It is a good idea to have a short rest after your last exam - up to a week is sensible, longer will take too much time away from your project. Note that you do not need to wait for your exam results before starting! Start as soon as you can; your supervisor may prefer to wait until after the very busy period associated with marking and examiners' meetings before beginning regular meetings with you, but they should certainly be willing to give you some introductory work to do until your regular supervision meetings begin.
From (at the latest) mid-June onward through to submitting your dissertation in September you should see your supervisor at least once a week.You should expect that your supervisor will take a holiday of one or two weeks at some point during your project. Ask about this early on, and make sure that you have work to do while they are away which you feel confident you can complete in their absence. If your supervisor will be away for more than two weeks during the summer, you should ask them for suitable alternative supervision. Once again, be sure to organise this early, and be sure that you are happy with the arrangements (since they are very difficult to re-arrange at short notice!).
However do not take an extended holiday yourself during the summer - the time for your project is very limited, and you will find that this was a big mistake. Save your holiday for September after handing-in.
It is strongly advised that you keep notes of your progress, detailing the decisions you make as the project advances. You will find this invaluable when it comes time to write up.
A typical project schedule is as follows:
Background reading, analysis and design, coding small test programs and simple prototypes.
The bulk of the implementation (serious coding, not just small tests and prototypes).
Week 1Project presentations.
Four weeks before the submission deadline
Start writing your dissertation full-time. At this point you must stop any implementation work and concentrate on writing, since you will be marked more on your ability to present and explain your design and implementation decisions rather than just on the code. Look at the guidelines for project structure and make sure that you keep to the format requirements in relation to page limit, font size, etc.
Late August
This would be an appropriate time to give your supervisor a demonstration of the final working system (if your project is implementation-based).
Three days before the submission deadlineMake this your target for printing and submitting your dissertation. At this time there is huge pressure on printing resources both within the department and at ISD, and because of this last-minute problems can arise. Even if you are printing at home or elsewhere outside the College, don't count on having a trouble-free time - what would you do if your printer at home broke down the night before the deadline? It's not worth taking this kind of chance - aim to be finished 3 or 4 days before the deadline instead.
Note that printer failure is not an acceptable excuse for missing the deadline - you are expected to plan around such potential problems.
Similarly, if you are using your own PC at home, you are advised that it is your own responsibility to make emergency plans for any breakdowns, to make regular backups (preferable by copying your files onto your Unix filestore here) and not to use pirated software.
The date of the project deadline will be stated in the Survival Guide. It is normally 12 noon on the Monday 14 days before the start of the new academic year. Projects should be handed in to the office in G12It is unusual for this date to change; if a change is necessary, this will be announced by email. You are required to check your College email regularly (at least once every two days, more regularly as deadlines and exams approach); not reading your email is not an acceptable excuse for missing a deadline.