Admission requirements
Designing Archaeological Research (extra explanation will be added to the remarks as soon as possible).
Description
The Bachelor’s thesis is an extended academic essay in which you present your own interpretation, evaluation, or argument on a clearly defined, problem-oriented topic in archaeology or heritage studies. It results in a coherent academic argument of approximately 10,000 words (±20 pages), excluding figures, tables, references, and appendices.
The thesis may take the form of a critical literature review or be based on the analysis of archaeological material or anthropological data related to heritage research. Regardless of the approach, the thesis must include a clearly formulated research question and a well-defined methodology, as these are fundamental to academic research.
Course objectives
After completing the BA thesis, the student is able to:
design and plan a small-scale research project and report on it effectively;
situate their research within a broader theoretical framework and demonstrate its academic relevance;
write a clear, well-structured academic argument under supervision, following the Faculty’s Guidelines (APA7 style)
identify, critically assess, and integrate relevant academic literature into their research.
Course Set-up
An on-campus meeting will be scheduled, which will also be streamed live and recorded to accommodate students who are abroad or enrolled in minor programmes at that time.
This session will cover:
An introduction to thesis writing
An explanation of the lottery with ranked preferences
An explanation of the other thesis deadlines
All other meetings will take place individually with your thesis supervisor.
The proposal is usually 2–3 pages long, but requires substantial effort and typically results from a brainstorming session and multiple rounds of feedback with the supervisor. Once approved, the final version—explicitly approved by the supervisor—must be uploaded in Brightspace. More details can be found in the proposal form (Brightspace).
Supervision conditions
Each supervisor can accept a limited number of students. To make sure that the thesis distribution is equal and fair, we apply a lottery with ranked preferences. BA students submit their top 5 of supervisors and are provisionally assigned a supervisor through a lottery with ranked preferences (deadlines below). This preliminary allocation becomes definitive upon approval of the thesis proposal.
The procedure will be explained in more detail during the meeting at the start of the semester.
Two semesters
Once a supervisor has been assigned, the supervision period is available for maximum two semesters. Student progress is monitored at 4 key stages, based on the submission of the following documents:
1. The proposal is a go/no-go moment. Failure to submit a proposal, submitting an incomplete one, or receiving a rejection due to major concerns may result in the loss of a supervisor.
2. First chapter
3. Full draft
4. Final version
Progress monitoring and Procedure for missed deadlines
Each thesis phase includes fixed sub-deadlines (see below). The steps for missed deadlines are as follows:
1. Step 1: If the student misses a deadline without any notice, the supervisor may reach out.
2. Step 2: If the student does not respond, the supervisor may inform the study advisors.
3. Step 3: If there is still no response, thesis supervision may be suspended. The student will need to contact the course coordinator and find a new supervisor.
All official communication will be sent via the university email account (umail). Please check it regularly.
Timetable
Course schedule details can be found in MyTimetable.
Log in with your ULCN account, and add this course using the 'Add timetable' button.
Deadlines
Deadlines for September starters
Thesis meeting: 2 weeks before the deadline of the matching (=submit your preferred supervisors) see MyStudymap
Matching 15 October
Submit your preferred supervisor
Supervisor assigned 1 November
Plagiarism quiz: 3 months after the start of the semester
Proposal: 1 February
First chapter 1 March
Full draft: 1 May
Final version: 15 June
Deadlines for February starters
Thesis meeting 2 weeks before the deadline of the matching (=submit your preferred supervisors) see MyStudymap
Matching 17 March
Supervisor assigned 1 April
Plagiarism quiz: 3 months after the start of the semester (see Brightspace)
Proposal: 1 June
First chapter: 1 July
Full draft: 1 November
Final version: First business Monday of January
During the summer and winter recesses, supervisors are unavailable for feedback or thesis evaluation.
Mode of instruction
Individual supervision by your supervisor, feedback on drafts.
Requesting an extension
Students may request a deadline extension for submitting the final version of the thesis. The extension deadlines are:
23 August (for the summer submission deadline)
23 January (for the winter submission deadline)
Students may also request an extension for an entire semester, in which case they must meet the deadlines of the following semester. Extension requests must be submitted using the Thesis Extension Form, available in Brightspace. Guidelines and conditions are outlined in the document Requesting Thesis Extension.
Please note that receiving an extension may affect your graduation timeline and eligibility for the diploma ceremony. These implications are described in the extension request form.
If a student fails to submit the thesis even after the approved extension, they will need to start the process over with a new research topic and a new supervisor.
Mode of Instruction
Assessment method
The proposal is assessed as Pass/Fail;
Thesis grade 100%;
Assessment forms and criteria are available here: Leiden University Thesis Assessment Forms – Archaeology;
Further details on the assessment procedures can be found in the Rules and Regulations of the Board of Examiners, specifically in Chapters 4.11 and 4.12.
Reading List
Registration
Students are required to register themselves for all components of a course, including lectures, tutorials, practicals, exams, and resits through MyStudymap. This applies to both compulsory elements and elective credits. If you are not enrolled, you may not participate.
General information about registration can be found on the Course and exam enrolment page.
Contact
For more information about this course, please contact Dr. J.A. Mol
Remarks
The Bachelor’s thesis can be written in either English or in Dutch;
More information can be found in the Brightspace module and on the webpage Thesis and paper writing;
The course coordinator is available throughout the process for general questions or in case of supervision issues.