Onboarding ENGG4900X / ENGG6900X Start your Final Year Project journey
Everything you need to get started: how to secure your topic, when each selection round runs, and who to contact when you need help.
The Engineering Final Year Project (FYP) consists of two courses: ENGG4900A and ENGG4900B (or ENGG6900A and ENGG6900B for Master's students). These courses must be completed over two consecutive semesters.
Securing your topic
There are different pathways to your FYP topic, and topic selection happens over multiple rounds.
Advertised topic
Early Offer, Main & Second rounds.
Browse and request topics advertised by academics on the FYP Manager App.
Your own topic
EARLY OFFER ROUND ONLY
Not available later.
Propose your own idea. You are responsible for finding and securing an academic supervisor.
NU Teams
Join a University of Newcastle student team project as your FYP.
Find out more
Topic allocation process
Each round only applies if you have not secured a topic in the previous one.
Watch: FYP topic selection
Warren's video gives general information on FYP topic selection. It is particularly important if you are considering pursuing your own topic idea.
Applying
Access to the FYP Manager app will be made available to you 5 weeks before Semester commences.
You must be enrolled in the course to gain access.
FYP Manager app
Available soon.
Asking for support
The structure of the FYP course is different from most of your other courses where there is typically a course coordinator and lecturer that you engage with.
Your program group lead
Your first point of contact to all questions regarding course structure and procedures. The current program leads are listed in the table below.
The topic supervisor or co-supervisor
Contact them directly with questions about an advertised topic.
Your supervisor
Once your topic is secured direct all project-related communication here. Escalate to your program lead only if problems cannot be resolved with your supervisor.
Program group leads
Programs | Program Group Lead |
|---|---|
Aerospace Systems, Mechatronics, Mechanical | Thomas Fiedler |
Civil, Environmental, Surveying | TBD |
Electrical, Medical, Computer Systems | TBD |
Chemical, Renewable | TBD |
What is an FYP?
Your FYP involves solving a clearly defined engineering problem or research question. It's your chance to dive deep into a real-world problem and make a meaningful contribution.
- Problem Definition: Clearly articulate the engineering challenge or research question you aim to solve.
- Literature Review: Explore the state-of-the-art in your field.
- Methodology: Define how you will answer your question—whether through experimental testing, numerical simulation, or other approaches.
- Results: Present your findings clearly and concisely.
- Discussion: Interpret the results and their implications.
- Conclusions: Answer your research question(s) and reflect on your project’s impact.
Example projects
Each FYP is unique, but the examples below provide a glimpse of what a typical project might entail:
Biomechanical
A FYP can look like being posed with a problem from a clinical team, such as, “We want to understand what this vascular pressure is without requiring surgery”. This would require interpreting the problem and incorporating your engineering knowledge into how it may be solved. A literature review will enable you to understand if this has been achieved before, and if so how and to what extent. If not, then the relevant/related techniques/methods can be investigated through the literature search.
A plan can then be established which will aim to solve the problem posed. This may look like using computational software or creating models of the vessels to perform experiments in an ethical manner which allows the pressure to be measured. This will require consultation with your supervisor and other stakeholders (such as the clinical team) to generate a plan. It is important that the methodology includes validation which tests if the model accurately estimates the true pressure expected in a human.
The project will then be completed with continual updates and discussion with your supervisor as milestones are achieved and issues arise. The goal would be to successfully solve the clinical problem in a manner which utilises your engineering knowledge and expertise. This will be showcased to your supervisor and clinical team, before being handed over following completion of the project.
Human-Centred Design
Human-centred FYPs cover a broad range of topics. These typically involve either: extending the capabilities of people (improved senses, reactions, abilities) or improving the connection between engineered objects and the people who use them (improved interfaces, usability, accessibility). They are typically scoped around the generation of prototypes (digital and/or physical) to establish and improve the existing designs; these prototypes are built for iterations of testing and evaluating.
Literature reviews are generally restricted evaluations of relevant ergonomic standards and existing engineered solutions. Research methodology is critical for the project and the relative successes of the FYP will have their foundations in rigorous qualitative as well as quantitative approaches. Design iterations should include aspects of co-design, where the intended end-users are involved in the testing and evaluation of each iteration. Manufacturability and commercial feasibility are used to assess the viability of the research outcomes.
A project plan is necessary to keep the project within scope and should updated and actioned throughout the FYP. Meetings with the supervisor, industry experts and end-users will likely occur regularly to ensure that the student is on the right track. The project will conclude with the student presenting functional prototypes of the proposed final design and how it was informed via exploration and evaluation methods.
Industry
Industry FYPs tend to be quite specifically scoped as the industry partner typically needs a specific project to be completed. An example could be that an industry partner needs to keep water stored in multiple tanks outside of their centres all around Australia, however, it can only be used for its purpose below a specific temperature. Some of these areas are quite remote and rather than this needing to be continually checked manually, it is desired that a system be devised to automatically monitor these temperatures and alert the user if this were to rise above the maximum allowed value.
Consultation with the industry partner is important to ensure that their problem as been understood and mapped into deliverables. A literature review is conducted to assess the knowledge and methods that could be used to assist in the solving of this problem. Your supervisor will also provide guidance as to the methods that are required.
A plan will be created and this will be actioned throughout the FYP. Update meetings with the supervisor and industry partner will likely occur regularly to ensure that the student is on the right track and the industry partner is satisfied with how the solution is evolving. The project will conclude with the student presenting their solution and handing over this to the industry partner.
Materials
A materials-based FYP may focus on finding a thermal insulator that remains stable at high temperatures while maintaining a small carbon footprint. The project could begin with a problem statement, such as, “What materials can achieve thermal stability under extreme conditions while minimizing environmental impact?” A literature review would then be conducted to evaluate the state-of-the-art, identifying currently used materials, their properties, and any existing limitations.
From the findings, potential new materials could be identified, focusing on relevant properties like thermal conductivity, stability, and sustainability. A pre-selection process might use a weighted matrix to rank materials, even though some necessary data might not be readily available. This could lead to identifying specific tests required to fill these gaps, utilizing existing testing facilities at UoN or developing and implementing new tests if needed.
If the project involves novel composite materials, manufacturing small samples could be a key step, followed by conducting experiments to validate their properties. Data analysis would then help identify the best-performing materials. Throughout the project, regular meetings with the supervisor would ensure progress, and the FYP would conclude with a comprehensive evaluation of the identified materials, potentially including recommendations for real-world applications.
Structural
Structural FYP’s can look like being posed with a problem from a local council, such as, “We want to know which of our older buildings would be most vulnerable in an earthquake like the 1989 Newcastle event, and which should be upgraded first.” This would require interpreting the problem and incorporating your structural engineering knowledge into how it may be solved. A literature review will enable you to understand how the seismic vulnerability of existing buildings has been assessed before, including lessons from the 1989 earthquake and the methods in current Australian standards and guidelines, and which of these suit the building types common in the Hunter region.
A plan can then be established which aims to solve the problem posed. This may look like surveying a selection of buildings to classify their structural systems, developing numerical models of representative buildings, and analysing their response to earthquake ground motions expected for the region. This will require consultation with your supervisor and other stakeholders (such as council engineers) to agree on the buildings and level of detail. It is important that the methodology includes validation, which tests whether the models capture real behaviour, for example by comparing them with published laboratory tests or with damage observed in 1989.
The project will then be completed with continual updates and discussion with your supervisor as milestones are achieved and issues arise. The goal would be to produce a ranked list of buildings and recommended retrofit priorities in a manner which utilises your engineering knowledge and expertise. This will be showcased to your supervisor and council, before being handed over following completion of the project.
Sustainability
Sustainability-focussed FYPs may include a broad range of directions including: replacement of unsafe / wasteful materials in existing engineered solutions with more sustainable versions of equal or higher performance, improving the sustainability of existing manufacturing / production methods for engineered solutions, development of new and more viable / energy-effective solutions to existing products, alternative approaches towards energy generation and treatment of existing wasted materials and/or energy.
These types of projects are typically scoped around the generation of prototypes (digital and/or physical) to demonstrate the practical aspects of the proposed solutions. Literature reviews are focussed on Life Cycle Assessment and closing the nature of the processes around imbedded energy/waste. Manufacturability and socio-commercial feasibility are used to assess the effectivity of the research outcomes.
A project plan is necessary to keep the project within scope and should be updated and actioned throughout the FYP. Meetings with the supervisor and industry experts will likely occur regularly to ensure that the student is on the right track. The project will conclude with the student presenting functional prototypes of the proposed final design and how it was informed via exploration and evaluation methods.
UAV (Aerospace)
An AERO(UAV) FYP can look like proposing a new method or idea to improve efficiency, autonomy, safety, or performance of uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). For example, the project named as “Development of a Flight Control System for Aerobatic UAV” aims to design and validate a robust flight control system for aerobatic UAV capable of performing complex manoeuvres such as loops, rolls, and inverted flight.
Using MATLAB/Simulink, a 6-degree-of-freedom (6-DOF) UAV model will be developed to simulate aerodynamic behaviour under aerobatic conditions extended from course work. After reviewing the available flight control algorithms and structures (especially with open-source code available), a new or modified flight control system will be implemented to balance agility, stability, and precision.
The project outcomes will be validated through simulations and visualisation tools to demonstrate the system’s effectiveness in achieving precise control and stable flight. The final deliverables including a flight control-simulation code package, an edited video to show the simulated flight with comparing results from the benchmarking and modified algorithm, and a final report to document the development process and algorithm details.
Frequently asked questions
To pursue your own project topic, you must apply through the Early Offer round and obtain the support and approval of a supervisor.
This is possible, provided the project meets the requirements of the Final Year Project course, including appropriate scope, duration, and a research and/or design component. You must identify an academic supervisor who is willing to support the project and ensure that any critical resources required for successful completion are available. To pursue an industry-based project, you must apply through the Early Offer round.
You may only have one active Early Offer application at any given time. Applications that have not yet been accepted by a supervisor can be withdrawn.
You can submit a new Early Offer to another supervisor while the round is open. Otherwise, you will need to enter the Main round.
No. If you hold an approved Early Offer, you must not enter the Main round.
You can select five topics in the Main and Second rounds, with no more than two from the same supervisor.
In the Main and Second rounds, when more students request a topic than it has places, it goes to the student with the highest WAM. Listing several preferences improves your chances of being allocated one you want.
If you are not allocated a project topic during the Main Round, you will automatically progress to the Second Round. During this stage, you will be invited to rank the remaining available topics and supervisors to secure a project allocation. Be sure to review the available options carefully and submit your preferences by the advertised deadline
Only in exceptional circumstances, with the agreement of your supervisor and program group lead.
Contact the topic supervisor directly. You don’t need to contact supervisors to submit preferences in the Main or Second round.
Please refer to the official Canvas Course page for additional information.
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