This course permits the student to design and build an individually tailored course program to address their particular interests, skill requirements and vocational training objectives. It allows students to gain skills which are not taught as part of regular classroom teaching at the graduate level, normally working closely alongside an individual staff researcher selected according to their specialist research focus. The selected researcher acts as supervisor and mentor for the project. The project may be either laboratory based, or based on combinations of supervised fieldwork followed by tuition in analysis and data interpretation.  The project can include specialist laboratory research, fieldwork abroad or in Australia. Examples might include aspects of faunal analysis, midden or residue analysis, palynology, rock art research or advanced geological, GIS, or earth science techniques. The course coordinator arranges teaching for this course in consultation with the student and with available colleagues across contributing Colleges. The course has a similar structure, and is complementary to other Archaeological Science Project courses. The course allows skill development and progression throughout the Archaeological Science Masters degrees.

Where the project involves travel outside of Canberra (including to other parts of the ACT), students will only be permitted to undertake this travel upon completion of ANU required documentation and the approval of all documentation by the relevant delegate.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

1. explain and discuss the key theoretical and scientific foundations underpinning the research project undertaken;
2. critically assess the outcomes of the research project and interpret the results; and
3. effectively present the research science project in publication or report format to a high professional standard.