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Unit of study_
SOIL3888: Protecting the Soil Resource
2025 unit information
The University of Sydney's new curriculum aims to provide increased experiential, collaborative and interdisciplinary learning and project-based learning is a core component of this. The SOIL3888 interdisciplinary project unit provides an opportunity for you to be part of an interdisciplinary student team that investigates a real world problem involving soil in regional or peri-urban NSW. Each student will select to work on a project related to agriculture or to the environment. Both projects will involve 2-5 days of fieldwork for soil observation and sampling. Students will work collaboratively in a series of practical sessions (before and after the fieldwork) to digitally map soil attributes, and to critically analyse all collected and mapped data. Each project group will then compile a 'consultant's report' for the landholder(s), detailing the issue or problem, the diagnosis and the recommended management strategies to optimize crop production/ecosystem services, while protecting the soil resource. For all students enrolled in SOIL3888, the fieldwork and practical sessions will be scaffolded with a series of lectures covering the high capability agricultural soils of eastern Australia and the various forms of soil degradation that must be managed for to protect our valuable soil resources. The project experience in this unit will give you the opportunity to apply your soil science skills and disciplinary knowledge (Graduate Quality 1) to an authentic problem and develop the other Graduate Qualities (2-6) that will be valuable for your future career.
Unit details and rules
Managing faculty or University school:
Science
| Study level | Undergraduate |
|---|---|
| Academic unit | Life and Environmental Sciences Academic Operations |
| Credit points | 6 |
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Prerequisites:
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96 credit points including SOIL2005 or GEOS2X16 |
|---|---|
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Corequisites:
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None |
| Prohibitions:
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SOIL2004 |
| Assumed knowledge:
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None |
At the completion of this unit, you should be able to:
- LO1. Apply and develop discipline knowledge in real-life situations
- LO2. Integrate discipline knowledge with the knowledge of other disciplines
- LO3. Define and delimit authentic problems and respond effectively and creatively to solve them
- LO4. Outline the project problem(s), investigation strategy and findings and effectively communicate this information using multiple modes to diverse audiences
- LO5. Collect and analyze information and engage digital literacy skills throughout the project
- LO6. Employ productive, collaborative and open work practices across diverse groups and across cultural boundaries
- LO7. Demonstrate interdisciplinary effectiveness
- LO8. Show integrity, confidence, personal resilience and the capacity to manage challenges
- LO9. Demonstrate professional and social responsibility and contribute positively to society
Unit availability
This section lists the session, attendance modes and locations the unit is available in. There is a unit outline for each of the unit availabilities, which gives you information about the unit including assessment details and a schedule of weekly activities.
The outline is published 2 weeks before the first day of teaching. You can look at previous outlines for a guide to the details of a unit.
| Session | MoA ? | Location | Outline ? |
|---|---|---|---|
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Semester 2 2025
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Normal day | Camperdown / Darlington, Sydney |
Outline unavailable
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Modes of attendance (MoA)
This refers to the Mode of attendance (MoA) for the unit as it appears when you’re selecting your units in Sydney Student. Find more information about modes of attendance on our website.
