Direct answer. Compare methods by reading compulsory modules, assessment formats, facilities, placement requirements and the language used to describe evidence. Most programmes combine several methods; the useful question is which ones dominate.
01 · Interpretive
Guiding question: What does this text, event, artefact or practice mean in context?
- Close reading
- Archival sources
- Historical or cultural argument
02 · Observational
Guiding question: What patterns appear in people, institutions or natural settings?
- Field notes or interviews
- Surveys or measurement
- Comparative cases
03 · Experimental
Guiding question: What changes when one condition is deliberately varied?
- Controlled comparison
- Laboratory or field experiment
- Causal inference boundaries
04 · Computational
Guiding question: What can a formal model, algorithm or dataset reveal?
- Programming or simulation
- Statistical modelling
- Validation and uncertainty
05 · Design-based
Guiding question: What should be built or changed, and how will it be tested?
- Prototype or intervention
- Iterative evaluation
- Constraints and trade-offs
A compact comparison routine
- Open the compulsory module list for each programme.
- Mark each major assessment as interpretive, observational, experimental, computational or design-based.
- Note what is missing, not only what is advertised.
- Verify current facilities, placements, accreditation and prerequisites with the responsible institution.