MEMORANDUM

Date: 10/24/14
To: Professor Stone
From: Giannino Rodriguez
Subject: Progress Report

Below, I discuss the status of my progress with my inquiry into disciplinarity project.

Introduction
I am investigating the discipline of Accounting. As my primary research question, I want to know what
the culture is like in my discipline and what strengths I should try to obtain that will give me an
advantage in this particular culture of my discourse community. As one my secondary research
questions, I want to find out if one organization or internship can better prepare me for my profession
than another. And if so, what can I do to find out, who can I discuss this with, and what particular
advantages would these organizations or internships give me? Another secondary research question is,
what other areas can a degree in my major lead me to and what would be the steps to prepare me for
these particular areas? My final secondary research question, once an insider in the discourse
community or organization, what particular roles would I have and is there a way to prepare these new
members? Once an insider and a leading role acquired, what impact can that leading role have on the
students in the academy?

Research Methods
My research methods include interviewing, surveying, site observation, and document analyses.

Interview(s)
I have not yet scheduled an interview, but I plan on interviewing Professor David Stone, my teacher to
my Introduction to Global Business class. I have a request email ready and plan to have the interview
next week if he is able to. I had planned on interviewing sooner, but I got caught up with activities and
tests going on in that course. My interview questions will explore my professors personal experiences
and I will be able to apply them towards my research questions.

Survey(s)
I am currently editing and reflecting on the survey questions and plan to start handing them out next
week in the College of Business Administration building in between class periods. I will hand out papers
with links to the survey, and also offer my tablet to access the survey in person. The survey questions
will help a great deal with most of my secondary research questions and I will hopefully have a good
understanding on what type of involvement I should have with the discipline by a certain time.

Site Observation(s)
For my site observations, I went to a Computer Information Systems workshop on October 21 st for
information on what types of internships past and current students are doing and get an idea of what
everyday life is like during one. I plan on attending another workshop on October 28th about Human
Resource Management.

Document Analysis
The first document I analyzed was the College of Business Administration Course Road Map. This
document acts as a guide to what classes business students should enroll in all through undergraduate
school. The second document I analyzed was the Career Week Workshop sheet. This document is a
schedule of multiple workshops of different business majors and encourages students to attend. This
functions as a guide for students who are still indecisive about the area in their studies.

Conclusion
I feel confident I will have all the information I need and steps completed on time. Difficulties I have
come across is time management between all of my courses and continuing with my inquiry. A difficulty
I am anticipating is my professor not responding to my interview request, since I have heard of other
colleagues who have encountered the same problem. My document analysis and site observations have
come through on time, and my surveys and interview will be completed by this following week.

Appendix
Interview Questions
1. What are your experiences with clubs and organizations and what would you recommend for an
accounting student based on your experiences?
2. What conflicts do insiders face, and how can one overcome these conflicts? How great is the impact
on the student himself?
3. To your knowledge, how broad and general can a degree be? What is your experience with a degree
and a career not being directly correlated?
4. How has internships affected your knowledge to your study? Regardless if there are possible job
openings later, was your internship worth it, especially for experience?
5. What role did you first have in the organization and how did it initially impact you? What role in an
organization is the most effective for success?
6. Are there any activities a student should do to prepare for success in the future?
7. What is an effective way to stay on track with all the course material, internships, organization
responsibilities, etc?

Survey Questions
1. What is your grade classification? (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior)
2. Are you involved in any clubs or organizations? Please specify. (response box)
3. The clubs or organizations you are in help you prepare for your specific future career. (strongly
disagree, disagree, agree, strongly agree)
4. Are you searching for or currently hold an internship position? Please specify. (response box)
5. This internship will prepare you for your specific future career. (strongly disagree, disagree, agree,
strongly agree)