Professional Service Project

Professional Service Project A 48901 (6 credit point, graded)
Professional Service Project B 48902 (6 credit point, ungraded)
Professional Service Project C 48903 (4 credit point, graded)
Professional Service Project D 48904 (2 credit point, graded)

A subject incorporating voluntary service opportunities

ABOUT THE SUBJECT

This subject allows you to gain an appreciation of the voluntary service obligations and non-financial rewards associated with the achievement of professional status by:

* making you aware of a range of potential professional service activities
* giving you experience in professional service activities
* developing your engineering competency by applying your expertise to community problems and reflecting on the value and outcomes of the service both in enhancing your own learning and contributing positively to the service program with which you were associated.

You will be encouraged to develop a balanced portfolio of service activities to meet subject requirements. For this reason restrictions may be placed on repeating the same service activity.

PROFESSIONAL SERVICE POINTS (PSPs)

Each project for this subject will have associated with it

* a subject co-ordinator
* a project supervisor
* a client
* a learning contract
* compulsory assessment tasks to satisfy the assessment requirements 
* a value as measured in Professional Service Points (PSPs). One PSP will be equivalent to a total of 1 hour of preparation, service, reflection or documentation,

On completion of each project, you will be issued with a certificate confirming the PSPs awarded. Completion of the subject requires certificates to the value of at least 

• 75 PSPs for the 6 credit point options (48901 graded, 48902 ungraded), 
• 50 for 4 credit points (48903 graded) and 
• 25 for 2 credit points (48904 graded).

THE FORMALITIES

1. Regular project opportunities will be advertised throughout the year. Keep your eyes and ears open for other opportunities and choose any you would like to be involved in. Other projects can be negotiated with the subject co-ordinator through an associated project supervisor. This might include:

• participation as a student engineer in the engineering activities of service organisations such as SES, RedR, Army Reserve, etc;
• participation as an office holder in engineering professional organisations.

2. Once a project appears that you would like to do, register with the subject co-ordinator via the Student Details Form.

3. Email the Project Co-ordinator expressing your interest and make an appointment for an interview. At this stage you will be given full details of the requirements you must meet to complete the project.

4. Enrol in the subject by completing an e-Request. You can accumulate PSP certificates before enrolling and use these as credit when you enrol.

5. Collect a current Subject Outline from the Subject Co-ordinator.

SERVICE EXPERIENCES AND PROJECT TOPICS

Projects must be based on meaningful engineering needs rather than work that could be done by non-engineers or laboratory or workshop engineering.

ASSESSMENT

Completing a project will involve you in:

Briefing sessions - to develop the learning contract specifying the skill level you should reach before undertaking the project, how the training is to be provided, the task itself, and the nature and documentation of the reflection that you should complete by the end of the task.

* resources - talks, written articles, activities, displays etc.
* skills - management, communication, time management, leadership etc
* knowledge about the areas of engineering being presented

Service experiences - one or more significant professional service activities with PSP value.

Report writing and submission - an outline of involvement in project, the processes used to develop materials and skills, the communication methods used and the time spent on each aspect of the project. This report should provide evidence of your academic learning and in-depth reflections and evaluations of the effectiveness of the subject as a whole.

Debriefing sessions - when you reflect and report on your experiences and are assessed according to the parameters set in your learning contract.

You will also be assessed on

* materials and resources you have developed or talks you have given as part of the project
* an oral and graphic presentation in a formal seminar describing your service experiences
* client feedback and feedback from the project supervisor on your ability to fulfil expectations, keep records, honour commitments, communicate effectively, reflect on learning and evaluate work.

ASSESSMENT TASKS

There are three assessment tasks for the subject at any level. These can be viewed when you enrol in the subject and are worth 60% of your total mark.

There will also be assessment tasks for the particular project you are involved in. The Chosen Project Assessment Tasks will vary with each project. The project supervisor should be consulted about these tasks. They will include the hours of volunteer work required plus 20% of your total mark. Professional Service Project students aiming at a Distinction or High Distinction grades will be expected to demonstrate initiative and creativity in their communication skills. More details can be found on UTSOnline once you are enrolled in the subject.

"Please note that Rule 2.9 of the University describes the circumstances under which the University may retain a copy of your work. You should ensure that you are familiar with this rule. In this subject, your work may be retained for purposes of assessment, disciplinary procedures, quality and accreditation processes and related activities."

Important Dates and Information Summary
The key milestone dates for Professional Service Project include:

• finalising your learning contract through UTSOnline and in consultation with the Subject Co-ordinator by the end of Week 2 of the semester in which you enrol in the subject
• fortnightly updates on your progress via the blog on UTSOnline
• final presentation of all assignment on the second last Monday of the teaching semester at 10 am in room CB02.01.04

Subject Outline
Copies of the current Subject Outline are available from the Subject Co-ordinator.

Student Details 
Make sure you have registered with the subject co-ordinator by completing the Student Details Form.

Possible Project Topics
Click here for a list of  commonly chosen Professional Service Projects and academic staff who have expressed interested in supervising them.

An important component of any Professional Service Project is literature surveys and well written resources and presentations. The UTS Library can assist greatly in this process. The UTS Bell Program has helpful online help for accessing information, writing and speaking.