Capstone Project

Code:

L.EIC030

Acronym:

PI

Keywords
Classification	Keyword
OFICIAL	Informatics Engineering and Computing

Instance: 2023/2024 - 2S

Active?	Yes
Web Page:	https://sites.google.com/view/l-eic-projeto-integrador/
Responsible unit:	Department of Informatics Engineering
Course/CS Responsible:	Bachelor in Informatics and Computing Engineering

Cycles of Study/Courses

Acronym	No. of Students	Study Plan	Curricular Years	Credits UCN	Credits ECTS	Contact hours	Total Time
L.EIC	307	Syllabus	3	-	6	13	162

Teaching language

Suitable for English-speaking students

Objectives

The main goal of this course is to expose students to a real-life informatics engineering project, applying knowledge and skills acquired throughout the course.

Team project-based learning is the adopted methodology in this curricular unit. The laboratory classes will enable the tutoring, supervision and monitoring of the project.

Through a real-life software project scenario, the students will be able to apply and consolidate all the intended practices and techniques that a software project encompasses. From its inception to its final product delivery, the students will go through all the phases of development, working in teams and collaborating to achieve a common goal. This "learn by doing" pedagogical philosophy allows for a deeper understanding of the practices and exposes the students to the hurdles and difficulties a real software project might present.

This methodology focuses on "product delivery", forcing the students to define a viable process to enable a fully functional, ready to use, final product release. On the way, quality standards need to be met, therefore best practices, methods and tools need to be used so that development enables the achievement of those standards. These quality metrics are set, monitored and enforced by the teachers. Innovation is endorsed through a product "pitch", evaluating if the final product will be prone to investment by potential stakeholders.

Considering an internship or a multi-disciplinary R&D project, the faculty staff will guarantee that the student will be integrated into a working environment that will allow for the pursuit of the learning objectives.

Learning outcomes and competences

(A) Be able to apply methodologies, tools and techniques suitable for solving a real problem of medium complexity in the field of Informatics and Computing Engineering, in a business or research environment, covering the analysis of the problem, the design, implementation and validation of the solution, and the respective documentation and demonstration.

(B) Understand and be able to describe organizational and functional aspects of business or research contexts and the challenges faced by the practice of Informatics and Computing Engineering in these contexts.

(C) Be able to develop collaborative work in Informatics and Computing Engineering in a real-world environment, interacting with teammates, customers and other stakeholders, and using appropriate tools and means of communication and collaboration.

(D) Be able to develop work in Informatics and Computing Engineering in a real-world environment, with a high degree of autonomy and self-discipline, and be able to adequately communicate the results of the work carried out, in writing and orally.

Working method

Presencial

Program

In this course, students will tackle a social-impact, real-world project, developing a software solution grouped in medium-size teams (4  elements). These projects will be, preferably, proposed by external (outside of UP) organizations (companies, social institutions, etc.), having the students to visit those organizations for direct contact with the stakeholders and end-users. At the end of the semester, a final public event (“fair”) will take place for a demonstration of the achieved results. Throughout the entire project lifespan, each team will be monitored and advised by a member of the faculty staff, ascertaining the persecution of the learning outcomes.

As an alternative, and authorized by the program director, students may propose to undertake an internship in a corporate environment or at an R&D laboratory or unit, supervised by a faculty staff member.

Mandatory literature

Ken Schwaber; Agile software development with Scrum. ISBN: 0-13-067634-9

Complementary Bibliography

Kent Beck; Extreme programming explained. ISBN: 978-0-321-27865-4

Teaching methods and learning activities

In the case of developing a team-based software project, the students will have a set of pre-allocated rooms to work in, with compatible schedules, where they can develop the project or meet with the supervisor. These sessions are used for the implementation of the application.

If the student opts for an internship, the tutor/supervisor will be responsible for defining, articulating and evaluating the student’s outcomes, which will have to adequately be adjusted to the context, size and complexity of the project.

Evaluation Type

Distributed evaluation without final exam

Assessment Components

Designation	Weight (%)
Trabalho prático ou de projeto	50,00
Defesa pública de dissertação, de relatório de projeto ou estágio, ou de tese	15,00
Trabalho escrito	35,00
Total:	100,00

Amount of time allocated to each course unit

Designation	Time (hours)
Elaboração de relatório/dissertação/tese	32,00
Trabalho laboratorial	130,00
Total:	162,00

Eligibility for exams

Course frequency implies attending and complying with the allocated working hours.

Calculation formula of final grade

The final grade is calculated by the weighted average of the following components: 

• Quality of the work (weight 50%)


• Quality of the report (weight 35%)


• Quality of the final presentation (weight 15%)

Observations

During the 2022/23 edition, the following deadlines apply to the evaluation components:

• Work - in the case of a team project, it is expected that the work is finished by the time classes end (May 26th). In the case of internships, the end of the contract date applies (not later than June 30).


• Report - in the case of a team project, the report must be submitted via moodle by June 23rd. In the case of internships, the end of the contract date applies (not later than June 30).


• Final Presentation - can be, either, presenting a poster at a final event ("fair") or submitting a 3-5 minute video. This will happen sometime in july, to be disclosed soon. In the case of internships, only the video option applies.

For more details concerning the course's modus operandi, please see: https://sites.google.com/view/l-eic-projeto-integrador/