UNIVERSITY OF WITWATERSRAND SCHOOL OF MINING ENGINEERING POSTGRADUATE HANDBOOK FOR STUDIES Revised December 2014
1) INTRODUCTION The purpose of this Guideline is to give postgraduate students attending postgraduate courses guidance on the procedures to be adopted. Individual courses vary in content and style of delivery and that there may be valid reasons to deviate from these Guidelines. These guidelines for the School of Mining Engineering (Wits Mining) are compiled following the Senate Standing Orders on the Assessment of Students, which are the official rules that govern our actions and take precedence over anything in these guidelines. The standing orders are available on the intranet. The introduction to the Standing Orders on the Assessment of Students can be found at: http://www.intranet.wits.ac.za/nr/rdonlyres/11c7ca51-c224-46f2-9489- 0759134E13D4/0/AssessmentPolicySenate032011.doc This Wits Mining handbook must be read along with the Rules and Syllabuses Handbook for the Faculty of Engineering and the Built Environment (FEBE) the Faculty Standing Orders approved by Faculty Board. http://www.wits.ac.za/academic/generalinfo/3916/rulesand syllabuses.html Wits Mining admission starts with application on-line (the preferred way) via http://web.wits.ac.za/prospective/postgraduate/ or alternatively through the Faculty Office (Postgrad). The School offers three postgraduate qualifications, namely: 1. Master of Science in Engineering -- MSc(Eng.) by research 2. Master of Science in Engineering -- MSc(Eng.) by advanced coursework and a project 3. PhD involves submission of a research thesis. Applications are screened by the Postgraduate Coordinator, who is responsible for higher degree matters within the School. In order to apply for the 50/50 or Research, a student must have passed with an aggregate of 60% of more in their last year of study. It is in the School s control to limit the postgraduate student body with a target of 250 postgraduate students, 225 for MSc (both options) and 25 PhD candidates. Traditional take-up rates of candidates that were offered seats range from 60 to 80%. Upon offering of seats the total number available for the next intake could be exceeded by a maximum of 30%. Seats are considered twice a year (first weeks of October and April) and proper interviews are required for differently qualified applicants as part of the process. New applications are generally grouped as follows: 2
Strong candidates, who receive letters of acceptance regardless of seats available Candidates with good industrial experience, but not meeting the minimum requirement of an honours degree and there are seats available, who are notified that they will be accepted upon successfully completing the two-week Introduction to Mining Engineering Topics course Candidates with poor history of academic performance get a notification that there is no seat for them, with a suggestion of what they should do to improve their chances of admission, e.g. obtaining additional qualifications and experience. Applicants who are offered a seat and do not register within one year, forfeit the seat and must apply again. Areas of Specialisation (AOS) available in Mining Engineering are not indicated on the degree certificate, but the specialization will be indicated on the academic record. A letter stating the Area of Specialisation can be obtained from the School. a. Mineral Economics MINN7014 Mineral Economics MINN7015 Mineral Policy and Investment and at least one of the following: MINN7016 Beneficiation Economics or MINN7038 Minerals Marketing b. Rock Engineering MINN7005 Mechanical Properties of Rocks and Rock Masses MINN7010 Advanced Mechanics of Solids 3
c. Mineral Resource Management MINN7092 Mine Financial Valuation MINN7050 Mineral Resource Management MINN7052 Compliance and Reporting Rules in the Minerals Industry d. Mining Geology (in partnership with School of Geoscience) *Enquire at School for availability MINN7021 Geological Ore Body Modelling MINN7025 Mining and The Environment MINN7019 Design of the Layout of Underground Mine Excavations OR MINN7020 Surface Mining Geological Ore Body Modelling e. Mineral Resource Evaluation (in partnership with the Geostatistical Association of South Africa GASA) Core courses: MINN7006 Geostatistical Methods in Mineral Evaluation MINN7007 Statistical Valuation of Ore Reserves MINN7043 Practical Implementation of Geostatistical Ore Evaluation Techniques f. Coal Engineering and Management (in partnership with Chemical Engineering and the Fossil Fuel Foundation) Any combination of the following courses can be taken towards these qualifications. These courses are all presented through the School of Mining Engineering MINN7023 Coal its quality and utilisation MINN7047 Coal Extraction and Exploitation MINN7048 Coal and the Environment OR MINN7028 Economic Geology of South African Coal 4
g. Mine Planning and Optimisation MINN7004 Mine Financial Valuation MINN7089 Mine Planning Principles MINN7093 Applied Operations in Research in Mineral Resource Management h. Occupational Health and Safety MINN 7079 Safety Health and Environment Systems MINN 7049 Risk Management in Mining MINN 7077 Principles of Occupational Health and Hygiene for Non Specialists i. Environment and Sustainable Development MINN 7025 Mining and the Environment MINN 7076 Sustainable Development in Mining and Industry MINN 7079 Safety Health and Environment Systems j. Mine Ventilation Engineering (CMMS) The following courses can be taken towards these qualifications. These courses are presented through the Schools of Mining Engineering and Mechanical, Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering. Core courses: MINN7000 Principles of Ventilation MINN7001 Environmental Engineering Topics MECN7xxx Mine Energy Modelling and Management (new course) 5
k. Mechanised Mining Systems (CMMS) The following courses can be taken towards these qualifications. These courses are presented through the Schools of Mining Engineering and Mechanical, Industrial and Aeronautical Engineering Core courses: MINN7009 Trackless Mechanised Mining MINN7080 Earth Moving Equipment, Technology and Management MINN7083 Rock Cutting Technology MECN7060 Operations Management for Mining Systems l. Operations Management in Mining (in partnership with School of Mechanical Engineering and WBS) *Fulltime Programme. m. Valuation of Mineral Assets (in partnership with School of Accounting) MINN7085 Valuation of Mineral Assets MINN7086 Valuation and Accounting Standards MINN7087 Approaches to Valuation in Extractive Industries MINN7088 Advanced Mineral Asset Valuation n. Mine Surveying *Enquire at School for availability 2) ADMISSION There are two student intakes per year, one in January and the other in July. In order to qualify for admission to the Wits Mining postgraduate programme, applicants should hold the degree of BSc(Eng.) or another four year degree (with appropriate major subjects) from this University or an equivalent qualification from another institution* and have obtained an aggregate of at least 60% in the final year of that programme. 6
For admission to a PhD, an MSc with a first-time pass in all subjects and research. A minimum of 60% in all components will be a definite advantage, especially of seats are limited. Applicants must supply an academic transcript from the tertiary education institution where they were registered previously. Postgraduate admission to Wits Mining is governed by the DOE Policy, which allows HE institutions to set specific admission requirements. Admission is affected by the candidate s previous qualifications, how they performed in the final year of study and availability of seats. Students must have a realistic chance of completing in the minimum time requirement. The following applicants are considered when seats are allocated: Graduates from Wits and other SA universities (Honors level) Differently Qualified Applicants (DQA) with South African qualifications. Recognition of previous learning (RPL) gives differently qualified students access to some of the postgraduate AOS when seats are available. The same credits may not be used twice (i.e. no double dipping). It means the taking into account of previous learning and experience of the applicant - either for purposes of admission or the granting of exemption for subjects. All differently qualified students are required to successfully complete the two-week Introduction to Mining Engineering Topics, in addition to meeting the following guidelines before being invited for an interview:: o BTech. with an average of 60% in the final year o NHD+DMR Cert. of Competency o ND+DMR Cert. of Competency.+ 5 years appointment at senior level Wits Mining MRM/Mine Planning Certificate, with an average of 60% and passing all subjects the first time with significant experience Qualifications from Non South African Institutions that have been evaluated on the NQF Framework to be the equivalent of qualifications issued at SA universities There is allowance for admission through RPL or other means. It is important that any credits earned through RPL give access to the program and cannot be used as counting towards the credits for the postgraduate qualification applied for. Each application is considered on merit and exemption is restricted to a maximum of 50% of the total qualification. 7
3) PROJECT REPORTS Students who apply for the MSc Eng. by course work and research (EMC013 50/50) are required to submit a proposal for the Project Report. The format of the proposal is available from the Postgraduate Coordinator. Special attention must be placed on the Literature Review and the Milestones sections of the proposal, against which the progress of the research will be monitored. Once the proposal is submitted, the Postgraduate Coordinator will direct you to an appropriate supervisor if you have not already been assigned one. The student is responsible for contacting the supervisor who will arrange a meeting to discuss the proposal for the Project Report. Both the supervisor and the student are required to sign the documents Statement of Principles for Supervision, one for the supervisor and one for the student, that are attached to the proposal with the Research Proposal Form (frontispiece). Once the proposal has been finalised it is submitted to the Faculty Office through the Head of School who first approves the proposal. Meetings between the supervisor and the student must be arranged on a regular basis so that progress and development of the Project Report research programme can be monitored. Such meetings should be arranged to include co-supervisors where they are involved in the research. The time allowed for completion of the Project Report is one year full-time and two years part-time. Students who wish to graduate in a particular year must submit progress reports and completed research in sufficient time so that the end of year deadlines in regard to submission of the Project Report for examination can be met. The time for External Examiners to mark and submit results for the Project Report is three months. All students who are about to complete their Project reports are required to submit a paper to an acceptable Journal on the research they have completed with their supervisors as the co-author. No thesis will in future be signed off by the Head of School unless there is evidence of a paper ready for submission to the SAIMM Journal. 8