ENGINEERING PROFESSIONAL STUDIES - 2022/3

Module Overview

Expected prior learning: This module is a follow-up to some of the core professional-development activities in Year 2.




Module purpose:  This module is a professional-development module that is compulsory on all UG Programmes. The module provides students with competences and hands-on experience of professional practice in modern electronic and electrical engineering. It aims to provide an in-depth understanding of the processes involved in engineering design and practice, as well as develop relevant professional skills. This module equips students with experience of independent and group based work, project management and leadership, while addressing core aspects of modern engineering, such as sustainability, the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), security in engineering, engineering ethics and equlaity, diversity and inclusion.

The module’s focus is a student-driven team-based product-design project that applies skills and practices addressed in the syllabus. In addition, it provides a skillset for successful management of individual projects, in particular the Year 3 project, and future group projects, such as the multi-disciplinary design project in MEng Year 4.





 

Module provider

Computer Science and Electronic Eng

Module Leader

CAREY David (CS & EE)

Number of Credits: 15

ECTS Credits: 7.5

Framework: FHEQ Level 6

Module cap (Maximum number of students): N/A

Module Availability

Semester 1

Prerequisites / Co-requisites

None.

Module content

Indicative content includes

1. Systems engineering and Steps in Design Analysis

2. Prioritization Strategies and Risk Analysis

3. Sustainability

4. Leadership styles

5. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, and Unconscious Bias 

6. Technology Development including TRLs, Hype curves and Disruptive Technology

8. Industry 4.0, Additive Manufacturing, and 'Horizontals and verticals'

9. Approaches to Manufacturing (including lean and six sigma)

10. Group presentation skills

Assessment pattern

Alternative Assessment

Students who fail the module are required to write a 3000 word essay on the role of group work in engineering projects.  An alternative assessment is required as this is a group project.

Assessment Strategy

The assessment strategy for this module is designed to provide students with the opportunity to demonstrate the skills and knowledge described in the learning outcomes.

The summative assessment for this module consists of:

·         Outline Design Brief: concise project design brief (Week 5)

·         Final Project Report: technical report of the project’s (group and individual) achievements (Week 12)

·         Project presentation: group and individual oral presentation and demonstration of implemented product (Week 15)

These deadlines are indicative. For confirmation of exact dates and times, please check the Departmental assessment calendar issued to you.

1. The design brief: should outline the group's proposal for the project in the form of a 3 page design brief design brief (plus appendices). Within the 3 pages the design brief should describe (a) an overview of the product planned and its innovation, (b) provide a brief technical outline including the identification of the relevant UN Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs), and (c) provide an overview of project management (including a diagrammatic work plan), risk analysis and a summary of the estimated costs.

In the appendices the group should address aspects of research and data integrity, and ethical considerations via (i) a completed university ethical review form, (ii) an equality impact assessment, (iii) a data management plan which should address data and cyber security considerations, and (v) a summary of the outcomes of the weekly group meetings. 

2. The project report (up to 40 pages excluding appendices) will assess both group and individual contributions.  The group component will assess the group's overall technical contribution including design and implementation of systems engineering to the project, the group's contextualization of the work in relation to existing technology, the group's project management and planning, and the overall report structure. The discussion of sustainability in the project report should include discussion and reference to the UN SDGs.

The individual component will assess the individual student's technical contribution to the project, their project management and planning associated with design of the parts of the project they contributed to, and the structure and content of their written part of the report. 

3. The presentation and demonstration will assess the quality of the finalized product, technical achievements and presentation skills of both the group and each individual. The group will be assessed on the overall structure and format, the use visual aids (and audio if relevant) aids and links between speakers and background. The individual student will be assessed in terms of voice, audibility, pace and timing. 

Peer marking by the students of their fellow group members will influence the group components of the mark.  

Formative assessment and feedback

For the module, students will receive formative assessment/feedback in the following ways.

·         During lectures, by question and answer

·         During supervised laboratory sessions

·         Via the marking of written reports

 

Module aims

• This module aims to provide students with skills and experience critical to modern engineering through hands-on product design, implementation and presentation in a team-based context. Not only will the module offer students an exciting, innovative and collaborative project that materializes their own ideas, but it will also develop them as future leaders, designers and real engineering professionals.

Learning outcomes

Methods of Teaching / Learning

The learning and teaching strategy is designed to achieve the following aims.

• Help develop students as engineering professionals


• Develop independent research, design and development skills


• Develop leadership and team working skills


• Develop professional communication skills

• Lectures (8 hours taught)


• Laboratories (12 hours supervised)


• Independent learning as part of a group (110 hours)


• Guided learning (10 hours)


• Captured content (10 hours)

Indicated Lecture Hours (which may also include seminars, tutorials, workshops and other contact time) are approximate and may include in-class tests where one or more of these are an assessment on the module. In-class tests are scheduled/organised separately to taught content and will be published on to student personal timetables, where they apply to taken modules, as soon as they are finalised by central administration. This will usually be after the initial publication of the teaching timetable for the relevant semester.

Reading list

https://readinglists.surrey.ac.uk
Upon accessing the reading list, please search for the module using the module code: EEE3035

Programmes this module appears in

Please note that the information detailed within this record is accurate at the time of publishing and may be subject to change. This record contains information for the most up to date version of the programme / module for the 2022/3 academic year.