COM6045 - Project

Objectives:

Content:

The Project serves as the culmination of the academic programme and extensively integrates the knowledge and competencies cultivated throughout the programme of study. This module offers students the chance to showcase their capacity for applying practical and analytical skills, fostering innovation and creativity. It emphasises the synthesis of information, ideas and practices to deliver a high-quality solution, coupled with an assessment of that solution, which is related to their degree programme. The module also aims to cultivate the ability to undertake a project addressing a genuine need within a broader context, demonstrating effective self-management of substantial work and conducting a critical self-evaluation of the entire process. Encouragement is offered to students for the cultivation of professional skills, including effective project time management, guidance in negotiating project outcomes and the adept contextualisation of computing subjects. Concurrently, an emphasis is placed on fostering reflexive practice as an integral component of the development of professional acumen

Learning and Teaching Information:

This module is designed to allow students to integrate their learning across the other modules on their programme. By undertaking an independent project of their choice students can demonstrate advanced skills and knowledge in a specific subject area, as well as the ability to define problem boundaries, negotiate project outcomes and investigate plausible solutions with reference to wider social and cultural contexts. Projects can be with employers, professional bodies or linked to civic or community challenges.

Workshops consist of an initial briefing followed by regular individual supervision and activities where project progress and topics linked to the learning outcomes will be negotiated.

There is a workshop scheduled every week on the timetable that will cover the topics related to the project, such as technical planning. Agile development, requirements gathering, software design testing, etc.

Students are encouraged to propose a project (otherwise one is allocated to them) and they are also assigned a suitable academic supervisor and industry mentor. Project supervisors are allocated based on the nature of the project.

Workshops
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: Whole Cohort

Industry Mentoring
Hours: 10
Intended Group Size 1

Supervision Sessions
Hours: 20
Intended Group Size: 1

Guided independent study
Hours: 400
Intended Group Size 1

Technical Plan: The purpose of the plan is to document the way students propose to tackle their project and to put feasibility plans and time management strategies in place for success. A good quality technical plan will demonstrate a clear understanding of how the project will be managed by identifying a lifecycle approach to the development, demonstrate a clear understanding of the problem domain and identify a suitable approach to solving the relevant problems and be well-informed by relevant background reading.

Project Report: Projects must include the creation of a comprehensive report that encompasses various essential elements. These include an elucidation of the problem and project objectives, an in-depth exploration of the context, background reading and, if applicable, similar products. Additionally, the report should provide a clear description of the life cycle stages undertaken, detailing the application of verification and validation, utilisation of development tools and a critical appraisal of the project. This appraisal should include the rationale behind design and implementation decisions, lessons learned throughout the project and a retrospective evaluation of both the project's outcome and the production process. Finally, the inclusion of correct referencing is essential.

Project Artefact: Projects must include the students undertaking practical work of some sort using computing/IT technology. This is most frequently achieved by the creation of an artefact as the focus for covering all or part of an implementation lifecycle.

Project Viva: The viva exam, which will include a demonstration of the project deliverables and a formal interview by the supervisor and second reader, takes place after the submission of the report during the exam period. As well as a direct contribution to the overall mark, the viva exam will also be used to confirm the mark awarded for the project report and the project artefact.

In this module, formative assessment is used to support the skills that contribute to the assessment. Formative assessment includes student-led seminars, mock viva, skills audit and specific project tasks. Formative feedback is an ongoing process within sessions.

Full details are available in the Module Handbook.

Assessment:

001 Technical plan; 1000 word equiv; mid semester 1 10%
002 Project artefact and viva; 3000 word equiv; end of semester 2 40%
003 Project report; 5000 word equiv; end of semester 2 50%

Fact File

Module Coordinator - Antesar Shabut
Level - 6
Credit Value - 45
Pre-Requisites - NONE
Semester(s) Offered - 6YL

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