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Bachelor Thesis Arts, Media and Society

Vak
2019-2020

Admission requirements

The following courses need to be passed:

  • All first year courses of the BA Arts, Media and Society

  • Both BA2-seminars

  • Framing AMS Case Studies

Description

The final paper for Arts, Media and Society will be written within small thematic seminars. Within these seminars students will carry out their own research. There will be three seminars, each around an overarching theme. Students will choose a research topic that connects to one of those themes. The starting point for each individual research is an object of choice (artwork, building, design, game, performance). By means of a concise research question the student will relate the object to the theme. The final paper will be written in the form of an article for a fictive thematic journal issue.

The thematic groups will meet regularly. Students will receive individual feedback from the group supervisor but will also help each other to sharpen their research questions and stay on track with the writing process through peer feedback.

Timeline
During the course Framing AMS Case Studies in which each supervisor presents his/her theme, students have 5 working days to hand in their preferred theme as well as propose their object of research. Students will be divided per group based on their preferred theme as well as their subject: in order to ensure an equal balance for each group, students might be redistributed to other theme groups.

Before Christmas
The final division of students per theme group will be announced.
Half January
Students will be asked to hand in a sketch of the research question.

As soon as the second semester starts, meetings will take place on a biweekly basis with the supervisor. The lecture room will each week be available each for students who want to use the opportunity to discuss their work together.
First meeting: discussion of research topics

Second meeting: searching for literature, writing a Status Quaestionis

Third meeting: research question, writing an abstract

Fourth meeting: writing: structure and style of an academic article

Fifth meeting: correct citation: the Chicago Manual of Style

Sixth meeting (1 May): presenting the first full draft

The first full draft will be discussed with the supervisor in an individual meeting, after which students still have time to make adjustments for the final version.

Course objectives

  • Students learn to carry out independent research that fits within the scope of an academic article supervised by a university .

  • Students learn to apply the appropriate theoretical frameworks and research methods relevant for their research.

  • Students learn how to formulate a clear and feasible art historical research question.

  • Students learn how to search for the appropriate primary sources and secondary to answer this research question.

  • Students learn to formulate a conclusion based on their own research.

  • Students learn to describe the process and outcomes of their research in an academic article of 6000 words (+/_ 5%).

Timetable

The timetable is available on the Arts Media and Society website

Mode of instruction

  • Seminar, individual supervision

  • Thesis BA

Course Load

Total course load 10 EC x 28 hours = 280

  • Lectures: 6 x 2 hours = 12 hours

  • Individual meetings and correspondence with supervisor: 1 hour

  • Research, writing and revising of the final paper: 267 hours

Assessment method

Final paper (100%)

All papers should be submitted using the Turnitin on Blackboard. Students make appointments with their supervisors about handing in the work on paper as well.

During the seminar ‘knock out criteria’ (minimum requirements for each paper to be passable) will be announced.

Resit

Students that hand in their definitive version on the exam date will in the case of an insufficient grade have one opportunity to rewrite the paper and re-submit it on the resit date. Students that do not hand in a paper on the exam date will only have one option to hand in their final paper and that is the resit date.
If the paper handed in on the resit date is (still) of insufficient level, students need to start with a new topic in a new tutorial the next academic year.

Inspection and feedback

Students are entitled to one individual feedback session with their supervisor after their first attempt on the exam date. Students that did not hand in a thesis on the exam date, are not entitled to this feedback. There is no further feedback/supervision in between the exam and resit date.

Blackboard

Blackboard will be used for:

  • information about the theme groups

  • information about the writing process and deadlines

Reading list

The reading list depends on the chosen theme and topic of the student and should be determined with the supervisor for each topic.

Registration

Enrolment through uSis is mandatory. Preregistration, using the form distributed in during the Framing AMS Case Studies is mandatory in order to ensure students can be appointed to the right theme group.

General information about uSis is available on the website

Registration Studeren à la carte and Contractonderwijs

Not applicable

Contact

Contact information Dr. L.M.F. Bertens Coordinator of Studies BA Arts, Media and Society

Remarks

Under certain conditions, students are allowed to write their thesis in the first semester instead of in the second semester of their final year. For more information, please contact the Coordinator of Studies.