Research projects and scientific communication

Duration

5h Th, 30h Internship

Number of credits

Lecturer

Caroline Collette, Jean-Christophe Monbaliu, Damien Sluysmans

Coordinator

Caroline Collette

Language(s) of instruction

French language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the second semester

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

This course provides a first introduction to research in chemistry. It allows students to experience the entire scientific process through a short laboratory internship, complemented by a literature review and the prior writing of a one-page summary, the maintenance of a laboratory notebook, and the preparation of a scientific poster.

The internship (4 days in a research laboratory of the Department of Chemistry) is organized in two sessions of two consecutive days, under the supervision of an experienced researcher. Upstream, students select a topic from a list representative of the Department's research activities and prepare their internship through a literature review and the writing of a one-page abstract. Downstream, students present their results during a poster session open to all members of the Department.

A detailed organization is presented in a vademecum available online (see below). The main steps are summarized below:

• Preparation: literature review, writing of a one-page abstract, discussions on research ethics, scientific communication, and laboratory notebook practices.
• Internship: 4 days of research in the laboratory (2 × 2 days, in March). Keeping a laboratory notebook is mandatory.
• Communication: preparation of a poster (in English, with printing centralized by the instructors) and presentation during the poster session (typically mid-April).

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

The course emphasizes the essential links between the use of bibliographic data, experimental work, and the communication of results. These three facets are ultimately the focus of the evaluation.

At the end of this course, the student will be able to:

• understand the steps of the scientific process within an experimental context;
• search, select, and critically use bibliographic references;
• work within a research laboratory while respecting safety rules, ethics, and scientific rigor;
• communicate results through a scientific poster and a written abstract.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

• Basic notions of bibliographic research and use of references (information literacy).
• Basic scientific English.
• Fundamental scientific knowledge acquired during the first and second years of the Bachelor in Chemistry.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Introductory sessions

Two introductory sessions are scheduled. The first session, held during the first semester, is dedicated to the presentation and use of bibliographic referencing tools and to best practices in managing the state of the art. The second session, organized at the beginning of the second semester before the internships, provides detailed information on the various activities associated with the internships, the schedule, the evaluation methods, and the deliverables.

One page abstract

Once the internship topic has been assigned and first contact with the supervisor established, the student begins a bibliographic search on the subject in order to write a one-page abstract. This abstract must be written in English, following a predefined template provided as supplementary material (see below). It includes the following sections:

• Section 1: General context - written by the student based on their understanding of the topic and the state of the art. This section should present the broader scientific and academic background, explain the importance of the field, and highlight its contribution to advancing knowledge or addressing societal challenges.
• Section 1': AI-generated context - similar to Section 1, but written with the help of an artificial intelligence tool (e.g. ChatGPT), using a contextualized prompt.
• Section 2: Specific research topic - description of the research topic addressed during the internship, highlighting the key scientific questions, objectives, and methodologies explored in the laboratory.
• Section 3: Plan of actions - a detailed day-by-day breakdown of the tasks and activities planned during the 4-day internship (e.g. lab introduction, safety training, observation of experiments, data collection, analysis of results, preparation of the presentation).
• Section 4: References - a selection of relevant references supporting Sections 1 and 2, formatted according to the best practices introduced in the information literacy session.

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Face-to-face course


Further information:

Face-to-face course

All course activities require mandatory on-site attendance.

Note:

Students are expected to consult their supervisor in order to adapt to the schedule and attendance requirements, which may be specific to the host laboratory

Course materials and recommended or required readings

Platform(s) used for course materials:
- MyULiège

Other site(s) used for course materials
- DOX (https://dox.uliege.be/index.php/s/EbjjlwtVAH4PlE8)


Further information:

Platform(s) used for course materials:

• MyULiège

• DOX (https://dox.uliege.be/index.php/s/EbjjlwtVAH4PlE8)

Other : See below


Further information:

The final grade is a weighted average of the following components:

• Abstract (1/6): evaluation by the instructors.
• Internship (2/6): evaluation by the supervisor (lab notebook, attitude, commitment).
• Poster (3/6): collegial evaluation by the members of the Department (clarity, communication, scientific accuracy, responses to questions).

Work placement(s)

4 days of research internship in one of the laboratories of the Department of Chemistry.

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

The exact dates are specified in the annual version of the vademecum.

• Research projects are communicated at the end of January.
• Students have two weeks to choose their project, with final choices due by mid-February.
• The poster session is organized early April at the Galerie des Arts (B7b).
• Safety instructions are provided by each host laboratory.

Contacts

Dr. Caroline Collette  

c.collette@uliege.be

Prof. Jean-Christophe Monbaliu  

jc.monbaliu@uliege.be

Dr. Damien Sluysmans

damien.sluysmans@uliege.be

Association of one or more MOOCs

Items online