Ten Days Advanced Research Methodology Workshop on 'Enhancing Skills for Quality Research' at Central University of Haryana, Mahendergarh (ICSSR Sponsored, No Fee)

The Department of Psychology, School of Social Sciences, Central University of Haryana is organising a Ten Days Advanced Research Methodology Workshop on 'Enhancing Skills for Quality Research' from 9 to 18 September 2026, sponsored by the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), New Delhi.

The course is built around a detailed discussion of new dimensions in social science research, particularly in Psychology, Sociology and Anthropology, for Ph.D. and Post-Doctoral scholars drawn from colleges, post-graduate departments and research institutes. Alongside the theoretical and empirical aspects of these disciplines, the workshop works through the full research cycle: defining the research problem, formulating hypotheses, collecting data, choosing data collection methods, applying tools and techniques of analysis, and handling the various aspects of report writing.

The brochure sets out the following objectives for the course:

• To familiarise participants with the philosophical and theoretical dimensions of the fundamentals of research.
• To help in learning the application of advanced statistical concepts in the analysis of data.
• To acquaint participants with different types of data sources and the means of accessing them.
• To interact with participants on various research methods and techniques of data collection, analysis and interpretation.
• To make the researcher comfortable with the application of quantitative and qualitative tools in research.
• To draw valid inferences and meaningful conclusions from statistical analysis.

Central University of Haryana is one of the fifteen new Central Universities established by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India in the XI Five Year Plan (2007-2012) under the Central Universities Act, 2009. The University was accredited with 'A' grade in the second cycle of NAAC assessment in August 2023 and has been listed among the top 150-200 universities in the NIRF ranking. It is fully funded by the University Grants Commission. The permanent campus occupies 484 acres at Jant-Pali villages in Mahendergarh district, from where the University runs its academic operations, and it presently offers 83 UG, PG and research programmes.

The Department of Psychology sits under the School of Humanities and Social Sciences and began in the academic year 2014-15. It is supported by six permanent and eight guest faculty members and offers five academic programmes: M.A., B.Sc. (Hons.), Ph.D., and two RCI-approved courses, PGDRP and ADCGC. The department is equipped with experimental instruments, psychological tests and computer labs, and organises seminars, workshops, lectures and internships. Its thrust areas include personality, psychological testing, rehabilitation, organisational behaviour, positive psychology, biopsychology and health psychology.

• Research design for social sciences and management research
• Training on software to analyse the data
• Descriptive and inferential statistics
• Qualitative and quantitative research methods
• Ethnographical, phenomenological and ethnomethodological perspectives
• Methodological tools for primary and secondary data
• Research report writing and field survey
• Use of statistical softwares

The resource persons and experts are professors and scholars in the field of Psychology with expertise in research methodology and working knowledge of a range of software, and with extensive experience in the application of statistical tools to data analysis.

The brochure lists the following specific objectives for the course:

• To enhance theoretical, practical, predictive and preventive research knowledge across disciplines.
• To develop skills in research area selection, design formulation, variable operationalisation and data collection.
• To promote research ethics, plagiarism prevention and data integrity practices.
• To familiarise participants with advanced statistical software and qualitative analysis methods.
• To encourage interdisciplinary research collaboration and methodologies based on the Indian Knowledge System.

On completing the course, participants are expected to:

• Gain an in-depth understanding of research and its implications in the decision-making process.
• Understand better how to prepare a research proposal.
• Design reliable and valid questionnaires for the collection of data.
• Use descriptive and predictive statistical tools with analytical software such as SPSS and E-Views.
• Become familiar with univariate, bivariate and multivariate statistical techniques.

The course is meant for research scholars who are currently pursuing their Ph.D. or Post-Doctoral Fellowship in a Social Sciences discipline at UGC-recognised universities and research institutes across India. The main target group is Ph.D. and PDF research scholars from Indian universities and academic institutions who are actively engaged in research.

Intake is capped at a maximum of 30 participants from social science disciplines, allocated as 10 from local, 10 from Haryana state other than local, and 10 from outside Haryana state.

Registration alone does not guarantee participation. The organisers state that the list of selected candidates will be communicated by email.

There is no registration fee for participants.

• Accommodation will be provided to outstation participants only.
• Breakfast, lunch and refreshments will be served to all participants.
• Travel allowance for the shortest distance will be reimbursed to outstation participants only, as per ICSSR guidelines and subject to production of the original ticket(s) for train travel in second or sleeper class.

Interested candidates apply by filling and submitting the online registration form and attaching a signed and scanned copy of the printed registration form that appears on the last page of the brochure. The original signed registration form must be produced on the first day of the course.

The scanned registration form, along with the following documents, must also be emailed to icssrpsych@gmail.com:

• Ph.D. or PDF registration certificate
• Ph.D. coursework completion certificate, if applicable

The online form asks for personal and institutional details, the discipline and date of enrolment of the Ph.D. or PDF, a 300-word summary of the current status of the research work, whether the applicant has attended an ICSSR Research Methodology Course before, familiarity with data analysis software, whether accommodation is required, and a 300-word motivation plan setting out the expected benefits of attending. The form states that AI-generated text is not accepted for the motivation plan. All required documents and the duly filled and forwarded application form must be uploaded as a single PDF.

• Registration will be done on a first-come, first-served basis.
• No leave of any kind is permitted during the course period.
• A personal laptop is compulsory for every participant.

At the end of the Research Methodology Course, a certificate will be issued to participants who complete the assignments and meet the attendance requirement.

The venue is the Central University of Haryana campus at Mahendergarh. The brochure notes that the campus is roughly 125 km from Delhi or Gurgaon via NH-08, turning right for Rewari after Dharuhera and then following the Mahendergarh road; it is about 190 km from Jaipur via Behror and Narnaul, and 27 km from Charkhi Dadri on the Mahendergarh road.

The brochure is inconsistent on when selections are announced. Its 'Important Dates' panel gives 2 September 2026 as the date of the confirmation mail to participants, while the note printed under the registration form on the last page states that the list of selected candidates will be communicated by 30 August 2026. Applicants should watch their email from the last week of August and may confirm the position with the organisers at icssrpsych@gmail.com.