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ELEC8906: Dissertation B (2012 - Semester 2)

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Unit: ELEC8906: Dissertation B (12 CP)
Mode: Normal-Day
On Offer: Yes
Level: Postgraduate
Faculty/School: School of Electrical & Computer Engineering
Unit Coordinator/s: Dr Lu, Dylan
Session options: Semester 1, Semester 2
Versions for this Unit:
Campus: Camperdown/Darlington
Pre-Requisites: [48 credits from MPE degree program] AND [75% average in other non-IT units in previous year].
Co-Requisites: ELEC8903.
Prohibitions: ELEC8901 OR ELEC8902.
Brief Handbook Description: To complete a substantial research project and successfully analyse a problem, devise appropriate experiments, analyse the results and produce a well-argued, in-depth thesis.

Department permission required for enrolment in the following session(s); 1,2
Assumed Knowledge: None.
Additional Notes: In order to enrol in a project, students must first secure an academic supervisor in an area that they are interested. The topic of your project must be determined in discussion with the supervisor. The supervisor can come from any of the Engineering Departments, however, they need to send confirmation of their supervision approval to the Postgraduate Administrator.
Department Permission Department permission is required for enrollment in this session.

Attributes listed here represent the key course goals (see Course Map tab) designated for this unit. The list below describes how these attributes are developed through practice in the unit. See Learning Outcomes and Assessment tabs for details of how these attributes are assessed.

Attribute Development Method Attribute Developed
Select appropriate engineering principles to solve an open-ended problem. Design (Level 3)
Develop research skills and to cope with ambiguity. Information Seeking (Level 3)
Understand that engineering is practied in non-ideal, poorly defined situations. Professional Conduct (Level 3)

For explanation of attributes and levels see Engineering & IT Graduate Outcomes Table.

Learning outcomes are the key abilities and knowledge that will be assessed in this unit. They are listed according to the course goal supported by each. See Assessment Tab for details how each outcome is assessed.

Design (Level 3)
1. Ability to formulate and plan a personal research project.
2. Originality, ingenuity and initiative in dealing with critical research issues.
Engineering/IT Specialisation (Level 4)
3. In-depth knowledge of a specialised area within the discipline.
Maths/Science Methods and Tools (Level 3)
4. Ability to devise an appropriate research method.
5. Ability to analyse raw data, draw appropriate conclusions and present those conclusions in context, with due consideration of methods and assumptions involved.
Communication (Level 4)
6. Ability to document and report research work undertaken in a format appropriate for academic literature.
7. Ability to deliver a research presentation that is clear, confident and engaging to an academic audience.
Assessment Methods:
# Name Group Weight Due Week Outcomes
1 Progress reporting / presentation No 20.00 Multiple Weeks 1, 3, 4, 6, 7,
2 Thesis No 80.00 Week 13 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6,
Grading:
Grade Type Description
Standards Based Assessment Final grades in this unit are awarded at levels of HD for High Distinction, DI (previously D) for Distinction, CR for Credit, PS (previously P) for Pass and FA (previously F) for Fail as defined by University of Sydney Assessment Policy. Details of the Assessment Policy are available on the Policies website at http://sydney.edu.au/policies . Standards for grades in individual assessment tasks and the summative method for obtaining a final mark in the unit will be set out in a marking guide supplied by the unit coordinator.
Policies & Procedures: Academic Honesty in Coursework. All students must submit a cover sheet for all assessment work that declares that the work is original and not plagiarised from the work of others.

Coursework assessment and examination policy. The faculty policy is to use standards based assessment for units where grades are returned and criteria based assessment for Pass/Fail only units. Norm referenced assessment will only be used in exceptional circumstances and its use will need to be justified to the Undergraduate Studies Committee. Special consideration for illness or misadventure may be considered when an assessment component is severely affected. This policy gives the details of the information that is required to be submitted along with the appropriate procedures and forms.

Special Arrangements for Examination and Assessment. In exceptional circumstances alternate arrangements for exams or assessment can be made. However concessions for outside work arrangements, holidays and travel, sporting and entertainment events will not normally be given.

Student Appeals against Academic Decisions. Students have the right to appeal any academic decision made by a school or the faculty. The appeal must follow the appropriate procedure so that a fair hearing is obtained.

Note that policies regarding assessment submission, penalties and assessment feedback depend upon the individual unit of study. Details of these policies, where applicable, will be found above with other assessment details in this unit outline.

All university policies can be found at http://sydney.edu.au/policy

Various request forms for the Faculty of Engineering and IT can be found at http://sydney.edu.au/engineering/forms/

Note that the "Weeks" referred to in this Schedule are those of the official university semester calendar https://web.timetable.usyd.edu.au/calendar.jsp

Week Description
Week 13 Assessment Due: Thesis

Course Relations

The following is a list of courses which have added this Unit to their structure.

Course Year(s) Offered

Course Goals

This unit contributes to the achievement of the following course goals:

Attribute Practiced Assessed
Project and Team Skills (Level 3) No 0%
Design (Level 3) Yes 16%
Engineering/IT Specialisation (Level 4) No 26%
Maths/Science Methods and Tools (Level 3) No 42%
Information Seeking (Level 3) Yes 0%
Communication (Level 4) No 16%
Professional Conduct (Level 3) Yes 0%

These goals are selected from Engineering & IT Graduate Outcomes Table which defines overall goals for courses where this unit is primarily offered. See Engineering & IT Graduate Outcomes Table for details of the attributes and levels to be developed in the course as a whole. Percentage figures alongside each course goal provide a rough indication of their relative weighting in assessment for this unit. Note that not all goals are necessarily part of assessment. Some may be more about practice activity. See Learning outcomes for details of what is assessed in relation to each goal and Assessment for details of how the outcome is assessed. See Attributes for details of practice provided for each goal.