Students of the Dutch bachelor’s programme, see Bachelorproject Psychologie
Admission requirements
All 60 ec of first year psychology credit
Multivariate Data Analysis
Study planning
The Bachelor Project is offered in the second semester of the academic year. In exceptional cases, for instance if you can graduate at the end of Semester I or will study abroad during the second semester, it is possible to participate in a Bachelor Project in the first semester of the academic year. However, please keep in mind you will need your Study Adviser’s permission to do so. To participate in the Bachelor Project in Semester 1 of academic year 2025-2026, you must request permission from March 15 until May 15 2025 by completing this online request form.
Description
The Bachelor’s thesis is an independently completed scientific paper representing a study load of 15 ECTS. The thesis consists of a report on a study (or partial study) conducted in the context of the Bachelor’s project and involving data collection on the basis of interviews, questionnaires, laboratory experiments and other methods. The project may involve either fundamental or applied research, and can make use of both quantitative and qualitative methods. Examples of experimental research include surveys, simulation studies, action research, evaluation research, (participatory) observation studies and reaction times research.
A bachelor’s thesis is expected to have the level of quality and design of a scientific journal article or research report. The thesis should attest to the student’s ability to systematically process a research question and critically reflect on this question on the basis of theoretical insights. The student should also be able to make a sound selection from the various research and data processing methods available within the social sciences. In his/her thesis, the student should demonstrate a broad command of the psychological knowledge and skills acquired throughout the bachelor’s programme. Although the research conducted in the context of the Bachelor’s projects is usually designed and carried out in groups, the thesis is written individually.
Information about the Honours Research Bachelor Project is included in a separate section below.
Course objectives
The Bachelor’s project aims to cover, in as far as possible, the entire empirical cycle. At the end of this project, the student can:
connect a concrete problem with the chosen research question
summarise literature that is relevant to the research question
formulate a testable research question that follows logically from the literature
substantiate the choice of measurement instrument to collect data that can lead to an answer to questions
describe ethical aspects of the study and follow the correct procedures in this respect;
collect data with the data collection tool and/or interpret this data;
quantify research data;
the student can substantiate chosen statistical and/or other methods of data analysis;
analyse the data using standard computer programs;
formulate conclusions based on the collected research data;
compile a research report;
work together in a team and establish contacts with the persons involved in the research;
take minutes, discuss, chair, present and/or other collaborative skills
describe the relevance of the results of the research for existing problems in society and for follow-up research.
Timetable
For the timetable of this course please refer to MyTimetable
Registration
The Bachelor Project is offered in the second semester of the academic year. If your study plan makes it necessary to participate in the Bachelor Project in the first semester, please see the information about Semester I registration in the section 'Study Planning'.
Registration second semester: via My Studymap. All projects are divided into clusters. Students must rank the clusters in My Studymap and are then placed in a project (as much as possible within the student's preferred cluster). You will receive more information about these clusters, and about the further registration process in June (for semester 1) and November (for semester 2).
Registration for courses in the second semester is possible from December. The exact date on which the registration starts will be published on the website of the Student Service Center (SSC). First year Bachelor students as well as premaster students will be registered by the Student Service Center; they do not need to register themselves.
The registration period for this courses closes 28 calendar days before the start of the course.
Also read the complete registration procedure
Mode of instruction
Participants are expected to work approximately 30 hours a week on the project throughout the duration of the project. There are no holidays planned during this period. A short absence for reasons beyond the student’s control (but certainly not in the important first weeks of the project) should be discussed with the supervisor before the start of the course. In the first weeks of the project (the preparatory phase), participants are expected to read about the theory of their chosen topic and to further narrow down their research question in the course of group discussions and in consultation with their supervisor. In this phase, individual participants or pairs of participants may be given responsibility for a partial study (for example in the form of a specific experiment or the analysis of a specific aspect of the collected data). Following the preparatory phase, participants are expected to submit an individually formulated research proposal (title, introduction, methodology, references).
In the following weeks (implementation phase), participants conduct their study and analyse the results. Throughout this period, participants can expand the introduction of their thesis and write part of their Methods and Results section. The remaining weeks (final phase) should be spent discussing the results obtained, writing the Discussion section and finalising the thesis. The thesis supervisor assesses the thesis – on the basis of the criteria listed in the assessment form – in the following two weeks. The final grade is established in consultation with a second assessor from the section within which the project was conducted. Theses that are awarded an unsatisfactory grade can be rewritten within one to two weeks following the assessment, in consultation with the section coordinator. If the thesis is once again assessed as unsatisfactory, the entire project has to be carried out again. Participants should be aware of the fact that a successfully completed Bachelor’s thesis is required to enrol in a Master’s programme.
Assessment method
Scope and format of the thesis:
The scope of the thesis should be more or less 20-30 pages, including references, and excluding any potential appendixes.
The thesis can be written either in Dutch or in English, in consultation with the thesis supervisor.
Thesis should in many respects meet the norms of the APA (American Psychological Association). The APA manual can be consulted in the library. In the interests of readability, students are allowed to diverge from some aspects of the APA guidelines. For example, tables and graphs may appear in the text and 1.5 line spacing may be used.
Regulation on grade calculation
The Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences has instituted that instructors use a software programme for the systematic detection of plagiarism in students’ written work. In case of fraud disciplinary actions will be taken. Please see the information concerning fraud.
All students are required to take and pass the Scientific Integrity Test with a score of 100% in order to learn about the practice of integrity in scientific writing. Students are given access to the quiz via a module on Brightspace.
Reading list
This programme component makes use of a syllabus; the pdf will be available on Brightspace.
The syllabus contains information about the following:
The general procedure
The various phases
How to formulate a research proposal
How to select an analysis method
How to write a final report
How to finance the project
The ethics of conducting research.
In considering the ethical aspects of conducting research, the Netherlands Code of Conduct for Research Integrity and the APA ethical guidelines are used. Students reflect on how their project relates to these guidelines.
Honours Research Bachelor Project Psychology (HRBP)
The goal of the HRBP is to encourage talented students at an early stage to do scientific research. This course is aimed at students who are considering doing a research master’s program. In contrast to the Bachelor Project (BP), the HRBP project is an individual research project, that runs the full academic year (from September to June), and it has more deliverables: in addition to a thesis, a project presentation is required, and there is a poster presentation in June. Students starting their third year (B3) in September can apply for a project in the previous June. There are 15 spots available.
Entry Requirements
For both the BP and HRBP students must have completed the propedeuse and the course MvDA to meet the entry requirement. However there are additional strict entry requirements for the HRBP: (a) the propedeuse must have been obtained within 13 months (b) the grade point average must be 7.5 or higher for all courses completed up to June.
Application and Selection
Application and selection for the HRBP program generally takes place in June and July; for academic year 2024-2025 the deadline for application is extended until August 31st, 2024. The projects offered, and information about how to apply, will be posted on Brightspace by end of May/ beginning of June. A self-enrollment link to access the BS HRBP-module can be requested from Pauline Ruygrok ruygrok@fsw.leidenuniv.nl
Contact information
Dr. F. (Fenna) Poletiek bachelorprojectcoordinatorpsychology@FSW.leidenuniv.nl