Admission requirements
Students must have completed at least one Core Course and one thematic elective. Students must also have participated in the MA Thesis Seminar.
Description
The thesis poses a scholarly question within the framework of the broader academic debates of the field. In consultation with the thesis supervisor, the student writes a research proposal which fits within either the track Art History or Museum Studies, in which the topic for the thesis project, the current state of research on the topic (literature review), the central research question(s) and the proposed method(s) are further specified. The work will be completed step by step throughout the semester. The student will partake in three collective meetings with peers (Thesis Seminar) as well as three individual contact meetings with the supervisor. The individual meetings concern feedback on one or more concept chapters, and the first complete draft. Based on the supervisor’s feedback on this draft the student will independently finish the final version, which will be read and graded by the thesis supervisor and a second reader from the department.
It is possible to do (part of) the research for the thesis within an institute (museum, gallery, etc.), based on a practice-related research problem. Students interested in this should first consult their supervisor and subsequently take the initiative towards a museum or art institute. The student can start with this practice-based variant only after approval of the Board of Examiners. For more information, see the MA Thesis Procedure.
Three introductory meetings are a mandatory part of the MAS Thesis process. During these meetings, students will be introduced to various aspects of writing a Master Thesis, such as the standards of evaluation for the thesis, the process of designing a research project and the preparation a thesis outline. We will discuss the formulation of the main research question as well as finding relevant sources and literature. Special focus will be paid to plagiarism.
Timetable
The timetables are available through My Timetable.
Mode of instruction
Thesis seminar
MA Thesis
Assessment method
The MA Thesis will only be evaluated if the student has completed the MA Thesis Seminar at the beginning of the semester. Presence at this seminar is mandatory.
Assessment
The thesis for the MA Arts and Culture programme contains a maximum of 16.000 words (+/- 5%) excluding notes, bibliography and appendices.
The thesis is supervised by a lecturer from the Department of Art History who possesses expertise in the relevant field. The thesis is evaluated by two lecturers (the supervisor who is appointed as first reader and another lecturer who is appointed as second reader) involved in the program. When a student is not able to finish the thesis in Semester II (September cohort; Semester I if the student started in Semester II in February) due to personal circumstances, they need to file a request to the Board of Examiners in order to extend the period of supervision. In all other cases, like not handing in a thesis without valid reasons or insufficient grades for the definitive version and the resit, the student must apply for a new topic/ supervisor through a registration form in the following semester.
Weighing
100%
Resit
In the case of an insufficient grade for the definitive version of the thesis, there is one resit option. During the resit the student will have no supervision. If the student also has an insufficient grade for the resit, the student needs to deliver a new proposal at the Board of Examiners and will be assigned a new supervisor in the next semester.
Inspection and feedback
How and when an exam review will take place will be disclosed together with the publication of the exam results at the latest. If a student requests a review within 30 days after publication of the exam results, an exam review will have to be organized.
Reading list
In consultation with Thesis Supervisor.
Registration
Enrolment through MyStudyMap is mandatory.
General information about course and exam enrolment is available on the website
Registration À la carte education, Contract teaching and Exchange
Information for those interested in taking this course in context of À la carte education (without taking examinations), eg. about costs, registration and conditions.
Information for those interested in taking this course in context of Contract teaching (with taking examinations), eg. about costs, registration and conditions.
For the registration of exchange students contact Humanities International Office.
Contact
The student will have contact with their thesis supervisor. The MA Thesis Coordinator of the department and the Board of Examiners will jointly assign a supervisor. The student will be informed about this decision via their official university email address (umail) in the semester prior to the one in which the student will write the thesis.
Thesis Coordinator (see also Thesis Seminar): Dr. M. Keblusek