EEE8165 : Research Skills and Development for Engineers
- Offered for Year: 2026/27
- Module Leader(s): Dr Andrew Smith
- Owning School: Engineering
- Teaching Location: Newcastle City Campus
Semesters
Your programme is made up of credits, the total differs on programme to programme.
| Semester 1 Credit Value: | 20 |
| ECTS Credits: | 10.0 |
| European Credit Transfer System | |
Aims
To introduce new concepts and refresh existing skills in the areas necessary for research, which will be useful for not only student’s individual projects, but also their future careers. These areas include practical and computing skills, data management, information acquisition and sorting, and presenting complex information.
Outline Of Syllabus
This module introduces the important skills necessary for research projects. These include the use of industrially relevant computer packages and languages, the ability to locate, analyse, and critically evaluate appropriate published material, the skills to present this to an appropriate technical audience, both textually and verbally, and to demonstrate the ability to reflect on the ethical aspects of research.
Assessment for this module is conducted through the development of a literature review, which underpins the creation of a poster presentation.
Teaching Methods
Teaching Activities
| Category | Activity | Number | Length | Student Hours | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 10:00 | 10:00 | Preparation of Literature Review |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Thinking critically about literature |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Integrating information sources into your work |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Completion of online Ethics assessment |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 2 | 1:00 | 2:00 | General ethics in engineering and responsible use of AI tools |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Understanding Academic Culture for PG Study |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 5:00 | 5:00 | Revision for Ethics assessment |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 1 | 2:00 | 2:00 | Fundamental Data Practices |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Careers Service Talk |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 3:00 | 3:00 | Presenting Poster |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 3 | 2:00 | 6:00 | Introduction to Python Programming |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Lecture | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Introductory Lecture |
| Guided Independent Study | Assessment preparation and completion | 1 | 10:00 | 10:00 | Preparation of Poster |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Practical | 3 | 3:00 | 9:00 | Basic electronic instrumentation / circuit skills development |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Practical | 1 | 2:00 | 2:00 | Computer session - Fundamental Data Practices |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Practical | 3 | 3:00 | 9:00 | Introduction to Circuit Simulation Software (LTSpice) |
| Structured Guided Learning | Academic skills activities | 1 | 2:00 | 2:00 | Canvas videos on Presentations and Posters |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Practical | 1 | 1:00 | 1:00 | Computer Session - Finding information for Electrical and Electronic Engineering |
| Scheduled Learning And Teaching Activities | Practical | 4 | 2:00 | 8:00 | Computer-based sessions introducing Matlab for solving engineering problems. |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 1 | 75:00 | 75:00 | Independent studying of lecture material, Matlab programming, Python |
| Guided Independent Study | Independent study | 1 | 50:00 | 50:00 | General reading relevant to the literature review |
| Total | 200:00 |
Teaching Rationale And Relationship
The module will have a combination of in-person and recorded lectures. The in-person lectures will teach fundamental skills on reviewing literature, report writing, communication skills, appropriate use of data, the importance of ethics and responsible use of AI tools, and risk management. Recorded lectures will focus on presentation skills and poster creation.
Practical and computer session will look to introduce the fundamentals of Matlab and Python, strengthen electronics circuit skills, and discuss fundamental data practices.
Assessment Methods
The format of resits will be determined by the Board of Examiners
Exams
| Description | Length | Semester | When Set | Percentage | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Oral Examination | 30 | 1 | M | 100 | Poster Presentation |
Formative Assessments
Formative Assessment is an assessment which develops your skills in being assessed, allows for you to receive feedback, and prepares you for being assessed. However, it does not count to your final mark.
| Description | Semester | When Set | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prob solv exercises | 1 | M | Matlab Exercises - Feedback given at the end of each Matlab exercise, which will be beneficial for the individual project module |
| Computer assessment | 1 | M | Online assessment on Ethics |
Assessment Rationale And Relationship
The literature review and poster presentation will assess the students’ ability to summarise a cutting-edge research area and their communication skills to an audience of experts and non-experts. It will also assess their understanding of the research area. Both of these will be valuable for other modules on the programme, including the individual project. These cover knowledge outcomes 1-5 (M2, M4), and skill outcomes 1-5 (M1, M2, M3, M4).
The formative Ethics assessment will assess students understanding of ethics and ethical conduct. This covers knowledge outcomes 6-7 (M7, M8).
The formative Matlab exercises allow students to learn how to use Matlab to solve general engineering problems, which will be useful for other modules and the individual project. This covers skill outcome 6 (M3).
Reading Lists
Timetable
- Timetable Website: www.ncl.ac.uk/timetable/
- EEE8165's Timetable