摘要：The majority of UK undergraduates studying one of the Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences (GEES) disciplines undertake a dissertation as part of their studies. Recognising the importance of the dissertation, the GEES Subject Centre funded a small project in 2004/05 to examine the student dissertation experience. Students and former students at the Universities of Gloucestershire and Queen’s Belfast were asked to give their views on undertaking a dissertation. Their responses to a questionnaire have contributed to the development of an interactive website: DISCUS, the principal aim and output of the project. The project was extended to include a review of 32 departmental dissertation handbooks. Analysis of questionnaire returns and several in depth interviews with students, as well as the preliminary analysis of handbooks, has informed the design of DISCUS and led to the identification of certain recommendations related to a department’s approach to the dissertation venture.
