The various coursework masters programs offered by the faculty are aimed at
either increasing the depth of understanding of specialisation of a graduate
engineer in areas which have previously been studied at undergraduate level, or
broadening the education of a graduate engineer into areas which may not have
been previously studied during the undergraduate training.
For the Master of Engineering Science (Coursework and Minor Thesis), Master of
Engineering Science in Process Integration (Coursework and Minor Thesis) and
Master of Engineering Maintenance Management, a candidate must gain 72 credit
points before becoming eligible for the award of the degree. The coursework
component is normally 54 credit points. The remaining 18 credit points are to
be earned by a minor thesis. Enrolment in the minor thesis is done on a
percentage basis and candidates must enrol in at least one-third of the value
of the thesis in any semester in which the thesis is undertaken.
It is the faculty's policy to encourage candidate's to complete in minimum
time. It should be noted that although regulations allow for these courses to
be completed in less than 18 months, any candidate attempting to do so is
required to complete the equivalent of 18 months of full-time study (ie 72
credit points) during this period. International students should particularly
note that completion of the courses in minimum time would still attract a
financial liability for 18 months of study.
Each candidate will have a member of the faculty's academic staff as a
supervisor. The supervisor will advise the candidate in the selection of
coursework subjects and their sequence, help in the selection and specification
of a candidate's project, and supervise the project.
For the masters programs in Biomedical Engineering and Telecommunication
Engineering, a candidate must gain 48 credit points before becoming eligible
for the award of the degree. Candidates must complete a coursework component
plus either a project to the value of 12 credit points or a 24 credit point
minor thesis. Candidates for the Master of Transport and Traffic must
successfully complete approved graduate subjects to the value of 72 credit
points. There is no minor thesis component.
For admission to candidature for all coursework masters programs except the
Biomedical Engineering and Telecommunication Engineering degrees, there must be
clear and irrefutable evidence that a candidate has (a) a four-year
university honours degree in engineering, or (b) a four-year university
pass degree in engineering or similar degree plus honours-equivalent experience
appropriate to the field of study, or (c) articulation from the
postgraduate diploma for the program in Transport and Traffic. For admission to
the masters degrees in Biomedical Engineering and Telecommunication
Engineering, a four-year degree or postgraduate diploma-level qualification in
a discipline that provides a suitable basis for the course is required.
The following masters degrees by coursework or coursework and minor thesis are offered by the faculty:
The
Faculty of Engineering operates a two-semester system for its graduate
coursework programs. Each semester is of 13 effective teaching weeks. The first
semester commences in the first week of March and the second semester commences
in the third week of July.
As far as possible, on-campus coursework is held within the period 4 pm to
8 pm on weekdays, except for level-four undergraduate subjects approved
for graduate study. Each coursework subject is self-contained, including
examination. There are no supplementary examinations for candidates who fail a
subject.
Graduate subjects are postgraduate in nature and are clearly advanced relative
to normal undergraduate subjects and to refresher-type extension courses.
Subjects normally require 39 contact hours (six credit points). A contact hour
requires attendance of students and instructor. A 39-contact-hour subject
normally contains no more than 26 hours of formal lectures, the remaining time
being spent in tutoring, laboratory, etc. A similar ratio applies to smaller
subjects.
Subject offerings may not be repeated every year and, whenever possible,
long-term notification will be given of subject offerings. Sufficient subjects
will be offered so that candidates may pursue reasonable specialisation. The
yearly course prescription of each candidate must be approved by the head of
the department in which the candidate is enrolled.
Any candidate who requests an intermission of candidature which during the
whole period of candidature leads to the total length of all such intermissions
exceeding 12 months will be advised to seek ´withdrawal in good
standing'.
Departments offering coursework subjects at the Clayton campus reserve the
right to withdraw an offered subject if an insufficient number of students
choose it. If this occurs, there will be, generally, ample alternative subjects
available. The subjects offered need not be the same each year, although
repetitions of the more sought-after subjects can be expected. It is intended
that a candidate can look ahead at least to the following year when selecting
subjects.
Coursework candidates with interdisciplinary interests may include a selection
of postgraduate subjects from other faculties within the university, for
example Business and Economics. Credit for such subjects is normally limited to
25 per cent of the course. Initial inquiries should be directed to
the faculty offering the subject(s) concerned, followed by consultation with
the engineering department in which the student registers as a masters candidate.
Each
subject in a particular semester is completed and its candidates assessed or
examined before the next semester starts. Final examinations can, if required
by a department, be held after the completion of the semester but before the
start of the next semester. In the case of second semester, the final
examination must be held within three weeks of completion of the 13-week
semester.
Candidature may be terminated if progress is regarded as unsatisfactory.
Performances will be reviewed at the end of each academic year and if they do
not reach the required standard, students will not be permitted to continue
with the course. Students will be given their results by marks and grading of
high distinction (HD), distinction (D), credit (C), pass (P) or fail (N) in
each subject.
The
appropriate section of the various regulations reads as follows: ÒThe
faculty board may review the academic progress of a candidate and, after taking
into account any recommendation from the head of the department concerned and
the supervisor, and after giving the candidate an opportunity to be heard, may
terminate the candidature, on the grounds of unsatisfactory
performanceÓ.
All engineering higher-degree-by-coursework candidates are required, subsequent
to attempting subjects to the value of 18 credit points, to pass at least
two-thirds (67 per cent) of all credit points attempted. Should a
candidate not achieve this level of academic performance, his or her academic
progress should be reviewed to decide whether or not candidature should be
terminated on the grounds of unsatisfactory progress.
Results for higher-degree candidates will be examined at the end of each
academic year to identify those candidates who have not passed at least
two-thirds of all coursework attempted. This calculation will be made according
to the weight of each subject so that allowance is made for coursework subjects
which are allocated a non-standard weighting. Candidates identified according
to this procedure will then have their academic progress reviewed.
Any student selected for this review is entitled to an opportunity to be heard,
and in the event that the student is excluded, provision exists for an appeal
to the Exclusion Appeals Committee of the Academic Board.
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