COMP08097 2018 Project 400
In Project 400 students will undertake a significant piece of independent work under supervision. The module aims to encourage innovation, exploratory learning and to act as an integrating module to allow the student to draw on knowledge learned in previous years. The module exposes the student to the application of research methodologies and aims to develop critical thinking and analysis skills.
Learning Outcomes
On completion of this module the learner will/should be able to;
Develop a major project by working either individually or in a small team to a deadline involving, inter alia, planning, and coordination of design & development activities, setting realistic work objectives, and presenting and documenting the work undertaken.
Undertake a comprehensive review of relevant and appropriate literature to determine current knowledge in the project area.
Demonstrate initiative, analytical, and problem-solving skills in developing a detailed, viable methodology for addressing an open-ended problem.
Integrate and evaluate the relevance, strengths, and weaknesses of approaches developed throughout the programme.
Produce a written thesis which meets the required standards of scholarship and technical expertise.
Demonstrate the appropriate written and oral communication skills required of a professional practitioner.
Teaching and Learning Strategies
This module provides the student with an opportunity to manage their own learning strategy and is very much student led.
As the Literature Review is a key component of this research project students will receive guidance in research skills and academic writing.
Module Assessment Strategies
30% of the marks will be awarded at the interim presentation stage at the end of semester 7. This 30% is broken down as 10% for the presentation, 10% for a literature review and the security requirements outlined below and 10% for a prototype of some key features of the project. If the project is primarily thesis based then 10% will be awarded for the presentation and 20% for the literature review. Feedback will be provided on the literature review at the interim stage to allow students the opportunity to enhance their literature review.
70% will be awarded for the final deliverable with a breakdown of 40% for the deliverable, 20% for the final report and 10% for the presentation. Where the project is thesis-based 60% is awarded for the final report/thesis and 10% for the presentation. The report length will be approximately 9000 words. In the case of a thesis, the report will not exceed 14,000 words, excluding appendices.
Where appropriate a screencast and poster may be part of the final deliverable.
Turnitin will be used for submissions.
With a view to promoting cross-module assessment for the software students, it is envisioned that the second assignment for the Secure Software Development module will require the student to produce a set of security requirements for their chosen project in PRJ400, as well as a Threat Model (based on the applications architecture). This set of requirements will form part of the interim report produced for PRJ400.
This cross-module assessment theme of security will be continued in Semester 8 in conjunction with the Software Application Security Testing module. It is envisioned that the second assessment for Software Application Security Testing will comprise a penetration test of the software artifact produced by the learner as part of PRJ400 with the results documented in the final report produced as part of PRJ400.
This cross-module assessment approach will be employed where it is feasible.
Repeat Assessments
A repeat project covering all learning outcomes.
Indicative Syllabus
Develop a major project by working either individually or in a small team to a deadline involving, inter alia, planning, researching and coordination of design & development activities, setting realistic work objectives, and presenting and documenting the work undertaken.
- Identify a project and its broad scope.
- Students are encouraged to look beyond what they have already learned from the previous years and look at new areas that challenge them
- Identify project management and planning processes and put these in place
- Put in place cloud-based reporting structures
- Assemble facts regarding users, tasks and the problem domain
- Document the proposal in detail
- Work out the software/hardware/cloud requirements and costs
- Produce a detailed plan
Undertake a comprehensive review of the relevant and appropriate literature to determine current knowledge in the project area.
- Carry out detailed research on the problem and technology solutions that can be applied to the problem.
- Use peer-reviewed journals, articles, and books sourced from online databases and search tools such as Google Scholar.
- The literature review should be critical in its analysis and justifications for choices should be clearly backed up with solid arguments
- Appropriate referencing should be used and tools such as Mendeley employed to aid this
- Use appropriate writing conventions such as the 3rd person.
Demonstrate initiative, analytical, and problem-solving skills in developing a detailed, viable methodology for addressing an open-ended problem.
- Determine what methodologies can be used at each stage of the project and select the appropriate one
- Be critical in your choices, can you make a clear argument as to why you choose one option over another
- Apply quality standards (software, networking, accessibility, security, design patterns etc.)
Integrate and evaluate the relevance, strengths, and weaknesses of approaches developed throughout the programme.
- Based on the previous years’ learning on the programme combined with a strong literature review be able to evaluate and critically analyse your programme of learning.
- Identify gaps and consider how those gaps can be filled
- Consider how the various technology sectors are developing and where they will be in 5 years’ time, how will you enhance your skill set to advance.
Produce a written thesis which meets the required standards of scholarship and technical expertise.
- Clearly articulate the problem, the aims, and objectives of the project.
- The report should show how the solution is based on the literature review
- Where a project is producing an application or system the design, development and testing phases should be working to industry best practices and the relevant chapters should articulate this
- Where a project is primarily research based the literature review should be significant and show a depth and breadth of knowledge. Arguments need to be comprehensive.
Demonstrate the appropriate written and oral communication skills required of a professional practitioner.
- Be comfortable answering detailed questions on the problem domain, show a depth of learning on the problem domain
- A breadth of knowledge on the problem domain should be apparent
- Be able to create a presentation that moves from the high-level problem statement through to technical details
- Use of diagrams such as architecture diagrams is essential as good diagrams convey that you have a clear understanding of the elements of the problem and the solution
Coursework & Assessment Breakdown
Coursework Assessment
Title | Type | Form | Percent | Week | Learning Outcomes Assessed | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Interim Presentation | Coursework Assessment | Interview | 30 % | End of Term | 1,2,3 |
2 | Project Submission/Assessment | Coursework Assessment | Project | 70 % | End of Year | 1,2,3,4,5,6 |
Required & Recommended Book List
2015-04-16 Projects in Computing and Information Systems 3rd edn: A Student's Guide Pearson Education
ISBN 1292073462 ISBN-13 9781292073460
2015-11-19 Brilliant Agile Project Management: A Practical Guide to Using Agile, Scrum and Kanban Pearson Business
ISBN 1292063564 ISBN-13 9781292063560
Brilliant Agile Project Management
2017-06-09 How to Do Your Research Project: A Guide for Students SAGE Publications Ltd
ISBN 1473948878 ISBN-13 9781473948877
Module Resources
NA
NA
- IT Sligo Virtual Machines
- A designated room or lab for the duration of the project which is lockable and with necessary IT infrastructure required for such projects. This demands, inter alia, whiteboards, ample table-top space, presentation space, shared work-stations and data projector, wireless network and printing facilities
- Hardware budget for equipment
- Access to a 3D printer
- Use of old IT equipment such as servers etc. which may become available from time to time.
- Access to the Institute at weekends for such students.