Students

MHHS8006 – Researcher Reflective Practice and Professional Development

2025 – Session 1, In person-scheduled-weekday, North Ryde

General Information

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Unit convenor and teaching staff Unit convenor and teaching staff
Sarah Hemley
sarah.hemley@mq.edu.au
Roger Chung
roger.chung@mq.edu.au
Credit points Credit points
10
Prerequisites Prerequisites
Admission to GradDipResFMHHS or GradCertResFMHHS, or by MRes course director approval.
Corequisites Corequisites
Co-badged status Co-badged status
Unit description Unit description

This unit provides you with the opportunity to develop a wide range of bespoke research and professional skills that support and enhance both research and researcher career development. Working with a mentor, you will curate your professional development from a range of flexible learning activities, tailoring your learning to your research project(s) and professional goals. Professional development opportunities may include but are not limited to: digital research skills; data management; tools and software training; publishing, presenting and communicating research; project management; mentoring and coaching; research leadership, and more. This unit will equip you with the ability to identify and reflect upon your unique strengths and transferable skills developed throughout your research and related professional experiences, as well as the skills and mindsets to plan and accomplish continuous future development. Through the skills and attributes obtained in this unit, you will enhance your ability to confidently undertake research and make meaningful and impactful contributions in research, industry and the community.

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: Demonstrate knowledge of current research and identify potential future research questions in your chosen discipline.
  • ULO2: Develop and provide evidence for the attainment of relevant skills, including digital research skills, that support and enhance research and career development.
  • ULO3: Evaluate discipline-specific concepts and practices to identify and contextualise transferable skills as they apply to researchers and research-related careers.
  • ULO4: Demonstrate reflexivity, judgement, adaptability and accountability in your professional practice as a researcher.
  • ULO5: Communicate relevant research concepts and ideas to specialist and non-specialist audiences through the development of reflective practice and evidence of professional development.

General Assessment Information

Grade descriptors and other information concerning grading are contained in Schedule 1 of the Macquarie University Assessment Policy, which is available at: https://staff.mq.edu.au/work/strategy-planning-and-governance/university-policies-and-procedures/policies/assessment.

Further details for each assessment task will be available on iLearn.

All final grades are determined by a grading committee, in accordance with the Macquarie University Assessment Policy, and are not the sole responsibility of the Unit Convenor. Students will be awarded a final grade, which corresponds to the grade descriptors specified in the Assessment Procedure (clause 128).

To pass this unit, students must demonstrate sufficient evidence of achievement of the learning outcomes, meet any ungraded requirements including professionalism, and achieve a final mark of 50 or better.

Further details for each assessment task will be available on iLearn.

Assessment Tasks

Name Weighting Hurdle Due
Grant Proposal 40% No Week 8
Graduate Researcher Skills Portfolio 30% No Week 10 - 11
Audio-Visual Explainer 30% No Week 13

Grant Proposal

Assessment Type 1: Plan
Indicative Time on Task 2: 35 hours
Due: Week 8
Weighting: 40%

 

Grant proposal for a research project. 

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate knowledge of current research and identify potential future research questions in your chosen discipline.
  • Develop and provide evidence for the attainment of relevant skills, including digital research skills, that support and enhance research and career development.
  • Evaluate discipline-specific concepts and practices to identify and contextualise transferable skills as they apply to researchers and research-related careers.
  • Demonstrate reflexivity, judgement, adaptability and accountability in your professional practice as a researcher.
  • Communicate relevant research concepts and ideas to specialist and non-specialist audiences through the development of reflective practice and evidence of professional development.

Graduate Researcher Skills Portfolio

Assessment Type 1: Portfolio
Indicative Time on Task 2: 30 hours
Due: Week 10 - 11
Weighting: 30%

 

Portfolio including a Graduate Researcher Skills Gap Analysis developed with the academic mentor and a critical reflection.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate knowledge of current research and identify potential future research questions in your chosen discipline.
  • Develop and provide evidence for the attainment of relevant skills, including digital research skills, that support and enhance research and career development.
  • Evaluate discipline-specific concepts and practices to identify and contextualise transferable skills as they apply to researchers and research-related careers.
  • Demonstrate reflexivity, judgement, adaptability and accountability in your professional practice as a researcher.
  • Communicate relevant research concepts and ideas to specialist and non-specialist audiences through the development of reflective practice and evidence of professional development.

Audio-Visual Explainer

Assessment Type 1: Presentation
Indicative Time on Task 2: 25 hours
Due: Week 13
Weighting: 30%

 

Short video describing the research project to a general audience.

 
On successful completion you will be able to:
  • Demonstrate knowledge of current research and identify potential future research questions in your chosen discipline.
  • Develop and provide evidence for the attainment of relevant skills, including digital research skills, that support and enhance research and career development.
  • Evaluate discipline-specific concepts and practices to identify and contextualise transferable skills as they apply to researchers and research-related careers.
  • Demonstrate reflexivity, judgement, adaptability and accountability in your professional practice as a researcher.
  • Communicate relevant research concepts and ideas to specialist and non-specialist audiences through the development of reflective practice and evidence of professional development.

1 If you need help with your assignment, please contact:

  • the academic teaching staff in your unit for guidance in understanding or completing this type of assessment
  • the Writing Centre for academic skills support.

2 Indicative time-on-task is an estimate of the time required for completion of the assessment task and is subject to individual variation

Delivery and Resources

Classes

The weekly format of MHHS8006 will be: 2 hour lectures every Wednesday, 12 - 2pm. Classes will predominantly be onsite. However, online or recorded lectures will be made availiable as needed.

Resources

Throughout the semester students will be provided with references to various journal papers which they will be expected to read and reflect on. Students are also encouraged to expand their knowledge and understanding of topics presented by further reading of the current literature (using databases such as Scopus and PubMed).

Technology used

Active participation in learning activities throughout the unit will generally require students to have access to a tablet, laptop or similar device. Students who do not own their own laptop computer may borrow one from the university library.

Policies and Procedures

Macquarie University policies and procedures are accessible from Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au). Students should be aware of the following policies in particular with regard to Learning and Teaching:

Students seeking more policy resources can visit Student Policies (https://students.mq.edu.au/support/study/policies). It is your one-stop-shop for the key policies you need to know about throughout your undergraduate student journey.

To find other policies relating to Teaching and Learning, visit Policy Central (https://policies.mq.edu.au) and use the search tool.

Student Code of Conduct

Macquarie University students have a responsibility to be familiar with the Student Code of Conduct: https://students.mq.edu.au/admin/other-resources/student-conduct

Results

Results published on platform other than eStudent, (eg. iLearn, Coursera etc.) or released directly by your Unit Convenor, are not confirmed as they are subject to final approval by the University. Once approved, final results will be sent to your student email address and will be made available in eStudent. For more information visit connect.mq.edu.au or if you are a Global MBA student contact globalmba.support@mq.edu.au

Academic Integrity

At Macquarie, we believe academic integrity – honesty, respect, trust, responsibility, fairness and courage – is at the core of learning, teaching and research. We recognise that meeting the expectations required to complete your assessments can be challenging. So, we offer you a range of resources and services to help you reach your potential, including free online writing and maths support, academic skills development and wellbeing consultations.

Student Support

Macquarie University provides a range of support services for students. For details, visit http://students.mq.edu.au/support/

Academic Success

Academic Success provides resources to develop your English language proficiency, academic writing, and communication skills.

The Library provides online and face to face support to help you find and use relevant information resources. 

Student Services and Support

Macquarie University offers a range of Student Support Services including:

Student Enquiries

Got a question? Ask us via the Service Connect Portal, or contact Service Connect.

IT Help

For help with University computer systems and technology, visit http://www.mq.edu.au/about_us/offices_and_units/information_technology/help/. 

When using the University's IT, you must adhere to the Acceptable Use of IT Resources Policy. The policy applies to all who connect to the MQ network including students.

Unit information based on version 2025.03 of the Handbook