Guidelines and instructions for the degree project course within the technical programs at Uppsala University

Act number:: TEKNAT 2016/25
Decision maker:: Faculty Board of Science and Technology
Processing body:: Office for Science and Technology
Contact:: Emma Kristensen
Document type:: Guidelines
Decision date:: 10 May 2022
Reviewed:: 20 December 2022

Joint guidelines and instructions for degree projects within all engineering programmes and technical bachelor- and master programmes. The guidelines are a supplement to the course syllabuses.

The guidelines are established by the Educational Board of Engineering 2022-05-10. This version replaces the previous guidelines (TEKNAT 2003/21, TEKNAT 2008/326 and TEKNAT 2012/4).

Objective

The main purpose of these guidelines is to ensure the quality of the degree projects of different programs, and to guarantee the students' legal security. The quality assurance is valid at both program and departmental level.

Summary of the joint framework for the technical programs at Uppsala University

Each degree project must have an examiner, a subject reader and at least one supervisor.
The basic rule is that at least two people are involved in the assessment of each degree project.
The supervisor and the subject reader must be two different persons.
The subject reader and the examiner must be two different persons.
The supervisor and the examiner may be the same person.
The directives of individual programs shall be outlined within the these guidelines, such implementation falling under the responsibility of the program director.
If several students are collaborating on a degree project, each student is required to do an individual oral presentation of the project, clearly specifying his or her individual contributions. Each student’s contributions shall also be presented in the written reports/the written report. • Oral presentation in the presence of the examiner and the subject reader is mandatory. The presentations are organized and scheduled by the examiner.
The Student Service Unit is responsible for collecting information about degree projects on a website for students and keeping it updated. Additional information can be found on the sites of each program.
Confidential degree projects are to be archived in DiVA.
The degree project course shall be evaluated and the responses compiled once a year. A common evaluation template is recommended and the program directors are responsible for the compilation and publication on the faculty portal for course evaluations.

Background

According to the Higher Education Ordinance, a degree shall always involve a degree project, normally marking the end of the studies. The degree project is a comprehensive course which is normally carried out individually, but always evaluated individually. Clear routines and division of responsibilities are therefore of particular importance in order to ensure that all approved students meet the intended course objectives.

Form and implementation of degree projects

Guidelines and regulations

These guidelines imply a uniform management of degree projects at all the technical programs at Uppsala University. Uniform practices with a clear division of responsibilities are especially important for supervisors and subject readers of degree project workers from various programs.

All examinations are legally an “exercise of authority". The guidelines are therefore designed to ensure student´s legal security.

It is important that a degree project is characterised by technical relevance to the program in which the project is included. Certain directives may therefore apply. These should be carried out within the framework of TUN’s guidelines. The program director is responsible.

Links to the programs’ special directives shall always be available on the faculty’s website for degree projects at Uppsala University’s technical programs. The faculty’s website shall be updated and developed according to student and program needs. The person responsible for the information site is the Head of the Student Service unit.

Location of implementation as well as credit transfers

Degree projects can be performed in departments, at other universities, companies, government agencies and other workplaces, within or outside Sweden.

According to the guidelines, the student must be registered at Uppsala University or SLU. The institutions shall partake in the subject review and supervision of degree projects. The institutions shall also allocate possible degree projects and guide the students to appropriate projects. If the degree project is performed at another educational institution within or outside Sweden, the program director may recognise the degree project should special reasons apply.

Agreements on external degree projects

If a student or project owner feels a need to establish an agreement on an external degree project, that is a degree project where the project owner is outside Uppsala University, examples of agreements can be found at the university. It is important that the student is not at risk of being unable to present his or her work as planned.

Confidentiality policy for degree projects

The basic rule is that degree projects shall not be subject to confidentiality.

Companies, government agencies and other organisations, may in some cases need to classify degree projects as confidential, supported by the law of confidentiality. It is important to decide if it is the report that is confidential, or information that is shared during the process, for example because the student is present at the company. All involved must be provided with clear information and a special confidentiality agreement signed before the project begins. Once the work is completed, the confidentiality period is reviewed and, if necessary, the agreement updated or cancelled. In some cases, confidentiality can be avoided if the degree project is not posted publicly on the internet or in libraries.

Confidential reports are also archived in DiVA but not externally searchable during the time agreed. There are procedures for dealing with matters related to disclosure of confidential documents. Here is an example of an agreement with a company.

It is important that the student is not at risk of being unable to present his or her work as planned.

Agreements on internal degree projects

An agreement can also ebestablished between students who do degree projects at Uppsala University, and the project owner, in order to protect students should complications arise during the course of work. These agreements regulates matters relating to working conditions, access to materials, ownership of results, participation in publications should the results be used, how/when the degree project is published in DiVA, etc.

An example of agreement is attached as Annex 1 in this document.

For degree projects carried out within research groups at universities, it may be necessary to manage degree projects confidentially to safeguard results that may be eligible for patent protection, or results yet to be published. There is no supporting law for this procedure, which is why it is particularly important to have signed agreements between the project owner and the student. For example, it may involve refraining from making the work public on the internet (for example, publication in DiVA) or spreading the written report until a certain time after approval. All restrictions will be lifted no later than three years after approval. The student’s report may not be delayed to protect the results.

Independence requirements

The degree project is an independent project. This does not exclude the possibility of two students (or for Entreprenörskolan maximum 3 students) to collaborate on a major task, but the report (s) must demonstrate clearly and well enough the contributions of each student to allow for individual examination. Each student is required to do an individual oral presentation of the work and clearly report his or her own contributions. (The presentations can take place at the same time).

Responsibility for acquisition of degree project

Normally, it is the responsibility of each student to find a suitable task for his or her degree project. The task shall be approved by the examiner. If a student, who is accepted into a training program and who meets the eligibility requirements for degree projects, fails to find a relevant degree project, the examinator/coordinator shall assist in finding a degree project and a supervisor.

Degree projects performed at Entreprenörsskolan in Uppsala

Entreprenörskolan in Uppsala is a specialization in the second year of the Master Program in Industrial Management and Innovation.

Entreprenörskolan may replace the last year in the engineering science programs. Admission is limited. Students at Entreprenörskolan in Uppsala do their degree projects within the framework of a larger project. The extent of work shall be equivalent to 30 ECTS credits for each individual student.

The degree project shall be of technical relevance to the program/specialisation at hand, assessed by the examiner of the program in question. The student shall be registered at the course code for the engineering program’s regular course Degree Project. The examiner of the program in question must first assess the student's project plan before deciding on approval of the chosen degree project. The examiner of the program in question nominates the subject reader and supervisor, and will therefore sign all written agreements with companies involved.

Allocation of responsibilities and duties

Every degree project must have an examiner, a subject reader, and at least one supervisor. These various roles are described briefly below and their tasks described in more detail in Annex 4-6.

Examiner

According to the Higher Education Ordinance, the examiner is ultimately responsible for the course Degree Project and is appointed in the same manner as the other grading teachers. The examiner of the course Degree Project is normally the program director or is appointed after proposal from the latter.

The examiner may delegate parts of his or her duties to one or more coordinators. This does not absolve the examiner from the overall responsibility.

Subject reader

The subject reader is scientifically responsible for the degree project maintaining a high enough level in order to meet course objectives. All degree projects are done within the main area of technology or the main area of each program. This involves, among other things, technical relevance requirements and work fitting into a technical context. The task for the degree project must also align with the objectives of the program and its guidelines for appropriate degree projects. Upon appointment of the subject reader, competence shall be determinant, not institutional affiliation. The subject reader should be an employee at a higher education institution.

For degree projects in the Master Degree Programmes in Engineering, the subject reader shall normally be a lecturer with a doctorate or researcher and unless there are special reasons be employed at Uppsala University or SLU. For the Bachelor Degree Programmes in Engineering, the subject reader need not hold a doctorate if the person best meets the demands for expertise. The subject reader can take advice from people knowledgeable on the subject within and outside the department.

The maximum duration of the assignment as subject reader for an individual student is eighteen months for degree projects covering 45 higher education credits, twelve months for degree project covering 30 higher education credits and 9 months for degree projects covering 15 higher education credits.

Supervisor

The supervisor is the person most in contact with the student during the work. It is primarily the supervisor who supports and encourages the student to work independently and complete the task in accordance with the established plan.

It is important that the supervisor has a solid level of competence and is readily available for the student for the duration of the degree project.

The maximum duration of the assignment as supervisor for an individual student is eighteen months for degree projects covering 45 higher education credits, twelve months for degree project covering 30 higher education credits, and nine months for degree projects covering 15 higher education credits.

Examination requirements

The basic rule is that at least two people are involved in the assessment of each degree project. In addition:

The supervisor and the subject reader must be two different persons.
The subject reader and the examiner must be two different persons.
The supervisor and the examiner may be the same person.

Requirements for oral presentation and opposition

Oral presentation in the presence of the examiner, the subject reader, and the opponent, is mandatory. The presentations are organised and scheduled by the examiner. Every student shall also act as opponent on a degree project, normally within the same program. The opposition is organized by the examiner. Normally, the presentation takes place at UU and is public.

In case of confidential degree projects, oral presentation and opposition shall take place within the framework of existing cooperation agreements with the project owner. There must always be an oral presentation for the examiner and subject reader. It is recommended to arrange open presentations and opportunities to oppose part of the report.

If the degree project is not approved or finished on time

If a degree project receives a failing grade, a written statement must be provided, usually with suggestions of further actions to be taken by the student in order to be approved. In case of a failing degree project, the student may request a second assessment by other grading course teachers.

If a degree project has far exceeded the planned time-frame (not completed within eleven months of full-time study in Degree Project, 45 higher education credits; seven months full-time study in Degree Project, 30 higher education credits; or four months full-time study in Degree Project, 15 higher education credits), or should conflicts arise, the examiner shall contact the student/subject reader/supervisor and propose actions.

If the degree project is not completed within eighteen months (45 ECTS), twelve months (30 ECTS) or 9 months (15 ECTS), the student must re-register for the course in order to continue the degree project. New timetable and project plan shall be established, and a supervisor and subject reader appointed anew (may be the same as before).

Plagiarism check

Uppsala University uses the anti-plagiarism service Urkund. The subject reader gives the student a go-ahead and an e-mail address when the degree project is to be submitted via Urkund. The revised report will be sent to the subject reader.

Confidential degree projects undergo equivalent examinations by those concerned at the company or institution.

Publishing and archiving

All degree projects shall be registered (archived) in DiVA after the work has been approved by the examiner. It is strongly recommended that the report, if not confidential or has a delayed publication time, is also published in DiVA, i.e. becomes public, as this increases circulation and visibility of the work. The student decides if the report is to be published in DiVA. The data is registered by the student according to instructions and the final, approved report uploaded, including title and abstract page consistent with templates given. The report shall be in the file format PDF.

Other instructions

Annex 1: Example of commitment for internal degree projects

Annex 2: Duties and responsibilities of the examiner of degree projects

Annex 3: Duties and responsibilities of the subject reader of degree projects

Annex 4: Duties and responsibilities of the supervisor of degree projects

Annex 5: Form for application for degree projects

Annex 6: Course claims form (to be included, the examiner or subject reader will provide you with one)

Annex 1

Undertakings internal degree project within technical programmes at Uppsala University

§1 This undertaking applies to:

The student's name, hereinafter referred to as the Student	Personal identity number

The research team's leader, hereinafter referred to as the Project owner	Personal identity number

§2 During the degree project, the Student will participate in the work for the research team

………………...………………...

§3 During the degree project the guidelines determined for technical programmes apply. These guidelines can be found here: Guidelines and instructions for the degree project course within the technical programs at Uppsala University - Uppsala University, Sweden (uu.se)

§4 The Project owner undertakes to collaborate with the Student in accordance to requirements which are regulated in detail in the project description. Both parties are aware that the collaboration must result in a written report prepared by the Student.

§5 The Project owner must inform the Student about which safety provisions apply at Project owner’s facility.

§6 The Student is aware that they may get access to information which the author(s) consider as a valuable asset, where the value is dependent on it not being disclosed. Such information must be confidential.

The Student undertakes not to disclose or disseminate confidential information during their time in the research team and for … (maximum three (3)) years thereafter, without the written consent of the owner of the information. The Student is aware that this may affect the time of publication of their thesis in the open database DiVA.

The above does not apply to information that:

upon receipt demonstrably was public knowledge or which thereafter without breach of this agreement became public knowledge;
The Student was demonstrably already in possession of upon time of receipt;
The Student demonstrably received in a legal manner from a third party without obligation of secrecy;
has been developed independent of the Project owner's information.

§7 The Student undertakes to return confidential information upon request by the Project owner, without retaining any copies thereof.

§8 The Student's participation in any publication of the results should be settled in a separate agreement.

§9 Intellectual rights of the results belongs to the party who generates them.

§10 The Student is entitled to utilise their own results for their education and research.

§11 The written report will be made available for examination.

§12 The written report will be archived by Uppsala University.

This undertaking has been prepared in two copies, of which the Project owner and Student have one each.

Uppsala, the ……………………………….

Signature The Student

Name in block letters

Signature The Project owner

Name in block letters

Annex 2

Duties and responsibilities of the examiner of degree projects

The examiner is ultimately responsible for the course Degree Project and appointed annually by the Board of Technical Education (TUN) at the same time as other grading teachers.

Generally, the program coordinator also serves as examiner of the program’s degree projects. Alternatively, the examiner is appointed as per proposal by the program director.

The examiner may delegate parts of their duties to one or more coordinators. Doing so does not absolve the examiner of the overall responsibility. All degree projects are carried out within the main field of technology or the main field of each master degree programme. This includes requirements such as technical relevance and that the work can be adapted to a technical context. The purpose of the degree project must also align with the objectives of the program and its guidelines for appropriate degree projects.

In order to ensure high quality degree projects within the program, the examiner has an overall responsibility for:

information for students regarding degree projects
continuous contact with institutions, subject readers and students
following the general guidelines and instructions for degree projects within the technical programs
identifying candidates for various prizes such as Lilla Polhemspriset

The duties of the examiner in connection with a particular degree project:

Verify the student's eligibility to the course, and assess whether the proposed thesis project is suitable for the particular program.
Appoint a subject reader and supervisor, as well as handle the written cooperation agreement or contract with the student and the project owner. Confidential degree projects furthermore require a special confidentiality agreement also signed by the archivist in charge.
Approve the student's project plan, verify that the course claims form has been ticked off, ensure there are study record verifying eligibility. The examiner is responsible for submitting the signed application form for the degree project as well as basic registration information in Uppdok for the course Degree Project.
Approve any revision of timetable and project plan.
Organise and grade the student's opposition on another student's degree project.
Organise and grade the oral presentation after consultation with the subject reader.
Approve the final version of the written report upon consent by the subject reader.
Ensure the student uploads their report to DiVA and notify the Student Services Unit when the project report is ready for archiving and publishing in DiVA and to be reported in Ladok. Reports that are not confidential shall be archived in DiVA, where they should also be published with the consent of the student.
Handle any revision of the duration of confidentiality agreement after completion of the degree project.
Contact the student/subject reader/supervisor if there is a problem, such as if the project is not completed within eleven months of full-time study for a degree project of 45 higher education credits, seven months for a degree project of 30 higher education credits or four months for a degree project of 15 higher education credits, or if conflicts should arise; and in this case propose suitable actions.

Annex 3

Duties and responsibilities of the subject reader of degree projects

All degree projects are carried out within the main field of technology or the main field of each master programme. This includes requirements such as technical relevance and work adaptable to a technical context. Competence shall be decisive when appointing a subject reader, not institutional affiliation. The maximum duration of the assignment as subject reader for an individual student is eighteen months for degree projects covering 45 higher education credits, twelve months for degree project covering 30 higher education credits and nine months for degree projects covering 15 higher education credits.

For degree projects within the Master Programmes in Science and Engineering, the subject reader shall in general be a lecturer or researcher with a PhD, and should be employed at Uppsala University or SLU unless there are special circumstances. For the Bachelor Programmes in Science and Engineering, a junior lecturer at Uppsala University may serve as subject reader. The subject reader may ask for advice from people knowledgeable of the topic within and outside the Department.

In practice, the subject reader should provide support to the student and the supervisor to ensure that the quality of the degree project is high.

The duties of the subject reader in connection with a particular degree project:

Review the draft of the project plan (containing description, method and timetable) and if need be suggest revisions, and approve the task with regard to relevance, scope and depth. Sign the application before the student registers for the course.
Review the course claims form with the student.
If applicable, sign the confidentiality agreement.
If need be, propose revision of the preliminary project plan no later than five weeks after project initiation, and keep in touch with the student and the supervisor according to this plan.
Together with the student, determine how and when to stay in contact during the course of the project. Update on the student’s progress at least once a month.
Go through the preliminary written report with the student.
Notify the student if the language in the report is in need of correction at a level beyond the commitment of the subject reader and the supervisor. Early on, inform the student about the possibilities to get tutoring at Språkverkstaden.
Scientifically review and approve the preliminary written report.
Approve the student’s submission of the report to the subject reader via Urkund. Consent to the oral presentation.
Submit the report to the examiner and contact the Student Services Unit, which submits the degree project application form to the subject reader to be signed and transmitted to the examiner.
Review the course claims form together with the student and sign it.
Participate in the oral presentation and discuss assessment thereof with the examiner.
Approve the final version of the written report and forward it to the examiner.
Consult with the examiner if the project is not completed after eleven months of full-time study for a degree project of 45 higher education credits, seven months for a degree project of 30 higher education credits, or four months for a degree project of 15 higher education credits.

Annex 4

Duties and responsibilities of the supervisor of degree projects within technical programs

A formally responsible supervisor is appointed for each degree project. The supervisor is responsible for ensuring that the student recieves supervisoin during the degree project.

The supervisor of a degree project:

establishes, in collaboration with the student, a preliminary project plan for the implementation of the degree project and signs the application form for the degree project before the student registers for the course.
updates the project plan together with the student and the subject reader no later than five weeks after project initiation.
is responsible for organizing and implementing appropriate and ongoing supervision, supporting the student’s work progress and timetable.
holds a position at the workplace where the degree project is carried out and is competent in the particular area.
ensures that the student is familiarised with the organization, documentation requirements, necessary routines, and security aspects that apply to the workplace.
supports and encourages the student to strive for independence and responsibility in various aspects of the pursuit of knowledge.
contacts the subject reader should problems arise.
supports the student in writing the report and provides continuous feedback on content as well as language and structure. Should the student have problems with the written expression, the supervisor may recommend the student to seek tutoring at Språkverkstaden (at UU). If so, the supervisor should also inform the subject reader.
is invited to attend the student's presentation of the degree project.
consult the examiner if the project is not completed after eleven months of full-time study for a degree project of 45 higher education credits, seven months for a degree project 30 of higher education credits, or four months for a degree project of 15 higher education credits.

Annex 5

Application form

See link below "PDF Annex 5".

Annex 6

Form for learning outcomes for Degree project at Master programme of science and engineering

See link below "PDF Annex 6".