Student Assignments and Theses

Objective

Within the scope of the ADP (Advanced Design Project) at pmd, tasks which are as interesting, current and practical as possible should be dealt with in a real environment independently. Thus, cooperation with industry enterprises is strived for and useful results are expected.

Realization of the ADP

To meet the challenging objective, the general guidelines for ADPs were clarified at pmd like this:

• team size: 4 to 8 participants
• duration of the ADP: ca. 2 months, it is preferred to work on the task during the lecture period
• time involved: 80 to 100 hours per participant
• intensive support by a scientific researcher
• you work mainly in Darmstadt, whereas the cooperation with the enterprises may take place in local workshops.

Prerequisites for participation

The coping with the complexity of the task requires that the participants work on subtasks independently and on their own responsibly in a relatively short time. Therefore, a sound knowledge in the subject “product development” and experience in the treatment of larger projects are required.

Target group

The ARP is part of the new master degree program. The seminar is generally recommendable for all students who are going to write their master thesis soon.

Target

As part of the ARP “Theory of Product Development” at pmd, scientific issues are treated in order to gain new insights.

In contrast to bachelor theses, where students gather concrete and specific results, the ARP concentrates on knowledge that is gathered by means of, for example, drawing conclusions as well as making and validating hypotheses and that has an universal character. The questions are formulated openly and have a fundamental character.

Course

Working on a scientific question and gaining knowledge requires intensive discussions. Therefore, a group of participants should work together, even if they deal with different questions concerning the same topic. Similarly, a close coordination of participants and supervisors is required. That is why they meet regularly within the scope of the ARP and discuss how the matters stand at the moment and whether it is necessary to put questions or procedure in concrete terms or customize them.

Results

The findings which are developed as part of the ARP are summarized in a scientific report. The results are presented and critically discussed in a final colloquium.

Topics

The questions of the ARP are always concerned with current research topics of our institute which are of elementary interest to the supervisors.

Organisation

• The participation in the ARP gives students 6 CPs.
• The research seminar takes 2 to 3 months time.
• You must register for it personally at the pmd secretary's office.
• The meetings take place on agreed dates, usually at weekly intervals.
• The mark results from the assessment of the solution of the task, the report and the presentation of the gained results.