Achieving success with the engineering dissertation

Achieving

Success with

the Engineering

Dissertation

Petra Gratton

Guy Gratton

Achieving Success with the Engineering

Dissertation

Petra Gratton • Guy Gratton

Achieving Success

with the Engineering

Dissertation

123

Petra Gratton

Department of Mechanical

and Aerospace Engineering

Brunel University London

Uxbridge, Middlesex, UK

Guy Gratton

School of Aerospace

Transport and Manufacturing

Cranfield University

Cranfield, Bedfordshire, UK

ISBN 978-3-030-33191-7 ISBN 978-3-030-33192-4 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-33192-4

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020

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Preface

The Dissertation and This Book

The high point of any engineering degree is the dissertation, also called variously

the “major project”, “capstone project” and a few other things. This is a step

forward in working as an engineering professional: being given a task to solve,

where there’s not a clear method to complete it, nor a known right answer. This can

be both exciting and frightening; engineers train to be able to solve real engineering

problems, but actually doing so, not knowing what the answer is, isn’t easy.

We are both engineers, and years ago undertook dissertations on our own

degrees at Brunel University, the University of Southampton and the University of

Surrey. After entering industry, somehow, we both got lured back into academia,

which has resulted in supervising and marking many hundreds of dissertations over

nearly four decades between us. This book is the one we wanted for our own

students, offering the best advice we can give on not just how to do well in the

dissertation, but how to use it as a springboard into a successful career.

In preparing this, we’d like to thank our families and our many dissertation

students—we’ve learned about the topic ourselves from every one of them.

The Concepts in Achieving Success

Everybody wants dissertations to go well, and they are also a key part of developing

as a professional engineer. That involves preparing before the project, and using

what was done and learned into the job search and whilst starting the first job.

Because engineering projects are team efforts, we have focused on the important

relationship between the student and their supervisor—and also, the project client—

somebody who is providing support and has an active interest in the project out￾come. There won’t always be a client, or sometimes either the student or the

supervisor will “wear two hats” and take that role, but it’s a very useful concept.

v

There are many engineering disciplines, and we’ve tried to vary from which

disciplines examples are drawn; if these aren’t in your own field—please read and

try and learn from them anyhow: good practices are usually universal.

The Illustrations

Engineering writing needs illustrations, equations, graphs, drawings and pictures.

Achieving Success uses our own diagrams and photographs, as well as a few from

other sources. We wanted to make this book visually attractive and enjoyable to

read; with the help of the Heath Robinson Museum in Pinner, we’ve used a lot of

illustrations from William Heath Robinson, whose name is synonymous with

complex engineering and knotted string, and whose brilliant art is well known to

many engineers. Clearly, pictures like Fig. 1 aren’t here as serious illustrations of

what you should be doing in your university work, but they are there to improve the

readability, give you something to think about, and we hope you enjoy them. If

you’d like to learn a little more about Heath Robinson’s life and work, turn to

Appendix D. (If it’s not obvious—we’re fans!) If you’d like to learn more, there are

also many other books of his work, as well as the museum, and it’s not unusual to

see exhibitions of his art appear around the world.

How to Use Achieving Success

Ideally, start using this book the year before starting the dissertation—Chaps. 1 to 4

cover preparation for the project. Appendix C also will show how a project can be

used to enter national or international competitions. Chapters 5 to 8 are for the early

part of the project, once there’s a topic and supervisor. Students might like to

suggest that their supervisor and (if there is one) client read the table of contents and

Chaps. 4–8, although these cover more ground than any single project, so will need

using selectively.

Chapters 9 to 14 cover the central core of the project work and report, towards

the final report presentation. There’s a lot of detail that here users should expect to

jump around these sections—as well as, for example, probably using Appendix A

on referencing.

Finally, Chaps. 15 and 16 are about how to use the dissertation to improve your

chances of entering a good graduate career, and then about the possibility of

publishing your work outside the University course.

Appendices A–C are there for reference throughout the project—and other parts

of any engineering degree course. Appendix D is about William Heath Robinson.

Achieving Success is written in a fairly informal style—this is to make it more

readable, but of course a dissertation report itself needs to be much more formal.

vi Preface

Fig. 1 Mr William Heath Robinson’s Welsh rarebit (cheese-on-toast) machine: fuel for the

dissertation?

Preface vii

Good Fortune

We wish you success with your dissertation, your degree and your onwards career.

We’ve tried to give you the best advice we can in this book, and hope it’s good. We

would love to hear your feedback about how useful it was, how you’ve used it, and

anything you think could be improved. We’re very easy to contact through either

Brunel University London, Cranfield University or the publisher. We also tweet

about the subject matter at @ASEDtweets.

Uxbridge, UK Petra Gratton

Cranfield, UK Guy Gratton

August 2019

viii Preface

Contents

1 What is the Dissertation? ................................ 1

1.1 Purpose and Structure ............................... 3

1.1.1 What’s a Dissertation for? ...................... 3

1.1.2 Dealing with Uncertainty ...................... 3

1.1.3 The Structure of the Project .................... 4

1.1.4 The Structure of the Report..................... 5

1.2 Types of Project ................................... 5

1.2.1 What Types of Projects Are Suitable

for an Engineering Dissertation? ................. 5

1.2.2 Computational-Based Investigation Projects ......... 7

1.2.3 Design Projects ............................. 7

1.2.4 Feasibility Studies ........................... 8

1.2.5 Physical Experiments ......................... 8

1.2.6 Theoretical Research Projects ................... 8

1.2.7 Test and Evaluation (T&E) Projects .............. 9

1.3 The Project Client .................................. 9

1.3.1 Introduction ................................ 9

1.3.2 Engaging the Client .......................... 11

1.4 Whose Project is it? ................................ 11

1.5 Dissertation Terminology ............................ 13

2 Objectives and Expectations .............................. 21

2.1 The Student ...................................... 23

2.1.1 The Objectives .............................. 23

2.1.2 What not to Expect .......................... 23

2.1.3 What Actually to Expect ....................... 23

2.2 The Supervisor .................................... 24

2.2.1 The Supervisor’s Role ........................ 24

2.2.2 Relationship with the Student ................... 25

2.2.3 Relationship with the Client .................... 26

ix

2.3 The Project Client .................................. 26

2.3.1 Who Is the Client? ........................... 26

2.3.2 Client Expectations........................... 27

2.3.3 Future Employment .......................... 27

2.4 Other Stakeholders ................................. 28

2.4.1 Identifying Stakeholders ....................... 28

2.4.2 Stakeholder Relationships and Communication....... 29

2.4.3 Ethical Approval ............................ 29

3 How to Be the Student Who Achieves Success ................ 31

3.1 Defining Success .................................. 33

3.2 Before You Start the Project .......................... 33

3.3 As You Start the Project ............................. 36

3.4 While You Are Doing the Project ...................... 39

3.5 Checklist ........................................ 39

3.6 Suggestions for Further Reading ....................... 42

4 Selecting the Project .................................... 43

4.1 Advice to Students ................................. 45

4.1.1 Owning Your Learning ........................ 45

4.1.2 Selecting the Project and Supervisor .............. 45

4.2 Advice to Supervisors ............................... 47

4.2.1 The Value of Student Projects to Student

Engagement ................................ 47

4.2.2 Fitting in a Student Project with Your Research ...... 47

4.2.3 Managing Expectations—Differences Between

Undergraduate and Postgraduate Projects ........... 48

4.2.4 Collaborating with Industry ..................... 48

4.2.5 The Project Acquisition Process—Selecting

a Suitable Student ........................... 49

4.2.6 The Etiquette of Dissertation Supervision .......... 50

4.2.7 Feedback .................................. 51

4.3 Advice to Project Clients............................. 51

4.3.1 The Value of Industry-University Collaboration ...... 51

4.3.2 Finding the Right Collaborator .................. 52

4.3.3 Managing Expectations........................ 54

4.3.4 Etiquette .................................. 56

4.3.5 Checklist .................................. 57

5 The Opening Literature Review ........................... 59

5.1 Beginning the Quest ................................ 61

5.2 Searching and Making Notes .......................... 62

5.3 Structuring the Literature Review....................... 63

5.4 Composing the Literature Review ...................... 64

x Contents

5.5 Formally Recording a Reference ....................... 65

5.6 Maintaining the Literature Review as You Work ........... 66

6 The Project Plan ....................................... 67

6.1 The Project Plan and Time-Management ................. 69

6.1.1 Introducing the Project Plan and Planning .......... 69

6.1.2 Preparing the Project Plan ...................... 69

6.1.3 A Proposal ................................. 70

6.1.4 Defining the Objectives ....................... 71

6.1.5 Detailed Time Planning ....................... 71

6.1.6 Pre-proposal Time-Management Exercise ........... 72

6.1.7 How Much Time Should You Spend on Your

Dissertation Project? .......................... 73

6.1.8 Using Project Management Techniques and Setting

Milestones for Your Project Plan................. 74

6.1.9 Using CPM on an Individual Project—One

Participant ................................. 75

6.1.10 Using Project Run-Offs to Finesse Your (Individual)

Project Plan ................................ 77

6.1.11 Using CPM on a Group Project—Team of People .... 79

6.1.12 Checklist for Time Management of Your Project ..... 84

6.2 The Project Plan and Resources........................ 86

6.2.1 About Resources ............................ 86

6.2.2 Defining Tasks and Understanding Equipment ....... 87

6.2.3 Consumables ............................... 89

6.2.4 Software .................................. 89

6.2.5 Risk Management............................ 89

6.2.6 Technicians ................................ 90

6.2.7 Administrators .............................. 90

6.2.8 Vital Information ............................ 92

6.3 Budget .......................................... 92

6.3.1 About Budgets .............................. 92

6.3.2 Relating the Budget to the Project Plan ............ 92

6.3.3 Spending the Money ......................... 93

6.3.4 From Estimated to Actual Budgets ............... 93

7 Designing the Dissertation ................................ 95

7.1 Designing Feasibility Studies.......................... 97

7.1.1 What is a Feasibility Study? .................... 97

7.1.2 Defining the Feasibility Study Topic and Questions ... 97

7.1.3 Designing and Commencing the Study ............ 98

7.1.4 The Ongoing Writing Journey ................... 99

7.1.5 What is Not in a Feasibility Study? ............... 99

Contents xi

7.2 Designing Experiments .............................. 100

7.2.1 About Experiments........................... 100

7.2.2 Defining the Question ......................... 100

7.2.3 Do You Need a Hypothesis? .................... 101

7.2.4 Control, Dependent and Independent Variables ...... 101

7.2.5 Now Design Your Experiment .................. 102

7.2.6 Writing Up Your Experiment ................... 103

7.3 Designing Products ................................. 105

7.3.1 What is Product Design? ...................... 105

7.3.2 Defining the Product Design Specification .......... 106

7.3.3 Following the Design Process ................... 107

7.3.4 Using engineering Figures of Merit (FoM).......... 108

7.3.5 Presenting Your Design ....................... 111

7.3.6 Prototyping ................................ 111

7.4 Designing Surveys ................................. 113

7.4.1 Survey as a Means of Gathering Data ............. 113

7.4.2 The Need for Ethical Approval .................. 114

7.4.3 Consideration of Legal Compliance Regarding

Personal Data ............................... 115

7.4.4 Design of Survey Questions .................... 116

7.4.5 Who Are Your Survey Participants? .............. 118

7.4.6 The Survey Instrument ........................ 118

7.4.7 Questionnaires .............................. 119

7.4.8 Interviews ................................. 119

7.4.9 Focus Groups............................... 120

7.4.10 Product Testing .............................. 121

7.4.11 Storing the Data ............................. 121

7.4.12 Testing the Survey Instrument ................... 121

8 Acting Professionally .................................... 125

8.1 About Acting Professionally .......................... 127

8.2 Meeting Etiquette .................................. 127

8.3 Dress Codes ...................................... 128

8.4 Phone and Electronic Messaging ....................... 130

8.5 Monitoring and Control of Your Project.................. 132

8.6 When Things are Going Wrong ........................ 132

8.7 Managing Discontent ................................ 133

9 Presenting Data ........................................ 135

9.1 Quantitative Data and Illustrations ...................... 137

9.1.1 Introduction ................................ 137

9.1.2 Tables, and Numbers Within Text ................ 138

9.1.3 Graphical Data Presentation .................... 140

9.1.4 Consideration of Errors........................ 141

xii Contents

9.1.5 Sketches, Schematics and Illustrations ............. 142

9.1.6 Drawings .................................. 146

9.1.7 Solutions to Problem ......................... 147

9.2 Qualitative Data ................................... 147

9.2.1 Types and Sources of Qualitative Data ............ 147

9.2.2 Logic—Foundation of Analysis.................. 148

9.2.3 Presenting Qualitative Data ..................... 149

9.2.4 Presenting Interviews ......................... 149

9.2.5 Critical Discourse Analysis ..................... 151

9.2.6 Discussion of Results ......................... 154

9.2.7 Numerical Expression of Opinion ................ 155

10 Presenting Engineering Analysis ........................... 157

10.1 Introduction ...................................... 159

10.2 Carrying Out, Then Writing Up Your Analysis............. 159

10.3 Writing Up Your Engineering Analysis .................. 161

10.4 An Example of How to Write Analysis—Some Take-Off

Distance Calculations ............................... 162

11 Drawing and Presenting Conclusions ....................... 165

11.1 Introduction: About Conclusions ....................... 167

11.2 Type of Conclusions ................................ 167

11.3 Further Aspects to Conclusions ........................ 170

12 Making Recommendations ................................ 171

12.1 Introduction: Report Recommendations .................. 173

12.2 Types of Recommendation and How They’re Written ........ 173

13 Reflection ............................................ 177

13.1 What Have You Learned from Doing This Project? ......... 179

13.2 Lifelong Learning, Part of Being a Professional ............ 179

13.3 A Model for Reflection .............................. 180

13.4 The Role of Reflection in Group Projects ................. 183

13.5 How is Reflection, or a Learning Log, Assessed ............ 184

14 The Output ........................................... 185

14.1 The Final Report .................................. 187

14.1.1 Overview of the Structure of the Report ........... 187

14.1.2 When Should You Start Writing the Final Report? .... 187

14.1.3 How Should You Write the Report? .............. 187

14.1.4 Contents of the Final Report .................... 187

14.1.5 Assessment of the Final Report .................. 192

Contents xiii

14.2 The Presentation ................................... 193

14.2.1 The Purpose of the Presentation ................. 193

14.2.2 The Audience for the Presentation ................ 193

14.2.3 Planning .................................. 195

14.2.4 Presentation After Submission of the Final Report .... 195

14.2.5 Presentation Prior to Completion of the Final

Report .................................... 195

14.2.6 Presentations Other Than Live Performance ......... 196

14.3 Intellectual Property ................................ 197

14.3.1 Intellectual Property (IP) and the Dissertation ....... 197

14.3.2 Who Owns the Intellectual Property? .............. 198

14.3.3 Patents.................................... 199

14.3.4 Copyright ................................. 201

14.3.5 Non-disclosure Agreements..................... 201

14.3.6 A General Caution About Intellectual Property

and Its Protection ............................ 202

15 The Dissertation and the Job ............................. 203

15.1 The Dissertation and the Job Application ................. 205

15.1.1 Introduction to Job Applications ................. 205

15.1.2 Before You Start Making Applications Make Some

Decisions .................................. 205

15.1.3 Talk About Your Project—Including Friends

and Family................................. 207

15.1.4 Be Prepared to Talk to Random Strangers .......... 207

15.1.5 Find Out Where the Specialists Are and Talk

to Them................................... 208

15.1.6 Present About Your Project—Present Around

the World (PATW)........................... 208

15.1.7 Write About Your Project ...................... 209

15.2 The Dissertation and the Job Interview................... 209

15.2.1 Introduction ................................ 209

15.2.2 Interview Technique .......................... 210

15.2.3 For More Advise About Interview Questions ........ 211

15.3 The Dissertation and the PhD Application ................ 211

15.3.1 Introduction ................................ 211

15.3.2 Demonstrating Your Potential as a Researcher ....... 212

15.3.3 Getting a Reference for a PhD Application ......... 213

15.4 The Dissertation as You Start Your First Job .............. 214

15.4.1 What Has Your Dissertation Got to Do with Starting

Work? .................................... 214

15.4.2 Transferrable Skills........................... 214

xiv Contents

15.4.3 Subject Knowledge ........................... 215

15.4.4 In Summary ................................ 215

16 Publishing Onwards .................................... 217

16.1 Research Posters ................................... 219

16.1.1 What’s a Research Poster? ..................... 219

16.1.2 How to Prepare a Research Poster ................ 219

16.1.3 Example of a Good Poster ..................... 220

16.1.4 Example of a Bad Poster ...................... 220

16.1.5 What to Print Your Poster On? .................. 220

16.1.6 At the Poster Session ......................... 223

16.1.7 Faults in the Bad Poster ....................... 223

16.2 Submitting and Presenting Conference Papers.............. 224

16.2.1 What is a Conference? ........................ 224

16.2.2 What Exactly is a Conference Paper? ............. 225

16.2.3 Applying to Present at a Conference .............. 225

16.2.4 Presenting .................................. 225

16.2.5 Conference Follow-Up ........................ 227

16.3 Publishing in Academic Journals and Books from Your

Dissertation ....................................... 227

16.3.1 About Publishing in Academic Journals............ 227

16.3.2 Involving Others in Writing a Paper .............. 228

16.3.3 Beware of Predatory Publishers.................. 229

16.3.4 In Summary ................................ 230

Appendix A: Referencing, Citing and Quoting ..................... 233

Appendix B: Using Engineering Standards........................ 245

Appendix C: Competitions ..................................... 249

Appendix D: About Mr William Heath Robinson .................. 265

Index ...................................................... 273

Contents xv