MDIA 4003 - Honours Media Thesis

North Terrace Campus - Semester 2 - 2019

The aim of the Honours program is to provide students with a stronger and more focused intellectual context in which to carry out research in their areas of specialisation in the media. It is designed to extend the academic and creative synergies of the Bachelor of Media Degree into higher degree and professional industry application. It is expected that by the end of the program students would be able to carry out independent research in either a higher degree or an industry-related specialisation. It is also expected that students would have developed awareness and critical skills necessary for a proper understanding of the ethical implications of professional and scholarly conduct.

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Course Details

Course Code	MDIA 4003
Course	Honours Media Thesis
Coordinating Unit	Media
Term	Semester 2
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	12
Contact	Up to 1 hour per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Prerequisites	A credit standard in undergraduate study, which is usually determined by a minimum requirement of 70% average in all Level II and Level III courses taken at undergraduate level.
Restrictions	Available only to students admitted to relevant Honours program
Assessment	15,000 word thesis (100%) or Media Honours Project - approx 15 min video; 60 min radio; eq. 10,000 words multimedia (50%) plus a 6000-8000 word Project Exegesis (50%)

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Dr John Budarick

Dr John Budarick (Acting Co-ordinator)

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from Course Planner.

Course Learning Outcomes

The Honours Media Thesis course represents the culmination of the seminar series and results in the production
of an Honours thesis of up to 15,000 words. Course learning objectives for this course are as follows:

1 To develop the capacity to be able to articulate an appropriate and achievable research project for the Honours program in Media;
2 To have the skills to turn the selected Media topic or issue into a problem that is suited to the task of writing a dissertation;
3 To be able to identify and locate relevant material and literature on the topic;
4 To be able to identify key theoretical and conceptual works in Media in order to critically analyse the topic or issue
5 To develop the skill of articulating a clear, substantiated and theoretically-informed argument in the dissertation;
6 To address a problem or issue in the world of Media through a critical analysis of a case study or issue.

University Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

University Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Deep discipline knowledge informed and infused by cutting edge research, scaffolded throughout their program of studies acquired from personal interaction with research active educators, from year 1 accredited or validated against national or international standards (for relevant programs)	1,2,3,4,5,6
Critical thinking and problem solving steeped in research methods and rigor based on empirical evidence and the scientific approach to knowledge development demonstrated through appropriate and relevant assessment	1,2,3,4,5,6
Teamwork and communication skills developed from, with, and via the SGDE honed through assessment and practice throughout the program of studies encouraged and valued in all aspects of learning	1,5,6
Career and leadership readiness technology savvy professional and, where relevant, fully accredited forward thinking and well informed tested and validated by work based experiences	1,2,3,4,5,6
Intercultural and ethical competency adept at operating in other cultures comfortable with different nationalities and social contexts able to determine and contribute to desirable social outcomes demonstrated by study abroad or with an understanding of indigenous knowledges	4,6
Self-awareness and emotional intelligence a capacity for self-reflection and a willingness to engage in self-appraisal open to objective and constructive feedback from supervisors and peers able to negotiate difficult social situations, defuse conflict and engage positively in purposeful debate	1,2,3,4,5,6

Learning Resources

Required Resources

There are no required resources for this component.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

Thesis writing under guidance and direction of supervisor.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

WORKLOAD TOTAL HOURS
1 hour supervision per week: 12 hours per semester
18 hours research per week: 216 hours per semester
18 hours thesis writing per week: 216 hours per semester

TOTAL: approx 440 hours per semester

Learning Activities Summary

No information currently available.

The University's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

All theses marked by 2 examiners (not the supervisor).

Assessment Detail

Academic Pathway

Dissertation style and presentation • The dissertation should be a significant piece of work to the maximum of 15,000 words and be built around a substantial and well-document argument. • The dissertation should be typed in double-spacing on A4 paper, on one side of the paper only and with a margin of 4cm on the left. • It should include a title page, giving at the top the title of the dissertation in full, your name and the degree. At the bottom of the page the following statement should be inserted "Submitted in part fulfilment of the Honours Degree in Media at The University of Adelaide, [month] 2017." • It must include a contents page and a bibliography/reference list.

CLOs 1,2,3,4,5,6

Creative Pathway

• The length of the exegesis will be the equivalent of 6,000 - 10,000 words • The project must have the approval of the Honours Co-ordinator. • The project is comprised of (a) the project itself, valued at 25% of the final honours grade, and (b) the project exegesis, valued at 25% of the final honours grade.

• The Media honours project will be one of the following: - A video production up to 15 minutes in length - A radio, voice or audio production up to 60 minutes in length - A multimedia production up to 10,000 words equivalent (your supervisor will assist early on with determining the equivalency) • Final drafts of script/project outline documents are to be submitted with the project and exegesis. A progress report will be required (but not assessable) in the early weeks of the second semester—the honours co-ordinator will put out a call for creative project progress reports closer to the time.

CLOs 1,2,3,4,5,6

Submission

No information currently available.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M11 (Honours Mark Scheme)
Grade	Grade reflects following criteria for allocation of grade	Reported on Official Transcript
Fail	A mark between 1-49	F
Third Class	A mark between 50-59	3
Second Class Div B	A mark between 60-69	2B
Second Class Div A	A mark between 70-79	2A
First Class	A mark between 80-100	1
Result Pending	An interim result	RP
Continuing	Continuing	CN

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Grades for the Honours year are calculated according to the GS5 classification scheme:
Honours - First Class 80%+
Honours - Second Class Division a: 70 to 79%
Honours - Second Class Division b: 60 to 69%
Honours -Third Class 50 to 59%
NAH Not Awarded
CN Continuing
NFE No Formal Examination
WH Withheld

Final results for this course will be made available through Access Adelaide.

Student Feedback

The University places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the University to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.
Student Support
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student’s disciplinary procedures.

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Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator