Unit Guide

General Information

Unit convenor and teaching staff	Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit Convenor Alison Rodger alison.rodger@mq.edu.au Contact via 0426627077 6WW 302 By arrangement
Credit points	Credit points 10
Prerequisites	Prerequisites Admission to MRes and 40cp at 7000 level
Corequisites	Corequisites
Co-badged status	Co-badged status
Unit description	Unit description This unit is designed to provide hands-on experience by direct interface with molecular science underway in the Department of Chemistry and Biomolecular Sciences. Students will participate in the programs of two distinct research groups over the semester and navigate typical situations encountered as members of a scientific research team. They will engage in a range of pertinent laboratory activities, receive preparative training in advanced molecular techniques from research scientists, and attend team meetings at which experimental data are reviewed and research planning is encountered.

Important Academic Dates

Information about important academic dates including deadlines for withdrawing from units are available at https://www.mq.edu.au/study/calendar-of-dates

Learning Outcomes

On successful completion of this unit, you will be able to:

ULO1: Describe contemporary research practice through participation in several teams engaged in molecular science research
ULO2: Carry out a selection of advanced laboratory procedures, incorporating safe handling of materials (chemical or biological)
ULO3: Actively participate in data collection and report/reflect on experimental findings to the research team
ULO4: Maintain a daily record, to research-level standard, of laboratory work undertaken and results obtained

General Assessment Information

Late submissions are permitted in this unit but see the General Faculty Policy on assessment submission deadlines and late submissions below:

Online quizzes, in-class activities, or scheduled tests and exam must be undertaken at the time indicated in the unit guide. Should these activities be missed due to illness or misadventure, students may apply for Special Consideration.

All other assessments must be submitted by 5:00 pm on their due date. Should these assessments be missed due to illness or misadventure, students should apply for Special Consideration.

Assessments not submitted by the due date will receive a mark of zero unless late submissions are specifically allowed as indicated in the unit guide or on iLearn.

If late submissions are permitted as indicated in the unit guide or on iLearn a consistent penalty will be applied for late submissions as follows:

A 12-hour grace period will be given after which the following deductions will be applied to the awarded assessment mark: 12 to 24 hours late = 10% deduction; for each day thereafter, an additional 10% per day or part thereof will be applied until five days beyond the due date. After this time, a mark of zero (0) will be given. For example, an assessment worth 20% is due 5 pm on 1 January. Student A submits the assessment at 1 pm, 3 January. The assessment received a mark of 15/20. A 20% deduction is then applied to the mark of 15, resulting in the loss of three (3) marks. Student A is then awarded a final mark of 12/20.

Assessment Tasks

Name	Weighting	Hurdle	Due
Laboratory notebook A	15%	No	Week 7
Laboratory notebook B	15%	No	Week 13
Supervisor A report	20%	No	Week 7
Supervisor B Report	20%	No	Week 13
Research presentation A	15%	No	Week 7
Research presentation B	15%	No	Week 13

Laboratory notebook A

Assessment Type ¹: Lab book
Indicative Time on Task ²: 4 hours
Due: Week 7
Weighting: 15%

A notebook will be provided for the recording of your laboratory activities in a style appropriate to the relevant research discipline. A laboratory notebook forms the primary source of new experimental information and contributes to formal records maintained by a research team Your lab notebook must be written up as experiments are set-up and progress, alongside your observations or insights. Each task and observation must be clearly dated, and reflection noted on the experimental result. The level of description should be sufficient to allow experiments to be replicated by another worker. The names and storage location of all data files and samples related to each experiment must be identified clearly. Your notebook must be certified on a weekly basis by your supervisor or a senior researcher in your team.