How to Write an Engineering Final Year Research Project
Let’s start with breaking down this topic.
Engineering is a complex discipline and popular choice for international students looking to choose a major to study. An engineering degree is absolutely a versatile choice for students looking to work in several different fields. International students will be excited to learn about the different areas within the field of engineering.
I’m such you knew that, but well, I defined it.
While we’re in the spirit, a Research Project is a piece of academic writing based on an author’s original work (research and findings) on a given topic. Note that the author should own the research, analysis, and interpretation of all conclusions.
Most commonly, a research paper can either be Term Papers, Master’s Thesis, and/or Doctoral Dissertations. However, it is essential to note that there exists a marked difference between a research paper and a research proposal.
Engineering is primarily considered to be an application-oriented field. As a result, the theory behind the application is given lesser importance and, often, authors in the field of engineering find it difficult to write a research paper for publication. The primary difference lies in the approach – the act of applying a theory versus that of studying or explaining it.
In my opinion, it is essential to acknowledge the difference between “engineers” and “academic researchers.” Engineers are industry professionals who excel at implementing or applying new engineering technologies, while researchers are capable of making new discoveries and producing high-quality publication-worthy communications. An academic manuscript should include and “theory” and “research” to indicate an in-depth study of the subject. Understanding both these elements will help authors draft high-quality engineering-related manuscripts.
Here are four crucial pointers researchers should bear in mind while writing engineering projects:
Step 1: Choosing an Engineering Project Topic
As with all fields. When writing an engineering research project. The first thing you have to sort out is the topic, as this shapes the majority of the work you’re going to be doing for this engineering research project. Choosing a Topic isn’t always as straight forward and natural as most people would think. In fact, in some universities, students are assigned a research project topic by the faculty. If you fall into that category, I’m happy for you! Kindly move on to
If you’re still reading, then the first thing you should do when about to choose a topic is to think about what interests you and how challenging conducting research on it would be. Ensure that you are as specific as possible; avoid issues that are too broad. Your research paper is more likely to be successful if it doesn’t look like a general overview.
For example, if your interests lie in” Engineering Systems,” you can narrow it down to “Quality of Engineering systems in a Specific State Power Plant” And voila! You have a workable topic.
Step 2. Sort your Research Results as Early as Possible
Not all engineering researchers are adept at handling research results. Over the years, I have come across many cases in which researchers procrastinate analyzing and sorting their research results for as long as a couple of years until they really “need to.” This might prove to be risky for several reasons.
First, considering the rapid pace of technological advancement, their data may become irrelevant with time.
Second, researchers may need to conduct multiple experiments to finalize their results and data. This poses the risk of data being lost or irretrievable after some time.
Finally, the conditions in which you conduct research influence result interpretation to a great extent, and if you don’t sort your research results on time, you may not remember the prevailing conditions well enough for sound analysis.
Step 3. Focus on the Quality of Data Presented, not the Quantity
The most common and incorrect assumption authors have about writing an engineering project is that having a large amount of data is all they need and that the longer their manuscript is, the better. I have often reviewed such documents that are almost overloaded with data that may not always be relevant to the topic. Data only constitutes one part of research; in fact, an engineering manuscript does not require a large amount of data. So, what kind of data should authors include in an engineering project?
First, remember that it is sufficient to include the data (or image) that represents the principal argument of your research findings.
Second, the data you choose to include should support and explain your research results.
Third, present data that can help describe the process and mechanism of your study or experiment.
If, after following these three guidelines, you have additional data that may seem promising to you, exclude it. The key is only to show readers data that is directly related to the critical message of your manuscript. The more information you include, the more you are likely to confuse your readers.
Step 4. Explain the Theory Behind the Data
This is related to the difference I highlighted earlier – engineers apply research; researchers or authors explain the theory behind the application. Most authors of engineering projects assume that their readers would be more interested in the “results” than in “how or why the results were arrived at.”
However, an academic manuscript should delve into the aspect of scientific inquiry and should display a certain level of scholarship instead of merely presenting data. The key lies in extracting the “secret” behind your data. You can do this in several ways:
Read up on existing literature on your topic and refer to it at relevant points within the text. This will not only help you stay updated about the latest research in your field but will also ensure that your contribution is of value to the area.
Propose your own hypothesis, and show how your data substantiates it. This is the most useful presentation strategy and is what is expected from a high-impact paper.
Discuss all possible explanations and interpretations for your data and zero-in on the most reasonable one.
Step 5. Cite the Most Current Literature Available
The field of engineering evolves at a rapid pace, with some revolutionary discoveries being published every year. Therefore, it’s essential that your literature cited is current and relevant and not outdated. This will create a good impression on journal editors, peer reviewers, and readers too.
Using these tips and guidance will help you write an effective research paper.
Step 6. Edit and Proofread
You will need to make large-scale changes, check and recheck the logic behind every statement.
Ensure that all your ideas are fully developed! And all your claims, recommendations, suggestions are credible and supported by well-reviewed and documented evidence.
After the initial proofreading, the next task on your plate is editing. Look out for:
- Repetitions
- Incomplete sentences
- Dangling modifiers
- Easily confused words (such as to, too, and two)
- Spelling mistakes
- Apostrophes for possessives and plurals
- Quotation rules obeyed
- Comma use
- Contractions
Are you done? Congratulations!!!
Now go back to rereading your paper; a good idea is to read your research paper backward. It will get you a bit disoriented but will allow you to catch more mistakes.
Now, if possible, get another person’s perspective. Give it to a professional proofreader, editor, friend, or family member, ask them to provide feedback and suggestion. You don’t necessarily need to take their opinions, but seeing the research paper from their eyes will allow you to know if the information you wanted to pass across was passed across.
Finally, a good idea would be to print your paper and proofread it on paper, as this will allow you to find last-minute errors, mistakes, typos, and ensure your research paper is fantastic.
