The student is required to undertake a piece of research generally involving an examination of a case study and must include a design chapter. The project should not involve experimental work unless with the prior approval of the project supervisor.
The aim of the module is to cultivate independent thought, initiative and systematic study by the student without dependence on textbooks and lecturers. Project work is open-ended learning as opposed to lectures and structured laboratory classes.
There is no indicative syllabus as the project topic is determined by the student and assigned tutor. Students shall meet with their tutor weekly to report on progress.
Selection of Topic
There are a number of key factors to be considered in the choice of topic :
(a) The chosen topic should be of personal interest to the student.
(b) It should be of suitable academic level, incorporating some theoretical and design work which ideally should go beyond the material covered directly in the programme.
(c) The project should set out clear aims which should be achievable within the allotted time
(d) Supervision and technical advice should be readily available in the chosen topic
Projects can come from a wide variety of civil engineering / structural engineering areas, such as water / wastewater, transport, environmental, waste management, structural etc.
Typically, the chapter listing in the final project report would be as follows:
1 Introduction/background
2 Literature Review
3 Preliminary design / technical chapter
4 Design / technical chapter
5 Conclusions/recommendations
6 Appendices / References
A separate Project Handbook is provided to the student which details the deliverables.
This project is an individual piece of work driven by the student. The tutor will meet with the student every week (20 mins) to discuss progress and to provide direction, however one of the key aims is to encourage the student to undertake self-directed learning.
| Module Content & Assessment | |
|---|---|
| Assessment Breakdown | % |
| Other Assessment(s) | 100 |