Credit Points 20

Legacy Code 401156

Coordinator Mark Williams Opens in new window

Description Science Research Project is a capstone unit that gives students the opportunity to conduct scientific research, while extending their knowledge and practical skills. Each student undertakes a research project supervised by an academic staff member which has as its central focus the scientific analysis and resolution of a complex problem. The research project is conducted in an area of relevance to professional discipline, and students can choose from a range of approved research designs. Students must undertake a review of the relevant literature, formulation of a research question, design of an appropriate method, collection and analysis of data, interpretation of findings, the production of a research report and presentation of these findings.

School Science

Discipline Natural and Physical Sciences, Not Elsewhere Classified.

Student Contribution Band HECS Band 2 20cp

Level Postgraduate Coursework Level 7 subject

Restrictions

Student must be enrolled in postgraduate program, have completed 60 credit points at Level 7, and have a GPA of 5.0 or above.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this subject, students should be able to:

1. Propose and investigate a topic area relevant to a scientific discipline
2. Critique peer-reviewed literature pertinent to the proposed topic and identify gaps in knowledge
3. Develop research aims and design and conduct experiments within a project framework to test these aims
4. Analyse the data from these experiments and formulate conclusions
5. Justify the results and conclusions of the project by oral and written communication
6. Devise possible areas of inquiry for future research or development

Subject Content

Project-based learning relevant to individual professional goals and available expertise within industry, academia or other relevant body
Critical literature appraisal on topics relevant to the student?fs project
Experimental design and Project management skills
Analysis of data, using appropriate statistical methods where required
Report writing in the scientific format of a thesis
Critical evaluation of data to judge its significance and develop conclusions from these results
Development of poster for presentation of results and conclusions of research project