Course specification for ENG8111

Staffing

Examiner: Jon Whitty
Moderator: David Thorpe

Rationale

Project Management is a discipline attracting considerable industry attention. By its nature Project Management has a number of specialist disciplines although most tertiary Project Management education in Australia is of a generalist or engineering nature. One of the specialisations in Project Management is complex project management, which concentrates on the higher level knowledge and processes required for managing projects involving complex technical, legal, governance and contractual issues. The project requirements management course addresses the role of technical and non-technical requirements throughout the lifecycle of complex projects. This is achieved by describing a systems engineering approach to requirements analysis and specification for a complex project.

Synopsis

The aim of the course is to introduce students to the critical nature of requirements in complex project environments and to explain the role that requirements play throughout the lifecycle. At the end of the course, students will appreciate the critical role played by requirements in major projects, understand the attributes of effective requirements, and know how requirements management occurs throughout the life of a complex project.

Objectives

The course objectives define the student learning outcomes for a course. On completion of this course, students should be able to:

apply the fundamentals of the systems engineering philosophy and process to the organisational environment;
analyse and implement a generic lifecycle model suitable for complex projects;
analyse and implement requirements management processes at each stage in a generic project management lifecycle;
conduct an analysis of the through life support issues that influence the requirements management process;
evaluate and implement the attributes of an effective requirements management;
apply problem solving principles based on the systems engineering philosophy to the analysis and specification of whole of life requirements for the management of a complex project;
understand, evaluate and implement tools, techniques and processes that may be used to help generate effective requirements management;
understand and implement processes for involving specialists from a range of technical disciplines in the technical requirements management process;
apply self-directed research techniques to the investigation and use of tools and techniques of systems engineering; and
apply self-directed research techniques to key aspects of requirements management such as drafting initial requirements documentation and critiquing requirements documentation.

Topics

	Description	Weighting(%)
1.	Introduction: a system lifecycle model	10.00
2.	Requirements Management: Establishing project scope	15.00
3.	Requirements Management: Tendering and contract negotiation	15.00
4.	Requirements Management: Contracting and acquisition	15.00
5.	Through life support issues on requirements management	10.00
6.	Non-technical project requirements management	10.00
7.	Requirements Management: The impact on project management	10.00
8.	Writing effective requirements	15.00

Text and materials required to be purchased or accessed

ALL textbooks and materials available to be purchased can be sourced from USQ's Online Bookshop (unless otherwise stated). (https://bookshop.usq.edu.au/bookweb/subject.cgi?year=2013&sem=02&subject1=ENG8111)

Please contact us for alternative purchase options from USQ Bookshop. (https://bookshop.usq.edu.au/contact/)

Alexander, I & Stevens, R 2002, Writing better requirements, Addison-Wesley, Boston.
Faulconbridge, R & Ryan, M 2005, Engineering a system: managing complex technical projects, Argos Press, Canberra, ACT.

Reference materials

Reference materials are materials that, if accessed by students, may improve their knowledge and understanding of the material in the course and enrich their learning experience.

Student workload requirements

Activity	Hours
Assessments	50.00
Private Study	75.00
Tutorials or Workshops in Block Intensive Mode	40.00

Assessment details

Description	Marks out of	Wtg (%)	Due Date	Notes
ASSIGNMENT 1	100	30	16 Sep 2013
ASSIGNMENT 2	100	70	28 Oct 2013

Important assessment information

Attendance requirements:
It is the students' responsibility to attend and participate appropriately in all activities (such as lectures, tutorials, laboratories and practical work) scheduled for them, and to study all material provided to them or required to be accessed by them to maximise their chance of meeting the objectives of the course and to be informed of course-related activities and administration. (NOTE: Courses delivered in OnCampus (ONC) mode at the Springfield campus are run in block intensive mode as two 3-day workshops during the semester, and NOT as weekly lectures. Teaching blocks will include weekdays and weekend days. Check timetables for workshop dates at http://www.usq.edu.au/springfield/timetable).
Requirements for students to complete each assessment item satisfactorily:
To satisfactorily complete an individual assessment item a student must achieve at least 50% of the marks or a grade of at least C-. (Students may not have to satisfactorily complete each assessment item to receive a passing grade in this course.)
Penalties for late submission of required work:
If students submit assignments after the due date without (prior) approval of the examiner then a penalty of 5% of the total marks gained by the student for the assignment may apply for each working day late up to ten working days at which time a mark of zero may be recorded.. No assignments will be accepted after model answers have been posted.
Requirements for student to be awarded a passing grade in the course:
To be assured of receiving a passing grade in a course a student must obtain at least 50% of the total weighted marks for the course.
Method used to combine assessment results to attain final grade:
The final grades for students will be assigned on the basis of the weighted aggregate of the marks (or grades) obtained for each of the summative assessment items in the course.
Examination information:
There is no examination in this course.
Examination period when Deferred/Supplementary examinations will be held:
Not applicable
University Student Policies:
Students should read the USQ policies: Definitions, Assessment and Student Academic Misconduct to avoid actions which might contravene University policies and practices. These policies can be found at http://policy.usq.edu.au/portal/custom/search/category/usq_document_policy_type/Student.1.html.

Assessment notes

Assignments must be submitted electronically through StudyDesk by 11.55pm (AEST) on the due date.
Students must retain a copy of each assignment submitted for assessment. This must be despatched to USQ within 24 hours if required by the Examiner.
In accordance with University Policy, the examiner may grant an extension of the due date of an assignment in extenuating circumstances. If the required extension is less than seven days, there is no need to obtain prior approval. In such cases, submit your assignment as soon as possible after the due date together with any supporting documentation that might be required. The authority for granting extensions rests with the relevant examiner.
The examiner will normally only accept assessments that have been prepared using electronic media.
The examiner will not accept submission of assignments by facsimile.
In the event that a due date for an assignment falls on a local public holiday in their area, such as a show holiday, the due date for the assignment will be the next day. Students are to note on the assignment cover the date of the public holiday for the examiner's convenience.
Note that assignments may have to be accompanied by a ‘Turnitin’ Originality Report which the student has to download from the Turnitin website at www.turnitin.com. Details will be provided with the assignment requirements. Failure to attach the Originality Report may result in loss of marks.
Students who do not have regular access to postal services for the submission of paper-based assessments, or regular access to Internet services for electronic submission, or are otherwise disadvantaged by these regulations may be given special consideration. They should contact the examiner of the course to negotiate such special arrangements prior to the submission date.
Students who have undertaken all of the required assessments in a course but who have failed to meet some of the specified objectives of a course within the normally prescribed time may be awarded one of the temporary grades: IM (Incomplete - Make up), IS (Incomplete - Supplementary Examination) or ISM (Incomplete -Supplementary Examination and Make up). A temporary grade will only be awarded when, in the opinion of the examiner, a student will be able to achieve the remaining objectives of the course after a period of non directed personal study.
Students who, for medical, family/personal, or employment-related reasons, are unable to complete an assignment or to sit for an examination at the scheduled time may apply to defer an assessment in a course. Such a request must be accompanied by appropriate supporting documentation. One of the following temporary grades may be awarded IDS (Incomplete - Deferred Examination; IDM (Incomplete Deferred Make-up); IDB (Incomplete - Both Deferred Examination and Deferred Make-up).
Harvard (AGPS) is the referencing system required in this course. Students should use Harvard (AGPS) style in their assignments to format details of the information sources they have cited in their work. The Harvard (AGPS) style to be used is defined by the USQ Library's referencing guide.
http://www.usq.edu.au/library/help/referencing/default.htm

Other requirements

Students will require access to e-mail and internet access to UConnect for this course.

ENG8111 Project Requirements Management

Contents on this page