Honours in the Bachelor of Design Computing

Admission

Students planning to enrol in the honours program are encouraged to complete a preparatory unit of study as an elective, such as an Independent Study unit, in their third year.

To qualify to enrol in the honours program a student should have qualified for the award of the Bachelor of Design Computing pass degree or a similar qualification in a related field at an acceptable standard, or be a graduate of not more than four years standing. Students should have a Weighted Average Mark (WAM) of at least 70 for the pass degree.

Before applying you should have an approved honours project topic and academic supervisor. The proposal must clearly summarise your research topic. It should be prepared by you and reviewed by your supervisor(s) before applying for permission.
Below are guidelines to help you with your proposal.

Students who complete a preparatory unit of study as elective will probably resolve their topic and supervisor during this unit. You can have an associate supervisor if you require shared supervision beyond the immediate expertise of your supervisor.

The Honours year

The honours course is to be taken full time over two consecutive semesters. Enrolment is effected by taking 48 credit points, being:

• DECO4001 and DECO4002 in the first semester; and
• DECO4003 and DECO4004 in the second semester.

There will be no formal weekly classes.

You are expected to make arrangements for regular (weekly) contact with your supervisor on an individual basis to chart the work, receive advice, and review and monitor progress. At the conclusion of the year you are expected to submit a dissertation that was written in consultation with your supervisor.

Dissertation Overview

Your dissertation should:

1. 1. Outline the state of the art through a literature review, outlining the key knowledge gaps and explaining how the research addresses them.
   2. Report on the aims and objectives of the work, the rationale and process taken in its conception and development, and a detailed reflection or empirical evaluation of the design work.
   3. Utilise both quantitative, qualitative or mixed research methods (e.g. surveys, interviews, experimentations, participatory action research and parametric or non-parametric modelling). Where the research will include human participants, students will need to follow the University ethics policies and guidelines for research involving humans: https://sydney.edu.au/research/research-integrity-and-ethics.html
   a. Due to the time frame for obtaining approval for such research, students are strongly encouraged to apply early in their honours research year or to conduct their research within the framework of an existing study led by their supervisor.
   4. Introduce new knowledge in the form of novel design work, conceptual model, framework, or a technology-driven design process that is realised through either theory or the introduction, incorporation, enhancement or development of a prototype.
   5. Cite all sources used, including images. Make use of one specific referencing style consistently throughout your dissertation and list your references in a correctly formatted bibliography at the end of the dissertation. We recommend using APA (American Psychological Association) referencing. Examples and guidelines can be found on: APA citation style guide or Referencing and Citation Styles

Along with the dissertation, you may also submit auxiliary documentation, such as:

• video
• composition
  
  performance
• digital photography
• electronic installation
• kinetic sculpture
• robotic art and software/hardware prototype (code art, devices, smart materials, wearable technology).

Submission date and form of dissertation

All honours dissertations along with any auxiliary materials (e.g. videos, compositions, performance, digital photography, electronic installations, hardware/software prototypes) are to be submitted digitally via Canvas during the first week of the formal examination period in the final semester of enrolment. The dissertation should be approximately 30,000 words in length.

Non-completion

Students who do not complete the honours year will be awarded the pass degree. Those who terminate their study prior to the end of the second semester of study will be awarded a grade of DC or Discontinue without Failure.

Determination of honours

The honours dissertation itself receives a mark, which is recorded on the transcript next to DECO4004. The other units will be converted to SR for Satisfied Requirements upon successful completion of the dissertation.

The grade of honours is determined by using a mark derived from weighting the mark for the honours dissertation at 70 percent and the weighted average mark (WAM) of the pass degree at 30 percent. While this number is not recorded on the transcript, the final class of honours awarded is.

The honours degree of Bachelor of Design Computing shall be awarded to eligible students, with the following grades:

• Honours Class I (with a mark of at least 80)
• Honours Class II, Division 1 (with a mark of at least 75)
• Honours Class II, Division 2 (with a mark of at least 70).

The University Medal may be awarded as described in the frequently asked questions section.

A student of the honours program who does not meet the requirements for award of honours shall be awarded the Bachelor of Design Computing pass degree.

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of the program students will be able to:

 
Unit outlines will be available though Find a unit outline two weeks before the first day of teaching for 1000-level and 5000-level units, or one week before the first day of teaching for all other units.