Admission requirements
To start writing the thesis, the student should have obtained 60 EC from the programme.
To sit the final examination, the student should have obtained 90 EC from the programme.
Description
The thesis project, in which the final examination report of the master is written, consists of two parts
o Preparation of the thesis project (4EC)
o Carry out the thesis project (30EC)
The thesis project may be an academic project on a methodological topic, or an applied project where a non standard data analysis is carried out, or a combination of both (start with a more applied internship, related topic for academic thesis).
It may be carried out at the university or outside of university (industry, governmental organisations, etc.). A project outside of university can be carried out under a local supervisor, but an examiner of the Statistics and Data Science staff (i.e., a person who holds a PhD and is connected to one of the four participating statistical groups of the Master) is involved as supervisor on a regular basis. This person is responsible for the quality of the project and the thesis and will assess the grade (together with the independent second reader).
Preparation of the thesis project (4 EC)
The student follows mandatory lectures and working groups on academic integrity and responsible research, and writes the proposal for the thesis project.
Carrying out the thesis project (30 EC)
The student will work on the thesis project for a duration of 21 full time weeks (when taking into account 40 hours of study per week, and assuming that there are no other obligations in the programme).
In the thesis project the student:
o participates in activities in the working environment
o participates in thesis project working groups
o carries out the research of the thesis proposal and writes a thesis.
o presents the work of the thesis and defends the thesis.
Preparation of the thesis project (4 EC)
The student follows mandatory lectures and working groups on academic integrity and responsible research, and writes the proposal for the thesis project.
Carrying out the thesis project (30 EC)
The student will work on the thesis project for a duration of the remaining ±22 full time weeks (when taking into account 40 hours of study per week (30 EC), and assuming that there are no other obligations in the programme).
In the thesis project the student:
participates in activities in the working environment
participates in thesis project working groups
writes a mid-way report
carries out the research of the thesis proposal and writes a thesis.
presents the work of the thesis and defends the thesis.
Transitional arrangements
The thesis project (34 EC) replaces the former separate internship (10 EC) and thesis (24 EC). Students who started before September 2021 are still allowed to plan their thesis and internship as separate projects, provided they did not interrupt their registration.
Course Objectives
The thesis project has two general aims
To gain experience as a working statistician/data scientist in a possible future working environment
To carry out a research project and produce a manuscript of students’ original work.
The specific learning aims are listed below:
Aims regarding gaining experience as a working statistician/data scientist in a possible future working environment
The student is able to:
acquire new knowledge and skills relevant for the project.
work in such a way that results are reproducible.
judge their own work, is open for criticism and is able to incorporate feedback.
work with real data problems.
is able to interact and work together with peers, colleagues and superiors.
provide feedback to others.
participate pro-actively in the day-to-day interactions within the working environment.
Aims regarding carrying out a research project and produce a manuscript of students’ original work.
obtain a deeper knowledge of statistical/data science methods in a specific chosen area of application.
apply knowledge, skills and understanding acquired during the research project in a critical, independent, systematic approach to model and evaluate complex phenomena.
plan and execute tasks with appropriate methods within a given time frame.
present clearly on the research, verbally as well as in writing.
is able to communicate the results to non-statisticians/data scientists.
Timetable
You will find the timetables for all courses and degree programmes of Leiden University in the tool MyTimetable (login). Any teaching activities that you have sucessfully registered for in MyStudyMap will automatically be displayed in MyTimeTable. Any timetables that you add manually, will be saved and automatically displayed the next time you sign in.
MyTimetable allows you to integrate your timetable with your calendar apps such as Outlook, Google Calendar, Apple Calendar and other calendar apps on your smartphone. Any timetable changes will be automatically synced with your calendar. If you wish, you can also receive an email notification of the change. You can turn notifications on in ‘Settings’ (after login).
For more information, watch the video or go the the 'help-page' in MyTimetable. Please note: Joint Degree students Leiden/Delft have to merge their two different timetables into one. This video explains how to do this.
Mode of instruction
At the start of the semester in which students carry out the thesis project, they enroll in a thesis working group. The thesis working groups consist of approximately 10 students that share written work and discuss the quality of the work and their work experiences. The meeting will be supervised by a staff member. The groups will meet monthly.
Assessment method
The student should have fulfilled the following requirements (for Pass/ Fail):
Participate in activities in the working environment
Participate in at least four thesis working groups
For the final grade, the student's accomplishments are weighted as follows:
50% of the grade is based on the written Master Thesis (including the appendices)
30% of the grade is based on the general working attitude during the thesis project
10% of the grade is based on the final presentation of the Master Thesis.
10% of the grade is based on the defence of the Master Thesis
The defence of the Master Thesis is to be understood as the Final Examination according the Course and Examination Regulations.
Reading list
Brightspace E-learning Skills Platform: https://brightspace.universiteitleiden.nl/d2l/home/27150
Registration
thesis@stat.leidenuniv.nl. More contact information will be provided on Brightspace.
Contact
The general e-mail address is thesis[at]stat.leidenuniv.nl