MDUM8010 Dissertation

How MDUM8010 is assessed

The course outline lists these two components and they total 100%. Under the final dissertation it prints six aspects with the values research question 10, literature review 15, analytical framework and methods 15, analysis, findings and discussions 20, conclusions and recommendations 20, and communication and presentation 10. Those values add to 90 rather than 80, so read them as the relative emphasis of each aspect and ask your supervisor how they are scaled.

Two further conditions sit outside the table. Failing to submit the relevant forms and required deliverables by the deadlines without valid reasons leads to a fail grade in the course, and a dissertation that does not meet the format requirements may be returned for rectification, downgraded, or rejected with an F grade. All marks are presented, moderated and endorsed at the Internal Examiners' Meeting.

Current MDUM8010 dates

Dates are as published in the course outline timetable and the dissertation briefing for the 2026-27 offering. Confirm exact deadlines and submission settings in the live LMS.

What MDUM8010 covers

Nine chapters follow the dissertation year: three on choosing the route and framing a question, four on argument, structure, ethics approval and the form timetable, and two on how the work is marked and the format and referencing rules it must meet.

The programme combines six compulsory courses and three electives with one fifteen credit research component, and students take that component either as this dissertation or as the group capstone project.

The course outline describes its purpose directly: it measures how far each student has achieved the programme learning outcomes, through an individual project that integrates what they have learned and applies it to an urban issue.

How the year runs

The course spans both semesters of 2026-27. It opens with an introductory briefing shared with the capstone route and four preparatory research training lectures on proposal preparation, research design, methodology and methods, and preventing plagiarism.

Attendance at the briefing and the dissertation lecture is compulsory. Students then submit a tentative topic with a preliminary proposal of about 1,200 to 1,500 words, and the dissertation coordinator assigns supervisors by matching proposals with expertise.

From there the course is learner led: a full proposal and its presentation, ethics approval, two progress reports, a dissertation presentation, a completed draft for comments and the final dissertation, each recorded on a numbered form.

What is assessed

Assessment is by coursework.

Work progress and the proposal carry twenty per cent and are determined by the supervisor on the basis of consistency, steadfastness, discipline and project management. The final dissertation carries eighty per cent and is graded separately by the supervisor and another teacher, with a third marker when their marks differ by more than ten or fall into different grade categories.

The outline lists six aspects of the final dissertation: the research question, literature review, analytical framework and methods, analysis with findings and discussion, conclusions and recommendations, and communication.

What a dissertation is expected to be

The briefing is clear that an essay, a review or a report, however long, does not amount to a dissertation.

The work is a process of finding an actual urban problem, framing a research question and investigating it systematically, and a product that sets out the findings and why they matter, with practical implications for digital urban management. Students with a specialism in urban policy and management or in urban technology and analytics must choose a topic related to it.

Research involving human participants needs ethics approval from the appropriate University committee before any data is collected or analysed.

What this guide covers

Nine chapters follow the order in which the year raises its decisions. The first three help you choose the route, understand what the dissertation must demonstrate and turn a practical problem into a bounded research question.

The next four cover building an argument from claims, reasons, evidence and warrants, structuring the dissertation with the hourglass model, ethics approval at HKU, and the full form timetable. The last two cover the marking criteria and grade descriptors, and the format and Harvard referencing rules the final document has to meet.

Worked example · free

Test a first topic against the course before the preliminary proposal

Key terms

Dissertation Coordinator

The member of the course team who assesses preliminary proposals and assigns supervisors by matching proposals with expertise.

Supervisor

The teacher assigned to mentor and monitor an individual dissertation, who also determines the work progress mark.

Preparatory Lectures

Four research training lectures for all programme students on proposals, research design, methods and preventing plagiarism.

Tentative Topic

The first dissertation submission, made with the preliminary proposal on Form A1 in October.

Progress Meeting

A scheduled consultation with the supervisor, counted in the work progress component alongside reports and presentations.

Internal Examiners' Meeting

The meeting at which all dissertation marks are presented, moderated and endorsed.

Digital Urban Management

The field of the programme: managing cities with digital tools, data and technologies for sustainable urban environments.

Turnitin

The similarity checking service to which this course requires deliverables to be submitted.

Form A9

The form that accompanies submission of the final dissertation to the departmental general office.

MDUM8010 FAQ

Questions students ask in each MDUM8010 chapter

When do I have to decide between the dissertation and the capstone?

Early. Each route has its own first submission: a tentative dissertation topic with a preliminary proposal in October for the dissertation, and a one to two page problem statement in November for the capstone. From those points the two routes follow separate sequences of forms and supervision, so settle the choice before either document is written and raise any doubt with the coordinator. Chapter 01 · Choosing Between Dissertation and Capstone

What exactly is a dissertation supposed to prove about me?

That you have reached the programme's learning outcomes. The outline states that the course measures the extent to which those outcomes have been achieved, through an individual project that integrates your understanding of digital urban management and applies it to an urban issue. In practice the markers look for depth in one area, rigorous independent research, critical use of literature, an original contribution, clear scholarly writing, use of feedback and an oral defence. Chapter 02 · What the Dissertation Must Demonstrate

What is the difference between a research topic and a research question?

A topic names an area, such as smart mobility in Hong Kong. A question commits to something that can be answered with evidence, with a boundary of place, group and period. The briefing's problem chain shows why the difference matters: a practical problem motivates a question, the question defines a conceptual problem, and only answering that leads to something that helps. Chapter 03 · From Practical Problem to Research Question

What is a warrant in a research argument?

It is the general principle that connects your reason to your claim. The briefing, following Booth and colleagues, sets it out as the principle that lets a particular reason support a particular claim. It is often left unstated because it seems obvious to the writer, but it is usually where a critical reader will push hardest. Chapter 04 · Building an Argument with Claims and Warrants

What chapters should an MDUM dissertation have?

The outline's sample contents page runs introduction, theoretical framework, methodology, a chapter on the case and conclusion, preceded by abstract, declaration, acknowledgements and lists of figures and tables, and followed by appendices and a bibliography. Your chapter titles can differ, but the sequence of problem, theory, analysis and conclusion should be visible from the contents page alone. Chapter 05 · Structuring the Dissertation: The Hourglass Model

Do I need ethics approval for a survey in my dissertation?

A survey involves the consent of human participants, and the University's Policy on Research Integrity requires the principal investigator of such a project, including a taught postgraduate student, to refer the protocol to the appropriate ethics committee. For non-clinical departments that is the Human Research Ethics Committee, using the application form for taught postgraduate and undergraduate students. Chapter 06 · Research Ethics Approval at HKU

What happens if I miss one of the dissertation forms?

The outline states that failure to submit the relevant forms and required deliverables in accordance with the deadlines, and without valid reasons, will lead to a fail grade in the course. The forms are therefore part of the assessment structure, and a missed form cannot be made up by the quality of the final dissertation. Chapter 07 · The Proposal and the Form Timetable

How is the MDUM dissertation course assessed?

Entirely by coursework. Work progress and the proposal carry twenty per cent, covering the proposal, progress reports, presentations and progress meetings, and are determined by the supervisor. The final dissertation carries eighty per cent and is marked on six aspects: research question, literature review, analytical framework and methods, analysis with findings and discussion, conclusions and recommendations, and communication and presentation. Chapter 08 · How the Dissertation Is Marked

What is the word limit for the MDUM dissertation, and what counts?

The main body must be under 15,000 words. The outline excludes figures, tables and appendices from the count, and the abstract that precedes the main text has its own limit of 500 words. Supporting material can go in appendices, but any argument the markers need to assess should stay in the main text. Chapter 09 · Dissertation Format and Harvard Referencing

How to prepare for the assessments

Start a one page project record on the day you pick a topic: the research question in its current wording, the gap it fills, the data source and the next form with its date. Update it after every supervisor meeting. Draft the ethics application alongside the full proposal rather than after it, because approval is the step most likely to delay the analysis.

Then write in the order the markers read: a question that stays fixed, a methods chapter someone could repeat, findings stated plainly, and a discussion that returns to the gap. Leave the final month for revision against the six criteria, not for first drafting.

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