This team project module develops the essential professional engineering skill of working with others. There are two residential schools; you’ll form a small project team at the first school. Projects will tackle contemporary issues requiring a broad range of engineering knowledge and skills, exchange of ideas, creativity, design inputs and analysis within a cooperative environment. Your team will work together, meeting regularly online and using a shared virtual workspace under guidance from your tutor to produce a ‘solution’. Your team will present its work in progress to the rest of the cohort and tutor assessors at the second school, and in the remaining weeks, you’ll submit a written report.
Register
Warning
To see a fee on this page, you should use the StudentHome 'alias' system.
| Start |
End |
Fee
|
Register |
| 23 Jan 2026 |
Oct 2026 |
-
| Registration now closed
|
This module is expected to start for the last time in September 2030.
What you will study
This module provides an opportunity for you to explore an engineering problem in depth, working as part of a small team. Your team will choose its problem from a number of options, each with a particular engineering focus but all involving a broad range of engineering knowledge and skills – from design through structural and control engineering to sustainability. A central aspect will be the contribution of your engineering practice within the team and the need apply skills such as analytical design and engineering analysis.
You will attend two compulsory residential weekends that run over three days, from Friday to Sunday. At the first one, which takes place at the very start of the module, you will learn about functioning effectively as a team and get to know each other by confronting a variety of practical and intellectual challenges. You will join with fellow students to form a team of four or five. Your team will select their project from those on offer and refine the project by developing an appropriate aim and SMART objectives.
After the first weekend and working at a distance from the other team members, you will individually and jointly pursue agreed lines of enquiry on your engineering project. Your progress through the project is recorded in your team wiki, in online records of team meetings and in team and individual reports, submitted as tutor-marked assignments.
All the teams will report back at the second weekend some 20 weeks later. This will give you a chance to engage in discussions with other students and staff members before developing a plan for your final project report, which is your end-of-module assessment (EMA). This is submitted several weeks later.
This is not a content-focused module. Instead, you and your team will be responsible for gathering together the information you need to pursue your project. You will be supplied with a project brief and with background material about group working and project management. You will have access to a full range of information resources through the internet and online or conventional libraries. You will keep in touch with your tutor and work collaboratively with your fellow team members through frequent, regular online meetings and your team wiki.
Vocational relevance
This module is the culmination of work towards your #Master of Engineering [M04]# or Postgraduate Diploma in Engineering (E22) – and completes the academic base under UK-SPEC for professional recognition as a Chartered Engineer.
Entry
You must be studying towards one of the qualifications listed below and have completed the required modules.
You may register on T885 while still studying the last required 30-credit module. However, we’ll cancel your registration if you have not passed it before T885 starts.
Once you’ve reserved a place, we’ll check you meet these entry requirements. We’ll contact you if we need to discuss anything. If you don’t meet these entry requirements, we must cancel your reservation/registration.
If you’re unclear whether you meet the entry requirements, talk to an adviser.
You cannot study this module on its own or as part of any other qualification.
Qualifications
T885 is a compulsory module in our:
If you have a disability
Written transcripts of any audio components and Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) versions of printed material are available. Some Adobe PDF components may not be available or fully accessible using a screen reader. Alternative formats of the study materials may be available in the future.
To find out more about what kind of support and adjustments might be available, contact us or visit our disability support pages.
Study materials
What's included
You’ll have access to a module website, which includes:
- a week-by-week study planner
- course-specific module materials
- assignment details and submission section
- access to online team rooms.
Computing requirements
- Primary device – A desktop or laptop computer. It’s possible to access some materials on a mobile phone, tablet or Chromebook; however, they will not be suitable as your primary device.
- Peripheral device – Headphones/earphones with a built-in microphone for online tutorials.
- Our OU Study app operates on supported versions of Android and iOS.
- Operating systems – Windows 11 or latest supported macOS. Microsoft will no longer support Windows 10 as of 14 October 2025.
- Internet access – Broadband or mobile connection.
- Browser – Google Chrome and Microsoft Edge are recommended. Mozilla Firefox and Safari may be suitable.
Teaching and assessment
Support from your tutor
Throughout your module studies, you’ll get help and support from your assigned module tutor. They’ll help you by:
- Marking your assignments (TMAs) and providing detailed feedback for you to improve.
- Guiding you to additional learning resources.
- Providing individual guidance, whether that’s for general study skills or specific module content.
- Facilitating online discussions between your fellow students, in the dedicated module and tutor group forums.
Assessment
The assessment details can be found in the facts box.
Two of the assignments will be joint submissions from your team, and two are personal accounts of your achievements and your contribution to the work of your team. The end-of-module assessment also consists of a group and individual project reports together with an assessed presentation and technical summary document from the second school.
Residential weekends
This module has two residential weekends.
The module starts with the first ‘team forming’ weekend; attendance is compulsory. If you don’t attend, you’ll be unable to continue with the module (you would need to withdraw and register on the next start).
A crucial part of the module assessment takes place at the second weekend – your team’s presentation of its progress so far. So, it’s important for you and your team that you attend. You’ll not automatically fail the module if, for good reason, you cannot be there in person. In any case, you must contribute your share of effort to your team’s presentation over the weekend.
The residential weekend dates for the September 2025 start are as follows:
- School 1: Friday 12–Sunday 14 September.
- School 2: Friday 6–Sunday 8 February.
The residential weekend dates for the January 2026 start are as follows:
- School 1: Friday 23–Sunday 25 January.
- School 2: Friday 12–Sunday 14 June.
Students also studied
Students who studied this module also studied at some time:
Future availability
Team engineering (T885) starts twice a year – in January and September.
This page describes the module that will start in September 2025 and January 2026.
We expect it to start for the last time in September 2030.
How to register
To register a place on this module return to the top of the page and use the Click to register button.
Regulations
As a student of The Open University, you should be aware of the content of the academic regulations which are available on our
Student Policies and Regulations website.