Ultimate EPQ thread

My advice would be to not bother with an EPQ and do something that will actually enhance your application such as wider reading to deepen your understanding. This message is not usually well received on TSR.

I'm doing engineering at uni too. My EPQ was about ants and shortest paths. I even built an ant farm to obseve them. Unfortunately, all I observed is that ants don't doo all that much. At least when you're watching anyway. Sneaky buggers. I'd suggest doing something interesting because unless you're organised, at some point, you will have to stay up the whole night, writing it all the day before it's due in. And if its really boring, its hard to stay awake.

But we were told that it would enhance our application. I know I do plenty of reading, plus I have this awesome placement over the summer, but wouldn't an EPQ show commitment, interest and the ability to undertake independent study? I just want to make sure that I'm not going to regret not taking it :P

I based mine on operant conditional techniques in psychology and applied it to conditioning horses as a practical. I got full marks because I chose a specialised subject so they just believed me - I gave my presentation to a geographer and a spanish teacher so didn't get a real grilling. It helps to do something other people won't know anything about.

Finished the actual project last week cracked out 6000 words over 5 days. Can't believe its only like 40% of the total though. I now have to go back and do the planning / research etc.

You could do 2,500 words a day and finish in 2 days. Bull****, waffle and comment on quotes a lot.

I want to do my EP on dentistry because this will look very good on my application form but I don't know what to write about, I don't know what is going on in the dentistry world. i have searched loads but I can't find anything, I need something that is interesting, that will catch peoples eye, get a high mark for. Please let me know what to do, thank you.

I haven't got a title yet. I might be thinking of doing something on Derren Brown.

I thought of the perfect topic: Harry Potter. Me doing a project on Harry Potter would be beyond perfect. I know everything there is to know about it.

My topic will be lucid dreaming since I already have contact with a university student and he has a website providing a lot of info and references to useful books and professors. 5000 words isn't that much is it? I made a book (3 pages) which was 2000 words easily and writing about a topic is much easier than a book. I only need a structure and fill it with me knowledge so that it is understandable by laymen and professionals.

I'm a bit confused about what topic to do it on. At first I was thinking schizophrenia, I've a long family history of schizophrenics. I have done work experience in an oncology ward so I could take interesting pictures. Now I have no idea what to do. Could also write about cancer in general.

Hey I'm doing my extended project on key decisions made by the U.K. government in the past 40 years. I was just wondering if you guys could point me to a few decisions made by the authorities which are most important and why.

I've been doing the EPQ for 9 months but decided the other day to change my project. I have gone from Eating Disorders to Fascism.

My title is How feasible is brain transplantation and could it take us to immortality?

heyyy. my college had an application process for doing the EPQ next year however i was refused i dont know why they didnt say anything jus that the application process was really difficult bu i really wanted to do it is there anyway i can appeal for it? cus i really dont understand cus my grades are good!!!!! n wa exam board is the EPQ done through? i'm peridcted a's and b's isnt dat good enough?

My initial idea for an essay title was "Assessment of the effect caffeine has upon various human brain receptors," I thought about following this idea with a short but sweet experiment measuring reaction time against amounts of caffeine ingested in mg (As my chemistry teacher has access to crystalline caffeine).

I'm doing a survery into swine flu for my 'Extended Project Qualification' for college and I need to do a questionnaire to help me to complete it.

1. Age: 0-10 11-18 19-39 40-65 65+

2. Do you think you contracted swine flu?
Yes No Unsure

Im doing an extended project on Tornadoes. Im not gathering research for a 5000 word essay on this topic and I was just wondering if anyone could point me in the direction of any good research websites? Im going to email a couple of universities who have good meteorological departments, The royal meteorological society, This american organisation (ive forgotten the name) Thanks

I REALLY want to do sexual perversion for my EPQ but my teacher's said it wouldn't be appropriate and therefore I have to stick to the "safe" option and do feminism which I'm sick of, tbh.

Any ideas of what I could do for EPQ - ideally including arabic. Id be really grateful if replies to this specifically could be sent to my email - addressremoved - just so i dont have to trawl through to find them"

I'm doing my epq on conviction rates and i'm tryna get my hand on the data to find out what the conviction rates are for different crimes e.g. rape, murder etc. Only i can't find them anywhere on the internet, I've emailed the home office and CPS, but do you have any suggestions where i could find this info?

Ok so I'm considering an EPQ on fractals..so far I have ordered: Fractals: images of Chaos (can't remember author, sorry) What could I write about them? Kind of unable to think of ideas!

Im gathering some information for my extended project qualification and I would really appreciate if you could share your personal opinions and beliefs on what you think of the 9/11 and whether you believe that the 9/11 terrorist attacks was controlled by the United States Government. Do you think it was an inside job? Was the World Trade Centre a controlled demolition?

An EPQ done well can show all these things but most people treat it as a chore to be endured or a box to tick and it may consequently reveal a dearth of research skills and an attitude to independent learning that is better left hidden.

Edit: To make my point, here are a selection of quotes from earlier in this thread (names removed as I am not finger-pointing and I have used a bit of selective editing for comedic effect):

'I REALLY want to do sexual perversion for my EPQ'

When you read that were you thinking:
"tut tut...such a dearth of...research skills...I do wonder about her attitude to...independent learning..."

Oh God. I haven't even started the research for it since the summer holiday started. I have a title (sort of) and have found a couple of books but haven't read them. I think I'm losing motivation about this thing. :/