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| Module Availability |
| Autumn Semester |
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| Assessment Pattern |
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Components of Assessment
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Method(s)
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Weighting
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Coursework 1
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2,500 words project report assignment
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60%
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Coursework 2
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Presentation on one individual and one group project (aggregate mark with 50% weighting on each presentation)
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40%
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Qualifying Condition(s)
A weighted aggregate mark of 50% is required to pass the module. |
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| Module Overview |
| This module addresses the fundamental concepts and principles of academic research and trains the students in this area through organising practical activities. |
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| Prerequisites/Co-requisites |
| None |
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| Module Aims |
The aim of the module is to build skills in research methods and to help the students understand and communicate research. Students are expected to acquire a good understanding of the underlying principles and practices. They will be trained to develop a critical approach to research presentations and skills to help them present, plan, organise, and undertake their own research projects. Due emphasis will be given on subject areas in engineering and physical sciences. |
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| Learning Outcomes |
On successful completion of the module, you will be able to:
· Develop understanding of the purpose and nature of the research;
· Become familiar with the different types of research, developing skills to differentiate between academic and industrial research
· Be familiar with issues associated with ethics and academic misconduct;
· Understand the different components of a research related study and demonstrate capabilities to formulate proposals
· Understand ways to assess the state-of-the-art and means to conduct a literature review;
· Plan, organize and undertake experiments taking into account the health, safety, ethic and scientific requirements including experimental error analysis;
· Write reports on research and experiments and to understand different requirements and formats for report writing;
Appreciate requirements and opportunities for protecting and exploiting research |
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| Module Content |
Introduction: needs for research in industry, business and research institution, sources of research support, consequences on industry and business;
Organising research: objectives and scientific methods, the framework of research, the purpose and methods of literature review using bibliographic resources;
Practical considerations: experimental methods, error analysis and calculation of uncertainties; health and safety considerations, ethics in research;
Communicating research: presentations and oral communication, report and research paper writing, the use of the Internet, preparing research proposals;
Intellectual property: importance of the patent search, protecting and exploiting research |
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| Methods of Teaching/Learning |
10 hours of lectures, 10 hours of tutorials and seminars, 10 hours of individual and group project work and presentations.
All knowledge related to the learning outcomes above is delivered through lectures, tutorials and seminars and practical project work.
Total student learning time 150 hours. |
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| Selected Texts/Journals |
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None
Required reading
None
Recommended background reading
Students will be issued with a set of relevant papers |
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| Last Updated |
02/10/2009 |
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