Course Coordinator:Min Zhao (mzhao@usc.edu.au) School:School of Science, Technology and Engineering
UniSC Sunshine CoastUniSC Moreton Bay |
Blended learning | Most of your course is on campus but you may be able to do some components of this course online. |
Please go to unisc.edu.au for up to date information on the
teaching sessions and campuses where this course is usually offered.
This course enables you to pursue scholarly activities in a study field of your choice. In consultation with your course coordinator and special project supervisor you will devise a project plan, undertake the related activities and report on those activities. The project will support your learning of discipline based knowledge and skills, give you in depth knowledge and skills in a particular area and help you to prepare for future research and scholarship.
| Activity | Hours | Beginning Week | Frequency |
| Blended learning | |||
| Independent Study/Research – Conduct research under the guidance and mentorship of the academic supervisor | 2hrs | Week 1 | 12 times |
| Tutorial/Workshop 1 – Academic skill workshop | 4hrs | Week 1 | 3 times |
In general, this course enables the student to pursue scholarly activities in the study field of the project supervisor. Therefore, the topics covered in this course will depend on the research area of the student’s project. The project will support the learning of discipline-based knowledge and skills, give the student in-depth knowledge and skills in a particular area and help students to prepare for future research and scholarship.
300 Level (Graduate)
12 units
| Course Learning Outcomes On successful completion of this course, you should be able to... | Graduate Qualities Completing these tasks successfully will contribute to you becoming... | |
| 1 | Formulate goals and questions to inform independent learning activities. | Creative and critical thinker |
| 2 | Identify and apply specific discipline knowledge to plan, conduct and report project activities. | Creative and critical thinker |
| 3 | Use recognised research skills and technologies to conduct project activities. | Knowledgeable |
| 4 | Report on project activities and outcomes using recognised written and verbal communication. | Knowledgeable |
Refer to the UniSC Glossary of terms for definitions of “pre-requisites, co-requisites and anti-requisites”.
Not applicable
Not applicable
Not applicable
Prior knowledge will be determined by the course coordinator in consultation with the student's supervisor and will take into account the nature of the scholarship and project work. Normally students will have completed the equivalent of one year of full-time study and have achieved a grade point average of 5.0 and have completed at least 3 advanced level courses.
Not applicable
Standard Grading (GRD)
| High Distinction (HD), Distinction (DN), Credit (CR), Pass (PS), Fail (FL). |
Support and feedback will be provided by the project Supervisor.
| Delivery mode | Task No. | Assessment Product | Individual or Group | Weighting % | What is the duration / length? | When should I submit? | Where should I submit it? |
| All | 1 | Practical / Laboratory Skills | Individual | 20% | 1000 words or equivalent |
Week 5 | To Supervisor |
| All | 2 | Report | Individual | 50% | 3000 words or equivalent |
Week 12 | To be Negotiated |
| All | 3 | Oral | Individual | 30% | 15-20 minutes |
Exam Period | To be Negotiated |
| All - Assessment Task 1:Research Skills | ||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of this task is for you to develop research skills, e.g. laboratory skills or field work skills or skills in reviewing the literature |
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| Product: | Practical / Laboratory Skills | |||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||
| Format: | Submit: Friday week 5 for trimester or Week 3 for sessions, or as negotiated with supervisor. To be determined in consultations with the supervisor |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | ||||||||||
| All - Assessment Task 2:Project Report | ||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of this task is for you to synthesise your project activities and report the outcomes of your project |
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| Product: | Report | |||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||
| Format: | The report should be 3000 words or equivalent and submitted via Turnitin unless the format prevents this form of submission. |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Problem solving |
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| All - Assessment Task 3:Oral Presentation | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Goal: | The goal of this task is for you to develop your skill in using recognised oral communication strategies and to present your special project outcomes to your peers and colleagues |
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| Product: | Oral | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Authorship Statement: | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Format: | Your presentation will be 15-20 minutes. It will be supported by appropriate visual media tools, for example PowerPoint or Prezi Due in Week 15 or 16 |
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| Criteria: |
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| Generic Skills: | Communication |
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A 12-unit course will have total of 150 learning hours which will include directed study hours (including online if required), self-directed learning and completion of assessable tasks. Student workload is calculated at 12.5 learning hours per one unit.
Please note: Course information, including specific information of recommended readings, learning activities, resources, weekly readings, etc. are available on the course Canvas site– Please log in as soon as possible.
Depending on your project there may be specific requirements, such as protective clothing and closed shoes for laboratory work. It is your responsibility to acquire and meet specific requirements.
Academic integrity is the ethical standard of university participation. It ensures that students graduate as a result of proving they are competent in their discipline. This is integral in maintaining the value of academic qualifications. Each industry has expectations and standards of the skills and knowledge within that discipline and these are reflected in assessment.
Academic integrity means that you do not engage in any activity that is considered to be academic fraud; including plagiarism, collusion or outsourcing any part of any assessment item to any other person. You are expected to be honest and ethical by completing all work yourself and indicating in your work which ideas and information were developed by you and which were taken from others. You cannot provide your assessment work to others. You are also expected to provide evidence of wide and critical reading, usually by using appropriate academic references.
In order to minimise incidents of academic fraud, this course may require that some of its assessment tasks, when submitted to Canvas, are electronically checked through Turnitin. This software allows for text comparisons to be made between your submitted assessment item and all other work to which Turnitin has access.
Eligibility for Supplementary Assessment
Your eligibility for supplementary assessment in a course is dependent of the following conditions applying:
(a) The final mark is in the percentage range 47% to 49.4%; and
(b) The course is graded using the Standard Grading scale
Late submissions may be penalised up to and including the following maximum percentage of the assessment task’s identified value, with weekdays and weekends included in the calculation of days late:
(a) One day: deduct 5%;
(b) Two days: deduct 10%;
(c) Three days: deduct 20%;
(d) Four days: deduct 40%;
(e) Five days: deduct 60%;
(f) Six days: deduct 80%;
(g) Seven days: A result of zero is awarded for the assessment task.
The following penalties will apply for a late submission for an online examination:
Less than 15 minutes: No penalty
From 15 minutes to 30 minutes: 20% penalty
More than 30 minutes: 100% penalty
For more information on Academic Learning & Teaching categories including:
For more information, visit https://www.usc.edu.au/explore/policies-and-procedures#academic-learning-and-teaching
UniSC is committed to excellence in teaching, research and engagement in an environment that is inclusive, inspiring, safe and respectful. The Student Charter sets out what students can expect from the University, and what in turn is expected of students, to achieve these outcomes.
For course-specific questions, contact your teaching staff or Course Coordinator.
For other enquiries or to access support, please contact Student Central: