BSc Final Year Projects in Computing
Computer Science, Creative Computing,
Games Programming, Business Computing
Dr Rodger Kibble
Scope of the project
• The Project in Computing is an opportunity for students to
apply the skills, knowledge and expertise that they have
acquired whilst studying at the Department to a single and
coherent body of work.
• The project allows students to follow an initiative that appeals
to them; the outcome will be the most complex, detailed and
thorough piece of work that they have had to develop as part
of their studies.
• The project outcomes will serve as a showcase for their
talents and could launch a professional career in industry.
• The project is worth 60 credits and accounts for over 25% of
the final degree mark.
Types of project
The final project deliverable may be:
• A substantial software implementation
• A physical computing system
• Results and analysis of a programme of research
• A combination of research and software or physical
implementations.
In each case, a report of around 12,000 – 15,000 words is
required.
Much of what follows will apply to MC students but there may
be differences in timing.
Schedule: Term 1
• First half of term: think about general project area, talk to potential
supervisors
• Supervisors’ preferred project topics will be listed on learn.gold,
and 3rd year lecturers are asked to suggest suitable topics
• Reading week: we aim to match all students to supervisors
• Students who have not linked up with a supervisor will be assigned
one, and will be required to work on one of their supervisor’s topics
• Throughout term (dates tba): lectures on employability, project
management, presentations from supervisors
• End of term (date tba): submit c. 1,000 word project proposal
Project Proposal
The proposal must demonstrate that the planned work is:
• Consistent with the programme Learning Outcomes
• At an appropriate level of difficulty – neither over- nor underambitious
• Achievable with the knowledge and skills already acquired from
taught modules, or that can realistically be acquired through
independent study
• You must also show that you will have ready access to appropriate
hardware/software environments, both during development and at
the viva.
You should outline how you will evaluate your software or research
outcomes.
Students may only proceed once the proposal has been approved.
Schedule: Term 2
• Week 1: final year exams
• Remainder of term:
– Weekly supervision meetings
– Weekly project labs
– Weekly Employability lectures
– Submit weekly logs recording planning & progress, time
management, tasks agreed and completed etc
• Mid-term: submit Preliminary Project Report of about 2,000
words
• Easter vacation: submit full draft report and aim to
demonstrate a prototype system. Not formally assessed but is
an opportunity for constructive feedback from the supervisor.
Schedule: Term 3
• End of week 3/4 (tbc) – submit final report including
implemented system if applicable. Counts for 80% of
final mark; marked out of 100 as follows:
– 40/100 technical content
– 40/100 quality of report
– 20/100 testing and evaluation
• Weeks 5-6: vivas and demos. Vivas last up to 30
minutes and are conducted by the supervisor and a
second marker.
Plagiarism
• Sadly, we occasionally find that students have submitted work
which is not their own.
• Any content that is taken from other sources must be clearly
indicated – this includes program code.
• The range of penalties for plagiarism in the final year includes
dismissal from the college without a degree.
• When we write references for former students, we have a
duty of care to potential employers to disclose any serious
misconduct.
• At the viva, students may be asked to explain any part of their
submission.
What to do now
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Enrol on learn.gold “Computing Project” from Sep 28th
Read through supervisors’ project topics
Visit potential supervisors during their office hours
Look out for further announcements via learn.gold
QUESTIONS?