To receive credit for CMSC 498 you must write a 20 to 25 page report (double spaced) that shows you have achieved your learning objectives. The report must be submitted to the CSEE Undergraduate Program Director at ugrad@cs.umbc.edu on or before the final day of classes of the semester in which you are enrolled in CMSC498. ALSO: One month before the last day of classes, you must submit a one-page outline of your report for approval. No late assignments will be accepted. A late outline or paper will result in a failing grade for the class. Your report should not deviate substantially from the outline.
You may wish to look at these examples of a well structured and well written outline and final paper from a former CMSC 498 student. Please note that every student will have a different structure and format; these examples are not meant to serve as a template or recommendation for the specific organization or content of your report.
The report must be written by you. You should describe the tasks you have been assigned, the tools you have to work with, the decisions that you or others have made and whether in the end you thought the decisions were good. It is recommended that you keep a journal so you have material to include in your report. Other topics you may include in your report include: a general description of skills you have acquired, relevance of courses you have taken at UMBC, comments about the managerial structure at your workplace and skills that would have been useful if you had them at the beginning of the internship.
Note: if you do not complete a reasonable paper, you will receive an “F” for CMSC 498.
Your report should not include:
- Company profiles
- Product descriptions
- Screen shots
- Source code
- Sections of technical manuals or other documentation
As a general rule, if you include in your report sentences, paragraphs, diagrams or figures that are not written or produced by you, then you must clearly indicate that the material is a quotation from another source and cite that source. Failure to do so constitutes plagiarism and will earn an F for your report and for the course. Note that CMSC 498 is not repeatable, so you will not be able to retake the course to make up the grade.
Your report should be written in grammatically correct English. The quality of the English in your report should be acceptable in a term paper for a liberal arts course. If you have trouble with written English, you may contact the Learning Resources Center for help.
Your report should not include lengthy quotations — these quotations will not count toward the pages you have to write. You may include figures in your report, but again these will not count toward the pages you have to write. Include figures only when it is necessary and helpful in your exposition.
If you do not think that you can produce a 20- to 25-page report at the end of the internship, then you should not register for CMSC 498. You do not have to register for CMSC 498 in order to participate in the internship program through the Career Center. You should only register for CMSC 498 if you are interested in receiving academic credit for your internship and you are willing to put in substantial effort to write the report.