Independent Work (IW)

IW (EG2606A/B) aims to promote self-study, critical thinking, and independent exploration within the context of a student-proposed project. The project may include activities such as systems development (e.g. hardware/software systems and mechanical systems) or participation in a recognised national and international competition.

Students may initiate a project individually or as a team of no more than four members by submitting a proposal via the College of Design and Engineering (CDE) Enhancement Programmes portal. The proposal should outline the background, nature and scope of the activity, and intended learning outcomes from the project. The expected amount of time spent on the project should be at least 65 hours (for EG2606A which carries 2 units) or 130 hours (for EG2606B which carries 4 units). Students should also identify a suitable supervisor for the project. The main supervisor for IW must be a full-time academic staff from CDE (includes staff with joint appointments with CDE). Once the proposal has been approved by the supervisor, students may commence work on the project.

The work for the project should be completed within the duration of a single semester or both parts of the Special Term*. At the end of the project, students must submit a report of no more than 10 pages to their supervisor via the CDE Enhancement Programmes portal to summarise the work which they have completed and demonstrate that they have achieved the intended learning outcomes. For group project, each team member must submit a report individually. The supervisor will grade their performance in the project and the report submitted at the end of the project.

To enrol for the course, students must be from the CDE and should be at least Stage 2 standing (i.e. completed 36 units before commencing IW). This is to ensure that students have sufficient basic engineering knowledge in order to propose a meaningful project and to work independently on the project with minimum supervision. IW cannot be undertaken concurrently with SEP, NOC and Industrial Attachment (IA). Students must ensure that they have submitted their final report for IW before they commence SEP, NOC and IA. A student doing FYP can concurrently take IW, however the FYP project should be different from the IW project. The units for this course will be counted towards the unrestricted elective requirement of the Bachelor’s degree.

(*Students enrolling in Special Term will be charged fees for one part of the Special Term i.e. Special Term Part 1. Students prior to Cohort 2019/2020 may qualify for a rebate of the Special Term fees if they graduate within the normal candidature period.)