What is EPQ?

EPQ (Extended Project Qualification) is an extended research project that counts as half an A-level qualification where participants can conduct research into a particular topic of interest.

In this post I will go through my EPQ journey starting from November 2023 to March 2024 and the key takeaways from the process.

PHASE I: preparation

The preparation phase involves broadly choosing a research topic and conducting initial research around the topic to broaden understanding. My EPQ topic is on “How has the enhancement of AI impacted both the users and developers of the gaming industry?” Reflecting back, I think I would have chosen a different topic. I am never really into video games in all honesty, although I play competitive games such as valorant, CSGO and occasionally open-world games like Genshin (lets keep that quiet), I never really thought of myself as a game enthusiast, so the rationale of me choosing this topic is a bit strange. My logic was that perhaps it is a good opportunity to support me in my year 13 CS project, but looking back, I would’ve chosen something more interesting, perhaps something to do with psychology or philosophy, or even the mathematics behind gambling sounds interesting. But during that time I really thought of doing CS, and perhaps I chose this topic to show my non-existent interest in CS？Who knows… Advice no1: Picking a topic of interest exceeds picking a topic that correlates to future degree directions.

We used a platform – projectQ to store all of our research data.

We also used a gantt chart to better allocate time (although I never found it useful)

I also used a mindmap to structure my EPQ

After watching a few youtube videos and documentaries I felt like I was ready to start writing.

PHASE II: writing

Writing seemed tedious, I am never really into essay writing particularly evaluative writing. The nature of the EPQ suits topics based on humanity subjects (politics, history, english, culture studies) where you can evaluate the multiple sides of an argument. Sciency topics particularly CS and maths are based mostly on facts, which is not suited for an EPQ. So you are restricted to discussing topics relating to computing ethics which is kinda boring to be honest. That’s just my opinion. Advice no’2: rethink if you’re doing a science/tech based EPQ.

The initial sections of my EPQ (first 5000 words ish) was tough since I focused too much on AI algorithms and models which my supervisor advised me to scrap. But in hindsight, this made me realised that perhaps I am more interested in mathematics rather than CS particularly programming, which was one of the reasons shifting my future plans from a CS to maths based degree.

I also included a section on AlphaGo which I found to be quite interesting researching, however, my supervisor felt that it didn’t contribute to answering my question on the impact of AI. Hence, I’ve learnt that I enjoy much more writing without limitations, as seen by my blog and maths writings. But I am sick of essay writing.

The last sections on the impact on the developer of the gaming industry was quite enjoyable, since I had the opportunity to use various generative AI tools such as Midjourney, GPT4, github copilot etc.

My EPQ docs can be found here: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1FWUNo4S1c_-uXLKnmfrjTerJ4k6CHEuU?usp=drive_link

PHASE III: other work

We are also required to keep a production log, which is a documents your thought process throughout the process. I think it is an idea that looks good on paper, but pointless in reality. But anyways.

Due to the nature of the EPQ, we were also required to write a literature review, analysing all the sources we used. This was something new to me, never really had the need to do something like this before.

To summarise, the book written by Julian Togelius laid the cornerstone of my EPQ since he simplified many complex algorithms for laymen to understand.

Wired and medium were also important since they focused less on the technical elements but on the impact of AI on the wider gaming industry.

PHASE IV: presentation

This was the best part of the EPQ, it was really fun, a ten minute time for us to perform and demonstrate our knowledge in any way we desired. I spent two whole days grinding in the library designing my powerpoint to make it visual. Unfortunately, all that time just for 10 minutes, but heyho.

My ppt can be found in the drive above.

Conclusion

EPQ is tough, if I had the opportunity to restart I probably would choose a different topic, something less neeky and something more interesting.

But overall, it is rewarding, laying the foundation of extended essay writing skills, time management skills and planning skills which are essential skills for my further research in university. It had also been fun at times, especially making and rehearsing for the presentation. Many thanks to my friend for bunking classes to help me prepare for my presentation 🙂