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Will I be forced to do a dissertation I can't do?

My university has released the dissertation list for this academic year, unfortunately there was only a few projects I liked and unfortunately was unable to get any of them. One of the supervise said I could do his project if I found a supervise, I have emailed about 5 different lectures and no replies (Email sent morning of Thursday). :/

As it seems I doubt I will get to do the project I want, :/ So I am wondering what happens at other university with this scenario? Do they force you to do a project/Dissertation which you clearly can't do? is there a compromise?

Reply 1

SlowlorisIncognito

Firstly, there's a difference between a dissertation you can't do, and one you don't want to do. They can force you to do one that isn't your first choice. If you have reasons you feel you would really struggle with a proposed dissertation, then it would be worth discussing them with your course leader/personal tutor.

If you've only sent an email out yesterday morning, sit tight for a few more days. Lecturers are pretty busy at this time of year, and may take a little while to reply.

At my university it is a mix of supervisor projects and your own projects (if you can find someone to supervise them). If you can't find someone to supervise your own project, you usually get put on a project with spaces, where all the research is based within the university (so there are no logistical problems). We sorted out supervisors last year, but now a new member of staff has joined, so if anyone was left over, he was going to supervise a few extra projects. However, it's not a free choice, and chances are you will have to do something slightly outside your research interests.

Reply 2

ITGIRL

Original post by SlowlorisIncognito

Firstly, there's a difference between a dissertation you can't do, and one you don't want to do. They can force you to do one that isn't your first choice. If you have reasons you feel you would really struggle with a proposed dissertation, then it would be worth discussing them with your course leader/personal tutor.

I am fully aware of that. However the remaining projects are projects which no student has any knowledge of.(the course doesn't prepare you for it). For example, the students have only ever used Java as programming language and the project which the student must do is in python. Jumping to another programming Language without any experience is daunting with the demands and learning curve.

If you've only sent an email out yesterday morning, sit tight for a few more days. Lecturers are pretty busy at this time of year, and may take a little while to reply.

Yeah, I know :redface:

I am a bit impatient.

At my university it is a mix of supervisor projects and your own projects (if you can find someone to supervise them). If you can't find someone to supervise your own project, you usually get put on a project with spaces, where all the research is based within the university (so there are no logistical problems). We sorted out supervisors last year, but now a new member of staff has joined, so if anyone was left over, he was going to supervise a few extra projects. However, it's not a free choice, and chances are you will have to do something slightly outside your research interests.

:mad:

I suppose I am just annoyed that the course doesn't provide you with enough knowledge to be able to do half the projects that are proposed, I just feel the university is going to set me up to fail.

Thanks for the reply.

Which uni?

Original post by ITGIRL

Thanks for the reply.

That situation does seem unfair. I have litterally know knowledge of programming languages, so I really can't comment. Presumably the projects are do-able, or the university wouldn't offer them... maybe?

As a comparison, one of my friends has ended up doing a project on insect maze navigation abilities. This isn't something we've studied directly, and we've only had a few lectures on that kind of learning overall (it's not the main focus of the degree). This is something she's had to research, but she's been given a lot of suport with experimental design etc.

As another comparison, some projects we do lend themselves to statistical tests that we've been taught. However, some don't. If you have to do unfamiliar statistics, your supervisor is supposed to give you lots more support/explanation.

However, as I said, I have no knowledge whatsoever of programming, so I have no idea if the situation is comparable or not. There must be a lot of students in your situation though? Is there anyone you can contact (individually or collectively) to express your concerns?

Will I be forced to do a dissertation I can't do?

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