Course Project Guidelines_Higher Diploma Networking

8/3/2019 Course Project Guidelines_Higher Diploma Networking

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HIGHER COLLEGE OF TECHNOLOGY

Department of Information Technology

COURSE PROJECTNETWORKING

FOR

HIGHER DIPLOMA


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Higher College of Technology Department of Information Technology

STUDENT GUIDE BOOK

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STUDENT INFORMATION

STUDENT ID ________________________________________________

STUDENT NAME ________________________________________________

LEVEL ________________________________________________

SPECIALIZATION ________________________________________________

E-mail ADDRESS _________________________________________________

PROJECT TITLE _________________________________________________

SUPERVISOR NAME ________________________________________________

TABLE OF CONTENTS

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I. INTRODUCTION . 4

II. OBJECTIVES & OUTCOMES .. 4

III. PROJECT PHASES . 6

IV. LIST OF DELIVERABLES WITH SUBMISSION DEADLINES . 7

V. GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT COURSE PROJECT 7

VI.GENERAL RULES & REGULATIONS .. 8

VII. PROJECT PROCEDURE .. 10

VIII. ASSESSMENT SYSTEM 11

IX. THE SUPERVISORS ROLE 12

X. THE STUDENTS ROLE 12

XI. WEEKLY PROGRESS REPORT.. 13

XII. FORMATS OF DELIVERABLES. 14

XIII. REPORT ON STUDENT PROJECT BY PROJECT SUPERVISOR 20

XIV. REPORT ON STUDENT PROJECT BY FINAL PROJECT PANEL 21

APPENDIX

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I. INTRODUCTION

The aim of the project is to expose students to the real-world experience and technologies where

students will need to synthesize and apply what they have learned. The course project is designed to

demonstrate the skills of a student to study and explore an IT based project. The project is an opportunity

for students to bring together the breadth of knowledge and skills developed during their education and

training. It should be able to illustrate a students research skills as well as project management competence.

The realization of such projects will develop students to become excellent programmers, systems analysts,researchers, database administrators, and the like, who will contribute to the countrys development .

This handbook serves as a guide to Higher Diploma of Networking Group, Information Technology

Department, Higher College of Technology, Muscat for the successful completion of their course projects.

II. OBJECTIVES & OUTCOMES

1. ITNT3204 COURSE PROJECT LEVEL: HIGHER DIPLOMA

SPECIALIZATION: NETWORKING CREDITS: 3

Course Objectives

Clearly understand the concepts involved in the selected area of interest and areas associated to it.

Should be able to evaluate the ill effects of the selected area and propose a solution to them.

A student should be able to analyze the limitations in the selected area of interest.

Analyze the pros and cons of the selected area and draw a comparison with competing

technologies/areas.

Develop and practice essential project management skills.

Present the project.

Course Outcomes

At the end of the course, the student will be able to:

To participate in enhancing the knowledge pool of the selected area.

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Provide adequate information how the solution can be implemented.

Identify the benefits which could be achieved, if the problem is solved successfully

Identify the future areas of study, for someone who wishes to take it a step forward in the selected area

The following are the activities to be undertaken by the students to come up with the course project

requirements:

Detailed review of the available text, to understand the current implementations of the selected area .

How working in the selected area is going to influence the current implementation.

Analyze the downside of the technology, and propose a solution to solve a particular selected problem.

To eliminate at least one drawback that exists in the area of interest.

Prepare a cost / benefit analysis of the proposed solution.

Draft a proposal.

III. PROJECT PHASES

The study based projects are required to emphasize on the Abstract, Scope of the project, methodologies

followed to achieve a certain goal, and finally analysis / comments. Which are explained in detail below

A. Scope, Problems & Objectives

To identify and determine the problem(s). Establish the scope and selected problem area.

B. Literature Review

A literature review is a body of text that aims to review the critical points of current knowledge

including substantive findings as well as theoretical and methodological contributions to a particular

topic. Literature reviews are secondary sources, and as such, do not report any new or original

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experimental work.

C. Methodology

The methodology to complete the project will be discussed in this section which can be further

understood by looking into the following points

1.SYSTEMATICbecause there is a definite set of procedures and steps which you will follow. There

are certain things in the project process which are always done in order to get the most accurate results.

2. ORGANIZED in that there is a structure or method in going about doing project. It is a plannedprocedure, not a spontaneous one. It is focused and limited to a specific scope.

3. FINDING ANSWERSis the end of all research. Whether it is the answer to a hypothesis or even a

simple question, project is successful when we find answers. Sometimes the answer is no, but it is still

an answer.

4. QUESTIONSare central to project. If there is no question, then the answer is of no use. project is

focused on relevant, useful, and important questions. Without a question, project has no focus, drive, or

purpose.

D. Conclusion/ Results

It may be discussed as the results drawn by the candidates and how successful were they in meeting up

with their project scope, what were their short comings and if some one else wants to benefit form their

studies how it can help them, e.g. in implementing their proposed solution in future? What should be

the elements which should be taken are while implementing their findings?

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IV. LIST OF DELIVERABLES WITH SUBMISSION PERIOD

NameTo be Submitted in:

1. PROJECT PROPOSALWEEK 4 (15 Oct 19 Oct)

2. ACTION PLAN WEEK 5 (22 Oct 26 Oct)

3. FIRST PROJECT REVIEW REPORT +

DEMONSTRATION WEEK 8 (12 Nov- 16 Nov)

4. FINAL PROJECT REPORT +

PRESENTATION WEEK 13 (17 Dec -21 Dec)

V. GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT COURSE PROJECT

A course project in Higher Diploma level carries 3 credit points.

The duration of the course project can be 11-13 weeks depending on the semester.

Maximum of 3 students per group is allowed. Students have the option to do the project all by

him/herself.

It is important that students doing the group project make their best effort to do equal contribution

as far as completing the project is concerned. The students should be aware that they will be graded

as groups in the written report and individually in the presentation.

Every group will be assisted by a Supervisor.

The students should meet the supervisor every week according to the timetable framed between the

supervisor and student.

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Failure to meet the supervisor will result in obtaining warning letters if your absence exceeds the

allowed percentage.

The students are required to attend any scheduled Course Project assembly meeting. Attendance to

these meetings will be checked and is part of the grading scheme.

The students should strictly submit the different deliverables like Weekly Progress report, First

Review Report, and Final Project Report by the stipulated date. Late submission will cause in

reduction of marks.

It is essential to submit the weekly tasks/activities done by the students. The supervisor will signand collect this sheet every scheduled meeting.

Put your best effort to design and complete a good project.

VI. GENERAL RULES & REGULATIONS

A. REPORT SIZE

1. Action plan

MS Visio/MS Project can be used to prepare a 1 page Action Plan.

2. First Project Review Report

The typical length of the report can be 20-30 pages including the Title pages. Mostly including the literaturereview and references

3. Final Project Report

The typical length of the report can be 80-120 pages including the Title pages. Excessively long report is

discouraged. Students are strongly advised to make every effort to be concise in their writing and to avoid

inclusions of unnecessary materials in both main report and appendices.

B. REPORT FORMAT

1. Proof Reading & Quality of English

It is the student responsibility to proof read their work.

Proof reading means catching most typing errors that are not spelling error, for example

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writing form instead of from. It means also checking for inconsistencies, disparities,

missing paragraph and bad formatting of text, graph or drawing.

Also student must spell check all parts of the report.

2. Scientific Writing

Sentences should be short and to the point; the use of subjective adjectives (e.g. nice) should be

avoided. Long sentence often lead to misunderstanding or ambiguity and should be avoided.

The student should not normally refer to him/herself explicitly by using the first person, for

example, write: the researcher/author agrees with A instead of I agree with A.

3. Formatting

Double or 1.5 spacing with minimum font size of 12 must be used for the main text; single-spacing may use

for quotations, footnotes and references.

Page numbering must consist of one single sequence of numerals (1, 2, 3,..) throughout the report. Page

number must be displayed on all pages EXCEPT the title page.

Make sure

The text is justified

All chapter/(sub) section headings should be in bold-font

All figures/tables should be numbered.

All tables/figures must be referenced in the text.

C. OTHER VITAL INFORMATION

1. Plagiarism

Plagiarism is the submission of any materials that were copied from another source such as textbooks,

academic paper, and Internet as if it were the students own work. All students are strongly advised to

consult the HCT for advice on referencing the work of others.

2. Copying and Collusion

When two or more students submit the same piece of work in whole or part then it refers to copying and

collusion. Students involved in such case will be punished. As a result each student is responsible to ensure

the integrity of his/her own work.

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VII. PROJECT PROCEDURE

Each student is assigned an individual supervisor to oversee the course project.

Step 1 The supervisor and the group should agree on the time and the duration of their

contact during different phases of the course project. Regular consultation with the

project supervisor on the designated venue at least one hour a week.

Step 2 The group will pick (at random) a set of study based project requirements which

will be their basis for final deliverable of the project.

Step 3 Upon knowing the project requirements, the supervisor informs the group initializes

their project.

Step 4 Students start with the literature review along with start writing the report.

Step 5 After Step 4, the supervisor informs the student about the schedule of the first

project review.

Step 6 The student submits the first review report which consists of Project Description,

Project Objectives, Tools and Utilities, and Design Lifecycle Phases to thesupervisor three days before the date of the first review.

Step 7 During the Review, the group presents the project before the panel. The panel (40

weight) assess the performance of the student in the first review.

Step 8 The supervisor announces to the students the result of the first review and the

recommendations for its improvement.

Step 9 The group accomplishes all recommendations and goes through the final phase of

implementation and testing of the project.

Step 10 After Step 9, the supervisor informs the group about the final project presentation

schedule.

Step 11 The group submits a draft of the final project report to the supervisor 1 week before

the scheduled presentation

Step 12 The supervisor goes through the draft of final project report and recommends

changes (if needed).

Step 13 The group submits the final copy of the project report and a CD containing the

softcopy of the project to the supervisor after accomplishing all objectives.Step 14 The panel and the supervisor (40/20weight) together assess the project of the group

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in the final presentation.

VIII. ASSESSMENT SYSTEM

Two Assessments.

Assessment MethodWeight

Supervisor Panel

1-Supervisor Over-all

evaluation20%

2-First Project Review 40%

3- Final ProjectPresentation

40%

Project Proposal

The students should submit a written proposal about the kind of project they want to do. It must

contain the Scope, Objectives and complete description/specifications of the project. The student must

see to it that they have received a written approval from the Adviser (and Coordinator) before starting

with the project.

First Project Review

After the group had selected the study based project in the specific area, the group can start working on

literature review and start writing the report along side. Students are required to submit the first project

review report (Project Description, Project Objectives, Tools and Utilities, and Design Lifecycle

Phases) at the end of sixth week. Then a project review will be conducted by a panel in the following

week. Students are expected to explain the project till the Design phase before the panel. The report will

be assessed as a group work, but the presentation and Q&A will be graded individually. A presentation

should be made in this context. The project is assessed jointly by the supervisor and the panel with a 10/

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10 weight.

Final Project Presentation

At the end of eleventh/ twelfth week, the project should be completed; and the group is required to

present it before the panel. The group presents (in power point slides) the Project Specifications, and

the concept behind the selected project with its details referring to the previous work done and their

contribution i.e. their findings also students are required to justify the cost analysis and different

approaches how this project would be beneficial if implemented by them by anyone in future. Here also

the assessment of the group is done jointly by the Supervisor and the Panel with a 40/ 40 weight.

IX. THE SUPERVISORS ROLE

The supervisors role is to:

Explain the guidelines.

Evaluate and initially approve the project proposal

Help to identify materials (e.g., books, periodicals, equipment, websites, etc.) that will help the

group to fulfill all the requirements of the project.

Guide the students in both the technical and project management areas.

Provide information and feedback (verbal, written or both) to the students to help them complete

the project successfully.

Ensure that the student abides by the rules of academic honesty, i.e. proper citation and no

plagiarism.

Evaluate the project with respect to the objectives and evaluation scheme agreed upon, the over-all

performance of the students (consultation and compliance to the deliverables) and assign a grade

before the final presentation. The weight is 20% .

Meet the group on a regular basis and collect the weekly progress report.

Note: The supervisor will not be responsible for solving the problems in the project.

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X. THE GROUPS ROLE

Once the student has decided on his/her group members, he/she is not allowed to change it. Each group of

course project is responsible for the following:

Make a clear understanding of the project requirements and objectives.

Get the approval of the project proposal from the Adviser and the Course Project Coordinator

Meet the supervisor regularly.

Be aware of the project and report deadlines of submission.

Meet all the project goals and objectives.

Follow the rules and standards of the report(s) structure and format.

XI. WEEKLY PROGRESS REPORT

The group is required to submit a weekly progress report to the supervisor. This will be a part of

the grading criteria. The following is the format of the report.

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Higher College of Technology

Information Technology Department

Networking Group

Weekly Progress Report

Group Members: 1. _________________________ (Name and ID No.)

2. _________________________ (Name and ID No.)3. _________________________ (Name and ID No.)

====================================================================

Date: _______________________

Week No.: __________

Tasks/ActivitiesScope and Description Supervisors Comments

1.

2.

Students Signature: __________________________

__________________________

__________________________

Supervisors Name and Signature: _______________________

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XII. FORMATS OF DELIVERABLES

1. PROPOSAL REPORT

A. (TITLE PAGE)

PROJECT PROPOSAL

For

HIGHER DIPLOMA -NETWORKING

Prepared By

:

:

:

Under the guidance of

B. PROPOSAL OUTLINE

Scope of the project[Write a short paragraph about the kind of project you are proposing. Ex. Study base, Design andsimulation, modeling, new technology..etc.]

Project Description

(Write a comprehensive description of the project that you are proposing. Include the specifications,

requirements, devices, tools and other important information that would clearly define the scope and

limitations of your design)

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Project Objectives

(Clearly state the general and specific objectives of your project. Make sure to write a doable objective)

2. ACTION PLAN

Prepare an ACTION PLAN including the tasks: Network Analysis, Network Design, and Network

Implementation.

ACTIVITIES/TASKS TIMELINE ( WEEKLY )

3. FIRST REVIEW REPORT

B. (TITLE PAGE)

FIRST REVIEW REPORT

For

Prepared By

:

:

:


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B. REPORT OUTLINE

Introduction

[Write a short paragraph about the things that you will discuss in this report. Mainly, about theinformation/data you need,]

Project Description

(Write a comprehensive description of the project that you were assigned to design. Include the

specifications, requirements, devices, tools and other important information that would clearly define the

scope and limitations of your design)

Project Objectives

(Clearly state the general and specific objectives of your project. Make sure to write a doable objective)

Methodology

{Discuss the approaches which were opted by you towards the completion of the project, such as empiricalmethods, comparative studies, mathematical models, expert opinions etc .}

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4. FINAL PROJECT REPORT

A. (TITLE PAGE)

MINISTRY OF MANPOWER



{Title of Project}

In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for { HigherDiploma } Degree

With Specialization in Networking

Submitted By:

{Students Name}

{Students ID}


{Supervisor Name}

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B. FINAL PROJECT REPORT (OUTLINE)

The Final Project Report is organized as follows:-

Title Page [Refer to Format 5]

Bonafide Certificate [See the APPENDIX]

Acknowledgment

Abstract

[The abstract must provide an overview of the entire report. It should be presented in one page. It consists

of the brief introduction of the study, the statement of the problem, the objectives, and summary of findings,

conclusions and recommendations.]

Table of Contents [Refer APPENDIX]

List of Figures [Refer APPENDIX]

List of Tables [Refer APPENDIX]

CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION

[This chapter should provide an overview of the project with more details. Chapter 1 is often the last

chapter to be written. ]

1.1 Introduction

[Give a brief introduction about the scope of the project and about the organization for which the project is

done (if applicable)}.]

1.2 Problem Statement

[Describe the drawbacks of the selected area (if any) or anything related to it & improvement to be done to

the selected area]1.3 Project Objectives

[Provide the objectives of the project]

1.4 Project Description

[Provide a short description of the project]

1.5 Action Plan

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[Include the Action Plan]

CHAPTER 2 LITERATURE REVIEW

[ This chapter should contain all the information available regarding the pervious work done on the selected

area, and if some standards are present discuss them in brief. Literature should be properly referenced by

sources such as book, journals, articles and conferences]

CHAPTER 3 METHODOLOGY

[This chapter includes the discussion of the different phases of the project already discussed above in

section III. Identifying the phases which a student shall proceed to in the defined order]

CHAPTER 5 CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

[The purpose of this chapter is to summarize the various achievements attained during the course of

this project. The benefits and skills acquired by the designer are also discussed. This chapter ends with

some suggestions and recommendations for further work.

5.1 Summary of Findings[Summary of the problems, hypotheses, assumptions and solution provided]

5.2 Conclusion

[Each conclusion must be tied up with some specific findings.]

5.3 Future Scope/Recommendations

[For each of the findings and corresponding conclusions, recommendation(s) may be developed.]

REFERENCES

Any reference included should be written as follows:

For books, reports, theses, standards, manuals, etc.:

1. Raymond R. Panko, Corporate Computer and Network Security, Pearson Education Inc., Upper Saddle

River, New Jersey, 2004

For websites:

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1. Raymond R. Panko, Corporate Computer and Network Security, Pearson Education Inc., Upper Saddle

River, New Jersey, 2004,www.prenhall.com//panko.

APPENDIX

1. BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE



BONAFIDE CERTIFICATION

This is to certify that the project report {title of the project} is the bonafide work of {Student Name(s)}

who carried out the project work under my supervision for the partial fulfillment of the requirements for

{Higher Diploma/B.Tech} with specialization in Networking.

HEAD OF THE DEPARTMENT SUPERVISOR

DATE:

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http://www.prenhall.com//pankohttp://www.prenhall.com//pankohttp://www.prenhall.com//pankohttp://www.prenhall.com//panko


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2. TABLE OF CONTENTS

SL.NO. CHAPTER TITLE PAGE NO.

3. LIST OF FIGURES

SL.NO. NAME OF THE DIAGRAM PAGE NO.

4. LIST OF TABLES

SL.NO. NAME OF THE TABLE PAGE NO.

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Course Project Guidelines_Higher Diploma Networking