CTT06210 Final Year Project

UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM
COMPUTING CENTRE
Diploma in Computing and Information Technology
CTT 06210: FINAL YEAR PROJECT

PAGE 2 FINAL YEAR PROJECT MANUAL
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Introduction ............................................................................................................................ 4
COURSE DESCRIPTION ...................................................................................................................................... 4
COURSE OBJECTIVES ........................................................................................................................................ 4
DELIVERY METHODOLOGY ................................................................................................................................. 4
CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO FINAL YEAR PROJECT ........................................ 5
1.1 OVERVIEW ................................................................................................................................................... 5
1.2 : W HO IS GOING TO READ YOUR REPORT? .................................................................................................. 5
1.3 CONSIDERATIONS FOR FINAL YEAR PROJECT ............................................................................................ 6
CHAPTER 2. PROCESS OF PROJECT SELECTION AND SUBMISSION ............... 7
2.1 CHOOSING A TOPIC OF RESEARCH .............................................................................................................. 7
2.1.1: Choosing an area of interest .......................................................................................................... 7
2.1.2: Extensive research .......................................................................................................................... 7
2.1.3: Selecting a topic of Study ............................................................................................................... 7
2.2. W RITING A PROJECT PROPOSAL ............................................................................................................... 8
CHAPTER 3. PROJECT REPORTS ................................................................................... 9
3.1 : GENERAL FRAMEWORK OF A PROJECT REPORT ...................................................................................... 9
3.2 : DIFFERENT PROJECT REPORTS ................................................................................................................ 9
3.2.1: Interim Reports ................................................................................................................................. 9
3.2.2: Draft Report ................................................................................................................................... 10
3.2.3 : Final Report ................................................................................................................................... 10
3.3: GENERAL STRUCTURE OF THE FINAL REPORT ....................................................................................... 11
3.4 : NUMBER OF COPIES TO BE SUBMITTED .................................................................................................. 15
3.5: SIZE OF THE PROJECT REPORT .............................................................................................................. 15
CHAPTER 4. FONT AND LAYOUT OF THE REPORT ................................................. 16
4.1 The bound report ................................................................................................................................ 17
4.1.1 Draft report .................................................................................................................................... 17
4.1.2 The writing ..................................................................................................................................... 17
4.1.3 Pitfalls and Some Tips .................................................................................................................... 18
CHAPTER 5. TYPING, NUMBERING AND BINDING INSTRUCTIONS .................... 20
5.1 TYPING INSTRUCTIONS ....................................................................................................................... 20
5.2 NUMBERING INSTRUCTIONS ............................................................................................................... 21
5.2.1 Page Numbering .......................................................................................................................... 21
5.2.2 Numbering of Chapters, Divisions and Sub-Divisions ............................................................ 21
5.2.3 Numbering of Tables and Figures ............................................................................................. 21
5.2.4 Numbering of Equations .............................................................................................................. 21
5.3: BINDING SPECIFICATIONS ....................................................................................................................... 21
CHAPTER 6. THE PROJECT PRESENTATION ............................................................ 22
APPENDIX 1: PROPOSAL APPROVAL FORMS................................................................................................... 23
APPENDIX 2: FINAL YEAR PROJECT COVER PAGE ......................................................................................... 25
CERTIFICATION ........................................................................................................................................... 26
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Introduction
Course Description
The manual is intended to provide broad guidelines to the Diploma in Computing and
Information Technology candidates in the preparation of Final Year Project Report. In general,
the project report shall report, in an organised and scholarly fashion an account of original
research work of the candidate leading to the discovery of new facts or techniques or
correlation of facts already known (analytical, experiments, hardware oriented etc)
The course covers on the considerations for Final Year Project; Process of project selection
and submission; General format and contents of the report; Font and layout of the report and
presentation; Suggestions on style and tools that might be helpful; Typing, numbering and
binding instructions and Project presentation are provided
Course Objectives
At the end of the course students should be able to:
1) Apply the knowledge and skills obtained from class to do a project
2) Apply different methods of seeking information or data collections i.e. library,
interviews, questionnaires, observations etc
3) To prepare a project proposal
4) Prepare a Professional Presentation (PowerPoint Presentation) and present it clearly
5) Produce a concise final project work report
Delivery Methodology
The course will be delivered in form of lecturers. Different case studies with real life nature will
be provided during and at the end of the class. The manual is also designed to guide the
student to carry out the final year project independently without much assistance of the
Supervisor.
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CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO FINAL YEAR PROJECT
1.1 Overview
The Final Year Project has always been a real-world IT project. The working system is the
proof of the work that has gone into the IT project. Unlike other disciplines such as Business
Studies or Humanities, where the project report is the project, there is a common tendency
among Information Technology students to regard the writing of the report as a tedious chore
that interferes with putting the final touches to the project itself. However, the report is an
important part of the IT project.
Many IT students confuse the project report with documentation. Documentation

is different. It includes class diagrams, screen formats, file/database formats, module structure
charts, as appropriate and possibly a user manual.
Documentation can be included in the report but is not in itself the core of the project. The
report itself serves three important purposes. It is:
1. A record of work done,

2. A justification of the way you did it, and
3. A means of persuading the reader of the value of the project.
The external examiners are the most important readers of your report. They will judge the
quality of your project solely from the quality of the report. Your supervisor and second reader
will be awarding a proportion of the project marks to the report. Depending on the type of
project, the report is normally worth between 25% and 35% of the total marks. In some cases,
it may be worth more.
The supervisor will have plenty of other evidence on which your final grades will be based, but
the project report is the most visible and permanent record of the work you have done in the
project. If you are hoping to get credible award, particularly if you intend to do further study or
research in the future, it is important to demonstrate your ability to write clearly and coherently
about your subject.
1.2: Who is going to read your report?
Besides your supervisor, you will also have a second reader for your project. This is another
Instructor who has expressed an interest in your project. Second readers have a great deal of
influence with supervisors in the marking of the project. As well as reading the reports they
may want to see a demonstration of your project. When writing the report, it is often a help to
think of the second reader as your main audience. He or she is not as familiar with the project
as yourself and your supervisor, but is an interested and informed objective third-party - just
the sort of person the report should be directed to.
Your other readers include the external examiners and the students who come after you. The
external examiners are people you will probably never meet, but they will be judging your work
on the basis of the report you write. Bear in mind those students who come after you will want
to read your report to find out information to help them with their own projects
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1.3 Considerations for Final Year Project
The course allows a student to complete some of the credit requirements by studying on your
own. A student and his or her supervisor agree in advance on the topic and approach of the
project and meet periodically to discuss the student’s progress. A final report is handed in for
a grade at the end of the term.
Independent study may not be used to satisfy the Information technology requirements.
Students should use research and independent study to supplement their classroom
experiences, not replace them.
Final Year Project should be used for reading courses, literature reviews, etc. Project should
be used for laboratory work, computer programming, design or other practical work, bench
work or any business case
In Final Year Project, always involves an individual agreement between a student and a Final
Year Project Instructor/Supervisor. To arrange such an agreement, the student must first have
some idea of what the area of the project might be.
It is the student’s responsibility to obtain a supervisor for the Final Year Project. Generally, the
selection of a subject area will suggest the possible Instructors who could serve as supervisor.
To identify possible supervisors, students may wish to ask the advice of one of their instructors
or advisor. Students must bear in mind, however, that may encounter occasions when the
department member they approach to discuss Final Year Project study already is committed
fully and cannot accept further responsibility for the quarter in question. So it may require
consulting more than one possible supervisor to arrange for the project. It is good to begin
inquiries at the beginning of the semester preceding that in which you wish to start a project.
Your project area should be in either of the following:
 Database
 Website design
 Networking
 Multimedia
 IT Hardware
 Mobile Application
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CHAPTER 2. PROCESS OF PROJECT SELECTION AND

SUBMISSION
2.1 Choosing a topic of research
A project is a written work on any chosen subject. It starts with the selection of the area of
study, deciding about the relevant topic of study through extensive preliminary research/study,
doing an extensive research on the same, validating your ideas and solutions and making final
feasible recommendations. The success of the project is highly dependent on the chosen area
and subsequent topic. The clarity on the topic gives a clear pathway for furthering your
research on the right track.
2.1.1: Choosing an area of interest

-----An area would mean the subject of the project or thesis E.g. Marketing student may choose
branding, advertising, brand equity, promotion, consumer behavior and pricing.
…Finance student may choose banking, investment banking, merger and acquisition Foreign
exchange, Stock market etc
The right way to know about your interested area is:
Pick up any newspaper or magazine of your choice and see what type of news fascinates you
E.g. when you launch up a national or daily news paper. The first news which we read in full
is relating to launch of new promotion campaign by a Japanese automobile company or we
are more willing to know about the stock market indices and their performance
2.1.2: Extensive research

Once we decide our area of interest, we need to choose the topic of our research
The topic should be current and should have some practical applications,
For this, the researcher needs to do an extensive research on the chosen area. The means of
research would be
……..Reading news papers
…………………..Reading existing research papers on the same
-------Watching news and discussions /forums
----------All the reach on the area should be saved with the source as this would become your
critical literature reviews for the project
2.1.3: Selecting a topic of Study

Choosing an appropriate subject is a critical step in the success of your research project. It
can be also one of the more difficult steps
It should make sense to the reader and should be self explanatory.

The topic should state the objective of the study.
 It should be short and precise. E.g. For credit rating area, the topic can be”Analysing
the impact of credit rating on the investment portfolios with special reference to the
pharmaceutical industry” For Consumer behavior area. One of many topics can
be”Analysing the consumer perception on the usage of credit cards for purchasing
purpose” For On-line trading area, one of the many topics can be”Analysing the
consumer perception on the usage of credit cards for purchasing on-line
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2.2. Writing a Project Proposal
Once you have selected a topic of study, you are required to prepare a short (approximated
two A4 pages) describing the objectives of your project and how you plan to meet those
objectives. The report should provide the following information:
 Your name
 Your supervisor’s name
a) Working title
The working title should be a good indication of what your project is about. The working title
will be used in choosing examiners for your project. You can change the title for your final
report. If you change the topic, you should change the working title to reflect this and inform
the project coordinator of the change. You should only change the topic by agreement with
your supervisor.
b) Aims and objectives
Aims describe purpose and intention and include a description of your motivations for
undertaking this particular topic. Objectives relate to the expected outcomes of the project.
You should break these down into ‘primary objectives’ which you guarantee to achieve and
‘extensions’ which will only be implemented if time allows. The primary objective should be
clearly specified, but the extensions may be vague. Do not be afraid to specify more
extensions than you will be able to implement.
c) Relevance
Write a short paragraph to explain how this project relates to your Diploma in IT programme
d) Resources required
It is your responsibility to make sure that the resources you need are available. Do not expect
the Institute to buy things you need. (If you are going to use something not normally supported
by the Institute you will need to obtain approval from your supervisor.)
Copy of your personal weekly timetable indicating lectures, tutorials and periods of the week
you intend to devote to your project. Detailed bibliography of background reading. List of other
student doing related projects (if applicable) Interim log, indicating meetings with supervisor
and material consulted so far. This report is not formally assessed and should be submitted
directly to your supervisor.
Once the proposal is approved through an official form (Appendix 1), the approval will come
from your Examiner. Only after the approval of the Examiner you can proceed further to
complete your project work. He/She may also ask you to resubmit the proposal if not satisfied
with the work, or the proposed or is not relevant to the topic/area, it is not an original work or
insufficient
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CHAPTER 3. PROJECT REPORTS

This chapter describes the basic formatting and grammar rules; general structure of the
project report and different types of report a student should present to his/her supervisor.
3.1 : General Framework of a Project Report
a) While the majority of the project proposal is written in the present and future tenses, the
reporting of the project reviewed is the past tense (when the research has already been
done).
b) A paragraph must have two sentences. It cannot only have one.
c) A situation that continues or is still occurring in the present is written in the present tense.
d) Do not use “I” or “you”. All writing must be written in the third person. If it is necessary to
refer to you, then refer to yourself as “the researcher”.
e) Direct quotations (more than 40 words or four typed lines) should be enclosed in quotation
marks and the specific page number from the source of the quotation included in the
citation.
f) Do not use colloquialisms, such “good to go”, “picking up the slack”, or other phrases or
wordings. Be as precise as possible with word choices. Imprecision allows multiple choices
for interpretation, which is not desirable.
g) Use multiple ways to cite someone when not quoting. Words to use include “stated”,
“posited” (if it is a proposed theory or viewpoint), “said”, “found” (if research), suggested
(similar to posited), though there are others.
h) For the proposal, what will be done should be in the future tense, while past research that
has been cited is stated in the past tense.
i) A situation that continues is written in the present tense. For example, “Education, today,
with the advent of the “No Child Left Behind” Act, relies more on technology through online
testing than ever before.”
j) The methodology and findings in the final report are written in the past tense, since the
study has been done, at that point.
3.2 : Different Project Reports
Different types of report a student should present to his/her supervisor are described in
following sub sections:
3.2.1: Interim Reports
By the end of the first term of your project, you are required to submit an interim report on your
project. The report is effectively an expansion of the project proposal and should include:
Introduction
This is to provide you with a sense of direction. It specifies the objective of the project and the
needs of your intended users that are achievable in terms of time available and your
experience. It should introduce both the problem area (remember your reader may not know
anything about the particular problem you have chosen) and given an overview of the rest of
the rest of the report
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Professional considerations
Topic with potential practical application will normally have wider ethical implications. You
should include in your interim report a description of any ethical issues which need to be
considered in your final project report.
Requirements analysis
Your aim is to design a system that will meet the needs of or be directed towards some target
group of users. This document will describe the needs of those users, to what extent they are
met by existing solutions and how an ideal system might meet them more exactly. In this
section, you should be free to describe the solution that you do not expect to have time to
completely develop or implement. You should expect to include this section with only minor
modification in the final report.
Project plan
This consists of a breakdown of the work to be done into phases, tasks and other activities
with estimates of time to complete the work. It will specify interdependencies of tasks, critical
work you have done so far and that you intend to do in the second semester. One of the tasks
should be writing the draft report.
Log
Interim log, indicating meeting with your supervisor and reflecting the phase of the plan
completed so far. The complete log may be given as an appendix to your final report.
This report is formally assessed and should be submitted to the supervisor
3.2.2: Draft Report
This document is a working version of the report. It should be submitted to your supervisor by
the end of the fourth semester of your project in order to allow your supervisor sufficient time
to read it and suggest improvements before you need to submit the final report.
In your own interests, the draft report should be as complete as possible so that your
supervisor can give you valuable feedback. Your supervisor will be the examiner on other
projects. They will tell you what they are looking for from the projects they examine. If your
report does not conform to their expectations, you will be able to rectify it in time.
This report is not formally assessed and should be submitted directly to your supervisor
3.2.3 : Final Report
Preferably, project reports should be submitted using A4 paper and comb or soft binding.
Double sided printing is encouraged, but not compulsory.
The word limit for the project report (excluding appendices) is 2,200 words. The expectation
is that most project reports should contain approximately 2000 words.
The submitted project reports should include a listing of any programme code that has been
written. 2-up or 4-up printing for the code may well be appropriate. There is no need to include
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code or technical document which has not been written by you-but you must acknowledge any
such material which has been used to complete the project.
3.3: General Structure of the Final Report
The candidates shall supply a typed copy of the report to the Examiner for the purpose of
approval. In the preparation of the report, care should be taken to ensure that all textual matter
is typed to the extent possible in the same format as may be required for the final project
report. Hence, some of the information required for the final typing of the project report is
included also in this section. The following outline is indicative of the overall structure of the
Final Report. Clearly it will have to be adapted to the particular study you have carried out.
1. Title/Cover Page
2. Abstract
3. Acknowledgements
4. Table of Contents
5. List of Tables
6. List of Figures
7. CHAPTER 1 Introduction
8. CHAPTER 2 Literature Review
9. CHAPTER 3 Research Methodology
10. CHAPTER 4 Presentation of Data
11. CHAPTER 5 Analysis of Data
12. CHAPTER 6 Discussion and Interpretation of Findings
13. CHAPTER 7 Conclusions, Implications and Recommendations
14. References
15. Appendices
The headings of all items 2 to 15 listed above should be typed in capital letters without
punctuation and centered 50mm below the top of the page. The text should commence 4
spaces below this heading. The page numbering for all items 2 to 6 should be done using
lower case Roman numerals and the pages thereafter should be numbered using Arabic
numerals
a) A cover/title sheet
This should contain your name, your programme and department, your candidate number,
the title of the project, the name of your project supervisor and the calendar year of
submission (Refer Appendix 2)
A signed statement of originality together with an overview of any intellectual property rights
agreements that you have made. The statement of originality should be worded as follows.
This report is submitted as partial requirement for the Diploma of …at the University of Dar es
salaam Computing Centre. It is the product of my own work except where indicated in the text.
The report may be freely copied and distributed provided the source is acknowledged.
b) Acknowledgements (optional)
This might include your supervisor(s), other student if part of a related project and any other
person or organization that has assisted in way in the conduct of the project and its
documentation. In these sections you should express thanks to those who assisted you in your
research. These should be kept to a minimum and include academic supervisors and people
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who participated in the fieldwork, any funding bodies and probably family, friend or relative. It
should be brief and should not exceed one page when typed double spacing
c) Summary / Abstract
It should be an essay type of narrative not exceeding 600 words, outlining the problem, the
methodology used for tackling it and a summary of the findings.
d) Table of contents (with page numbers)
The table of contents should list all material following it as well as any material which precedes
it. The title page, declaration and acknowledgement will not find a place among the items listed
in the table of contents but the page numbers of which are in lower case Roman letters. One
and a half spacing should be adopted for typing the matter under this head
e) List of Tables
The list should use exactly the same captions as they appear above the tables in the text. One
and a half spacing should be adopted for typing the matter under this head
f) List of Figures
The list should use exactly the same captions as they appear below the figures in the text.
One and a half spacing should be adopted for typing the matter under this head.
g) Introduction
In the introduction you should introduce the reader to the background of the study and the
nature of the problem being considered. It should therefore set the study in context explaining
why this study is important, highlighting significant issues, problems and ideas. The aim and
objectives should be stated clearly.
This should give motivation for the project. The aims of the project should at least be stated in
the first paragraph, but preferably in the first sentence. The first chapter should also explain
the structure of the report
h) Literature Review
In the process of creating the work it is very important to pay attention to the project literature
review in order to prove your paper’s accuracy. Project literature review is a register or
summary of used resources related to the topic of the project. Here are a few guidelines you
should follow during the project literature reviews writing stage.
In a project a student is expected to provide a critical review of the existing literature (published
and unpublished) on the research area being investigated. This does not mean that you have
to indicate every book and article that has been written on the subject but anything you read
should be referenced appropriately. Nevertheless, your review should indicate that you have
studied existing and recent work in the field. The Harvard System (author/date) of referencing
should be used. The literature review should be:
 Relevant: Literature used should support your arguments relating to your research
question and aim and objectives of the study. It should uphold methodology. In some
cases, you may need to discuss literature review and its relationship to methodology
in a separate chapter.
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 Up-to-Date: Recent literature (not older than five years) is recommended unless you
are referring to classical works in your field of study. Sources used have to be in their
majority primary sources, secondary referencing may be used.
 Comprehensive: Demonstrate that you have read extensively without being over
inclusive. Develop your ability to employ summary statements and to synthesize.
 Use evidence: A literature review in this sense is just like any other academic writing
research paper. Your interpretation of the available sources must be backed up with
evidence to show that what you are saying is valid.
 Be selective: Select only the most important points in each source to highlight in the
review. The type of information you choose to mention should relate directly to the
review’s focus, whether it is thematic, methodological, or chronological.
 Use quotes sparingly: The survey nature of the literature review does not allow for
in-depth discussion or detailed quotes from the text. Some short quotes here and there
are okay; though if you want to emphasize a point, but if you find yourself wanting to
put in more quotes, check with your instructor.
 Summarize and synthesize: Remember to summarize and synthesize your sources

within each paragraph as well as throughout the review.
 Keep your own voice: While the literature review presents others’ ideas, your voice
should remain front and center.
 Use caution when paraphrasing: When paraphrasing a source that is not your own,
be sure to represent the author’s information or opinions accurately and in your own
words.
i) Methodology
The purpose of this chapter is to indicate what you actually did in your research so that your
reader may evaluate the design procedure and findings of your study. The methodology
section should be well-structured, written in concise, matter-of-fact manner and should provide
answers to the following questions: - What actually happened - How? - To whom- With what
result? - How were problems dealt with? Approach to data?
The following is an outline of the Methodology section:
 Review of Data Collection Methods:

- Why were the data collection methods you chose the best suited to fit your research
question?
 Secondary Data
- What secondary data was used? How does it feed into the current research?
 Primary Data:
- A detailed description of research conducted, design of the tool, description of
fieldwork, you also need to mention any specific procedures used.
 Criteria for Sample Selection
- Number of total sample, characteristics of sample and method of selection
 Pilot Study
- To whom was the study administered, what changes were made to the research tool
 Methods of Analysis-
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- Briefly explain how you propose to analyze the data; if computer software is going to
be used, a description of the type of software has to be included.
 Limitations
- What were the limitations of this study and how did you overcome these limitations?
j) Presentation and Analysis of Data
In the presentation of data, you are to present the major findings of your research in a
summarized form and the details of the analyses which have been performed. The content
and style depend on the nature of the research method chosen, but in the case of both
quantitative and qualitative studies, the object is to present the data collected to answer the
research questions
k) Discussion of Results and Conclusions
 This chapter should draw together all the issues of the research and link back to the
aim and objectives which were outlined in the Introduction and Methodology. Have the
aims set at the beginning been met? If not, why not?
 Evaluate how your findings bear on issues or points raised in the Literature Review.
 What are the implications arising from the findings? Be careful with your
generalizations and your interpretations. Recommendations should be based on
evidence.
 Do you have suggestions for future research in this area?
l) Reference
Any work of other researcher is used either directly or indirectly the origin of the material thus
referred to as appropriate places in the project report should be indicated. A paper, a
monograph or a book may be designated by the name of the first author followed by the year
of publication, placed inside brackets at the appropriate places in the project report should be
indicated. A paper, a monograph or a book may be designated by the name of the first author
followed by the year of publication, placed inside brackets at the appropriate place of
reference. The citation may assume any one of the following forms.
Examples of citation
(i) An improved algorithm has been adopted in literature (Tsychiya 1980)
(ii) Jankins and Walts (1968) have dealt at length this principle.
(iii) The problems of mechanical manipulators have been studied by Shin et al
(1984) and certain limitations of the method used, has been pointed out by Shin
et al (1984 a)
The listed should be typed 4 space below the heading “REFERENCES” in alphabetical order
in single spacing left-justified. The reference material should be listed in the alphabetical order
of the first author. The name of the author/authors should be immediately followed by the year
and other details. A typical illustrative list given below relates to the citation examples quoted
above.
Example of References
1. Strunk, W. (1983). The Elements of Style, Collier MacMillan, London.
2. Turabian, K. L. (1987). A Manual for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and
Dissertations, University of Chicago.
3. University of Limerick. (1994). Postgraduate Academic Regulations and Procedures,
University of Limerick.
m) Appendices
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You should include your project logs and any source code or system data as appendices. You
may also include any technical material which you felt was too detailed forth main body of the
report. You should make sure that any technical material, such as source code, is
appropriately commented, and is consistently presented.
Further, Appendices are provided to give supplementary information, which if included in the
main text may serve as a distraction and cloud the central theme under discussion.
 Appendices should be numbered using Arabic numerals, e.g. Appendix 1, Appendix 2,

etc.
 Appendices, Tables and References appearing in appendices should be numbered
and referred to at appropriate places just as in the case of chapters.
This is the best place for screen dumps. In other words, do not clutter the main chapters with
illustrations. In the main body these tend to break the reader’s concentration and cause
numerous problems with printing and page breaks. Remember you are not writing a textbook,
so don’t worry about causing the reader to refer back and forth.
Depending on the project, it may be a good idea to produce a user manual and put it in an
appendix. It looks good if you get this printed/copied on coloured paper.
Database projects generally have a chapter in the main body of the report discussing the
database design, including descriptions of tables, etc. If this is not appropriate, then the tables
should be documented in an appendix. An entity-relationship diagram may be used as the
basis of a discussion of the requirements for a system, in which case it is best placed in the
relevant chapter. In general, the more detailed items and repetitive items like file formats
should be relegated to the appendices, but the more abstract models should be up-front in the
main chapters.
IMPORTANT your marked, interim report script should be resubmitted along with the final
report to the Examination officer office. This means that you must retain your marked interim
report after it has been return to you. This should not be bound into the final report though the
Appendices should include selective, supplementary material which is distracting when placed
in the main body of text. Only material which is necessary for a full understanding of your study
should be included. These include important forms, questionnaires or interview schedules,
description of equipment or settings, tables and lists of data supportive of the study
3.4 : Number of Copies to be submitted
Diploma in Information Technology students should submit three copies to the Head of the
Department concerned on or before the specified date. The Head of the Department should
send (i) One copy to the library (ii) One copy to the examiner and (iii) One copy to the student
concerned
3.5: Size of the Project Report
The size of project report should not exceed 60 pages of typed matter reckoned from the first
page of Chapter 1 to the last page
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CHAPTER 4. FONT AND LAYOUT OF THE REPORT

Naturally you will type the report yourself. Choosing a font is a matter of personal preference.
This document uses Bookman Old Style, which is a True Type (TT) font. Times Roman,
Palatino, or Schoolbook are also good. It is best to choose one font and try to stick to it for
the entire document. If using MS Word, be careful to select a serif TrueType font and not a
terminal or system font. Do not use Arial or any other sans-serif font. Serifs are the tiny tails
at the beginnings and ends of letters (missing in the word Aerial above). MS Word is often set
up with styles for headings based on a sans-serif font. These are acceptable, but documents
are supposed to be harder to read if they are printed mainly using sans-serif fonts.
Use a font size of 12 for the main body of the text, larger for headings and chapter titles.
These should be in bold type.
The word-processor will take care of left justification. Beware of right justification or
alignment. It looks tidier but it sometimes interferes with the readability of the text, by inserting
extra spaces, especially if you have a tendency to use long words. Newspapers and books
use left and right-justification but they generally use a smaller font size (8) and better quality
printers than you will be using. In MS Word, left- and right-justified is called justified.
The margins should be 1" on the top, 1" on the bottom, 1" on the right and 1.5" on the left.
The wider left margin is important because it helps when reading the bound report. (File, Page
Setup in Word.)
The dimensions of the final bound copies of the project report should be 290mm x 205mm.
Standard A4 size (297mm x 210mm) paper may be used for preparing the copies.
The final three copies of the project report (at the time of submission) should have the following
page margins:
Top edge : 30 to 35 mm
Bottom edge : 25 to 30 mm
Left side : 35 to 40 mm
Right side : 20 to 25 mm
The project report should be prepared on good quality white paper preferably not lower than
80 gms /Sq. Meter.
Tables and figures should conform to the margin specifications. Large size figures should be
photographically or otherwise reduced to the appropriate size before insertion.
Make sure the page size is set correctly. A4 paper is 11.69" long. If you are using Word, then
use File, Page setup, Paper Size and Orientation to switch to A4 size paper.
Pages should be numbered, starting at the Summary. The page number should be printed at
the foot of the page and centred. Use the Insert Section Break option in MS Word, followed
by Insert Page Numbers. Do this with the cursor positioned at the top of the Summary page.
Appendices should have page numbers, in sequence with the main body of the report.
In the past it was common to double-space academic reports and theses. This is no longer
necessary, due to advances in typography and printing technology. You may double-space
your report, but one-and-a-half line spacing is preferred. The exceptions are the references
and bibliography, which should be single-spaced.
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The report should be printed on one side of the paper only. Any documents included in the
Appendices should be likewise on A4 paper. Photocopy them if this is necessary.
Source code is not normally included in the Appendices. If your supervisor wants it printed,
then bind it separately in any suitable folder.
4.1 The bound report

This should be paper-bound, in any colour. Please do not get it hard-bound. It looks
pretentious, takes up too much shelf-space in the department and it will not impress your
supervisor. If you want to get a hard-bound copy for yourself or your parents, then go ahead.
Hand in two copies of the report to the departmental office or to your supervisor. Only one
copy of your program listings is required, if at all.
Source code and executable files should be copied onto the FYP archive, along with a soft
copy of your report. Use a suitable directory structure, especially if you have a large number
of resource files, graphics files, etc.
4.1.1 Draft report

Good writing is nearly always the result of re-writing. The reason for the draft report is to give
your supervisor a chance to read it and make suggestions for its improvement before you
have to hand it in officially. While the print-out should be as readable as possible, it is not
necessary to laser print or bind the draft. The supervisor will be looking at the contents at this
stage.
4.1.2 The writing

The unit of writing is not the sentence but the paragraph. Break up your text into paragraphs
and sub-paragraphs. Try to have one idea per paragraph. Group your paragraphs into
sections and think of meaningful headings for each section.
Use an outline. Word has an 'outline View', which allows you to begin by structuring your
report with headings at various levels. Restructuring the report can be done very effectively in
'outline View' by dragging the headings and automatically moving all the text under a particular
heading to another part of the document. Having used the outline view helps when it comes
to automatically generating a Table of Contents. It also helps you to organise your ideas.
There are a number of excellent books on style. The Elements of Style (Strunk 1983)
available in Short Loans in the library (classification 808), is one of the best known. This short
book is well worth a read if you are looking for some inspiration. On the other hand, if you
prefer, MS Word has a built-in grammar- and style-checker, which analyses your sentences
more patiently than a supervisor. You don’t always have to take the advice, but it is worth
considering. Look under Tools.
Like all well-meaning instructors, the Word grammar-checker is against using the passive
voice and wants you to use the active voice all the time. This means you should say what the
subject did, not what happened to the subject. For example: “The cat is sitting on the mat” is
the active voice. “The mat was sat upon by the cat” is the passive voice.
Your supervisor will not mind if you use the passive voice from time to time: it is not bad
grammar. On the other hand, too much of the passive voice makes your writing hard to
understand. The active voice is always simpler and clearer.
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Very often when you are trying to be objective, as you should when be writing a report, it is
easier to achieve this by writing in the passive voice. You can always revise what you have
written, to make it clearer.
Use short sentences. This is another piece of advice favoured by the grammar-checker and
many teachers of writing. Certainly, shorter sentences are easier to understand, but rest
assured that your supervisor and second reader can understand the occasional long sentence,
including ones that contain sub-ordinate clauses.
After reading the draft, your supervisor will probably make some suggestions, possibly
changes to the structure, or requesting you to expand some sections or chapters. Always do
as he or she suggests.
4.1.3 Pitfalls and Some Tips

It often happens that an otherwise excellent project is ruined by a poor write-up. The most
common problems which could be avoided include:
Writing in a tone which is too personal (e.g. "I stayed up all night looking for that bug").
This is hard to avoid when you are describing something which is all your own work. Try
to remember that strangers will be reading your report. We used to advise that the word
‘I’ should never appear in a project report, but we have decided to drop this constraint.
Nevertheless, it is very important to adopt an impartial stance and write in an objective
tone. Some people go to the other extreme which is:
 Writing in a tone that is stilted and indirect, (e.g. "The learner is given total control over
the rate at which he or she progresses through the system and also over the amount of
detail with which he or she is presented at any time"). Be yourself. Let the reader ‘hear’
your ‘voice.’
 Writing in the past tense This is a common trap, trying to write a report that is one long
story from beginning to end; only it does not work because you keep jumping from one
idea to another. Write in the present tense. You are writing about something that exists.
Failure to acknowledge sources There are three main types of sources of material which
you will need to acknowledge:
1. The software which you used, including the development environment, compilers,
libraries, etc.
2. The algorithms, models, hypotheses and paradigms that you use. These may or not
require detailed description depending on how important they are to the project. Also, the
further back you go the more ideas become public domain. However, as a rule of thumb it
is always better if you can demonstrate that you know the origin of a technique, idea or
concept.
3. Written, printed, or published material (see appendix 3)
· re-writing the manual. You can assume that your reader is knowledgeable about
certain things, so there is no need to write a potted history of Java or whatever. On the
other hand, it is important to mention everything you used in the project and to fully explain
anything that might be unusual or novel to the interested reader. The topics needing this
treatment vary from one year to another. For example, five years ago it was important to
introduce the reader to Java, but now it is ‘old hat.’
You may think, "So what if it's wrong as long as the meaning is clear." But poor spelling
gives a bad impression (of carelessness and worse) and sometimes causes confusion.
Some people are born bad spellers, others are poor typists. But there is no excuse for
anybody who has access to a spelling checker. Use it.
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Other Tips
 Find out and use the proper spelling and capitalisation of the programming languages,
tools and other proprietary software that you used. For example, is it UNIX or UNIX?
 Do not leave a space before a full stop or other punctuation mark. If you do, the automatic
justification will treat it as a separate word and may leave it 'dangling' at the beginning of
a line.
 Likewise, do not leave a space after an opening bracket or before a closing bracket. Do it
(like this).
 Use round brackets only for parentheses. Keep square brackets for references.
 Believe it or not, typesetting convention requires that commas and full stops go inside
quotation marks. Even at the end of sentences like "this."
 It is a good practice to leave two spaces after a full stop.
 Always spell out numbers <10 in text, i.e. write “two” not “2” except where you are
numbering bullet points.
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CHAPTER 5. TYPING, NUMBERING AND BINDING INSTRUCTIONS

5.1 Typing Instructions
 This section includes additional information for final typing of the project report. Some
information given earlier under ‘Font and Layout of the Report’ shall also be referred.
 The impressions on the typed copies should be black in colour.
 Uniformity in the font of letters in the same project report shall be observed.
 A sub-heading at the bottom of a page must have at least two full lines below it or else
it should be carried over to the next page.
 The last word of any page should not be split using a hyphen.
 One and a half spacing should be used for typing the general text.
 Single spacing should be used for typing:
(i) Long Tables
(ii) Long quotations
(iii) Foot notes
(iv) Multiline captions
(v) References
 All quotations exceeding one line should be typed in an indented space – the
indentation being 15mm from either margin.
 Double spacing should be used for typing the Bonafide Certificate and
Acknowledgement.
5.1.1 Report Chapters

 The format for typing chapter headings, division’s headings and sub-division headings
are explained through the following illustrative examples.
Chapter heading : CHAPTER 1

Division heading INTRODUCTION
Division heading : 1.1 OUTLINE OF PROJECT REPORT
Sub-division heading : 1.1.2. Literature review.
 The word CHAPTER without punctuation should be centered 50mm down from the top
of the page. Two spaces below, the title of the chapter should be typed centrally in
capital letters. The text should commence 4 spaces below this title, the first letter of
the text starting 20mm, inside from the left hand margin.
 The division and sub-division captions along with their numberings should be left-
justified. The typed material directly below division or sub-division heading should
commence 2 spaces below it and should be offset 20mm from the left hand margin.
Within a division or sub-division, paragraphs are permitted. Even paragraph should
commence 3 spaces below the last line of the preceding paragraph, the first letter in
the paragraph being offset from the left hand margin by 20mm.
022 2410645
5.2 Numbering Instructions
5.2.1 Page Numbering

All page numbers (whether it is in Roman or Arabic numbers) should be typed without
punctuation on the upper right hand corner 20mm from top with the last digit in line with the
right hand margin. The preliminary pages of the project report (such as Title page,
Acknowledgement, Table of Contents etc.) should be numbered in lower case Roman
numerals. The title page will be numbered as (i) but this should not be typed. The page
immediately following the title page shall be numbered (ii) and it should appear at the top right
hand corner as already specified. Pages of main text, starting with Chapter 1 should be
consecutively numbered using Arabic numerals.
5.2.2 Numbering of Chapters, Divisions and Sub-Divisions

The numbering of chapters, divisions and sub-divisions should be done, using Arabic
numerals only and further decimal notation should be used for numbering the divisions and
sub-divisions within a chapter. For example, sub-division 4 under division 3 belonging to
chapter 2 should be numbered as 2.3.4. The caption for the sub-division should immediately
follow the number assigned to it.
Every chapter beginning with the first chapter should be serially numbered using Arabic
numerals. Appendices included should also be numbered in an identical manner starting with
Appendix 1.
5.2.3 Numbering of Tables and Figures

Tables and Figures appearing anywhere in the project report should bear appropriate
numbers. The rule for assigning such numbers is illustrated through an example. Thus if as
figure in Chapter 3, happens to be the fourth then assign 3.4 to that figure. Identical rules apply
for tables except that the word Figures is replaced by the word Table. If figures (or tables)
appear in appendices, then figure 3 in Appendix 2 will be designated as Figure A 2.3. If a table
to be continued into the next page this may be done, but no line should be drawn underneath
an unfinished table. The top line of the table continued into the next page should, for example
read Table 2.1 (continued) placed centrally and underlined.
5.2.4 Numbering of Equations

Equations appearing in each Chapter or Appendix should be numbered serially, the numbering
commencing a fresh for each Chapter or Appendix. Thus for example, an equation appearing
in Chapter 2, if it happens to be the eighth equation in that Chapter should be numbered (2.8)
thus:
C(s) G 1 G2
----- = ----------------- (2.8)
R(s) 1 + G 1 G2 H
While referring to this equation in the body of the project report it should be referred to as
Equation (2.8).
5.3: Binding Specifications
Project report submitted for Diploma in Computing and Information Technology should be
bound using flexible cover of thick white art paper. The spine for the bound volume should be
of black Calico of 20mm width. The cover should be printed in black letters and the text for
printing should be identical to what has been prescribed for the title page.
022 2410645
CHAPTER 6. THE PROJECT PRESENTATION

In addition to writing a project report, you will be asked to give some form of public presentation
of your work (the format for these presentations differs from year to year and details will be
given nearer the time). This is primary intended for the two markers of your project (particularly
the second marker) but other students and interested parties may attend.
The aim of the presentation is to give a board introductory overview of your system or project
and to demonstrate its effectiveness. For instance, if you have written software you could
demonstrate your software during the presentation.
Note that your presentation last just 20 minutes.
Remember that spoken communication and demonstration is initially much more powerful than
the written word. You have to convey that your work is interesting, novel and generally
persuade the listener that it is worth their while reading your written report.
The presentation is an integral part of the assessment. If you fail to show up for the
presentation at the appointed time you will be marked as absent for the assessment and forfeit
the marks associated with it.
Note
That it is an excellent idea to prepare your presentation in advance, and practice it with a friend
or colleague.
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Appendix 1: Proposal Approval Forms
REMARKS ON PROJECT PROPOSAL
Attempt No: 01
Name Fiona Ilankunda Ingabire

Roll Number (Reg No. 12900/T.14)
Course Diploma – Computing & Information Technology
Title of the Project Analyzing the customers’ perception on services
given by Mobile phone Banking: The case of M-
Pesa in Tanzania
Name of Organization & Place where the Vodacom Tanzania, Dar es Salaam
Project is to be conducted
Date of Submission 27th April 2014
Award Institute & Country University of Dar es Salaam Computing Centre,
Tanzania
REMARKS OF THE EVALUATOR
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
APPROVAL RECORD
Approved/Not Approved (Signature of approving authority)
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PROJECT APPROVAL PROFORMA
Name Fiona Ilankunda Ingabire

Roll Number Reg No. 12900/T.14)
Course Diploma – Computing & Information Technology
Session Morning
Study Center UCC, City Centre
Address for Correspondence Fiona.ilankunda@gmail.com, +255 754 48 55 17
Name & Designation of the Project Guide Mr. Peter Petit Mwita, Instructor ,University of Dar es
Salaam Computing Centre, petit.mwita@uccmail.co.tz
Title of the Project Analyzing the customers’ perception on services
given by Mobile Phone Banking: The case of M-PESA
in Tanzania
Name of Organization & Place where the Vodacom Tanzania, Dar Es Salaam
Project is to be conducted
Place Dar es Salaam
Date of Submission 27th April 2014
Signature
…………………………………………………………………………………
APPROVAL RECORD
(To be completed at UCC)
Approved/Not Approved (Signature of approving authority)
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Appendix 2: Final Year Project Cover Page
ANALYZING THE CUSTOMERS’ PERCEPTION ON SERVICES GIVEN BY MOBILE
PHONE BANKING
The Case of M-Pesa in Dar es Salaam
By
Fiona Ilankunda Nzamuye
(Reg No. 12900/T.14)
A Project Report submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the Diploma in
Computing & Information Technology of University of Dar es Salaam Computing
Centre
University of Dar es Salaam Computing Centre
October 2015
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CERTIFICATION
The undersigned certify that they have read and hereby recommend for acceptance by the
University of Dar es Salaam Computing Centre a Final Year Report entitled: Analyzing the
Customers’ Perception on Services given by Mobile Phone Banking: The Case of M-
Pesa in Dar es Salaam, in fulfillment of the requirements for the Diploma in Computing &
Information Technology of University of Dar es Salaam Computing Centre
……………………………………….
Dr. Muchunguzi Edephonce Mwalosi
(Supervisor)
Date: ------------------------------
------------------------------------------
Nathaniel Singh Olaf
(Supervisor)
Date: ------------------------------
022 2410645

CTT06210 Final Year Project

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UNIVERSITY OF DAR ES SALAAM

Diploma in Computing and Information Technology

CTT 06210: FINAL YEAR PROJECT

© 2017 University of Dar es Salaam Computing

Tel: +255 (022) 2410645

All trademarks acknowledged. E&OE.

CHAPTER 1: INTRODUCTION TO FINAL YEAR PROJECT

Many IT students confuse the project report with documentation. Documentation

1. A record of work done,

1.2: Who is going to read your report?

1.3 Considerations for Final Year Project

Your project area should be in either of the following:

CHAPTER 2. PROCESS OF PROJECT SELECTION AND

2.1 Choosing a topic of research

2.1.1: Choosing an area of interest

2.1.2: Extensive research

2.1.3: Selecting a topic of Study

It should make sense to the reader and should be self explanatory.

2.2. Writing a Project Proposal

CHAPTER 3. PROJECT REPORTS

3.2 : Different Project Reports

3.2.1: Interim Reports

This report is formally assessed and should be submitted to the supervisor

3.2.2: Draft Report

3.2.3 : Final Report

3.3: General Structure of the Final Report

d) Table of contents (with page numbers)

 Summarize and synthesize: Remember to summarize and synthesize your sources

The following is an outline of the Methodology section:

 Review of Data Collection Methods:

j) Presentation and Analysis of Data

 Appendices should be numbered using Arabic numerals, e.g. Appendix 1, Appendix 2,

3.4 : Number of Copies to be submitted

3.5: Size of the Project Report

CHAPTER 4. FONT AND LAYOUT OF THE REPORT

4.1 The bound report

4.1.1 Draft report

4.1.2 The writing

4.1.3 Pitfalls and Some Tips

CHAPTER 5. TYPING, NUMBERING AND BINDING INSTRUCTIONS

5.1.1 Report Chapters

Chapter heading : CHAPTER 1

5.2 Numbering Instructions

5.2.1 Page Numbering

5.2.2 Numbering of Chapters, Divisions and Sub-Divisions

5.2.3 Numbering of Tables and Figures

5.2.4 Numbering of Equations

5.3: Binding Specifications

CHAPTER 6. THE PROJECT PRESENTATION

Note that your presentation last just 20 minutes.

Appendix 1: Proposal Approval Forms

REMARKS ON PROJECT PROPOSAL

Name Fiona Ilankunda Ingabire

REMARKS OF THE EVALUATOR

Approved/Not Approved (Signature of approving authority)

PROJECT APPROVAL PROFORMA

Name Fiona Ilankunda Ingabire

Approved/Not Approved (Signature of approving authority)

Appendix 2: Final Year Project Cover Page

ANALYZING THE CUSTOMERS’ PERCEPTION ON SERVICES GIVEN BY MOBILE

The Case of M-Pesa in Dar es Salaam

Fiona Ilankunda Nzamuye

(Reg No. 12900/T.14)

University of Dar es Salaam Computing Centre