Conducting successful studies in Materials Science and Engineering with consideration to a multiplicity of student cohorts and delivery modes

Second year students undertaking their studies in Materials Science and Engineering within the Bachelor of Engineering at CQUniversity, Australia, are a diverse group requiring a variety of approaches to enable them to undertake their studies. The university, whilst having a strong regional focussed approach, conducts its Engineering degree offerings over three campuses, at Mackay, Rockhampton and Gladstone, in Queensland, Australia and by flexible mode throughout Australia and internationally. Lecturers are located on each of the campuses and it is their role to oversee the cohort of on-campus students on that particular campus. On-campus, full-time students are traditionally secondary students who have continued with their studies into tertiary education or mature learners who have been in the workforce for some time and return to study to re-skill, up-skill or update their knowledge and skill base. While students who study by a part-time, external (ie. flexible or distance) study mode are practitioners who have a trade qualification or are university graduates wishing to re-skill, up-skill or update their knowledge and skill base and continue working throughout their study. All students have access to course materials, video-streams of lectures, student-student and student-lecturer communication channels via a dedicated course Moodle™ website.