Postgraduate student priorities in renewable energy research, as revealed through their development of dissertation project proposals

This contribution reports on, and reflects on, the teaching, learning and assessment of modules, on Level 9 (Masters) taught programmes in engineering, at Dublin Institute of Technology, whose outcome was the individual student development of a dissertation proposal. The modules were run, at various times, over the academic years from 2008-2013 inclusive. The modules are generic, and a team approach was taken to module instruction. Students were assessed (at different stages during the module) by evaluation of a dissertation proposal planner document, a reflective PowerPoint presentation, and more recently, evaluation of student use of a dedicated collaborative website, in addition to the assessment of their dissertation proposal. The contribution reflects on the module experience, including the lessons learned. The priorities of highly educated students, with an interdisciplinary ethos, in renewable energy are reported.