This unit involves an industry internship in the context of Higher Degree Research candidature.

This is an interdisciplinary unit, that would be jointly run by the faculties of Science, Engineering, Business, Architecture, Design and Planning. It is aimed at high achieving post-graduate students from these faculties, to provide them with high level skills in research translation, design and innovation. Student teams are a given a real product brief, of social and economic importance, and aligned with areas of university research. They must respond to this brief, producing a working prototype product and business case.

In this unit, you will learn practical techniques for addressing complex problems and the role of interdisciplinary perspectives in developing innovative strategies. Complex problems, sometimes referred to as being “Wicked”, include concerns of global dimension that deeply impact on the lives of people, such as climate change, mass urbanisation, world poverty and food security. Through examples, you will develop an understanding of what constitutes complex problems. You will be taken through scenarios, enabling your insights into the use of techniques across a range of practical situations. Through exercises and practice techniques you will integrate your disciplinary expertise with perspectives from other disciplines. Building on this understanding, you will assess and reflect on how problem-solving techniques can lead to innovative strategies that address complex challenges in research projects.

In this unit, you will learn about creative thinking techniques and develop an understanding for how to apply creative thinking to achieve innovative outcomes. The World Economic Forum lists creativity as one of the top skills required in future work environments. As more tasks are becoming automated across industries, creativity is increasingly seen as a skillset that contributes new perspectives and to deliver outcomes that offer a competitive advantage in the market. As a way of thinking, creativity offers an approach for dealing with complexity and uncertainty, and to develop resilience. The unit will unpack these relationships through case studies from the innovation sector interlinked with exercises, such as creative writing. To demonstrate the value of interdisciplinary creativity, the unit will take you through a collaborative exercise, in which you build on ideas from others in the class. As a final step, we will assess and reflect on how creative thinking compares to research methodologies and how it can benefit research projects.

In this unit you will learn and practice techniques for understanding research problems or responding to innovation challenges in complex team-based environments. This will further develop your skills of inquiry, feedback and agency, recognising the collective importance of personal background, experience and different ways of knowing. This knowledge and practice is highly appreciated across disciplines and sectors where graduates are expected to be able to successfully collaborate effectively in highly diverse groups. You will learn about approaches for recognizing different dimensions of diversity and how to leverage their value in the context of group performance. At the same time, you will learn how to moderate and understand your own contribution to maximise the performance of the group. To demonstrate your understanding, and test the interrelationship of communication and collaboration, the unit challenges you in a group environment to articulate research problems or innovation challenges for a real-world problem.

The postgraduate Arts and Creative Industries Placment allows students to undertake a professional practice internship placement (including regional conservatoriums) within a music focused creative industry context. Students preparing for a career in composition, performance, arts administration, music education, historical studies etc. are afforded the opportunity to apply their advanced musical knowledge to the broader creative industries music community. They will undertake a specially designed internship placement (designed by themselves or the host) in an arts based organisation and/or 'buddy' Pulley program in one or more of the seventeen NSW regional Conservatoriums with the purpose of extending their current professional practice. The goal of the unit is for students to extend their knowledge of the arts and creative industries sector combined with a knowledge and understanding of WiL through the internship placement. Students will extend their collaborative skills and techniques for working in a teamwork setting using knowledge and skills learnt as graduates.

The University of Sydney and Industry sectors recognise the need for and impact of Higher Degree by Research (HDR) candidates and encourages candidates to transfer their skills from theoretical to real-world domains, thereby transforming Australian business through University research collaboration. HDR students in the Faculty of Science have the opportunity to undertake an internship opportunity for coursework credit by undertaking the SCIE5001 unit of study. During this internship you will be involved in industry and client-based projects, which will offer you the opportunity to apply skills and theories from your science research degree. This will provide you with firsthand experience of how these skills and theories can support the solving of scientific problems in a practical and commercial context. You will have the opportunity to facilitate the development, designing and implementation of commercial strategies, procedures and practices. By taking part in these processes, you will gain insight into the application of scientific knowledge to help an organisation realise its competitive potential. Successful completion of an internship and this unit of study will refine skills that are essential for your future employment, in both the academic and industrial sectors.

Science and technology innovations are key to charting and navigating a rapidly changing world. How do we then create learning environments so that more students understand science and can create the technological innovations we need for the future. Contemporary learning and teaching approaches, in STEM higher education, are informed by theories from the 'learning sciences'. How do we evaluate which ones are successful and result in learning gains for students? How do we construct innovations in learning designs? In this unit of study, you will be introduced to the fundamental principles of effective teaching for learning in higher education in the STEM disciplines. You will investigate theories from the learning sciences and how to best engage learners in individual or group settings, online and in face-to-face classes. You will also learn how to evaluate innovations in learning design, with a focus on STEM higher education. Together we will explore the educational research literature and the qualitative and quantitative methods, including psychometric testing, for measuring effective teaching and improved student learning outcomes. This unit of study will provide you with a comprehensive understanding of the theoretical frameworks underpinning teaching and learning and the methodology for implementing and evaluating effective educational research initiatives, preparing you for a career as a researcher and an educator.