Overview
In this unit, you will work and learn autonomously, demonstrate professional capabilities expected of a graduating industry practitioner, formulate and adhere to a research plan, communicate progress, and prepare interim reports and presentations. You will define and scope a research topic by applying detailed technical knowledge and industry based methodologies, assessing safety and risk factors, preparing a feasible plan and drafting an implementation schedule. The unit will give you an opportunity to develop your personal and interpersonal skills and use effectively different modes of communication. Note: Prior to the commencement of term and before an enrolment can be accepted, you must confirm with the unit coordinator that you have identified a suitable research interest and an academic supervisor is available. Students who have successfully completed BLCN14036 or BLSV14012 should not enrol in this unit.
Details
Pre-requisites or Co-requisites
Pre-requisite Condition: Successfully completed 126 units of credits in the Building Surveying (Honours) or Construction Management (Honours) course.
Important note: Students enrolled in a subsequent unit who failed their pre-requisite unit, should drop the subsequent unit before the census date or within 10 working days of Fail grade notification. Students who do not drop the unit in this timeframe cannot later drop the unit without academic and financial liability. See details in the Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework).
Offerings For Term 1 - 2026
Attendance Requirements
All on-campus students are expected to attend scheduled classes - in some units, these classes are identified as a mandatory (pass/fail) component and attendance is compulsory. International students, on a student visa, must maintain a full time study load and meet both attendance and academic progress requirements in each study period (satisfactory attendance for International students is defined as maintaining at least an 80% attendance record).
Recommended Student Time Commitment
Each 12-credit Undergraduate unit at CQUniversity requires an overall time commitment of an average of 25 hours of study per week, making a total of 300 hours for the unit.
Class Timetable
Assessment Overview
Assessment Grading
This is a graded unit: your overall grade will be calculated from the marks or grades for each assessment task, based on the relative weightings shown in the table above. You must obtain an overall mark for the unit of at least 50%, or an overall grade of 'pass' in order to pass the unit. If any 'pass/fail' tasks are shown in the table above they must also be completed successfully ('pass' grade). You must also meet any minimum mark requirements specified for a particular assessment task, as detailed in the 'assessment task' section (note that in some instances, the minimum mark for a task may be greater than 50%). Consult the University's Grades and Results Policy for more details of interim results and final grades.
All University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
You may wish to view these policies:
- Grades and Results Policy
- Assessment Policy and Procedure (Higher Education Coursework)
- Review of Grade Procedure
- Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - Domestic Students
- Monitoring Academic Progress (MAP) Policy and Procedure - International Students
- Student Refund and Credit Balance Policy and Procedure
- Student Feedback - Compliments and Complaints Policy and Procedure
- Information and Communications Technology Acceptable Use Policy and Procedure
This list is not an exhaustive list of all University policies. The full list of University policies are available on the CQUniversity Policy site.
Feedback, Recommendations and Responses
Every unit is reviewed for enhancement each year. At the most recent review, the following staff and student feedback items were identified and recommendations were made.
Feedback from Student Unit Teaching Evaluation Unit Comments Report- T1- 2025
The freedom to choose a research topic is greatly useful when individual students have a specific interest they want to research.
The freedom to choose a research topic on their own will continue, along with the prescribed research topics given by the lecturer. This will enable some students to research their own research problem, and other students who cannot come up with their own problem can select a topic from the prescribed list.
Feedback from Student Unit Teaching Evaluation Unit Comments Report- T1- 2025
it is very intense to fully take in all of the course content and complete the assessments in such a short period of time.
This unit serves as the foundation for BLAR14020 - Built Environment Research, so students are prepared to undertake an actual research project through the unit's (BLAR14019) content and assessments. There are three assessments in the unit's assessment structure, of which assessment one is a one-page research proposal. So, assessment one has proportionally reduced the workload. However, the teaching team will review the content and assessment structure in future deliveries and consider further ways to reduce the workload.
- Formulate and operate a research plan.
- Apply detailed technical knowledge and industry based methodologies, assess safety and risk factors, and prepare a feasible plan and implementation schedule.
- Discover and use information sources and technology to collect, analyse and interpret data, notes and references.
- Practice personal and interpersonal skills.
- Use effectively different modes of communication.
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Learning Outcomes
| Assessment Tasks | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Presentation and Written Assessment - 30% | |||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||
| 3 - Presentation and Written Assessment - 40% | |||||
Alignment of Graduate Attributes to Learning Outcomes
| Graduate Attributes | Learning Outcomes | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | |
| 1 - Communication | |||||
| 2 - Problem Solving | |||||
| 3 - Critical Thinking | |||||
| 4 - Information Literacy | |||||
| 5 - Team Work | |||||
| 6 - Information Technology Competence | |||||
| 7 - Cross Cultural Competence | |||||
| 8 - Ethical practice | |||||
| 9 - Social Innovation | |||||
| 10 - First Nations Knowledges | |||||
| 11 - Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Cultures | |||||
Alignment of Assessment Tasks to Graduate Attributes
| Assessment Tasks | Graduate Attributes | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | |
| 1 - Presentation and Written Assessment - 30% | |||||||||||
| 2 - Written Assessment - 30% | |||||||||||
| 3 - Presentation and Written Assessment - 40% | |||||||||||
Textbooks
Research Methods for Construction
- Edition: 5th (2021)
- Authors: Fellows, Richard F. & Liu, Anita M. M.
- Wiley Blackwell
- Chichester Chichester , Sussex , UK
- ISBN: 9781119814733
IT Resources
- CQUniversity Student Email
- Internet
- Unit Website (Moodle)
- Endnote (available through Library - see Moodle link)
- Microphone and camera for use with Zoom
- MS Teams
All submissions for this unit must use the referencing style: Harvard (author-date)
For further information, see the Assessment Tasks.
p.kalutara@cqu.edu.au
Week 1
Begin Date: 09 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Topic 1. Introduction to Academic Research
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 2
Begin Date: 16 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Topic 2. Literature review and annotated bibliography
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 3
Begin Date: 23 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Topic 3: Research process- from ideas to results
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 4
Begin Date: 30 Mar 2026Module/Topic
Topic 4: Research design and strategies
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 5
Begin Date: 06 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Topic 4: Research design and strategies (Continued)
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 6
Begin Date: 13 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Topic 5: Data collection methods
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Vacation Week
Begin Date: 20 Apr 2026Module/Topic
No classes.
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 7
Begin Date: 27 Apr 2026Module/Topic
Topic 5: Data collection methods (Continued)
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 8
Begin Date: 04 May 2026Module/Topic
Topic 6. Research ethics and sampling strategies
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 9
Begin Date: 11 May 2026Module/Topic
Topic 7. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 10
Begin Date: 18 May 2026Module/Topic
Topic 7. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis (Continued)
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 11
Begin Date: 25 May 2026Module/Topic
Topic 8. Writing a Research Report for Publication
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Week 12
Begin Date: 01 Jun 2026Module/Topic
Topic 8. Writing a Research Report for Publication (Continued)
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Exam Week
Begin Date: 08 Jun 2026Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
Vacation/Exam Week
Begin Date: 15 Jun 2026Module/Topic
Chapter
Events and Submissions/Topic
1 Presentation and Written Assessment
You are to develop a proposal for a research topic in the field of built environment. This topic could be interdisciplinary. The specific tasks include selection of a title of your topic, background of the topic, identification of the objectives and significance of the topic, possible research methodology and discussion on the expected benefits of the research. This assessment item relates to the unit learning outcomes 1, 2, 4 and 5.
AI ASSESSMENT SCALE - AI PLANNING - You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.
Week 6 Monday (13 Apr 2026) 11:45 pm AEST
Submit via the assessment portal on the Moodle home page
Week 7 Monday (27 Apr 2026)
Review of the assessment submission will be returned within two weeks of the submission due date
The assessment will address the following attributes:
- Clarity of expression and comprehensive coverage of issues;
- Demonstration of an understanding of key aspects of research;
- Use of quality supporting documentation;
- Use of original thought and content;
- Overall presentation and ability to communicate using correct spelling, grammar and punctuation and the use of appropriate diagrams and other graphics; and
- Demonstration and application of core knowledge.
Your assessment should be produced in electronic format.
Before or on the nominated due date, upload your work following the on-screen instructions.
Your submission will be processed through the similarity detection software, Turnitin. You may amend your work based on the detection report.
You must ensure that the submission is your own and that any cited work has been correctly referenced as per the CQU requirements.
- Formulate and operate a research plan.
- Apply detailed technical knowledge and industry based methodologies, assess safety and risk factors, and prepare a feasible plan and implementation schedule.
- Discover and use information sources and technology to collect, analyse and interpret data, notes and references.
- Practice personal and interpersonal skills.
- Use effectively different modes of communication.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Team Work
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
2 Written Assessment
You are to develop a Literature Review for your research proposed in assignment 1 previously. This literature review includes but is not limited to: literature search method, the current status of research, and identification of the variables that are required to achieve the research objectives. This will demand extensive searching of peer-reviewed Journals/papers and articles by use of Scopus database as a minimum. You may use EndNote to assist your referencing, and this is available to all students via the Library.
AI ASSESSMENT SCALE - AI PLANNING - You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.
Week 9 Monday (11 May 2026) 11:45 pm AEST
Submit via the assessment portal on the Moodle home page
Week 11 Monday (25 May 2026)
Review of the assessment submission will be returned within two weeks of the submission due date
The assessment will address the following attributes:
- Clarity of expression and comprehensive coverage of issues;
- Demonstration of an understanding of key areas of research;
- Use of quality supporting documentation;
- Use of original thought and content;
- Overall presentation and ability to communicate using correct spelling, grammar and punctuation and the use of appropriate diagrams and other graphics; and
- Demonstration and application of core knowledge.
Your assessment should be produced in electronic format.
Before or on the nominated due date, upload your work following the on-screen instructions.
Your submission will be processed through the similarity detection software, Turnitin. You may amend your work based on the detection report.
You must ensure that the submission is your own and that any cited work has been correctly referenced as per the CQU requirements.
- Formulate and operate a research plan.
- Apply detailed technical knowledge and industry based methodologies, assess safety and risk factors, and prepare a feasible plan and implementation schedule.
- Discover and use information sources and technology to collect, analyse and interpret data, notes and references.
- Practice personal and interpersonal skills.
- Use effectively different modes of communication.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
3 Presentation and Written Assessment
This assessment involves writing a research report based on the research plan outline that you developed in the previous assessment (A1). This assessment relates to the unit learning outcomes 1, 2, 3, and 5 and the task will address Topics 1-8.
AI ASSESSMENT SCALE - AI PLANNING - You may use Al for planning, idea development, and research. Your final submission should show how you have developed and refined these ideas.
Week 12 Wednesday (3 June 2026) 11:45 pm AEST
Submit via the assessment portal on the Moodle home page
Vacation/Exam Week Wednesday (17 June 2026)
Within two weeks of submission but before the certification of grades
The assessment will address the following attributes:
- Clarity of expression and comprehensive coverage of issues;
- Demonstration of an understanding of key aspects of research;
- Use of quality supporting documentation;
- Use of original thought and content;
- Overall presentation and ability to communicate using correct spelling, grammar and punctuation and the use of appropriate diagrams and other graphics; and
- Demonstration and application of core knowledge.
Your assessment should be produced in electronic format.
Before or on the nominated due date, upload your work following the on-screen instructions.
Your submission will be processed through the similarity detection software, Turnitin. You may amend your work based on the detection report.
You must ensure that the submission is your own and that any cited work has been correctly referenced as per the CQU requirements.
- Formulate and operate a research plan.
- Apply detailed technical knowledge and industry based methodologies, assess safety and risk factors, and prepare a feasible plan and implementation schedule.
- Discover and use information sources and technology to collect, analyse and interpret data, notes and references.
- Practice personal and interpersonal skills.
- Use effectively different modes of communication.
- Communication
- Problem Solving
- Critical Thinking
- Information Literacy
- Information Technology Competence
- Cross Cultural Competence
- Ethical practice
As a CQUniversity student you are expected to act honestly in all aspects of your academic work.
Any assessable work undertaken or submitted for review or assessment must be your own work. Assessable work is any type of work you do to meet the assessment requirements in the unit, including draft work submitted for review and feedback and final work to be assessed.
When you use the ideas, words or data of others in your assessment, you must thoroughly and clearly acknowledge the source of this information by using the correct referencing style for your unit. Using others’ work without proper acknowledgement may be considered a form of intellectual dishonesty.
Participating honestly, respectfully, responsibly, and fairly in your university study ensures the CQUniversity qualification you earn will be valued as a true indication of your individual academic achievement and will continue to receive the respect and recognition it deserves.
As a student, you are responsible for reading and following CQUniversity’s policies, including the Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure. This policy sets out CQUniversity’s expectations of you to act with integrity, examples of academic integrity breaches to avoid, the processes used to address alleged breaches of academic integrity, and potential penalties.
What is a breach of academic integrity?
A breach of academic integrity includes but is not limited to plagiarism, self-plagiarism, collusion, cheating, contract cheating, and academic misconduct. The Student Academic Integrity Policy and Procedure defines what these terms mean and gives examples.
Why is academic integrity important?
A breach of academic integrity may result in one or more penalties, including suspension or even expulsion from the University. It can also have negative implications for student visas and future enrolment at CQUniversity or elsewhere. Students who engage in contract cheating also risk being blackmailed by contract cheating services.
Where can I get assistance?
For academic advice and guidance, the Academic Learning Centre (ALC) can support you in becoming confident in completing assessments with integrity and of high standard.
What can you do to act with integrity?
