PX452-45 Astrophysics Project
Introductory description
The project gives students the opportunity to develop their own ideas in a particular field of astrophysics. Usually students work in a pair, within one of astrophysics research groups and alongside postgraduate students and other members of staff. The experience of working more independently should be valuable to students' future careers, whether they intend to work as scientists or not, and can help students make their career choices.
Module aims
To provide experience of working on an extended project in a research environment in collaboration with a supervisor and, typically, with a partner
Outline syllabus
This is an indicative module outline only to give an indication of the sort of topics that may be covered. Actual sessions held may differ.
You will work, normally in pairs, on an extended project which may be observational, computational, data analytic or theoretical (or indeed a combination of these). Through discussions with your supervisor you will establish a plan of work which you will frequently review as you progress. In general, the project will not be closely prescribed and will contain an investigative element. Over the Christmas vacation you will independently write an interim report which will be marked and returned (with feedback) by your supervisor. At the end of the second term, you will again independently write a final report, which will be assessed by two independent members of academic staff. You will also prepare a poster describing your project to be presented at an open poster session along with other project posters, at which you will also be required to defend it.
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, students should be able to:
- To complete a piece of physics research
- To write a scientific report on your work and defend it at a poster session
Indicative reading list
Research journals and books
Subject specific skills
Research skills in physics
Transferable skills
Analytical, communication, IT, organisational, problem-solving, self-study
Study time
| Type | Required |
|---|---|
| Lectures | 2 sessions of 1 hour (0%) |
| Project supervision | 40 sessions of 1 hour (9%) |
| Private study | 408 hours (91%) |
| Total | 450 hours |
Private study description
Analysis of techniques and results, discussing with partner, reading and working through research papers, writing interim report and final thesis, preparatory reading (over long vacation), preparing poster and poster presentation for oral defence of the thesis
Costs
No further costs have been identified for this module.
You do not need to pass all assessment components to pass the module.
Assessment group A
| Weighting | Study time | Eligible for self-certification | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dissertation & Report | 100% | No | |
|
Dissertation + Interim Report |
|||
Feedback on assessment
Written feedback provided by supervisor (end of term 1), written feedback written from the two \r\nindependent assessors of the dissertation.
Courses
This module is Core for:
- Year 4 of UPXA-F3FA Undergraduate Physics with Astrophysics (MPhys)