The Innovation in the Teaching of Research Methods Excellence Awards is being run for the 5th time this year. We continue to be encouraged by the interest which has been shown in these Excellence Awards, as we believe that the case histories recorded here are a valuable asset to those who are trying to improve their teaching of research methodology in the social sciences. Initially 20 submissions were received and 15 contenders were invited to submit a full case history describing their initiative. These case histories were double-blind peer review and this publication contains the entries of the shortlisted contestants. We are once again pleased to see the global reach these Awards have with contributions this year from Belgium, New Zealand, Netherlands, Portugal and South Africa. We feel that these case histories provide helpful insights into the types of issues academics are coping with when teaching research methodology today in various parts of the world. These case histories are also included in a compilation book of the past five years Excellence Awards finalists.