survey respondents were also asked to identify their career aspirations. The two multinomial probability distributions were equal in the population p= .332, showing no statistically significant differences in proportions between the career goals of MSc thesis and MSc Clinical Anatomy students. That said, the data suggests that MSc thesis students aspired for a career in academia (36.4% versus 25.0%) or industry (27.3% versus 0.0%) more than MSc Clinical Anatomy students, whereas more MSc Clinical Anatomy students aimed for a career in medicine (37.5% versus 27.3%) than MSc thesis students. Taken together, these results reveal the similarities and differences between thesis and course‐based master’s students’ research skill backgrounds and career aspirations, illustrating students’ competencies upon entering their programs and the skills important for their career goals. An understanding of these two factors highlights students’ research skill needs to inform curricular updates and program development in anatomy education, ensuring that students have opportunities to develop the skills needed to succeed in their current and future educational and career pathways.