Requirements to Pass this Unit

To pass this unit you must achieve a total mark equal to or greater than 50%.

Assessment Criteria

Assessment at Macquarie University is standards-based, as outlined in the Assessment Policy. This means that your work will be assessed against clear criteria, and these criteria will be made available to you on iLearn.

Release of Assessments

Rubrics and specifications for all assessments will be available on iLearn from Week 1.

Hurdle assessments – Assessment 1: Training & Inductions (0%)

It is important that all students are prepared to undertake their research projects in compliance with the prevailing ethical, professional and health and safety standards. Training and induction components are, to some extent, discipline-specific; please check with the unit convener or your mentor. In all cases, students must undertake the relevant discipline-specific training and induction, and provide evidence to the unit convener. This is a hurdle assessment meaning that failure to meet this requirement may result in a fail grade for the unit.

Engagement – please read, as this is very important

As a BPhil / MRes Yr 1 student you are becoming part of our community of researchers. You need to be an active participant in the unit's activities. You will be expected to be an active particpant in discussions, ask questions and engage with your cohort, and proactively work to find your place in our diverse research community. 

Academic Honesty

Presenting the work of another person as one’s own is a serious breach of the University’s rules and carries significant penalties. In this unit, we will be checking written work for plagiarism using TurnItIn. Penalties for plagiarism may include a zero mark for the assignment or, in more extreme cases, failure of the unit. Plagiarism will be noted on your academic record. (link: Academic Integrity Policy)

Due dates and assessement topics

This unit is flexible by design. Each student will be undertaking a unique project with different academic mentors. See iLearn for more information about placement plans, but your placement plan will specify the due date and the content for each of your unit deliverables. It will also need to identify 2 or 3 suitable assessors from within your School who could be asked to second-mark your final written report. These assessors cannot be involved in your research or the research group you will be part of for the duration of your project.

Late Submission Policy

• 5% penalty per day: If you submit your assessment late, 5% of the total possible marks will be deducted for each day (including weekends), up to 7 days.

  • Example 1 (out of 100): If you score 85/100 but submit 20 hours late, you will lose 5 marks and receive 80/100.

  • Example 2 (out of 30): If you score 27/30 but submit 1 day late, you will lose 1.5 marks and receive 25.5/30.

• After 7 days: Submissions more than 7 days late will receive a mark of 0.

• Extensions:

  • Automatic short extension: Some assessments are eligible for an automatic short extension. You can only apply for an automatic short extension before the due date.

  • Special Consideration: If you need more time due to serious issues and for any assessments that are not eligible for Short Extension, you must apply for Special Consideration. The Special Consideration Policy aims to support students who have been impacted by short-term circumstances or events that are serious, unavoidable and significantly disruptive, and which may affect their performance in assessment. If you experience circumstances or events that affect your ability to complete the assessments in this unit on time, please inform the convenor and submit a Special Consideration request through https://connect.mq.edu.au.

Need more information? Review the Special Consideration page HERE

Assessments where Late Submissions will be accepted 

In this unit, late submissions will accepted for written work, but: 

• All training and inductions MUST be completed prior to starting work. 
• See marking guidance on iLearn or consult the convenor(s) for additional information. 

Training & inductions

Assessment Type ¹: Portfolio; Indicative Time on Task ²: 3 hours; Due: Week 1; Weighting: 0%. This is a hurdle assessment task (see assessment policy for more information on hurdle assessment tasks).

Complete required WHS, ethics and other required training and induction prior to starting research work. (AI use is not feasible here.)

On successful completion you will be able to:

• Apply knowledge of your WHS, ethical and other legal obligations to create a risk assessment and management plan for your research.
• Identify, apply and evaluate research methods.
• Work professionally with a research mentor, and other research collaborators as required, to plan and undertake research.

Most of this unit will take place in consultation with your mentor / outside of time-tabled locations and times. The unit convenor is available to help you navigate the transition to an active participant in your research group, but the goal is to let you and your mentor opperate as independently as possible!

In principle, students are expected to work one day a week throughout the semester on their projects. Most often this will be the Friday, but this can be negotiated individually with your mentor. Students will additionally be expected to spend one full week during the mid-semester break on their projects.

Formal class sessions will be held every second week, some in conjunction with the FOSE7901 cohort. Please see the unit's iLearn pages for practical details.

This will be the sixth session we have run this unit. Student feedback from the previous offerings of this unit was very positive overall, with students pleased with the clarity around assessment requirements and the level of support from teaching staff. As such, no significant change to the delivery of the unit is planned, however we will continue to strive to improve the level of support and the level of student engagement.