CS255 Communication Skills Aidan Mooney

Dr. A. Mooney, Dept. of Computer Science, NUI Maynooth Course Timetable Lectures: –Monday CS2 –Monday 3 – 4 SLT Laboratories: –Thursday 2 – 4 Lab 4

Dr. A. Mooney, Dept. of Computer Science, NUI Maynooth Why? Industry – Software, design, bugs… Academia – Research, labs, tutorials… All of these skills will be beneficial, regardless of where you end up! Science requires clear thinking. Clarity of the process of stating the problem, formulating a hypothesis, planning the work, executing it and analysing the results. Your writing and presentations should not undermine your work by being unclear.

Dr. A. Mooney, Dept. of Computer Science, NUI Maynooth Course Work There is no University examination in this module! However, this is not a “doss”… You must select a specific topic from Computer Science (NOT a topic from one of the other modules in the BSc in Computer Science and Software Engineering). Prepare the following on your chosen topic: –a technical report of at least 2000 words, –a poster presentation for A1 paper, –a five-minute oral presentation.

Dr. A. Mooney, Dept. of Computer Science, NUI Maynooth Course Work Overall marking scheme: Technical report 50 Poster presentation 15 Oral presentation 20 Other continuous assessment 15

Dr. A. Mooney, Dept. of Computer Science, NUI Maynooth Course Work Please remember: -Your report, poster, presentation and other CA comprise the University examination for this module. -You should treat their preparation with appropriate care and attention. -In particular, they should be YOUR OWN WORK. Any evidence of copying, plagiarism or other cheating will be dealt with by the examination board in a similar fashion to as if detected in an examination hall.

Course Work Topic choice:  Select a specific limited subject for your report and presentations. For example, “An NP-Complete Problem: Travelling Salesman Problem” rather than “NP-Complete Problems”.  Report titles should be submitted via by 12 noon on 25 th February  All candidates should choose a different topic (although they can be closely related – for example “The Independent Path Problem as an NP-Complete Problem” would be a different topic than the one above).  In case of duplicate/very similar titles, the first one received will be given preference. The second candidate will have to choose another topic.

Course Work Technical report: (to be submitted before 12 noon Thursday 3 rd April 2008). The report should be prepared using MS Word, LaTex or a similar tool. The file must be in.doc or.pdf format, however. You have to submit one printed copy, bound in a Department of Computer Science cover. Also you must submit an electronic copy on floppy disc/CD stuck inside the back cover. Reports will not be returned. Make a second copy for yourself!

Course Work You will be marked on:  Overall Structure & Clarity  Introduction  Critical Validity of conclusions  Format, layout etc.  Use of English  Use of illustrations, diagrams etc.

Course Work In order to pass, the technical report will have to have the following characteristics:  A clear concise introduction.  A well-written middle section describing the technical detail within the topic.  A conclusion summing up and critically appraising the topic and suggesting other solutions, related topics, etc.  An abstract that concisely summarises the content of the report.

Course Work  References, indicated in the text and listed at the end in the prescribed format, showing the sources used for the material presented.  A title page in the prescribed format.  No mistakes in spelling or grammar (use the MS Word tools).  Main text to be 12 pt Times New Roman, 1.5 line spacing.  Pages numbering in footer.  A template for the report will be available from my web- page.

Course Work  Poster : (A1 size – use 4 A4 pages) –To be displayed in the Callan Building foyer in April  Presentation : –To be given at times to be announced 28 th April – 2 nd May  Visual material to be prepared using MS PowerPoint or similar program. –Talk for 5 minutes. –Be prepared to answer questions at the end.

Syllabus NOTE – Subject to suggestion & therefore change…  Grammar & syntax  CVs & cover letters  Interview skills  Group problem solving + Group communication skills  PowerPoint and poster presentation  Report writing & bibliographies  Public speaking  Critical analysis  Research methods

Practical work There is a 2 hour lab each week where you can use what has been done in practice so less talk, more doing! Upon completion of the course, you will have - model CV(s) - model cover letter - have made presentations - have made posters - public speaking skills And many, many more…