Materials Science and Metallurgy
Summaries of the topics covered by each cohort are found via the relevant links in the left navigation (and on Moodle). Other more general Department information is found on the Intranet.
Students will be expected to attend lectures and weekly practical sessions (NST Part IA: Materials Science). General Part IA NST information is found on the NST website.
Students will be expected to attend lectures and weekly practical sessions (NST Part IB: Materials Science). General Part IB NST information is found on the NST website.
In addition to attending lectures, students will be expected to attend a small number of practical sessions, complete a Literature review assignment, complete a group Techniques project (based on an introduction to modern methods for the structural and chemical characterisation of materials), participate in the Business & Industry course, and undertake a transferable skills options (languages/computing). Finally, there is a Vacation Report which must be submitted at the beginning of Part II or Part III (NST Part II: Materials Science).
In addition to attending lectures, students will undertake an Individual Research Project. Also, if a Vacation Report was not submitted at the start of Part II then it must be submitted at the start of Part III (NST Part III: Materials Science).
Past papers for the Natural Sciences Tripos exams (set by the Department of Materials Science) from the past 5 academic years are available on the Department Intranet and also the relevant Moodle course sites. Department policies relating to examinations and assessed work are also available from the same sources.
Key policies are listed here.
I. It is the student’s responsibility to submit the correct version of their work before the relevant deadline.
If submission is via Moodle, then the assignment details will indicate if you can upload revisions upto the deadline. If there is a problem with uploading the files to Moodle, then you must email the files to the Teaching Office before the deadline.
II. Both the University and the Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy publish statements on plagiarism.
III. Changes to the Form and Conduct of Examinations for each subject are published in the University Reporter. Full information on the Form and Conduct of Examinations are available directly from individual departments / faculties.
IV. IA and IB data are retained by Colleges and the Education Section of the Academic Division of the University.
The data retained for each Part II or Part III subject of the Tripos are the responsibility of the Department which teaches that subject.
The policy for these parts of the Tripos is determined by the Natural Sciences Tripos Committee, and can be consulted at http://www.natsci.tripos.cam.ac.uk/exams/edrp.
The examinations in each Part II or Part III subject of the Tripos are run exclusively from the Department responsible for the teaching of that subject. The Committee of Management for the Natural Sciences Tripos have agreed that, for Parts II and III of the Tripos, all responsibility is devolved to the relevant Department and that the Department should fully address all concerns relating to those examinations and the format, retention and storing of data.
Students should contact the relevant Department for more information, who should draw up a Departmental Examinations Data Retention Policy for the parts of the Natural Sciences Tripos that they contribute to.
Routinely available data for Part II and Part III Materials Science:
| Data | Retention period | Accessible through: |
| Mark from the Final Mark Book | Indefinitely | College DoS or Tutor, CamSIS |
| Classes awarded | Indefinitely | CamSIS |
| Total marks and marks for each element of the examination | Indefinitely | CamSIS |
| Rank-in-class (where recorded) | Indefinitely | CamSIS |
| Minutes of Examiners’ meetings | Indefinitely | Online on the DMSM intranet or Director of Undergraduate Teaching |
The marks contained in the final mark book include a mark for each paper taken, an overall mark for practical or project work, a total mark and the overall class. Further information may be routinely released (as part of the markbook) and will include ALL information that the Examiners have determined as being meaningful or helpful as indicators of examination performance.
Data available on request for Part II and Part III Materials Science (where available):
If you require more granular information, such as marks for individual questions, further information may be available for at least one year after publication on results. Please contact the the Director of Undergraduate Teaching.
At the end of the retention period, data are either destroyed or anonymised and used for statistical analysis.
Other information that is not included in the mark book is considered to be relatively meaningless as an indication of examination performance, given the moderation processes that are used in determining a class by Examiners.
In line with University policy, examiners and assessors are expressly instructed not to write comments on examination scripts, and they are not returned to students.
Please request data in writing from:
The Director of Undergraduate Teaching
Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy
27 Charles Babbage Road
Cambridge
CB3 0FS
Email: ug-teaching@msm.cam.ac.uk
The following data are retained in the Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy.
Routinely available data:
| Data | Retention period | Accessible through: |
| Final Grade Book | Indefinitely | Course Director |
The marks contained in the final grade book include a mark for each paper taken, an overall mark for project work, a total mark and the overall grade descriptors. Further information may be routinely released (as part of the grade book) and will include ALL information that the Examiners have determined as being meaningful or helpful as indicators of examination performance.
At the end of the retention period, data are either destroyed or anonymised and used for statistical analysis.
Other information, including tickmarks made on scripts and further detailed breakdown of marks are considered to be relatively meaningless as an indication of examination performance.
Please request data in writing from:
Course Director
MPhil Micro- and Nanotechnology Enterprise
Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy
27 Charles Babbage Road
Cambridge
CB3 0FS
The following data are retained in the Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy.
Routinely available data:
| Data | Retention period | Accessible through: |
| Final Grade Book | Indefinitely | Course Directors |
The marks contained in the final grade book include a mark for each paper taken, an overall mark for project work, a total mark and the overall grade descriptors. Further information may be routinely released (as part of the grade book) and will include ALL information that the Examiners have determined as being meaningful or helpful as indicators of examination performance.
At the end of the retention period, data are either destroyed or anonymised and used for statistical analysis.
Other information, including tickmarks made on scripts and further detailed breakdown of marks are considered to be relatively meaningless as an indication of examination performance.
Please request data in writing from:
Course Directors
MPhil Advanced Materials for the Energy Transition
Department of Materials Science & Metallurgy
27 Charles Babbage Road
Cambridge
CB3 0FS
Release of data under this policy does not constitute a subject access request under the General Data Protection Regulation.
Formal requests for access to all other personal data should be directed to the University’s Information Compliance Office (https://www.information-compliance.admin.cam.ac.uk/data-protection/subject-access-request).