Overview - University of Wollongong Teaching & Learning Journal
Article Title
Improving the seminar presentation system for final year thesis students
Abstract
A requirement for the Bachelor of Engineering degree in the department of Civil and Mining Engineering at the University ofWollongong is the successful completion of a 16 CP (credit Point) research subject. The assessment of this subject is based on a presentation and the production of two bound copies of the final thesis, which are worth 20% and 80% of the total mark, respectively. The presentation has historically been given in week three or four of the second semester. The presentations were given within the Department in the presence of the students' research adviser and another member of the academic staff, both of whom act as assessors of the presentation and thesis. The aim of this paper is to describe the impact of changes in the venue, timing, and organisation of the thesis presentation which was changed to be a conference type gathering held in week ten of the second semester in the presence of several academic staff, industry representatives, and other students. The conference was subdivided into a number of sessions according to the disciplines and topics. Two student surveys were conducted to gauge the students' responses before and after the change. These surveys indicated that the majority of students prefer the new form of presentation.