CP70017E Dissertation Module Study Guide 2025-26 | UWL

CP70017E Dissertation 

Module Overview

The module provides students with the experience of planning, designing and bringing to a successful conclusion a major piece of individual work. The module aims to encourage and reward individual inventiveness and application of effort. Specifically, the aims of the module are to:

• Investigate and explore in depth an area of interest related to their studies using previously acquired knowledge and extend this knowledge in a selected area or software application.
• Produce a significant piece of work focused on a specific topic that synthesises the academic content of previously studied modules.
• Please develop a project plan and execute it while responding to changes and adapting the plan as needed.
• Analyse experimental and other findings from secondary research and relate them to an appropriate theoretical analysis.
• Communicate the work to others through appropriate, professional-quality documentation.
• Analyse, design and implement a software solution to a well-defined problem and document and present the application architecture.

Main types of study include, but are not limited to:

1. A practical development study, which aims to explore an area or ideas, or demonstrate a concept, model, algorithm, architecture, etc., through appropriate software or system development, experiment, testing and critical analysis.

2. A theory-oriented study, which aims to critically assess the current status of a specified area or topic, compare existing works, and extend/improve an already existing theory or model without testing them in practice.

3. An IS Case-Study approach, which aims to draw on one or more specific case studies from an IS organization to explore an idea/concept. The case study provides the basic data for the research.

4. A project management study which aims to study various aspects of project management, such as project management office, project finance and marketing, project stakeholder management and change management.

Regardless of the study pursued, it will be necessary to undertake a literature review because both the ability to develop knowledge and skills through self-guided learning and the ability to critically appraise literature from the perspective of the problem being addressed are fundamental at the master’s level.

There are no group teaching sessions for this module, but each student will have an academic supervisor throughout the duration of the module. Regular supervisory meetings will take place at the university during this period.

This module has one assessment in the form detailed in the following section. The learning outcomes of the module are assessed by a successful completion of the assessment. You must achieve an overall mark of at least 50% to pass this module.

Research proposals developed from the Research Methods Module may form the basis of the dissertation. However, it is recognised that the research interests of students may change or that there may be a new source of ideas. If students elect to develop a dissertation in an area that is different from the research proposal that they developed from the Research Methods module, then they will be required to develop a new research proposal, which will be subject to scrutiny from an appropriate panel, and the student will be required to defend the proposal.

You need to understand the various roles and responsibilities distributed among stakeholders.

Supervisor

The supervisor is appointed by the Module Leader with guidance from the Dissertation Panel based on the required expertise for the dissertation and other departmental considerations. Supervisors can be changed in consultation with the student and subject to agreement from the Dissertation Panel.

The supervisor will provide help and guidance when requested by the student. Specifically, they will provide guidance on your chosen topic, appropriateness of research methodology, suggestions of appropriate literature, issues of copyright, planning of your dissertation, monitor your progress, agree to planned meetings and advise you on deadlines.

Student

The student does all the work! Specifically, you are expected to:

• Decide on a topic area
• Prepare a short and full proposal
• Agree on a schedule of meetings with the supervisor within the 6hr limit.
• Raise issues before they become problems.
• Keep to all deadlines.
• Submit drafts as requested.
• Familiarise yourself with all relevant university regulations of your course of study.

Dissertation Module Leader

The module leader maintains the operational running of the module and will ensure that students are informed of all changes in deadlines and other information. They will coordinate the convening of Dissertation Panels and other events as necessary.

Dissertation Examination Panel

The dissertation panel, which includes the supervisor and a second marker, will evaluate and mark a student’s dissertation. The double-blind marking process is used in the dissertation marking where each marker marks the work independently, and neither is aware of the other’s assessment decision when determining their own mark.

The two markers should share their marks and feedback after completing their independent marking, and reach an agreed final mark to be awarded. If the two markers are
 
Unable to agree on a final mark, an experienced third marker/adjudicator will be appointed by the module leader to determine the final mark to be awarded. This double-blind marking process can improve fairness and equal treatment of students in the assessment process.

The School of Computing and Engineering has established the following programme to ensure that students receive adequate guidance and feedback on the way that their work towards the dissertation and achieving the learning outcomes is progressing. Throughout the dissertation process, you should keep the following in mind:

• Responsibility for the research and the content of the dissertation is the student's alone. The supervisor is there to offer comment and advice, and it is advisable to listen carefully and respond appropriately - if you do not, your supervisor may be less inclined to take the time to discuss and help you develop your work.
• The supervisor is expected to know how the student is progressing with their dissertation. This usually means that the supervisor will require the student to attend meetings and present both written and oral evidence of progress as the dissertation develops.
• Students should see their supervisors regularly. It is the student's responsibility to arrange and attend an appropriate programme of meetings with their supervisor. Your supervisor may have many other responsibilities and may need to be away from the campus. You cannot expect to just drop in on your supervisor's office whenever you want to discuss your dissertation.
• The supervisor is not the sole arbiter of the eventual dissertation standard, and students should see the supervisor’s comments as helpful advice and not as a judgment on their work. A supervisor cannot change the dissertation requirements.
• A supervisor will provide formal feedback on the deliverables that you submit to the School of Computing and Engineering. They will also provide informal feedback on drafts of your work. At a minimum, you can expect informal feedback on one draft per deliverable. You will, however, need to negotiate the timing of submission of these drafts well in advance to fit in with your supervisor’s schedule.
• A second reader will be assigned to each student. Their role is to provide formal feedback on the deliverables that you submit to the School of Computing and Engineering. You should not expect them to act as a second supervisor or ask them to provide feedback on drafts of your work.
• If your supervisor leaves the School of Computing and Engineering, your second reader will normally act as supervisor temporarily until you find a new supervisor. In such an instance, it will be your responsibility to negotiate with another member of staff to take over as your supervisor.

You may approach any member of staff for assistance with your dissertation content. It is up to you to decide who is best placed to help you. Your supervisor may also ask for another academic to be nominated as an advisor where they believe you would benefit from their expertise.

When your dissertation is marked, the marker will use the following information. This will be presented back to you as part of the feedback.

Students are expected to enter the Dissertation module with an approved research proposal and, where applicable, confirmed ethical approval obtained during the Research Methods module.

Preparing for Your Assessment

A key part of your learning will be preparation for your summative assessment. You will be provided feedback on your formative assessments, and this will help you to better understand what is required of you when you submit your summative assessment. Please see below guidance on your formative assessment and how to access your feedback.
 
Structure

You must include the following page

[Dissertation Title]

Submitted [month] [year], in partial fulfilment of the conditions of the award of the degree MSc [your pathway] [Student Name]

School of Computing and Engineering, University of West London

I hereby declare that this dissertation is all my own work, except where specific references are made to the work of others (including AI):

Signature Date    /    /

The dissertation will normally contain the following sections or chapters.

1. Copyright – A statement regarding copyright should be presented in the middle of the page. “The copyright of this dissertation belongs to the author under the terms of the UK Copyright Acts as amended by the University of West London regulations. Due acknowledgement must always be made of the use of any materials contained in, or derived from this thesis”.
2. Abstract (on one page) – a summary of the dissertation stating the problem identified, the approach and the results.
3. Acknowledgements (on one page) – people / orgs that have helped you during the dissertation.
4. Table of contents (include page numbers)
5. Introduction – Define the area/topic/problem or research question that you have postulated and are addressing in the dissertation. Include a relevant critical discussion of existing work to fully define the context of your work.
6. Literature review – Present a critical review of the relevant literature sourced from books, journals, reports and other grey literature. Use this to provide an informed and critical contextual positioning for your work.
7. Methods – Provide a theoretical structure for how you are intending to test your aims/objectives or your hypothesis. Provide a rationale for the approach that you have chosen.
8. Results and Discussion – Here you need to present a detailed description and analysis of your findings in the context of existing literature, your methodology and /or organisational practice or policy. The results should be clearly described using appropriate figures and tables, and the establishment of relationships (causal, correlation, etc.) should be presented so that the reader can clearly follow your logic.
9. Conclusion – Here you should describe the key features of your research and how the aims and objectives have been met. Some of the principal findings should be further emphasised, and you should provide recommendations for further work or changes in practice or policy if appropriate.
10. References – A list of authors and their works that have been cited in the text using the Harvard referencing system
11. Words count
12. Appendices (numbered sequence)

Presentation

The following describes the guidelines and requirements for presentation based on British Standards BS 4821 for a dissertation presentation.

1.    Word processed on one side of A4 white paper
2.    Use Point Size 12 for main text
3.    Paragraphs left justified with even spacing between words
4.    Line spacing is set to 1.5 except for quotations
5.    Margins set as: Left – 1.5in; Right – 1in. Top and Bottom – 1in.
6.    Quotations should be indented

I. Examination

Your dissertation will be marked by your supervisor and blind double-marked by another member of staff. It may also be marked by the External Examiner. The mark will be recommended at the Subject Exam Board in order to be approved by the Programme Exam Board. If your work is deemed unsatisfactory and fails to meet the expected grades, you may be required to resubmit your work and possibly retake the module if you fail again on the resubmission.

This module does not include a separate formative assessment. Instead, formative feedback is provided on an ongoing basis through supervision meetings and feedback on draft material submitted to supervisors. This feedback is intended to support the development of the final dissertation and should be used to improve structure, clarity, methodological rigour, and critical analysis before submission.

Summative Assessments

Summative Assessment 1

Important notes for students on the MSc Cyber Security course:

• Your dissertation project must be on a certain cybersecurity topic(s) that incorporates sufficient cybersecurity elements/components in your research.
• Your dissertation project is restricted to undertake practical work of some sort, most typically achieved by the creation of an artefact as the focus for covering all or part of an implementation lifecycle. Dissertations based solely on literature review activity and/or user/market surveys are not acceptable.

Submitting feedback & grades online using Blackboard

Main objectives of the Assessment

The dissertation requires students to plan, conduct, and report an independent research project at the master’s level. Students are expected to demonstrate critical engagement with relevant literature, appropriate research design and methodology, rigorous analysis, and clear academic writing.

Your dissertation will be marked by your supervisor and blind double-marked by another member of staff. It may also be marked by the External Examiner. The mark will be recommended at the Subject Exam Board in order to be approved by the Programme Exam Board. If your work is deemed unsatisfactory and fails to meet the expected grades, you may be required to resubmit your work and possibly retake the module if you fail again on the resubmission.

The dissertation is assessed against the following learning outcomes (LO1–LO5). Full marking criteria and grade descriptors are provided in the dissertation marking rubric available on Blackboard.

Learning Materials

You can find the reading list for this module:

• On Blackboard in the module area.
• Online at UWLReadingLists by searching for the module code or title.

Remember to log into Blackboard daily to receive all the latest news and support available at your module information sites!

Subject guides are also available to help you find relevant information for assignments, with contact details of the Subject Librarian for your School.