COURSEWORK:

Coursework will vary from unit to unit.  It can take many forms for example:

essays, reports, group work, presentations, seminar preparation, research projects and, of course, the more traditional 'homework examples'.

Units will not normally include all of these elements, but how much time you spend on coursework depends upon:

• How much the work contributes to the overall assessment.
  
• How much the work will improve your knowledge and understanding of other material on the course.

Here are a few ideas to get the most from your coursework.

Essays - Please see Writing > TYPES OF WRITING > Essays

Reports - Please see Writing > TYPES OF WRITING > Reports

Group work

Points to watch out for:

• Recognising and using the abilities of people in the group.
  
  
• Try to set frequent and short meeting rather than long-winded ones.
  
  
• Keep brief notes of each meeting, with action points and circulate them to all.
  
  
• Set the purpose of the meeting in advance; don't just meet for a chat.
  
  
• Ensure that you equally share-out boring tasks.
  
  
• Ensure the allocated tasks are being completed and have contingency plans in case things do not work out.  Share these concerns with your tutor if this happens.

Seminar preparation

Remember your seminar tutors will be assessing not only how much you have prepared for the seminar, but also how much you contribute and encourage others to contribute when it is your, or your group's turn to lead the seminar.

Obvious, but nonetheless important points to consider are:

• Read the seminar material before the seminar, this might include material from core and other texts, case studies, examples etc.
  
  
• Don't try to get by with minimal or zero preparation, tutors can easily see who hasn't done any preparation, even if you don't say anything.  And if you try to make up questions 'on the spot' someone may ask you to support that argument.
  
  
• Come prepared to make a contribution – Do you have a list of questions for example?
  
  
• Remember the quality of the questions you prepare are more important than the quantity.
  
  
• Be prepared to offer alternative viewpoints – and can you support these with examples?

Research Projects

A research project tends to be an extended piece of work; undertaken, for example, towards the end of your course. This type of project (Dissertations, Major Projects etc.) requires information in addition to that which we have included on this CD-ROM.  

However, you may, have units that are wholly coursework assessed during which you are asked to undertake a small, or a number of mini-research projects.

Useful points to note include:

• Plan well ahead. – Projects take a long time and it is all too easy to drop behind, especially if you have other work to do as well.
  
  
• Break the project down into a series of small manageable tasks.
  
  
• The lecturer would not set a project that was impossible to do in the timescale; ensure you have not gone beyond the boundaries of what was asked for.
  
  
• Get as much feedback as possible along the way.
  
  
• Expect problems in finding information. Don't be discouraged by this – learn from the experience and note the problem and its solution in your report, i.e. show what you have learned from the experience.
  
  
• Getting good marks is not only about doing the work, but also writing it up; don't underestimate the time this will take.