Oral presentation (25%)

You should deliver a 10-minute presentation of your research topic structured as an academic conference presentation, followed by a 5-minute period for questions.  Your oral presentation should be accompanied by slides prepared in Powerpoint.  This will be an open presentation, meaning any member of the university community may attend, and you should anticipate presenting to the majority of the Biology academic and student community.  This should also be seen as an opportunity to gain constructive comment and feedback from your examiners and peers, which may improve your thesis.

In preparing your talk, consult the marking rubric (attached) to understand what examiners looking for in your talk.

Use the following checklist when developing your presentation

qNumbers of slides or overheads is reasonable for length of talk (rule of thumb is one slide per minute)

qSlides are clear and uncluttered (no more than 6 lines of text, at least 20 point font)

qText is legible against the background

qSlides are interesting (text balanced with figures/illustrations)

qFigures / Tables etc are legible, and at an appropriate size and resolution

qSlides have been proofread and spell-checked

qGimmicks such as complicated backgrounds and animation are used sparingly, or preferably not at all

qTalk runs for the allotted time

qTalk is well organized to provide a linear and coherent story

qYou have checked that your talk will load up on the computer/projector beforehand

Participation in class discussion (5%).

Students are required to attend the meetings on the 25^th Feb and 1^st March and all seminars. Proactive participation in the discussions during these meetings is expected.

Proposal (10%)

Produce a brief outline of your research topic detailing the question to be addressed, the sub-questions you will consider, an outline of the structure of your review, and six key references you intend to use.  Maximum 1 side of A4 paper.  The intention of this assessment task is to give early feedback to students on their planned project.

Your research plan will be assessed on

a)    Formulation of a clear question and hypothesis;

b)    Strength of supporting research;

c)    Clarity of structure to the review;

d)    Overall communication of your work. 

Essay (60%) 

The essay should be written and formatted as a submission-ready review paper in the style of an appropriate journal. Write your report for a scientifically literate but non-specialist audience.  This must be fully referenced following the referencing style of the journal.  The essay must not exceed 3,5000 words inclusive of references.

A good scientific review requires a clear definition of the problem and question, comprehensive coverage of relevant literature, a concise and unbiased summary of existing evidence, clear structure, precise spelling, grammar and use of written English and a conclusion that addresses the topic question. 

You should cite at least 20 papers from the primary peer-reviewed literature in your review, but you may have to read considerably more than this to get a rounded idea of the topic. Emphasis should be placed on recent papers (last 5 years). In preparing your review, consult the standardised marking sheet (attached) to understand what features we are looking for and what mistakes you should avoid.

Use the following list when developing your essay

qAssignment is typewritten

qText is double spaced, 12 point font in Times New Roman or Arial

qText is printed on a single side of the paper

qText is the required length (references not included in word count)

qWord Count is given on the Title page

qText has been proofread and spell-checked

qReferences are reputable sources (not unrefereed web sites)

qReferences are cited at appropriate points within the text

qChosen journal format is given on title page

qFormatting of references in the text and in the reference list follows the journal format

qAssignment is your own work – not copied from reference sources or other students

Assignment submitted on time