EECE 597 (MEng Directed Research)

6 Credits

Course OverviewCourse ExpectationsHow to RegisterFAQsMEng Program Page

Quick Links for 597 Forms:

Project Proposal Form
Project Summary Form
Project Withdrawal Form

EECE 597 Course Overview

EECE 597 is a 6-credit project course specifically for MEng students, where students can conduct an engineering project culminating in a written report in their area of specialization. The EECE 597 project course is not mandatory to complete the program. Before registering for the course, students need to identify a project and supervisor. Students will receive guidance from their project supervisor in developing the research topic.

People involved:

  • MEng Program Advisor (MPA – reviews the final report and providing a grade for the course): Dr. Leo Stocco (leos@ece.ubc.ca)
  • UBC ECE Faculty Supervisor (mandatory)
  • Industry Co-Supervisor (optional)
  • UBC Co-op Advisor (optional)

Students are expected to take the initiative in finding or developing a project. There are three principal ways to generate a project:

  1. Students can choose from an existing list of projects submitted by ECE faculty. The MEng Program Advisor has a list of current faculty projects available for students to view.
  2. Students can also design their own projects in this course. Students are encouraged to approach individual faculty members if they have project ideas. The faculty member will be responsible for the day-to-day direction of the project and will agree on a final mark with the MEng Program Advisor (MPA).
  3. Students can write a report in conjunction with a co-op placement or a volunteer position. In this case, someone outside the university may have involvement with the project supervision, but the final mark will be decided by the MEng Program Advisor.

Course Expectations

Registration in the EECE 597 course

Once a student has registered in EECE 597, project expectations must be disclosed in a written agreement between all project stake-holders (student, supervisor, etc). This written agreement, titled the Project Proposal, must be provided to the MEng Program Advisor before the project start date. The project proposal must be a fully transparent agreement on project expectations, signed by all stake-holders. It is recommended that the minimum passing criteria for the project is outlined in this initial Project Proposal.

Once a project has begun, students have a maximum of 1 year from their official Project Start Date (indicated on their Project Proposal Form) to complete the project. In most cases the project will take 1 term to complete.

To pass the course a minimum grade of 60% must be obtained. At the end of the project the student must prepare the Project Summary after all project deliverables are complete and provide it to the faculty supervisor. The faculty supervisor must then evaluate the project summary and forward it to the MEng Program Advisor for review. The MEng Program Advisor will enter the final grade, which is at the discretion of the faculty supervisor.

The project is officially complete once the Project Summary is signed by all parties and submitted to the MEng Program Advisor.

The expected workload for this course, including demonstration of the project and a report, is 12 hours per week for a term (12.5 weeks). This equates to roughly 150 hours of total work.

Project Milestones

Mile 0 – Course Registration

  • Student registers for EECE 597
  • Dropping the course at this stage is not reflected on student’s transcript
  • Student can refer to the MEng Program Advisor’s Project List to find a suitable project
  • Students also invited to approach ECE faculty members for new project proposals
  • Additional projects may be announced in certain Graduate courses

Mile 1 – Informal Agreement

  • Student and Faculty Supervisor agree on a project

Mile 2 – Project Proposal

  • Complete the Project Proposal Form – student prepares summary of roles, responsibilities and expected outcomes
  • All collaborators sign the proposal form and submit to the MEng Program Advisor
  • Dropping a course after the project has begun will result in a W on transcript

Mile 3 – Project Completion

  • Student completes project and prepares report to demonstrate results

Mile 4 – Project Evaluation

  • Student submits report and demonstrates project results to Faculty Supervisor (and Industry Co-supervisor if applicable)
  • Faculty supervisor evaluates the project results and considers a grade for the project course – industry supervisor may be involved in grade considerations

Mile 5 – Project Summary

  • Student must complete the Project Summary and provide the official form to the faculty supervisor for final review – student identifies all delivered outcomes and deviations from protocol
  • Faculty supervisor suggests a grade on the form and submits the form to the MEng Program Advisor

Final Milestone – Project Complete

  • Grade formally recorded by MEng Program Advisor

How to Register for EECE 597

Students can register for EECE 597 any time after admission to the program through their SSC account in the same way they would register for other courses. Students should only register in the 597 course in one term.

After a student has registered for EECE 597, they may begin their project at any time and should refer to the Project Milestones above.

Withdrawing from EECE 597

Prior to the start date of their project, students can withdraw from the course without receiving a W (withdraw) on their transcript. Further, students are automatically withdrawn from EECE 597 upon graduation if a project is never initiated, without receiving a W (withdraw) on their transcript.

If a student wishes to withdraw from the course after their project start date, they will need justification from their project supervisor and to complete the official Project Withdrawal Form. In this case, a W will appear on the student’s transcript. Withdrawal requests must be initiated by the student sending an email to help@ece.ubc.ca with the subject line “Request to Withdraw from EECE 597”, along with the completed Project Withdrawal Form.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does this course differ from a MASc thesis?

  • This project course is half the credit value of the MASc thesis and there is no requirement for a formal oral examination or archiving of the report.
  • Unlike a research degree, there is no expectation that this project will be publishable, although students are encouraged to submit their report to the UBC eCircle repository if they wish. Confidential work can form part of a project and although this does not need to be published, the faculty supervisor and MPA must be able to review it.

Are there any resources on campus available for MEng students to work on their projects?

  • Lab space and materials are typically provided by your project supervisor.

What about Intellectual Property (IP) concerns?

  • Students and supervisors are encouraged to review UILO Policies for guidance. Questions not answered in the policies can be forwarded to the MEng Program Advisor.

If I have issues with course registration or general MEng program and EECE 597 questions, who should I contact?

  • Our student services staff are happy to help and can be emailed at help@ece.ubc.ca. MEng students can also drop in to our weekly virtual advising sessions.

Is there a recommended time to take the EECE 597 project course?

  • MEng students can choose to start the project course whenever they like during their program, but as courses are less available during the summer months many students consider completing the project during the summer term.