Departement Megan iese en Megatron iese Ingen ieurswese

Department o f Mechanica l and Mechatronic Eng ineer ing

POSTGRADUATE REPORT/THESIS/DISSERTATION

WRITING HINTS

AH Basson 16 May 2008

1. Editorial aspects of thesis writing Strictly adhere to the newest edition of Guide for Writing Technical Reports, available at http://mecheng.sun.ac.za/docs/general.html. Pay particular attention to the following:

1.1. Margins, letter sizes and line spacing: Section 6.1.

1.2. Equations: Section 6.2.

1.3. SI use: Appendix E gives a brief summary (Guide for using SI unit system gives a more extended description; available at www.mecheng.sun.ac.za/docs/general.html).

1.4. Figures and tables: Section 3.13.

1.5. Reference formats: Section 3.15 and Appendix F. NB: the formats used in the thesis' text and in the reference list must

Note the page limits listed in the study guide, which is available at http://www.mecheng.sun.ac.za/docs/postgraduate.html.

be absolutely consistent. Pay particular attention to the consistent use of periods (e.g. after authors' initials) and commas.

Note the instructions for the front matter given in Part 1 of the University Calendar, and Section 5.7 in particular.

2. Target readers The primary target readers for a thesis are the examiners, and not the supervisor. Note that the supervisor submits a report, but does not participate in the final decision regarding the mark awarded. Since the examiners have to be independent, and are therefore unlikely to have any personal knowledge of the student's research, the thesis has to be self-explanatory. The examiner can be expected to be familiar with the relevant literature, but the student has to demonstrate his/her familiarity with the relevant literature in the thesis.

Table 1 lists the criteria that examiners use to assess the thesis. Students should ensure that the theses address each of the relevant criteria.

Note that the supervisor may not reveal the identity of the examiners to the candidate before the examination reports have been received. Further note that the candidate may not under any circumstances communicate with examiners about any aspect related to the thesis.

The secondary target readers for a thesis are students from the same research group that will continue with the work, or researchers from other institutions that want to use the research methods or results. Length restrictions often prohibit including all information of relevance to these readers. Separate lab reports can be used to record that additional information.

Table 1: Assessment Criteria

MEng Project MScEng Thesis PhD Dissertation

The ability to solve a practical engineering problem through:

1. Review and application of research literature.

2. Application of advanced technical methods.

3. Suitable combination of theoretical and practical elements.

1 The mastering of the relevant field of study.

The thesis need not show proof of original work, which makes a substantial contribution to knowledge in the field of study. If, however, examiners consider awarding a mark of 75% or higher, the following should be taken into consideration: • is there proof of exceptionally clear

explanation and development of argument, good judgement and originality of approach?

• is the work a reasonable contribution to knowledge in the field of study?

• is the extent of the work adequate?

1 The extent to which the dissertation makes an original contribution to knowledge in its field.

The extent to which the dissertation or part of it is publishable in a professional journal.

2. Adequate command of the relevant research method.

3. Familiarity with the relevant research literature.

4. Ability to interpret research results.

5. Clear and systematic presentation of the material and logical exposition of the argument.

6. Proper documentation and support of the results of independent research.

7. Acceptable linguistic and stylistic presentation.

3. Hints Recent examiners' comments on theses highlighted the following common errors:

3.1. Calibration of equipment: if the research results rely on experimental measurements, make sure that the calibration procedures of all measurement instrumentation are described.

3.2. When fitting curves to measured data, make sure that the type and order of the function used (e.g. a polynomial) are warranted by physics. Fitting high order polynomials is usually not correct.

3.3. When continuing with same topic from M to PhD, make sure that the PhD stands on its own legs. The PhD dissertation can refer to the MSc thesis, but the examiners' assessment will be based on what was done in the PhD itself.

3.4. Avoid too long, wordy discussions. Aim to be as precise and concise as is compatible with good style. Avoid addressing any topic in more than one place in the thesis, because this leads to duplication.

3.5. Language checking and correction is the student's responsibility. The supervisor only has to advise the student in general and eventually decide whether the language is acceptable.