To give students experience of working independently on an original physics-based or physics-related problem To give students an opportunity to display the high quality of their work To give students an opportunity to display qualities such as initiative and ingenuity To improve students ability to keep daily records of the work in hand and its outcomes To give students experience of report writing displaying high standards of composition and production To give an opportunity for students to display communication skills.

(LO1) At the end of the module the student should have: Experience of participation in planning all aspects of the work;  Improved skills and initiative in carrying out investigations to test a hypothesis

(LO2) Experience researching literature and other sources of relevant information; Encountered research-led material

(LO3) Improved ability to organise and manage time;  Improved skills in making up a diary recording day by day progress of the project

(LO4) Improved skills in report writing, and the clear and accurate communication of scientific informationImproved skills in the critical analysis of an experiment or an investigation and setting them in context

(LO5) Improved skills in preparing and delivering oral presentations and the defence of the results of the project

(S1) Problem solving/ critical thinking/ creativity analysing facts and situations and applying creative thinking to develop appropriate solutions.

(S2) Communication skills

(S3) Self-management readiness to accept responsibility (i.e. leadership), flexibility, resilience, self-starting, initiative, integrity, willingness to take risks, appropriate assertiveness, time management, readiness to improve own performance based on feedback/reflective learning

There is no fixed content for this module. The module organisation is as follows: A project outlined in general by a supervisor will be assigned to the student by the module organiser where the module organiser generally attempts to choose projects which match each student's particular interests but cannot guarantee to do so. The student will keep a day by day diary showing the work done on and the progress of the project. Details of the project aims will be decided in discussions between the student and the supervisor. There will be regular meetings between the student and the supervisor to assess progress. At the end of the second week of the project, the student will produce a short written working plan which will specify the aims of the remainder of the project. This working plan  must be filed in the Student Office. The supervisor will advise the student when to finish and devote all remaining time to writing the report and preparing the oral presentation. The presentation will be given in one of the sessions scheduled by the module organiser. The report and project diary will be handed in before the end of the twelfth week after the official start of the project, or at any other time that may be officially announced. A Risk Assessment must be completed by the supervisor when the use of specialist equipment, chemicals or radioactive sources are involved. This must be signed by the student and the supervisor and must be filed in the Student Office.

Work carried out independently by the student to complete a physics-based or physics-related project, produce a final written report and present results of the project in an oral presentation.

Self-directed learning in close collaboration with a supervisor / a team of researchers