Faculty of Science and Technology

Department of Computer Science

UNDERGRADUATE
INDIVIDUAL PROJECT
CST3990

Module Leader: Dr Can Başkent

Autumn term 2023-2024

Duration: 24 weeks
 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

Online location of handbook

This handbook can also be accessed via My Learning.

Other formats available

This handbook is available in a large print format. If you would like a large print copy or have
other requirements for the handbook, please contact the Disability Support Service
[email protected]

Disclaimer

The material in this handbook is as accurate as possible at the date of production. You will be
notified of any minor changes promptly. If there are any major changes to the module you
will be consulted prior to the changes being confirmed. Please check the version number on
the front page of this handbook to ensure that you are using the most accurate information.

Other documents

Your module handbook should be read and used alongside your programme handbook and
the information available to all students on My Learning and UniHub, including the Academic
Regulations. Your programme handbook can be found on the My Learning programme page
for your course.

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Table of Contents
1. Welcome ................................................................................................................................ 4
2. The Module Teaching Team ................................................................................................... 6
3. Communication with the Teaching Team .............................................................................. 7
4. Module overview ................................................................................................................... 8
5. Learning Resources .............................................................................................................. 12
6. Expectations of Studying This Module ................................................................................. 13
7. Meeting Your Supervisors .................................................................................................... 15
8. Help in Writing ..................................................................................................................... 16
9. Timetabled Sessions ............................................................................................................. 17
10. Coursework and Assessment ............................................................................................. 18
11. Intellectual Property and Archiving the Projects ............................................................... 23
13. Academic Dishonesty ......................................................................................................... 24
Plagiarism ................................................................................................................................. 24
14. Appeals ............................................................................................................................... 26
15. Assessment Policies ........................................................................................................... 27
16. Assessment Rubrics............................................................................................................ 30

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1. Welcome
An individual project is a valuable opportunity to put together your knowledge you have
accumulated in your studies so far. It will produce a significant piece of work, probably the
largest you have ever done by yourself. Whichever path you choose after graduation, post-
graduate study, research, industry or public sector, your project work will help you to get jobs
and advance your career. For this reason, it is a standard talking point in job interviews and is
possibly the most important single module you will take during your degree.

Your approach to project work must exhibit an appropriate degree of professionalism,

including ethical and legal principles, and business techniques, and not merely the pure
application of computing science and technology.

Your engagement in project work essentially involves a significant degree of independence:

you have considerable control over the precise content of your project work, and the tools
you choose to develop a solution. You will need to accept responsibility for planning and
executing your work.

But having said all this, it remains that by the time you start your project, you will have already
acquired skills in using most if not all the tools that you will need in your project including
analysis and design and programming skills. In addition, you may have had practice in using
these tools in the group project development module. Equally, you may find that you need to
master new tools and/or develop various skills appropriate to the tasks in hand.

The core of your project may involve software engineering including requirements
specification, analysis and design, and implementation and testing of a software artefact (e.g.
a program). This format does not preclude doing research; it is a question of emphasis as long
as the core of the project involves software development that is relevant to the title of the
programme being studied.

It is likely that you will have started to think about areas of project work of interest to you
well before the start of the individual project module. By the end of your second year of
studies on the programme, some issues, problems of interest, or particular aspects of the
subject material in some of your taught modules might lead you to want to work on a specific
topic. You may have engaged in group project work and you will have been assigned, or have
chosen, a particular role as a team member within the project activity.

You may have learned about project management and have reflected upon the relevance of
several general, non-technical issues that might bear not only on developments in the group
project but are relevant to your own individual project. These considerations should help you
define how your intended project has a role in a particular organisation, any ethical issues
that might arise from the implementation of your system, and so on.

In addition, you will have learned the basics of how to present the results of a complex
technical system in such a way that the key ideas are communicated effectively to a variety
of audiences using a variety of media.

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The relationship with your supervisor is of critical importance, particularly in the early stages
of defining problems and choosing problem-solving methodologies. Uniquely, project
modules provide students continuing close contact with teaching staff, all of whom have
considerable research and/or industrial experience.

Project supervisors have a nominal time allowance of about 8 hours for one-to-one meetings
with each project student. It is up to you, the student, to request these meetings and make
the best possible use of them. You should aim to meet your supervisor once a week during
the first 4 weeks of the autumn term, and at least once a fortnight thereafter. Students are
required to keep a written record of these meetings - see page 10 of this handbook.

Your supervisor will certainly have an interest in your chosen project area, although he or she
may not have specialised experience in some aspects of your project execution. Supervisors
will help you to identify possible additional skills, knowledge and understanding required at
later stages of the project. But do not expect supervisors to provide in depth knowledge on
all aspects of your project or debug your software or evaluate your test results.

Module leader is there to coordinate the module and provide a unified and uniform approach.

Your project may need an approval from the departmental committee for research ethics.
Your supervisor will be able to guide you through the ethics criteria for research. If you need
an ethics approval, you cannot carry out your research before obtaining the approval. For this
you may need to use Middlesex Online Research Ethics (MORE) system which provides
information and guidance: https://MOREform.mdx.ac.uk
This year, we significantly simplified the process of getting ethical approval!

Finally, students must see it as an opportunity to work and show their own work. A project is
a wonderful way to connect your past work and knowledge to your future career. Make the
best of it!

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2. The Module Teaching Team

Module Leader: Dr Can Başkent
Office Number: T131
Email: [email protected]
Office Hours: Wednesdays 10.00 – 12.00, T131 (Town Hall). Or over Zoom.

Each student will be assigned a supervisor – a member of staff. Your first point of contact
should be your supervisor regarding anything about the module. The role of the module
leader is to coordinate the module and provide a safe and fair learning environment for all.

I have put together FAQs for students (and also for supervisors) on MyLearning page of the
module. Please familiarise yourselves with it. It should be your first point of inquiry, if you
have any questions or concerns.

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3. Communication with the Teaching Team

It is essential that you have access and regularly check your Middlesex email address. Your
module leader will use that address to send announcements.

While you are working on your project, you are expected to have one-to-one meetings with
your supervisor. You can discuss with your supervisor which platform you would like to use for
this purpose: Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Skype etc., or you can have a face-to-face meeting. Your
supervisor is advised to meet you at least every two weeks.

The module leader will send reminders and updates using myUnihub. This communication will
arrive at your Middlesex email address. It is therefore imperative to have access to your
Middlesex email account and check it regularly.

The module leader is likely to send urgent and/or individual messages about the module to you
by email, so it is important that you read your University email regularly.

Your module leader cannot answer emails arriving from non-Middlesex email addresses. This is
to protect your privacy.

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4. Module overview
Aims

This module provides you with the opportunity of choosing and working on a project that
reflects your interests and aims and outcomes of your programme. It should constitute a
practical problem-solving project relevant to your programme of study. The primary aim of
the module is to consolidate and deepen your understanding of material taught on your
programme, to exercise professional judgement, to undertake individual research and to
conduct an investigation and/or develop a product, process or application relevant to the
focus of your programme. It provides you with the opportunity of engaging in significant
system development, the typical output of which represents the solution of a problem akin
to those that you as a fledgling professional practitioner are likely to encounter in future
employment. The module intends that your choice of individual project will provide you with
a significant opportunity to reflect on your learning progress and to develop your learning for
life-long and career development.

Learning Outcomes

Knowledge On completion of this module, the successful student will be able to:

1. Apply and integrate a range of techniques and methodologies in computer science and
engineering, technology, information systems, theory, research, design and evaluation to
the solution of a specific and substantial problem, and recognise the professional, legal
and ethical issues involved,
2. Demonstrate a comprehensive and detailed understanding of professional standards and
the lifecycle of the object of your work (product, process or application), and show a
critical appreciation of the selection of the tools used in its development.

Skills This module will call for the successful student to demonstrate that they can:

1. Address a complex problem with a spirit of critical enquiry, successfully demonstrating a

sophisticated application of information searching, analytical competency, critical
evaluation, writing and communication skills to enable effective documentation and
communication for the final year project, as well as life-long personal and career
development,
2. Reflect on the process of learning and personal development,
3. Demonstrate creative thinking competencies – the ability to be original or inventive and
to apply lateral thinking.

Syllabus

There is no taught syllabus and students are expected to work autonomously. Some
timetabled support workshops on the various stages of the project will be provided as
necessary throughout the year, on topics such as plagiarism, evaluation and testing, literature
review, referencing and citations, dissertation structure and research methodologies.

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Whilst working on your project, you will

1. Develop a project proposal,

1. Liaise with your supervisor regularly throughout the year,
2. Prepare and submit a system analysis or literature review to the proposed project,
3. Complete an ethics approval application if necessary,
4. Design and develop an artefact,
5. Design and implement a test plan and evaluation,
6. Submit a final report,
7. Give a demonstration of the finished software artefact.

Assessment

Coursework with the following four deliverable components:

1. Project proposal: 10%
2. Interim coursework: 20%
3. Final report: 40%
4. Viva: 30%

Students are expected to produce an artefact. The nature of this artefact will be determined
by the programme of study and the supervisor with moderation from the module leader. For
example, in programmes where software development plays a significant role, the artefact
might be expected to be a piece of software. It might be the evaluation and modelling of a
network or a novel visualisation of data. Extended literature reviews are not acceptable as
student projects; however, they might form a significant part of some projects where analysis
of literature leads to a set of heuristics or new ways of modelling data. The project work
should not be an extension of student’s existing or previous coursework.

Formative feedback is given in meetings with the supervisor. Students should receive an
average of 20 minutes a week supervision. It is the responsibility of the student to send details
of any work completed to the supervisor prior to meetings, in order to use the time
constructively.

Attendance at the viva presentation is compulsory. Students can not pass the module if they
do not receive a passing mark on the final report and the viva.

Notice that the percentage weight of the report and the viva is updated this academic year.

Assessment Weighting Coursework 100%

Total Notional Learning Hours 300

I have put together FAQs for students on MyLearning page of the module. Please familiarise
yourselves with it. It should be your first point of inquiry, if you have any questions or
concerns.

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Research Ethics

The teaching, learning, assessment and research activities undertaken in this module have
been considered and are not likely to require ethical approval.

However, please seek advice if undertaking the module entails carrying out any research
activities involving human participants, human data, animals/animal products, precious
artefacts, materials, or data systems. If you submit work that includes data gathered from or
about people, this may be treated as academic misconduct and could lead to fail grade being
awarded.

Research ethics approval seeks to ensure all research is designed and undertaken according
to certain principles of ethical research. These include:

1. Primary concern must be given to the safety, welfare and dignity of participants,
researchers, colleagues, the environment, and the wider community
2. Consideration of risks should be undertaken before research commences with the
aim of minimising risks to those involved – i.e. human participants or animal subjects,
colleagues, the environment and the wider community, as well as actual or potential
risks to those directly or indirectly affected by the research.
3. Informed consent should be freely given by participants, and by a trained person
when collecting or analysing human tissue.
4. Respect for the privacy, confidentiality and anonymity of participants
5. Consideration of the rights of people who may be vulnerable (by virtue of perceived
or actual differences in their social status, ethnic origin, gender, mental capacities, or
other such characteristics) who may be less competent or able to refuse to give
consent to participate
6. Researchers have a responsibility to the general public and to their profession; as
such they should balance the anticipated benefits of their research against potential
harm, misuse or abuse which must be avoided
7. Researchers must demonstrate the highest standards of ethical conduct and
research integrity. They must work within the limits of their skills, training and
experience, and refrain from exploitation, dishonesty, plagiarism, infringement of
intellectual property rights and the fabrication of research results. They should declare
any actual or potential conflicts of interest, and where necessary take steps to resolve
them.
8. When using human tissues for research, Human Tissue Act and Human Tissue
Authority (HTA) requirements must be met. Please contact the relevant designated
person (DP) in your department or the HTA Designated Individual (DI) (Dr Lucy Ghali -
[email protected]). Further information is provided below in the section: "Human
Tissue Authority Information", see 'Governance Structure" document and SOPs etc.
9. Research should not involve any illegal activity, and researchers must comply with
all relevant laws.

For more information about ethics go to the Middlesex Online Research Ethics (MORE)
system which has information and guidance to help you meet the highest standards of ethical
research using this link: https://MOREform.mdx.ac.uk

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Information and further guidance on how to complete a research ethics application form
(e.g., video guides and templates) can be found on the MORE MyLearning site:
http://mdx.mrooms.net/enrol/index.php?id=12277 (Log in required)

We significantly simplified the process of applying for ethics approval. If your project is low
risk, now it can be signed off by your supervisor. The form must be included in your second
coursework. If your project is not low risk, you must apply for an approval before the deadline
of your second coursework and include the evidence of your application in your second
coursework.

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5. Learning Resources

As a brief outline on how to prepare projects please refer to the following book.

Thesis Projects: A Guide for Students in Computer Science and Information

Systems, Berndtsson, Mikael; Hansson, Joergen; Olsson, B.;Lundell, Bjoern,
Springer.

This is also available at http://readinglists.mdx.ac.uk

My lectures and slides will be based on our textbook. It is highly recommended that you
follow the lectures from the textbook and read all of it.

The textbook is also a great reference. Whilst working on your project, it is advisable to take
a look at it to advance your understanding of how to work on a project and write a report
about it.

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6. Expectations of Studying This Module

Engagement Engaging with online and on-campus in-person learning and activities is
integral to your success. Middlesex University supports students, enabling them to achieve
their full potential.
We provide this support through a number of strategies, all of which provide our students
with a supportive learning environment online, remotely, face-to-face, or blended.
Further information on engaging with your programme will be available at your Induction
and updates online at UniHub
https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/study/assessment/attendance

Mobile phones All mobile phones must be switched to silent during sessions unless directed
by your tutor to do otherwise. Calls and texts cannot be made or received during sessions
unless agreed with the tutor prior to the session starting. If you are observed using your
mobile phone you can be asked to leave the session. Do not take pictures of the board –
slides are already in MyLearning page. Instead, take note. Students learn by taking note, not
by taking pictures.

Professional Behaviour and Online Conduct The programme of study you are undertaking is
underpinned by developing professional behaviour and attitude. You are expected to behave
in a professional, supportive manner to your peers and teachers. You must come to sessions
prepared and ready to contribute where appropriate. Please remember that your University
ID should be carried with you always whilst on campus and you must be able to identify
yourself if asked to do so. Please conduct your email communication with fellow students,
tutors and all relevant staff in a formal and courteous manner.
In the same way that we help you understand how to effectively participate in learning on
campus, we also want to make sure that you can make the most of online learning. Our
principles of online learning class conduct are available at: https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/covid-19-
updates-faq/online-classroom-conduct

Academic Integrity and Misconduct You should be aware of the University’s academic
integrity and misconduct policies and procedures. Taking unfair advantage over other
students in assessment is considered a serious offence by the University. Action will be taken
against any student who contravenes the regulations through negligence, foolishness or
deliberate intent. Academic misconduct takes several forms, in particular:
• Plagiarism– using extensive unacknowledged quotations from, or direct copying of,
another person’s work and presenting it for assessment as if it were your own effort. This
includes the use of third party essay writing services.
• Collusion – working together with other students (without the tutor’s permission), and
presenting similar or identical work for assessment.
• Infringement of Exam Room Rules– Communication with another candidate, taking
notes to your table in the exam room and/or referring to notes during the examination.

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• Self-Plagiarism- including any material which is identical or substantially similar to

material that has already been submitted by you for another assessment in the
University or elsewhere.

Students who attempt to gain unfair advantage over others through academic misconduct
will be penalised by sanctions, according to the severity of the offence, which can include
exclusion from the University. Links to the relevant University regulations and additional
support resources can be found here:
Becoming a successful student Course which includes Academic Integrity
(You will have to log into to MyUniHub and then MyLearning to access the course.)

Full details on academic integrity and misconduct and the support available can be found at
Academic Integrity | UniHub (mdx.ac.uk)

The Academic Integrity and Misconduct policy is available in our Public Policy Statements
(under Academic Quality) at: Our policies | Middlesex University London (mdx.ac.uk)
Referencing & Plagiarism: Suspected of plagiarism?:
http://libguides.mdx.ac.uk/c.php?g=322119&p=2155601
Referencing and avoiding plagiarism:
https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/study/writing-numeracy/awl-resources/writing

The Middlesex University Students’ Union (MDXSU) Advice Service offers free and
independent support in making an appeal, complaint or responding to any allegations of
academic or non-academic misconduct.
https://www.mdxsu.com/advice

Extenuating circumstances There may be difficult circumstances in your life that affect your
ability to meet an assessment deadline or affect your performance in an assessment. These
are known as extenuating circumstances or ‘ECs’. Extenuating circumstances are exceptional,
seriously adverse and outside of your control. Please see link for further information and
guidelines:
https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/your-study/assessment-and-regulations/extenuating-
circumstances

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7. Meeting Your Supervisors

We expect you to take the initiative in the first weeks of the Autumn term and contact your
supervisor to arrange your first project meeting. You may contact them by email, on their
office phone number or by attending at their office during the office hours shown on the
office door.

At the first project meeting, we would strongly advise you to agree with your supervisor a
time for regular weekly meetings for the duration of the project. Once the project is under
way and you have agreed tasks on which to work, you may find that you do not need to meet
every week. However, keeping a regular weekly meeting slot in your timetable and your
supervisor’s is the best way to make sure you stay in contact with your supervisor.
Because your time with your supervisor is limited, you must use the time effectively. Before
each meeting, you should decide on the topics you wish to discuss or the work you want to
show your supervisor, and by the end of each meeting, you should have agreed the task you
will carry out before the next meeting.

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8. Help in Writing

If you think you need some help in organising your thoughts, searching for literature and
writing your report, the library can offer some help.

Our subject librarian can be reached via the following link:

https://libguides.mdx.ac.uk/computing

The Learning Enhancement Team, Academic Writing support and Maths numeracy team can
be reached via the following contact information.

• Librarians http://libguides.mdx.ac.uk choose Chat or Ask a Librarian

• Learning Enhancement Team (LET)
https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/study/writing-numeracy
LET Academic Writing and Language email: [email protected]
LET Maths, stats and numeracy email: [email protected]

Please do not hesitate the contact our librarians for support!

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9. Timetabled Sessions

Throughout the year, we will organise seven sessions.

They will be between 5:00 PM – 6:30 PM on (some) Wednesdays in room COLLB C114.
The schedule of our meetings are as follows.

• September 27, 2023

• October 4, 2023
• October 11, 2023
• November 1, 2023
• November 29, 2023
• March 13, 2024
• March 20, 2024

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10. Coursework and Assessment

All coursework will be submitted by uploading them to the appropriate area in myUniHub.
There is no paper or email submission allowed. Submission deadlines are strict. The
submission links will be deactivated after the deadline, which means that you will not be able
to submit your coursework past deadline.

The marking criteria for each coursework will be available in the MyLearning page of the
module.

Students will receive their marks and feedback from myUniHub as well. They will be provided
using the Turnitin submission system. University rules dictate that the students are supposed
to receive their feedback within 15 working days after the deadline.

Coursework 1: Project Proposal

Weight on your final mark: 10%

Deadline: For the London Campus, it is November 12, 2023, Sunday, 11 PM sharp.
Submission: Online submission to UniHub. There is no paper or email submission.

Your Project Proposal should contain:

1. a description of the project you wish to undertake,
2. a brief description of the deliverables,
3. a brief explanation of the problem you are addressing,
4. a brief explanation of how you can evaluate your work,
5. a Gantt chart clearly showing milestones and deliverables,
6. a list of resources required,
7. a list of relevant books and article/publications (at least 6).

It will typically be about 1000 words and a supervisor may expect additional material if they
have provided you with an outline proposal.

Marking criteria for your Coursework 1 the Proposal is given as follows.

1. Is the project proposal at a suitable level for an Undergraduate student who is to commit
about 300 hours to it?
Factors to be considered are whether objectives have been clearly stated, what breadth of
investigative work needs to be carried out for the project and whether the project makes
suitable demands enabling a student’s skills to be demonstrated.

2. Is the project plan suitable for achieving project objectives?

Factors to be considered are whether the Proposal has a range of specific tasks been identified
which are clearly related to achieving the stated project objectives, and if the plan for
completing of the stated tasks clear (eg. ordering of tasks; estimation of task duration;
identification of milestones; indication of engagement with project supervisor).

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A final 20% will be dedicated for the style, structure and the presentation of ideas as well as
language use and referencing.

In case of failure, you will be advised to revise the proposal in the light of feedback, making
the necessary revisions to ensure that the project can move forward and has a realistic
prospect of a successful outcome on the basis of the revisions made. There will be no formal
resubmission.

Coursework 2: Background/Literature Review and Initial Development

Weight on your final mark: 20%

Deadline: For the London Campus, it is January 14, 2024, Sunday, 11 PM sharp.
Submission: Online submission to UniHub. There is no paper or email submission.

This written report must include a literature review. It should also cover other substantial
development work such as requirements, analysis and design, and implementation or other
documentation as agreed with your supervisor. The report should include commentary on
progress achieved relative to the original Gantt Chart, and for many students will include an
updated Gantt chart to accommodate performance to date.

Marking criteria for your Coursework 2 are that the work should demonstrate evidence of
scholarly activity. Factors to be considered are whether the background and literature review
has been clearly presented, clearly referenced, and if critical reflection applied as appropriate.
Your supervisor will check whether there is a literature review and the first steps of the work
is presented.

Notice that the Coursework 2 is not JUST a literature review. If the project is a research project,
the first steps of developing a hypothesis or an idea must be presented. Otherwise, initial
steps for an artefact or a software must be presented in addition to a literature review.

Starting from this year, low risk projects must include their ethics form in Coursework 2,
signed off by their supervisors. If the project is not low risk, the evidence that the application
is made to the departmental ethics committee must be included.

This assessment component does not have to be passed as an individual activity. So, in case
of failure, you can proceed with the remainder of the project work despite the fail mark
recorded at this stage. It will be very important that you act on the formal feedback received
and further advice provided informally by the supervisor at project meetings.

Coursework 3: Final Report

Weight on your final mark: 40%

Deadline: For the London Campus, it is April 28 2024, Sunday, 11 PM.
Submission: Online submission to UniHub. There is no paper or email submission. There will
be separate submission links for your report, code and, if necessary, video-viva presentation.

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The Final Report is a cumulative assignment. As such, it must be passed as an individual

activity. You cannot pass the module unless you pass the Report.

The typical report structure is composed of the following.

1. Title page It includes the module name/code, title, student name and number and
supervisor’s name as well as the Creative Commons licence.
2. Abstract It should be an approximately half a page summary of the whole project from
start to finish, typically including a statement of the problem to be solved, how the
problem was addressed, how the project was evaluated and what conclusions could be
drawn from the work. The abstract should be left to last because it is a summary of what
you actually did.
3. Introduction It should include a brief introduction to the project, a clear definition of the
problem to be addressed, and guide to rest of the report.
4. Background and Literature review It should describe the context of the project and
should attempt to establish the state of the art in the project area. This should show
evidence of scholarly activity in demonstrating the ability to research, collate and
integrate information into a coherent document that uses referencing and quotations
correctly such that an intelligent computer literate person should be able to quickly
understand the background to the project.
5. Requirements specification It should be as detailed as possible a specification of the
requirements for the development of your program. In some cases, the requirements may
come from tutors or users outside of academia and more formal techniques for
requirements elicitation may be needed. In other cases, the student will define these
requirements. This may include a test plan.
6. Analysis and design It should document your analysis of the requirements and the design
using an appropriate method. Usually this will be UML (e.g. class diagrams, sequence
diagrams etc.), but other methods can be used if appropriate. It should include a
commentary on how design decisions are made.
7. Implementation and testing It should give details of how your design is actually
implemented and how testing has been planned and conducted. For real world
applications testing can be very detailed, but in student projects it is often fairly brief. You
can choose to make this a feature of the project if you wish (for example you could use
the Test Driven Development methodology). Software performance could also be
measured against a test plan. (e.g. acceptance testing for the given stakeholder)
developed at the requirements stage.
8. Demonstration/Evaluation In this chapter you have the opportunity to show off your
program in action and evaluate how well it fulfils the requirements specification. The
reader should be able to get a clear idea of what the program does and looks like without
having to run the code. Some indication of program performance is expected her (e.g.
screen shots, results, collated results or other output, analysis of performance, graphs etc.
as appropriate) are expected here in order to demonstrate and evaluate the work.
However, a detailed user guide to the software (if the work warranted it) or lengthy
numeric analysis would usually appear as an appendix. The management of the project
should also be discussed with reference to the Gantt charts produced, and variances from
the proposed milestones and deliverables should be accounted for.

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9. Conclusion The project should conclude with a critical and reflective evaluation of both
the process and outcomes of the work. It should detail the lessons learned, how the
project would be conducted if it was started over, and what future work could be done to
improve the project.
10. Appendices Appendices should include optional additional material. This may include any
other materials too detailed to be included in the main text (up to a maximum of twenty
pages). A guide to how to compile, configure and run the software is essential.

Note that each of the above components will be marked individually in your Final Report.
Your Final Report will also be marked by a second-marker, a member of faculty from the
department, by using the same criteria.

The Final Report is a formal piece of writing. As such it needs to adhere to certain stylistic
criteria.
Paper size: A4 with default margins.
Line Spacing: 1.5
Font: Arial, 12 point.
Word limit: 15,000 words, unless agreed otherwise with the supervisor. Your
supervisor may increase this limit to 18,000 words.

It is our intention to archive some selected projects. For this reason, the project reports must
have a Creative Commons licence.

We advise students to include the following phrase in the preamble of their work:
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-
NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

See the details on the Creative Commons website: https://creativecommons.org

Please note that it is not compulsory to include the CC licence, and in either case you hold the
copyright of your work and it remains your intellectual property as explained in Section 11
below.

Moreover, in the preamble of your report, the following honour code must be included, and
signed-and-dated by the student:

"I hereby confirm that the work presented here in this report and in all other
associated material is wholly my own work".

Viva Voce and Demonstration

Weight on your final mark: 30%

Deadline: To be determined. If done via live video, the same deadline as final report. If done
face-to-face, at some time immediately after the exams.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

If carried out face-to-face, this will be immediately following the exam period. Individual
sessions will be arranged for each student. It is essential that students make themselves
available during this period to participate. Your examiners will ask you questions about your
project in order to establish the quality of your software, and to assess your understanding of
the work achieved and presented in your project. You will primarily be asked to demonstrate
your software but you could equally be asked to clarify or explain any part of the written work.
The viva should last no longer than 30 minutes and may be recorded on video for record
keeping.

Your Viva will be assessed according to the quality of your work, your understanding of the
work undertaken as judged by your response to your jury's questions and also the quality and
coherence of your presentation.

Similar to your Final Report, Viva will also be marked by a second-marker, a member of faculty
from the department, by using the same criteria.

Please note that all three coursework has marking component for “style”. This includes
technical proficiency in English as well as referencing, style, punctuation and grammar.

Before you submit your work for final grading, please ensure that you have accurately
referenced the work. It is your responsibility to check the spelling and grammar, as all written
assessments will assess technical proficiency in the English. This means accurate and effective
spelling, punctuation and grammar. Details of how it will be assessed will be provided in the
marking criteria for each assessment and the University overall approach can be found within
the Grade Criteria Guide in the University Regulations https://www.mdx.ac.uk/about-
us/policies (scroll to university regulations).
Reasonable adjustments will be made for those students who have a declared
disability/specific learning condition which would affect performance in this area.

Reassessment for this module normally takes place in the next opportunity.
Further information is available at https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/study/assessment

Middlesex University is committed to being fair in its approach to assessing student learning
following the UK Quality Code for Higher Education (Quality Code) (2018) and the UK Quality
Code - Advice and Guidance: Assessment (2018) and External Expertise (2018).

The Assessment Fairness guidance, policies and procedures put in place by Middlesex
University is our commitment to ensure fairness in assessment and are available at
https://www.mdx.ac.uk/about-us/policies

If you have any queries or would like to know more on how this approach has been applied
to modules you are studying please contact your Programme Leader.

The detailed marking rubric of each coursework can be found at the end of this module
handbook.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

11. Intellectual Property and Archiving the Projects

In most cases, students hold the intellectual property rights in the work they produce for
assessment. There are some exceptions such as where the work is commercially sponsored,
or the aim of the module is to develop intellectual property, or where the student is
sponsored or employed, or on placement. Students are asked to read the Middlesex
University Policy Statement ‘Intellectual Property Rights: https://myunihub.mdx.ac.uk

Archiving the Projects

It is our intention to archive some selected projects. For this reason, the project reports
must have a Creative Commons licence.

We advise students to include the following phrase in the preamble of their work:

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-

NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

See the details on the Creative Commons website: https://creativecommons.org

Please note that it is not compulsory to include the CC licence, and in either case you hold
the copyright of your work and it remains your intellectual property as explained in Section
11 above.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

13. Academic Dishonesty

Taking unfair advantage in assessment is considered a serious offence by the university,

which will take action against any student who contravenes the regulation through
negligence, foolishness or deliberate intent.

Academic dishonesty is a corrosive force in academic life; it jeopardises the quality of

education and devalues the degrees and awards of the University.

The full regulations on academic dishonesty are given in the University Guide and
Regulations, Section F, Infringement of assessment regulations – Academic dishonesty.

If we identify that your paper is produced by a “paper mill”, I will personally seek to it that
the most serious punishment is served.

Plagiarism
Plagiarism is one specific form of cheating. It is typically discovered in coursework or
laboratory assignments that are required to be completed by reliance on students’ own
individual effort.
It is interesting to note that one dictionary defines a plagiarist as a kind of thief: “one who
steals the thoughts or writings of others and gives them out as [his/her] own”. When such
‘theft’ is additionally used to gain academic credit to which a student is not entitled, a further
level of dishonesty is clearly present that makes the original act on the student’s part even
worse.

The University Regulation Section F clearly sets out the University’s understanding of
plagiarism and the regulations by which Middlesex University students are bound. The key
University regulation is F2.3:

“F2.3 The presentation by the student as their own work of a body of material
(written, visual or oral) which is wholly or partially the work of another, either in
concept or expression, or which is a direct copy.
Note: The work presented for assessment must be the candidate’s own, or the
work of a project group as requested by the tutor. Plagiarism is the representation
of another person’s published or unpublished work as the candidate’s own by
unacknowledged quotation. It is not an offence if the material is acknowledged by
the candidate as the work of another through the accurate use of quotation marks
and the provision of detailed references and a full bibliography, although the
Assessment Board will not expect work to rely heavily on direct quotations.”

In addition, the University Regulations set out the process for investigating allegations of
plagiarism and describe the penalties. If students are found guilty, the repercussions are very
serious indeed.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

Students should take steps, therefore, to understand what plagiarism is, how it can be
identified and how they can avoid committing it.

Electronic Plagiarism Detection The university uses “TURNITIN “, an external web based
service which operates a “detection of plagiarism” facility. The detection efficiency is very
high.

Students must submit their project report drafts to this service following the procedures
detailed on the CST3990 MyUniHub website. The service returns a report indicating the total
percentage of “similar” (copied) material, itemises the sources from which it has been copied,
and indicates the amount copied from each source.

Students are allowed to quote directly from other sources provided the quotation is enclosed
by “quotation marks” and the source is properly referenced. In addition, it is strongly
recommended that you use italics and enclose all quotations in a table box so that it is
abundantly clear to the reader.

CONVICTION OF PLAGIARISM OR COPYING MATERIAL INTO A STUDENT’S PROJECT; FROM

ANY SOURCES, WILL CAUSE THE STUDENT TO FAIL, WITH THE IMPOSITION OF FURTHER
SEVERE PENALTIES.

Confidentiality/ Non-disclosure Should your work and/or project report involve material of
a confidential nature, you can arrange for non-disclosure, either in part or whole. This must
be agreed by the module leader, your supervisor and the School Ethical Committee if
appropriate.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

14. Appeals
The full regulations on appeals are given in the University Regulations.

The full regulations on appeals are given in the University Guide and Regulations. Section G -
Appeal regulations and procedures.

Students cannot appeal against an academic judgement of a particular grade unless there is
a recorded medical reason, or some work was not assessed and there is evidence that this
has NOT been taken into account in the assessment. Since the whole marking of a project is
subject to academic judgement students cannot appeal against the grade for a project, unless
the following conditions can be proven to apply:

(1) A student can show the presence of material that has not been assessed
(2) A breakdown of the relationship between student and supervisor

In the case of (2) appealing after the event is not enough. Student must have drawn it to the
attention of the module Leader, in writing, well before submission.

The documented existence of extenuating circumstances which though not in themselves

sufficient for a deferral, may be considered as adverse to the students overall performance.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

15. Assessment Policies

Before you submit your work for final grading, please ensure that you have accurately
referenced the work. It is your responsibility to check the spelling and grammar. If you have
submitted a formative or draft assessment, you will receive feedback but no grade. The
comments should inform you about how well you have done or tell you about the areas for
improvement. All assignments should be submitted online unless specified in assessment
briefs.

Further information is available at https://unihub.mdx.ac.uk/study/assessment/regulations

Middlesex University is committed to being fair in its approach to assessing student learning
following the UK Quality Code for Higher Education (Quality Code) (2018) and the UK Quality
Code - Advice and Guidance: Assessment (2018) and External Expertise (2018).

The Assessment Fairness guidance, policies and procedures put in place by Middlesex
University in our commitment to ensure fairness for all in assessment, include our Academic
Policy Statement APS18: Curriculum Design Policy (2018), Middlesex University Regulatory
Framework Code of Assessment Practice: Section M, Academic Policy Statement APS29:
Anonymous Marking Assessment Policy (2020), Equality and Diversity Policy and Codes of
Practice (HRPS8), specifically code of practice 7: Curriculum, Pedagogy and Assessment and
Key Principles of Assessment.

If you have any queries or would like to know more on how this approach has been applied
to modules you are studying please contact your Programme Leader.

Feedback on your assignments

You will be provided with feedback on all coursework that is helpful and informative,
consistent with aiding the learning and development process. The nature of the feedback
shall be determined at programme level but may take a variety of forms including: written
comments; individual and group tutorial feedback; peer feedback; or other forms of
effective and efficient feedback.

Feedback will normally be provided within 15 WORKING DAYS of the published coursework
component submission date.

How is your assignment mark agreed?

The following diagram provides an overview of the marking process for your module
assessment. Further information on the role of external examiners can be found at.
https://www.mdx.ac.uk/about-us/policies/academic-quality/handbook (section 4)

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

• You submit your assignment

1

• The first marker grades the work and provides feedback; this could be completed
2 anonymously depending on the assessment type.

• A moderator or second marker reviews a sample of the work to quality assure the
grades and feedback, to ensure they are accurate. A final mark for the work is
3 agreed between the first marker and the moderator or second marker.
• A sample of work is sent to the External Examiner to check that the grading and
feedback is at the right level and in line with external subject benchmarks (this
4 applies to levels 5 & 6 only)

• Your final grades are submitted to the subject assessment board.

5

Anonymous Marking Assessment Policy

We have worked with the Middlesex University Students’ Union (MDXSU) to create an
anonymous marking policy, in response to student feedback. Anonymous marking ensures
that your identity (your name, student number and other personal/identifiable information)
is not made available to academics when they are marking your work. This means that you
can have confidence that your assessments will be marked fairly and consistently. However,
there are some forms of assessment for which anonymity cannot be guaranteed and these
are recognised in the policy. We believe that it is important to provide you with the support
and guidance needed to help you develop and prepare for your final assessments (those
which count towards your final grades i.e. summative assessments). Therefore, anonymous
marking will not apply to learning activities and assessments that do not contribute to your
final grades (i.e. formative assessments). If you require further information and support to
understand how anonymous marking works in your programme modules please contact the
Module Leader for more information.

The Anonymous Marking Assessment Policy is available at:

https://www.mdx.ac.uk/__data/assets/pdf_file/0037/563599/anonymous-marking-
assessment-policy.pdf

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

University 20-point Scale

20-point scale General scale General scale (full Percentage used for aggregation
ranges) purposes only

1 90%
80% - 100% 79.50% - 100%
2 77.5%
76% - 79% 75.50% - 79.49%
3 74%
73% - 75% 72.50% - 75.49%
4 71%
70% - 72% 69.50% - 72.49%
5 68%
67% - 69% 66.50% - 69.49%
6 65.5%
65% - 66% 64.50% - 66.49%
7 63%
62% - 64% 61.50% - 64.49%
8 60.5%
60% - 61% 59.50% - 61.49%
9 58%
57% - 59% 56.50% - 59.49%
10 55.5%
55% - 56% 54.50% - 56.49%
11 53%
52% - 54% 51.50% - 54.49%
12 50.5%
50% - 51% 49.50% - 51.49%
13 48%
47% - 49% 46.50% - 49.49%
14 45.5%
45% - 46% 44.50% - 46.49%
15 43%
42% - 44% 41.50% - 44.49%
16 40.5%
40% - 41% 39.50% - 41.49%
17 37%
35% - 39% 34.50% - 39.49%
18 32%
30% - 34% 29.50% - 34.49%
19 15%
0% - 29% 0.01% - 29.49%
20 Non-participation 0% 0% (non-submission of a component)

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

16. Assessment Rubrics

Assessment Rubric for the Proposal

1- 4 // First 5-8 // Upper Second 9-12 // Lower Second 13-16 // Third 17-20 // Fail
CRITERIA
(> 70%) (60-69%) (50-59%) (40-49%) (< 40%)

Borderline good for

Good for final-year Good for final-year final-year level with
Ideal for final-year
Level level with some minor level with some major some major Not final-year level
undergraduate level
improvements improvements improvements and
replanning

Contains a good plan Contains a plan which

Contains a good plan Contains no realistic
Contains an excellent plan which is suitable for requires some planning
which is suitable for plan to achieve the
which is suitable for achieving achieving the proposed for achieving the
Plan achieving the proposed proposed objectives
the proposed objectives and objectives and contains proposed objectives
objectives and contains and contains no Gantt
contains a Gantt chart a good enough Gantt and contains a Gantt
a Gantt chart chart
chart chart or not

Showing good enough

Showing good style of Showing passable style Showing no good style
Showing excellent style of style of technical
technical English use of technical English use of technical English
Style technical English use and English use and mostly
and almost-correct use and somewhat correct use, incorrect use of
correct use of bibliography correct use of
of bibliography use of bibliography bibliography
bibliography

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

Assessment Rubric for the Interim Report

1- 4 // First 5-8 // Upper Second 9-12 // Lower Second 13-16 // Third 17-20 // Fail
CRITERIA
(> 70%) (60-69%) (50-59%) (40-49%) (< 40%)

Contains a passable
Contains an excellent Contains a very good Contains a good but barely satisfactory Contains no good
presentation of presentation of problem presentation of problem presentation of problem presentation of problem
problem background background and background and background and background and
and literature literature literature literature literature

Literature Review Shows critical Shows some critical Shows little critical Shows passable or Shows no critical
reflection reflection reflection very little critical reflection
reflection
Reflects the state of Reflects the state of the Reflects the state of the Does not reflect the
the art of the art of the research idea art of the research idea Reflects the state of the state of the art of the
research idea well somewhat art of the research idea research idea
barely

Showing excellent Showing very good first Showing good first Showing passable first Showing no realistic
first steps towards steps towards the steps towards the steps towards the first steps towards the
the proposed proposed objectives, proposed objectives, proposed objectives, proposed objectives,
First Steps objectives, giving the giving the sense that giving the sense that giving the sense that giving the sense that
sense that the the research is the research is the research is the research is not
research is progressing well, progressing well, progressing well, progressing well at all
progressing very well requiring little requiring some requiring major
correction corrections corrections

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

Showing excellent Showing good enough Showing passable style

Showing good style of Showing no good style
style of technical style of technical of technical English
technical English use, of technical English
English use, logical English use, logical use, logical
Style logical presentation, use, no logical
presentation, and presentation, and presentation, and
and almost-correct use presentation, incorrect
correct use of mostly correct use of somewhat correct use
of bibliography use of bibliography
bibliography bibliography of bibliography

Give 10 if the ethics

(no partial credit for (no partial credit for (no partial credit for Give 0 if there is no
Ethics Approval form is properly filled
ethics form) ethics form) ethics form) ethics form.
and included.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

Assessment Rubric for the Final Report

1- 4 // First 5-8 // Upper Second 9-12 // Lower Second 13-16 // Third 17-20 // Fail
CRITERIA
(> 70%) (60-69%) (50-59%) (40-49%) (< 40%)

Abstract is not good,

Abstract is good, not
Abstract --- either too short or too --- There is no abstract
too short nor too long
long

No rationale for the

A clear rationale for A good rationale for the A good rationale for the Some rationale for the
topic choice, not-good
the topic choice, topic choice, very good topic choice, good topic choice, somewhat
presentation of problem
excellent presentation of problem presentation of problem passable presentation
background and state
Background presentation of background and state background and state of problem background
of the art in the field
problem background of the art in the field of the art in the field and state of the art in
that require some
and state of the art in that require very little that require some the field that require
major and fundamental
the field correction minor corrections some major corrections
corrections

Significant and
Good contributions in Passable contributions
excellent Very good contributions No contributions
terms of either (or both) in terms of either (or
contributions in terms in terms of either (or whatsoever in terms of
Contribution theory or applications both) theory or
of either (or both) both) theory or either (or both) theory
with some minor applications with some
theory or applications or applications at all
corrections major corrections
applications.

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

A good comparison
A passable comparison
An excellent An very good with the state of the art
with the state of the art
comparison with the comparison with the is performed to justify No realistic comparison
is performed to justify
state of the art is state of the art is the findings that require with the state of the art
the findings that require
performed to justify performed to justify the minor corrections is performed to justify
major corrections
Evaluation the findings findings the findings
A good justification of
A passable justification
Excellent justification A very good obtained results with No real justification of
of obtained results with
of obtained results justification of obtained somewhat convincing obtained results with no
not-so conclusions,
with convincing results with convincing conclusions that convincing conclusions
requiring major
conclusions conclusions require minor
corrections
corrections

Showing excellent Showing good enough Showing passable style

Showing good style of Showing no good style
style of technical style of technical of technical English
technical English use, of technical English
English use, logical English use, logical use, logical
Style logical presentation, use, no logical
presentation, and presentation, and presentation, and
and almost-correct use presentation, incorrect
correct use of mostly correct use of somewhat correct use
of bibliography use of bibliography
bibliography bibliography of bibliography

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 Undergraduate Individual Project CST3990

Assessment Rubric for the Viva

1- 4 // First 5-8 // Upper Second 9-12 // Lower Second 13-16 // Third 17-20 // Fail
CRITERIA
(> 70%) (60-69%) (50-59%) (40-49%) (< 40%)

Topic, content and

contribution Very good
understanding of the
In-depth understanding conducted work in Significant knowledge Satisfactory knowledge Adequate content, and Inadequate content and
of knowledge and the and understanding of and understanding of limited depth of limited depth of
relation to
conducted work, topics theories and topics theories and knowledge and knowledge and
underpinning
supported by concepts concepts understanding understanding
theories, concepts
demonstrations and and related fields.
explanations

Excellent in structure, Very good in structure, Adequate in structure,

Good in structure, logic Poorly in structure, logic
Artefact, Logic flow, logic flow, logic flow,
flow, communications, flow, communications,
presentation, and communications, communications, communications,
effective use of effective use of
communication effective use of effective use of effective use of
presentation tools presentation tools
presentation tools presentation presentation tools

Fully understanding of Good understanding of Average understanding Limited understanding No understanding of

Answering Questions the questions, the questions, of the questions and of the questions and questions and no
answering in full answering them well satisfactory answers limited answers correct answers

The End

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