Final Year Project Requirements

Final Year Project Requirements

Final Year Project is the peak point of the life of a undergraduate student. All the knowledge gathered throughout the years of study are utilized to create a novel solution for an existing problem in Micro or Macro environments. Following are the two main components of the FYP:

1. Identify an appropriate project idea [Identify a problem area which needs attention in micro environment (inside an organization) or macro environment (a solution to serve a nation)]
2. Produce Documentation and Artifact (a prototype with the key functions)

At the initial stage, project proposal, project specification and project plan have to be submitted. Final Year projects runs for a period of 9 months or 33 weeks during which the student has to conduct his research and submit the prototype including mid point interview. Following are the key points to be considered during the project.

• Feasible- 
• The project have to be completed during the given period of time. A gantt chart is to be maintained throughout the project life time marking all the important events.
• The biggest milestone which is the midpoint interview must be faced successfully since it weighs 20% of the final grade of the project.
• Supervisory clinics: Supervisors must be consulted regularly, at least 9 times for 9 months.
• Useful-
• The solution which is constructed must to be a useful and a usable model or a method
• Balanced-
• A mix of qualitative and quantitative methods

The Proposal

• In the proposal, the student must clearly elaborate the topic he have chosen and the area of research.
• Specify the objectives (time period + facts to backup + Measurable)
• The project title have to be written accurately explaining what is expected to be done? For whom the solution is and what is to be done?
• The aims have to be clearly written
• Relevant and credible list of sources have to be used and the reference list must be included.
• Research method must be clearly defined
• Project proposal must be presented accordingly that the project is feasible academically and technically.

Content of the Project

• Abstract
  [Abstract is the last thing to be written on the project however it is the first section of the project. There has to be mainly 3 paragraphs in this section as follows]
• Paragraph 1- Introduction, Problem Statement 
• Paragraph 2- Methods used in the projects'
• Paragraph 3- Outcomes of the project, brief conclusions, brief recommendations
• Define key words
• Introduction
• Table of contents
• Table of tables
• Table of figures
• Acronyms
• Body
  [Body is divided into chapters with each chapter clearly defining its purpose]
• Chapter 1: Introduction, Problem Statement, Research Question, Aims and Objectives
• Chapter 2: Industry Analysis (PEST, SWOT, Porter's Analysis, Value Chain)
• Chapter 3: Academic Research (what is read on the area of research)
• Chapter 4: Software Analysis and Design (ER diagrams, DFD, Use cases...)
• Chapter 5: Code implementation and Testing (Test cases and Results)
• Chapter 6: Critical Evaluation and Conclusions
• Conclusion
• List of References
• Bibliography
• Appendices
• Project Log (PAGOL)

Literature Review

Literature Review

What is Literature Review?

Literature Reviews are conducted by many people on a topic of what they know and what they don't know. According to Language Center, Asian Institute of Technology(2005), "the literature" means the works you consulted in order to understand and investigate your research problem. These sources can be journal articles, books, Conference proceedings, Government/corporate reports, Theses and dissertations, News papers, Internet, CD-Roms and Magazines. The Writing Center(2012), defines literature review as a discussion on published information in a particular subject area, and sometimes information in a particular subject area within a certain time period. Taylor (2012) gives a simpler definition of Literature Review as an account of what has been published on a topic by accredited scholars and researchers. 

From the above information the author can get a clear picture as what literature review is, which is discussion, investigation or a publication of work on a subject area or a research problem.

Purposes of Literature Review

There can be many reasons for a literature review to be conducted. According to Cooper(1988) cited in  Language Center, Asian Institute of Technology(2005), the main reasons to conduct a literature review is to describe, summarize, evaluate, clarify and/or integrate the content in primary reports. As said by Bruce (1994) cited in Language Center, Asian Institute of Technology(2005), the purpose of a review is to provide the background to and justification for the research undertaken.

However, as said by The Writing Center(2012) Literature Review is mainly to provide a handy a guide on a particular topic. If one have limited time to conduct research, literature reviews can give them an overview or a stepping stone on their particular subject. These also provide a solid background for a research paper’s investigation.

How to Write a Literature Review?

University of Houston Victoria(2012), describes in 14 steps the process of writing a literature review. Given below are the steps in brief.

1. Find articles that is related to the research topic. Go through their bibliographies and consider repeated sources as credible sources.
2. Be clear of what you have to accomplish during the literature review.
1. ) Define your Research Problem
2. ) Read and Evaluate significant works for the relevant problem
3. Once you begin reviewing, make an entry with complete bibliographical information and comments for each work that you are going to include in the review.
4. Compare and contrast the similarities and differences between these articles.
5. Form a clearly written thesis which is logically supported by different literature.
6. View the articles briefly and jot down any notes that may seem related.
7. Decide on the best organizational pattern and format for the topic.
8. Construct an appropriate outline for the literature review.
9. Write an introduction that introduces the topic, reveals your thesis statement, and arranges key issues
10. Organize the body of the paper and write it to an appropriate format: topical or chronological
11. Write a conclusion that reconciles similarities and differences on the topic and reemphasizes the criteria used to arrive at this conclusion. 
12. Complete the final draft of the literature review
13. Check over the final draft for grammar and punctuation errors.
14. Use the checklist provided here to make sure that all parts of the literature review are addressed and focused

Literature Review
(Google Images, 2012)

Conclusion

   There are number of definitions on what a literature review is, but the simplest possible definition which can be derived from all the definitions the author went through is that Literature Review is a research overview on a specific topic conducted by the aid of credible sources to answer unanswered questions about the topic.
A well written literature review consists of the following components.

• Organizes literature
• Evaluates literature
• Identifies patterns and trends in literature
• Synthesizes literature

References

Google Images, 2012. [Online] Available at: http://eloquentscience.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/All+About+Dissertation+Literature+Review+Examples.jpg [Accessed 10 December 2012].

Language Center, Asian Institute of Technology, 2005. WRITING A LITERATURE REVIEW. [Online] Available at: http://web.pdx.edu/~bertini/pdf/literature_review.pdf [Accessed 10 December 2012].

The Writing Center, 2012. How to Write a Literature Review. [Online] Available at: http://www.class.uidaho.edu/mihelich/UNC%20Lit%20Review.pdf [Accessed 10 December 2012].

University of Houston Victoria, 2012. Literature Review. [Online] Available at: http://www.uhv.edu/ac/wac/pdf/litreview.pdf [Accessed 10 December 2012].

University of Toronto, 2012. The Literture Review: A Few Tips on Conducting it. [Online] Available at: http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/specific-types-of-writing/literature-review [Accessed 10 December 2012].