MATHS 4005C - Honours Project in Mathematical Sciences C

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2020

Students undertake a detailed study under the guidance of a supervisor and document their work in the form of a written report or thesis. The topic of the project is decided by the supervisor in conjunction with the student. Students not only increase their discipline knowledge, but develop critical analysis and technical writing skills that are highly useful for many occupations and essential for postgraduate research degrees.

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Course Details

Course Code	MATHS 4005C
Course	Honours Project in Mathematical Sciences C
Coordinating Unit	Mathematical Sciences
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	9
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	N
Prerequisites	MATHS 4005A/B in previous Semesters
Restrictions	Available to BMaSc (Hons) and BMaCompSc (Hons) students only
Assessment	Thesis and seminar presentation

Course Staff

No information currently available.

Course Timetable

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

Course Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this course students will have

1. Demonstrated familiarity with research in an area of mathematics and/or statistics.
2. Demonstrated skills in interpreting and critically evaluating literature related to a current area of research in mathematics and/or statistics.
3. Demonstrated skills in communicating mathematical and/or statistical research to an audience, both in written form and orally.
4. Demonstrated an understanding of research methods in mathematics and/or statistics.

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
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	1,2,4
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	2,3,4

Learning Resources

Required Resources

Resources are recommended on an individual basis by project supervisors.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

The research project provides an introduction to research in mathematics and/or statistics in an area chosen by the student from a range of projects offered by staff in the School of Mathematical Sciences. Students learn by a combination of reading research papers and monographs, discussing aspects of the research project with their supervisor and presenting their work both in oral form through a seminar presentation and in written form through a thesis. The thesis can take the form of (i) a critical review of a topic (ii) an analysis of data, a problem or application using existing techniques (iii) a detailed exposition of results from the literature (iv) extensions or generalizations of existing work.

Workload

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

Workload

Weekly supervisory meetings (1 hour/week): 12 hours.
Weekly project work (12 hours/week): 144 hours.

Total: 156 hours.

Learning Activities Summary

The Honours Project involves several stages:

1. Initial literature review and topic proposal. An outline of the research project must be lodged with the Honours Coordinator at the beginning of Week 7 of the student's first semester. Attendance at non-assessed Research Methodologies seminar.

2. Ongoing literature review and research. Planning of thesis and drafting of initial chapters. Students are expected to commence writing their thesis no later than the beginning of their second semester.

3. Research seminar held in the mid-semester break of the student's second semester.

4. Completion of thesis writing: students are expected to provide a complete thesis draft to their supervisor at the beginning of Week 9 of the student's second semester. The thesis is due on Friday of Week 12 of the student's second semester; it is lodged with the Honours Coordinator.

The specifics of each of these stages is highly dependent on the nature of the project; they should be discussed with the project supervisor.

Small Group Discovery Experience

The research project typically involves the student and one or possibly two academic staff members.

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

The Honours Project has two main assessment components:

1. Research Seminar (worth 1/9 of the final grade).

2. Thesis (worth 8/9 of the final grade).

These assessment components determine the grade for MATHS 4005C - Honours Project in Mathematical Sciences C (the courses MATHS 4005A and MATHS 4005B have grades of CN associated with them).

Assessment Related Requirements

An aggregate score of at least 50% is required to pass the Honours Project in Mathematical Sciences C (the two courses Honours Project in Mathematical Sciences A and B receive a grade of CN).

Assessment Detail

The Honours Project is assessed on the basis of the Research Seminar (worth 1/9 of the final grade) and the Thesis (worth 8/9 of the final grade). The Research Seminar is assessed by a small committee comprising of academic staff, normally from each of the three disciplines (Applied, Pure and Statistics). The Thesis is assessed by two examiners from the School of Mathematical Sciences.

Submission

An outline of the research project is to be lodged with the Honours Coordinator at beginning of Week 7 of the student's first semester.

The thesis is due on Friday of Week 12 of the student's second semester. A pdf copy of the thesis together with two spiral bound paper copies of the thesis is to be lodged with the Honours Coordinator. The thesis should contain a declaration of originality and approval, signed by both the student and supervisor.

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.

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