| Unit name | Client Project |
|---|---|
| Unit code | INOVM0034 |
| Credit points | 40 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
| Unit director | Dr. Parker |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | Centre for Innovation |
| Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Why is this unit important?
The ‘Client Project’ unit is a cornerstone of the Master of Arts in Digital Innovation programme, providing students with a unique opportunity to apply their acquired knowledge and skills to real-world challenges. Partnering with companies in the digital media sector, this unit fosters a practical understanding of how digital innovation can be applied to solve business problems, offering invaluable professional experience and direct insight into industry dynamics.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study?
Positioned in Teaching Block 2, the ‘Client Project’ serves as an integrative experience, bringing together learning from previous units. It allows students to demonstrate their competency in digital innovation, UX design, and business strategy within a practical context. This project not only reinforces technical and creative skills but also enhances teamwork, communication, and project management abilities, preparing students for professional roles in digital innovation.
An Overview of Content
In this unit, students will engage with real-world digital media challenges presented by partner companies. The focus is on developing practical and innovative solutions in response to these challenges, allowing students to apply their learning in meaningful ways. The course emphasizes team-based project work, simulating a professional consultancy experience where students collaborate to deliver tangible results for their clients.
Personal Development as a Result of the Unit
Through this unit, students will experience significant personal development. In terms of knowledge, they will deepen their understanding of digital innovation and how it is applied in industry contexts. In the realm of thinking, students will enhance their problem-solving and strategic thinking skills as they tackle complex projects. Additionally, students will develop crucial professional skills, including project management, teamwork, and client communication, which will prepare them for future roles in digital media and related fields.
Learning Outcomes
How You Will Learn
This unit employs a student-centred, project-based learning approach, emphasizing collaboration, innovation, and real-world application. Students will engage in team project work, regular feedback sessions at company offices, and final solution presentations.
To facilitate learning and preparation for the final assessment, students will participate in project development workshops and interim project presentations. These sessions provide opportunities for feedback from industry partners and academic staff, which is crucial for refining and iterating on the client project.
Additionally, students will participate in peer-led critique sessions where they present their ongoing projects for feedback. These sessions are designed to help students refine their understanding and application of digital innovation tools in practical settings, enhancing their critical analysis, synthesis and problem-solving skills.
These activities are formative in nature, meaning they contribute to skill development and hands-on experience but do not directly affect the unit's final mark. Instead, they serve as crucial stepping stones towards mastering the skills and knowledge required for success in digital innovation.
An Autoethnographic Individual Reflective Critique is a reflective assignment where students analyse their personal experiences related to a project or learning activity. They must situate these experiences within a broader theoretical framework and draw on relevant academic literature to provide a deeper, contextual understanding of their actions and insights.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
Ongoing project supervision with clients will provide real-world insights and necessary adjustments. Initial Client Engagement discussions are planned to gain early feedback on project alignment with client needs. A Client Pitch is aimed at refining project strategies based on expert feedback.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
Team Project, 4000 words or equivalent (75%). [ILOs 1, 2, 3, 4]
A team-produced presentation of a student-developed design solution, including research, prototype(s), and relevant user input.
For the Team Project, the word count will be shared across the group.
Individual autoethnographic reflective critique, 1000 words or equivalent (25%). [ILOs 1, 2, 3, 4]
An individual autoethnographic reflective critique on your input into the project.
When assessment does not go to plan
When required by the Board of Examiners, you will normally complete reassessments in the same formats as those outlined above. However, the Board reserves the right to modify the form or number of reassessments required. Details of reassessments are normally confirmed by the Centre shortly after the notification of your results at the end of the academic year
If this unit has a Resource List, you will normally find a link to it in the Blackboard area for the unit. Sometimes there will be a separate link for each weekly topic.
If you are unable to access a list through Blackboard, you can also find it via the Resource Lists homepage. Search for the list by the unit name or code (e.g. INOVM0034).
How much time the unit requires
Each credit equates to 10 hours of total student input. For example a 20 credit unit will take you 200 hours
of study to complete. Your total learning time is made up of contact time, directed learning tasks,
independent learning and assessment activity.
See the University Workload statement relating to this unit for more information.
Assessment
The assessment methods listed in this unit specification are designed to enable students to demonstrate the named learning outcomes (LOs). Where a disability prevents a student from undertaking a specific method of assessment, schools will make reasonable adjustments to support a student to demonstrate the LO by an alternative method or with additional resources.
The Board of Examiners will consider all cases where students have failed or not completed the assessments required for credit.
The Board considers each student's outcomes across all the units which contribute to each year's programme of study. For appropriate assessments, if you have self-certificated your absence, you will normally be required to complete it the next time it runs (for assessments at the end of TB1 and TB2 this is usually in the next re-assessment period).
The Board of Examiners will take into account any exceptional circumstances and operates
within the Regulations and Code of Practice for Taught Programmes.
