Timecales Start Finish Milestones Can be shown using a Gantt chart or written as a list.

Planning How long will it take you to complete your project? Who will you need to contact and arrange meetings with? Can you get feedback from anyone during the course of the project which you can use at later stages? Are any surveys or questionnaires involved? Carry out an initial self-evaluation of your cognitive and generic skills. A Gantt chart will show much of above, but still put in a summary.

Research methods Literature reviews Contacting companies/businesses Contacting universities/organisations Carrying out surveys/questionnaires/interviews Web search Can be shown in a Gantt chart or written as a list.

Presentation Who are you going to present your project to? How are you going to present your project? What methods are appropriate for your audience? Examples: presentation software, website, written report, PowerPoint, photographic displays, posters, blog.

Dependencies What is required for your project to go ahead? What must be completed before the next stage can start? Do you need to carry out a literature review first? Do you need to complete research before interviews with experts? Do you need to gather information before writing a questionnaire? Your Gantt chart should reflect these dependencies.

Contingencies What problems might you face in carrying out your project? How will you overcome these problems? For example, what will you do if you cannot interview the expert or a business refuses to get involved. You need to have an back-up plan.

Method for recording your skills development Progress log, which must: be detailed record the skills used record the skills you are developing be kept up to date be reflective. Before starting your project it will help you to do an initial skills review.