This guide is for NURS 500 Week 5 Research Proposal Part 3, start to submission. Part 3 of the NURS 500 proposal is the Research Methodology: setting, design, sampling, ethics and IRB, and data, worth 100 points.
NURS 500 is Research, 3 credit hours, in Liberty University's MSN. Canvas and the course guide file print the code as NURS500; it is the same course.
| Course | NURS 500 Research |
|---|---|
| Module/Week | 5 |
| Points | 100 points |
| Length | Part 3 of a 9 to 16-page proposal (about 2 to 4 pages) |
| Sources | Methods sources for the design and sampling choices, counted in the proposal's 10 to 15 references |
| Faith integration | Not required by the guide |
| Format | Current APA throughout |
What NURS 500 Week 5 Research Proposal Part 3 asks for
The guide names this part Research Methodology and lists what it covers: setting, design, sampling, ethics/IRB, and data. Due in Module/Week 5, it turns the questions from Part 1 into a plan a researcher could follow.
The test for every section is fit: does the design answer the questions you asked, does the sample represent the population you named, and does the data plan collect what the questions need? Ethics and IRB get their own heading because a study of patients or nurses needs approval and consent before any data is touched.
Where it fits in NURS 500
In the published schedule, Research Proposal Part 3 is one of 7 graded written assignments in NURS 500. It follows Week 4 Research Proposal Part 2 and comes before Week 6 Research Proposal Part 4.
How NURS 500 Week 5 Research Proposal Part 3 is graded
Liberty grades Research Proposal Part 3 with the rubric attached to the assignment in Canvas, worth 100 points in the published guide. That is about 10% of the course's 1,010 points. Read the rubric first. Each row is a criterion, and the wording of the highest column is the closest thing you have to a model answer.
Course grades in NURS 500 use Liberty's point scale: an A is 940 to 1010 points of the course total. Missing the length or source minimum usually costs points on several rows at once, which is why the checklist below starts with them.
Timing in the published guide: Each course module/week begins on Monday morning at 12:00 a.m. (ET) and ends on Sunday night at 11:59 p.m. (ET). The final module/week ends at 11:59 p.m. (ET) on Friday. Check the due dates in your Canvas section, which govern.
The NURS 500 Week 5 method, step by step
Read this part against the whole
Before drafting Research Proposal Part 3, read ahead to the later parts. Each part builds on the last, and a decision that looks fine now can box you in two weeks later.
Lock the topic and the question early
Commit to one problem and one answerable question. In NURS 500, the parts that follow depend on that question, so time spent sharpening it here is saved later.
Write to the headings the part names
Mirror the instructions: each element the part names becomes a heading. It makes the grading easy to follow and makes it obvious when something is missing.
Support every claim with current evidence
Cite as you write (Methods sources for the design and sampling choices, counted in the proposal's 10 to 15 references). Prefer peer-reviewed sources from the last five years and say what each one contributes; a citation that only decorates a sentence adds little.
Keep the draft consistent with earlier parts
Read the feedback on the previous part first and carry the corrections forward. Consistent wording across parts is what makes the final document read as one proposal.
Check length and APA before submitting
Confirm the length (Part 3 of a 9 to 16-page proposal, about 2 to 4 pages), the APA format and the reference list. Then read the rubric for this part once more and match each row to a heading.
A structure for NURS 500 Week 5 Research Proposal Part 3
Word targets are planning numbers for about 900 words of body text, set by the length in the guide; the rubric decides where to spend more.
| Section | What it must do | Target |
|---|---|---|
| Setting | Where the study would take place and why that setting fits the question. | ~110 words |
| Design | The research design named and justified against the questions. | ~220 words |
| Sampling | Population, sampling method, inclusion and exclusion criteria, sample size reasoning. | ~220 words |
| Ethics and IRB | Approval, consent, risks, confidentiality and data protection. | ~160 words |
| Data collection | What data, collected how, by whom and when. | ~200 words |
A topic angle that works
Name the design in the textbook's terms and say why it fits. For the night-shift falls question, a correlational design using existing incident and staffing records fits a question about association; an experimental design would not, because you cannot ethically assign units to short staffing. Saying why the obvious alternative does not fit is often what lifts this part.
Model paragraph with notes
An original paragraph written by our desk to show the register that earns full rubric credit. It is study material: learn the moves, then write your own.
This study will use a descriptive correlational design, because the research questions ask whether night-shift staffing ratios are associated with fall rates, not whether changing staffing causes fewer falls.1 An experimental design was considered and rejected: assigning units to lower staffing would expose patients to known risk.2 Data will come from twelve months of de-identified incident reports and staffing records on four adult medical-surgical units, which removes the need to contact patients and narrows the ethical review to records access.3
- Names the design and ties it directly to the wording of the research question.
- Shows judgment by naming the design that was rejected and the ethical reason.
- Links the data source to the ethics section, which keeps the parts of the methodology consistent.
Mistakes that cost points on NURS 500 Week 5
- A design that does not match the question. An association question needs a correlational design, an experience question a qualitative one.
- Sampling without numbers. Say how many, chosen how, and why that is enough.
- A one-line ethics section. IRB approval, consent (or why it is not needed), confidentiality and data storage each need a sentence.
- Data collection that skips the instrument. If Part 4 measures something, Part 3 should say how it will be collected.
Checklist before you submit
- Length: Part 3 of a 9 to 16-page proposal (about 2 to 4 pages)
- Sources: Methods sources for the design and sampling choices, counted in the proposal's 10 to 15 references
- Matches the topic and question used in the earlier parts
- Instructor feedback on the previous part applied
- Each rubric row read against the section that answers it
Questions students ask
Do I need real IRB approval for the NURS 500 proposal?
No. You describe how the study would obtain IRB approval and protect participants. The CITI certificate the course requires is a separate item.
Which research design should I choose in NURS 500?
The one your research questions call for. Questions about relationships between variables point to correlational designs, questions about effects of an intervention to experimental or quasi-experimental ones, and questions about experience to qualitative designs.
How many points is NURS 500 Week 5 Research Proposal Part 3 worth?
100 points in Liberty's published course guide for NURS 500, out of a course total of 1,010 points (about 10% of the grade). The rubric attached to the assignment in Canvas shows how those points are divided.
Is NURS 500 Week 5 the same in every section of NURS 500?
This guide follows Liberty's published course guide for NURS 500. Liberty notes that course content can change from term to term, so if your Canvas section shows different instructions, a different week or different points, follow Canvas and your instructor.
Want a tutor to look at your draft?
Send the instructions and what you have so far. A Liberty tutor replies with what to fix first, usually within the hour.