12 points, SCA Band 2, 0.250 EFTSL
Undergraduate - Unit
Refer to the specific census and withdrawal dates for the semester(s) in which this unit is offered.
Faculty
Organisational Unit
Chief examiner(s)
Coordinator(s)
Unit guides
Prerequisites
Enrolment in an approved Honours or Graduate Diploma in science in the discipline of Ecology and conservation biology, Environmental science, Genetics, Plant sciences or Zoology
Co-requisites
Synopsis
Students undertake advanced coursework in their chosen area of Biology (including Genetics) to develop skills in research design, data analysis and presentation, and critical analysis. Students also develop professional skills that are relevant within and outside of academia. Coursework comprises workshops, seminars and research colloquia which is supported through independent learning activities and mentoring from research supervisors. Candidates may commence the honours year at the beginning of either first or Second Semester (July). Further information is available from the course coordinator and at a meeting held with prospective students during second semester (July) of level 3.
Outcomes
On completion of this unit students will be able to:
- Design experiments, and identify common flaws in experimental design that arise in biological research.
- Analyse and display data in a manner that is appropriate for specialist scientific talks and publications.
- Critically evaluate the scientific content of peer-reviewed manuscripts to demonstrate skills in critical analysis of research.
- Summarise, in writing, the content of scientific seminars, articulating the general scope of research addressed, the methodology, and the larger implications of the research.
- Reflect upon the development of professional skills gained through the unit.
Assessment
Experimental data analysis and presentation project: 35%
Participation in journal discussion meetings and written critique of a primary research paper: 35%
Seminar series project: 20%
A short written report based on the professional skills module: 10%
Workload requirements
This unit requires the equivalent of 12 hours per week of work.
The students will largely undertake work associated with this unit independently. This work will be supplemented by scheduled activities that will include a combination of face-to-face classes, purpose developed online modules, research colloquia, seminars and meeting the students honours supervisors.
See also Unit timetable information