 |  |  | COMP60990 Research Skills and Professional Issues |
COMP60990 Research Skills and Professional Issues
This course unit runs in the second part of Semester 1, and through
Semester 2, and is part of the research element of the programme. Part of the course unit provides training in research
skills and an orientation towards the practice of research as well as
talks from research scientists and the initial work on your research
project. The other part provides training in a range of professional
skills and material on expectations and conduct in an industrial and
business environment.
It is presented by a range of staff, both internal and external,
including the Careers Service, the Advanced Professional
Education Unit, Programme Directors, Research Staff and Groups,
Industrial Consultants, and The British Computer Society (the
professional body for IT professionals in the UK).
This course unit has two aims:
- Training in Research Skills and initial work on the Research Project. This will give you a grounding in various aspects of research and project management, including advice on research methods, managing projects, working with your supervisor, professional research writing and preparing your dissertation/reports. You will also begin preliminary work on your project including background reading, familiarising yourself with the topic, other work in the area, any relevant software or other systems, and project planning. You will write a report (or 2 reports in the case of a group project) of this preliminary work which will be submitted by the deadline in April/May.
- The course unit covers various aspects of Professional Skills as required in the IT industry and in Research and Development. The skills necessary in the IT industry are taught through the Careers Service and external consultants from the IT industry. The skills include team-work skills, industrial problem-solving, leadership skills, communication skills and presentation skills. Consideration of ethics and conduct are also presented.
This course also provides you with guidance on the choice of your
project. The assessment for this course unit is via (a) continuous
exercises and coursework (15%) and (b) the Progress Report (85%),
which must be submitted by the deadline. Failure to submit by the
deadline without permission may incur a mark penalty or submission
may be disallowed. The pass mark for COMP60990, for progression to
the full dissertation, is 40%. Students who achieve less than 40%
will have one opportunity to resubmit work for this course. The mark
for resubmitted work will be capped at 40%. Any student who fails
to achieve 40% for the resubmitted work will not be allowed to
progress to the dissertation stage, and will be deemed to have
failed the MSc. Students who fail this course may be eligible for a
Certificate.
| | | COMP60990 Research Skills and Professional Issues |