| Unit name | Engineering Mathematics MSc Project |
|---|---|
| Unit code | SEMTM0047 |
| Credit points | 60 |
| Level of study | M/7 |
| Teaching block(s) |
Academic Year (weeks 1 - 52) |
| Unit director | Professor. Giuggioli |
| Open unit status | Not open |
| Units you must take before you take this one (pre-requisite units) |
SEMTM0015 Skills in Mathematical Research |
| Units you must take alongside this one (co-requisite units) |
None |
| Units you may not take alongside this one |
None |
| School/department | School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology |
| Faculty | Faculty of Science and Engineering |
Why is this unit important?
The project you will undertake in this unit is the capstone of your masters' degree: it will allow you to showcase your competencies as an engineer and as a mathematician. You will bring together different skills developed during the taught component of your degree to work on a challenging problem with relevance to an external stakeholder. You will contribute to active research projects in academia and/or industry as you develop complex ideas over several months, starting from a broad exploration of potential approaches to your project and then narrowing the solution space by making evidence-based choices on how to pursue your project. Ultimately, you will communicate your findings in the form of a dissertation aimed that clearly communicates key technical details while also emphasising the relevance to stakeholders. This work will prepare you for the challenging, open-ended, time-bound projects which you will face in your career in industry or academia.
How does this unit fit into your programme of study
This is a mandatory unit on your programme of studies and achieving a pass mark is required for the award of an MSc degree. This unit builds on all of the skills developed in the programme up to this point and you will make extensive use of the research skills, project management skills, and industrial project skills covered in “Skills for Mathematical Research”.
An overview of content
This unit will provide you with an opportunity to develop the skills required to scope and solve real, open-ended problems, to plan and organise work, and to effectively communicate results. This will involve evaluation of the academic literature to establish the state of the art in the relevant discipline, which will then lead to work on addressing an open-ended problem using appropriate tools and methodologies from engineering, applied mathematics, data analysis, and/or computation.
While each research topic is different, all dissertations will involve the use or the development of mathematical and/or computational techniques. When the research contains an empirical component, experimental techniques will also be used or developed.
How will students, personally, be different as a result of the unit
After completing this unit successfully, you will be able to work towards solving an engineering problem that you have never encountered before. You will know how to identify and critically analyse relevant information in the literature, and how to select a methodology appropriate to address the task at hand. You will be able to break the project down into smaller tasks and to create, and follow, a plan for the delivery of a project. You will be able to report and defend your findings to familiar and unfamiliar audiences in writing. Overall, you will be well equipped to solve unseen and real-world problems using the techniques covered in the rest of your degree.
Learning outcomes
On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:
You will be allocated an academic supervisor at the beginning of the project. You will have regular meetings with your supervisor, who will be responsible for advising you on how you might progress with the project. Your supervisor will also give technical advice and guidance on the key organisational and practical skills required for the project.
The School of Engineering Mathematics and Technology will run Community and Integrity Training at the beginning of the academic year. Attendance at a Community and Integrity training session is a must-do component to be awarded credit for the unit.
Tasks which help you learn and prepare you for summative tasks (formative):
You will be assigned an academic supervisor at the start of the unit. Formative feedback will be provided during regular meetings with your project supervisor.
Tasks which count towards your unit mark (summative):
The unit will be assessed by an Individual Written Report. This will count for 100% of the final mark and will assess all learning outcomes.
When assessment does not go to plan:
Re-assessment takes the same form as the original summative assessment.
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. SEMTM0047).
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.
