Thoughts on 3rd year action research project Monash Bachelor of Science

_sophiestudies_

For anyone who's done a Bachelor of Science at Monash, did you do the 3rd year action research project or not? Is it an advantage to do it? I'm currently thinking of majoring in anatomy and developmental biology, and I'm not sure whether it would be a good idea to take it or not (I already have two other 3rd units that I really want to take in the major). I'm not too sure what I want to do after my degree, but I'm thinking of education/secondary teaching down the track though. I feel like I need to work out if research/lab work would be for me though (mind you I detest doing a pHD haha). I've also been thinking about the internship units, but I need to do more research and I know that you have to apply. Any thoughts on that would be appreciated!

Note: I'm in second year btw!

Billzene

_sophiestudies_ I did PHY3990 in the summer break between 2021 and 2022 and it's one of the most helpful units I did. Like, it has even helped my chem lab reports since I'm able to write concisely and clearly (written communication), as well as design effective illustrations on Biorender (visual communication). The oral presentations really build on your confidence and oral communication, which is critical for education (am doing MTeach now). It does everything SCI1000 supposedly does but doesn't (don't get me started on how useless SCI1000 was). This is why I'd recommend 3990 units to anyone even if they don't want to go into research.

Here's a guide to 3990 units I wrote to someone on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/Monash/comments/1apmuq5/dev3990_or_3990_units/kq7k1xs/

_sophiestudies_

Billzene haha oh my goodness SCI1000 was not it. I did it last semester and it like an absolute waste of time, but I mean at least it's all done now!

AngelWings

I did GEN3990 a number of years back. Great unit, especially if you’re unsure whether you want to do honours and it’s great for your resume whether or not you go into research. However, I would recommend that you ensure you have enough time to dedicate to this unit as it is more labour intensive, though this depends on your project. (So take <4 units total, have simpler other units, work less or cut down on extracurriculars when doing this unit.) Time also flies incredibly quickly with this unit, so would recommend having/ learning good time management skills.

_sophiestudies_

Okay cool! Thanks for the info and I'll definitely look more into it! It definitely sounds interesting and something to consider.

Billzene

_sophiestudies_ I did it in sem 2 2023 as well and from what I see they’re making it even worse this year

VitalVera

Billzene I'm taking SCI1000 currently and it's definitely not my favourite :/

_sophiestudies_

VitalVera haha it's not great but once it's done, you'll never have to think about it again!