Final Year Independent Study Unit

1
Final Year Independent Study Unit

• Lecture 1 Introduction to IS Unit, IS Proposal,
  and IS Planning
• Cornelia Boldyreff
• Department of Computing and Informatics
• University of Lincoln

2
Important Points to Note

• I am the IS co-ordinator this year (email
  cboldyreff_at_lincoln.ac.uk)
• Allocation of supervisors every student has been
  allocated an IS supervisor. The allocation list
  will be available on-line on the Virtual Campus
  section associated with this unit.
• IS lectures Prof Cornelia Boldyreff will give
  these in the first semester in weeks 1 to 3.
• Note that attendance at these lectures is
  compulsory for all IS unit students.
•  

3
IS Virtual Campus and Web pages

• Web page information Important information for
  the IS unit will be located on the Virtual Campus
  and available on my web pages.
• Emails will be sent to you via the is-unit
  mailing list. All email is archived and can be
  viewed on-line from
• http//hemswell.lincoln.ac.uk/cgi-bin/mailman
  /listinfo/is-unit
• Introductory notes will be found on my web pages
• Detailed information and official forms etc will
  be on the Virtual Campus.

4
IS Learning Outcomes

• IS has 4 learning outcomes
• Argue the suitability of a range of tools
  (including methods and techniques)
• Develop an argument, a programme, or a media
  product
• Reflect on the process of carrying out a study
• Prepare a report detailing the process of
  carrying out a study

5
IS Proposal and Process

• IS Proposal Template

• IS Process
• Supporting lectures
• Work independently
• Regular meetings with your supervisor
• Regular progress checks

Name Enrolment Number Award Title Proposed IS
Area Aims Basic Objectives Intermediate
Objectives Advanced Objectives Literature
Review Methods Applicable to your
IS Resources IS Project Plan and Outline of
Work
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Responsibilities of the Supervisor

• to give guidance about the nature of the study
  and the standard expected, about the planning of
  the study, about literature and sources, about
  techniques and methods and about any problems of
  plagiarism
• to maintain contact via regular supervision
  meetings
• to be accessible within reason at other times for
  giving advice to the student
• to give detailed advice on milestones
• to request written work as appropriate and return
  such work with constructive criticism within a
  reasonable time
• to ensure that a student is made aware of any
  inadequacy of progress, or of standards of work
  below those expected
• to encourage the student to produce early draft
  chapters, to comment on them critically and
  return the comments promptly. If the student does
  not do so, this is the student's responsibility.

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Responsibilities of the Student

• to agree on a schedule of meetings with the
  supervisor and to attend such meetings
• to take the initiative in raising problems,
  however elementary they may seem
• to maintain the progress of the work in
  accordance with the milestones and objectives
  agreed with the supervisor
• to contribute to planning the study and
  monitoring progress against the plan
• to keep a study log for recording results, ideas,
  references etc. acquired as the study progresses
  
• to determine the contents of the report and of
  oral presentations
• to present draft chapters to the supervisor
  before the Easter vacation. There is no
  obligation on supervisors to read drafts during
  the vacation.
• In summary, the management of the study and the
  course that it takes, are ultimately the
  responsibility of the student.

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First Task Due - end of week 3

• You need to prepare your detailed IS proposal and
  complete the IS approval form together with your
  supervisor.

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IS Planning and getting started

• Detailed planning of the semester 1 work and
  abstract planning of the later semester 2 work,
  to be followed by a 2nd planning exercise after
  the January benchtest to clarify planning for the
  remainder of the IS unit. (Plan for plan
  revision!)
• Decomposition of the semester 1 work into a
  partially ordered network of activities/tasks, to
  help you to prioritise tasks and define ways of
  making initial rapid progress.
• Consider time management to allow students to
  schedule their activities in semester 1 and to
  raise any forseeable problems with supervisors.

10
Planning your project

• Identify together the key tasks to be tackled in
  semester 1, an ordering on those tasks and any
  new skills you think you will need to do the IS
  successfully. Use GANTT or PERT charts.
• Important in each case, to state the study
  objectives and what your initial semester 1 work
  entails - start with the proposal for independent
  study completed last year. Breakdown objectives
  into basic, intermediate and advanced.
• Remember to plan regular meetings with your
  supervisor at least every two weeks.
• Concentrate on planning for the basic semester 1
  work to get a clear plan for tackling that over
  the next 3 months.
• And plan to re-plan later on as your IS
  progresses and you have a better understanding of
  your study enabling you to predict how design
  choices made now will affect the later goals.

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Some fixed points

• Starting now and finishing mid-April with 1day a
  week available
• Review of IS work with supervisor before the
  December vacation
• Presentation at beginning of Semester 2 and
  Benchtest with supervisor
• IS Report/Dissertation Hand-in - mid-April

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GANTT Chart
http//searchcio.techtarget.com/
13
PERT Chart
http//searchcio.techtarget.com/
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Further details on Planning

• Chapters on Planning in IS unit books
• Consult past dissertations/reports for an
  indication of work involved
• Your plan should become part of your report.
• Also see
• SE Notes on Project Planning
• On-line Notes based on these http//hemswell.linco
  ln.ac.uk/cboldyreff/ASEI/ASEIlect02.ppt

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Summary

• IS Unit and sources of information
• IS Proposal
• Supervision process and how it works
• IS Planning
• Next week's lecture will focus on the structure
  of the dissertation/report/software product and
  writing.