LULEÅ UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY
Dept. of Mechanical Engineering: A case study of placement
evaluation – the Final Year Project
Description of the Final Year Project performed in industry
To be awarded the degree of Master of Science (civilingenjör) it is required that the student has done an approved thesis within a particular field. The final degree project work is normally carried out as the final part of the educational programme.
Students must be prepared for engineering practice through the curriculum culminating in a thesis work based on the knowledge acquired in earlier coursework. Less than 60 Swedish points should remain to fulfil the requirements and the academic supervisor, assigned by director of studies, decides whether or not the student has enough knowledge to start his/her thesis work. The thesis work is an independent work and can be performed by one or two students.
The final project work is almost exclusively done in industry. The project work should correspond to 20 weeks, (4,5 months) of full-time work and is reported in the form of a thesis. A faculty member from Luleå University of Technology must always act as a supervisor.
Theses are not graded but simply awarded pass or fail. The time taken to complete the work is highly variable.
The general objective of the thesis work is that the student should demonstrate that he/she could make use of previously gained knowledge to independently solve problems that they are likely to be faced with in the beginning of their professional careers. The thesis work should be performed using accepted research methodology. This implies that the student, as well as showing how existing technology is used, should demonstrate how new technology could be developed. The thesis work should include a literature review and demonstrate that the student can make use of the knowledge he/she has acquired during his/her education.
The student should be able to recognise the general implications of his/her results suggesting areas of continued research.
General requirements for the final year project are provided in a booklet published by the Mechanical
Engineering department. This booklet emphasises the formal procedure of the thesis work, explaining the aims of and criteria for the work. The university supervisor/examiner does not have a very strong role in generating projects or in helping students to select themes. However, the university supervisor/examiner is normally active in ensuring that the project is properly initiated and scheduled.
Almost all Swedish students choose a final year project in industry. They will therefore have two supervisors, one the industrial site and one in the university. It is important to realise that the two may have somewhat different ideas about the contents and emphasis of the work. Therefore it is important that:
- a written report plan including a timetable and an realistic estimate of the time required for each project
activity is drawn up before the project begins
- the two supervisors make contact before the project begins and are in broad agreement on the project plan
- a meeting is arranged between the student and the two supervisors half way through the project to check whether or not the project is progressing as agreed and, if not, to take corrective action. It is also a good
idea at this stage to discuss the intended contents and outline of the report.
It is up to the student to ensure that these requirements are met. It is also in the student’s best interest to keep in regular contact with the department supervisor, not only because he/she is the final assessor of the suitability of the work, but also because he/she can often give useful advise and can also provide support should the industrial supervisor begin to make unreasonable demands.
A list of current project works offered by companies is announced either on a notice board or in a binder
at the Mechanical Engineering department.
The student is responsible for finding a suitable degree project among those offered by the department or companies.
Before starting the final year project the student must attend at least four thesis work presentations during his/her final year of studies. He/she also has to take the mandatory course Information Retrieval.
Before the project work starts it must be approved by the supervisor at the Mechanical Engineering Department.
The final courses and the project work should together constitute the student's individual profile of skill and proficiency.
Economic conditions
The industry normally pays the student a salary during his/her industrial placement. This salary, although considered adequate by most students, is much lower than the starting salary of an engineer beginning his
career.
Evaluation and assessment
The methods of evaluation and assessment are not formalised and essentially left to the discretion of the individual teacher responsible for the grading. The only grades given are pass or fail. The decision is based upon the written document, the oral presentation and observations done during the placement period. The university supervisor would normally also seek the opinion of his industrial counterpart.
Pros and cons
The general opinion is that the system is well established and works well. Outside evaluators have however recently asked for stricter rules and for a more active involvement of the department and of the supervisor in the definition and the supervision of the project.
Placements abroad
Only very few students choose to go abroad for their final year project/industrial placement. The percentage varies somewhat between universities and curricula. A typical figure is 5 °/°. This figure is increasing slightly over the years.