ELECTENG 700 /COMPSYS 700 /SOFTENG 700 Project Issues in Preparing the Interim Report

Purpose of Report to inform others to present an overview of your project and its progress to date to set down a plan for the further development of your project Intended readership Any person knowledgeable in EEE/CSE/SE but not necessarily a specialist in the particular subject area

Before writing the report... You should consider the following: Why am I writing this report? Who is the reader? What do I assume the reader knows? What do I want the reader to know? How can this information best be imparted?

What issues need to be identified in advance? What you are doing and why What decisions you have made How you will approach and solve the problems How you will divide the work

How long should the report be? The interim report should be formatted in two columns and must not be more than 5 pages in length (typically 4 to 5 pages). You will be downgraded for any extra pages. You must follow the format depicted in the Final Year Research Projects webpage under Project documentation. Click on Final Year Project Report Guideline. This information applies to both your Interim and Final reports. The title and originality statement pages are not counted as part of your page limit, but should be included in your submission - within the same pdf file.

Structure and Planning Issues Sections of your report: Title Abstract (or Summary) Introduction Main body (divided into sections or subsections) Conclusions Acknowledgements (if appropriate) References Appendices (if appropriate – and, its part of your page count)

Structure and Planning Issues (continued) Careful planning before commencing to write is essential The report structure may need to be refined many times before a logical progression of ideas is achieved You should not proceed further with the report until you are satisfied with the proposed structure!

Structure and Planning Issues (continued) Do not overuse bulleted lists! Make sure any included graphics are of a high standard USE the spellchecker! Read and observe the report writing guidelines in the Project Handbook - see

Test of a Well Written Report If a report has been written effectively, readers should need to study only the title, abstract, introduction and conclusions to gain a general understanding of the investigation and to gauge its relevance to them This should be used as a test before submitting a report

Guidelines for Grading — Interim Report Clarity Professional structure Ability to convey information Analysis of options Analysis of results English expression Technical accuracy Technical depth Conciseness and completeness

Guidelines for Grading — Interim Implementation Initiative Competence Diligence Planning Execution Teamwork Division of work Professionalism Degree of independent thought

Guidelines for Grading (continued) In the assessment process, staff grade according to the following guidelines: GradeRequirement ExcellentExcels in nearly all elements Above averageExcels in one of two elements AverageAdequate in all elements Below averageDeficient in two or more elements FailHas deficiencies in most elements

Penalties Late submissions will be penalised (according to Section 5 in the Project Handbook)

Plagiarism — Beware! The inclusion of information/ideas to a limited extent and with appropriate referencing is appropriate The inclusion of i. unreferenced material; or ii. excessive amounts of material not written by the author is regarded as plagiarism The University takes a very dim view of such acts and if any cases are detected, then a referral to the University Discipline Committee will be made

Action Points Be aware of due date ( 12:00 pm, Monday 7 th May 2012 ) This your submission will be to an Electronic Drop Box (see last slide) Plan your workload NOW Arrange to meet with your second examiner A Declaration of Originality must be included as page 2 of your report. You should type your name, as the writer of the report

How to physically submit the reports Each student must submit their own independently written Interim Report electronically Write the following information on the cover page Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering Final Year Research Project 2012, Interim Report Project Title: Project Number: Supervisor Name: Second Examiner Name: Your Name: Your UID: Partner Name: Date submitted:

Electronic Submission Your Interim Report should be submitted as one pdf document (including, cover page, declaration of originality and report – as one file) to the Electrical and Computer Engineering Drop box. Go to Find Course: PartIV Dropbox: PartIV: Interim Report Follow the instructions