BioSciences Research Project Part 3

This subject has the following teaching availabilities in 2016:

This subject is an individual research project and weekly contact hours will vary depending on the nature of the project. Students should discuss this with their supervisor but as a guide, a student enrolled in a 12.5 point research project subject would be expected to be engaged in their research for an average of 10 hours per week.

One of:

For the purposes of considering request for Reasonable Adjustments under the Disability Standards for Education (Cwth 2005), and Student Support and Engagement Policy, academic requirements for this subject are articulated in the Subject Overview, Learning Outcomes, Assessment and Generic Skills sections of this entry.

It is University policy to take all reasonable steps to minimise the impact of disability upon academic study, and reasonable adjustments will be made to enhance a student's participation in the University's programs. Students who feel their disability may impact on meeting the requirements of this subject are encouraged to discuss this matter with a Faculty Student Adviser and Student Equity and Disability Support: http://services.unimelb.edu.au/disability

This subject is part of a sequence of four (A to D) taken in successive semesters that together constitute the 125-point research project offered through the MSc Bioscience. The project involves laboratory or field-based experimental research in an area of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Genetics, Genomics and Developmental Biology, and Plant Biology. The research projects cover a broad range of research from molecular to population and evolutionary biology in micro-organisms, insects, plants and animals. The project will be based in the laboratory of an academic staff member in the School of BioSciences or an approved external supervisor, depending on the particular research project. The research project aims to develop a range of experimental and technical skills, a capacity to set goals and to design and plan experiments. Apart from the help and guidance from their supervisor(s) each student also has a committee, which provides additional help and expertise. This committee is responsible for assessment of the research project subject. The subject also provides students with skills and knowledge for understanding original research and enhanced written and oral communication skills.

The project will be taken over four consecutive semesters and will begin on the Monday of semester of entry (semesters 1 or 2) and continue for up to 88 weeks until the end of the fourth semester, minus recreation leave of between 4 and 8 weeks (22 weeks per semester over the four semesters).

For how long and at what time within the enrolment the actual period of leave is to be taken needs to be negotiated with a student’s supervisor.

The Research Project will be due for submission by the end of the formal examination period of the fourth semester of enrolment if an earlier date is not specified.

Objectives of this subject are for students to:

• understand the way in which experiments are designed, communicated and interpreted;
• extend their abilities in oral and written scientific communication;
• gain the ability to read and assimilate specific research papers and to understand how the research reported relates to the broad field of biological sciences;
• acquire experience in planning and executing laboratory or field-based experimental research;
• develop effective skills in data collection and analysis, and postulating testable hypotheses based on this data.

The subject involves experimental research under the direction of a supervisor.

The entire research project for the Master of Science (BioSciences) consists of 125 points with assessments distributed over 4 semesters. There are no assessment tasks in BioScience Research Project C. However, a Progress Review meeting will be held between the student and supervisor to confirm satisfactory progress toward timely completion.

This subject is not available as a breadth subject.

This subject should provide students with the opportunity to develop the following generic skills:

• the ability to evaluate scientific literature;
• the ability to use conceptual models to assess experimental data;
• the ability to conduct research;
• the capacity to articulate their knowledge and understanding in written and oral presentations;
• the capacity for high level written report presentation skills;
• the capacity for oral communication and presentation skills;
• time management and self-management skills.