Admission requirements
Completed bachelor's degree that gives access to this master or a completed bachelor thesis / project when access to the master has been granted on the basis of art. 5.2.2.a of the Course and Examination Regulations 2024-2025.
Description
Read more about expectations and requirements for the thesis process on Brightspace.
Information regarding the required length of the thesis can be found in the thesis manual on Brightspace.
Timetable
Cohort February: exact dates on Brightspace
Students are assigned to supervisors and first meeting between student and supervisor takes place no later than at the start of block 1 (no fixed date).
At the end of block 1 students submit a partial draft which is graded by the supervisor (25% of the final grade). At the start of the thesis writing process student and supervisor agree on what should be submitted at the end of first block of thesis writing to be on schedule with the thesis writing.
Due date of the full draft of the entire thesis: early December
Deadline feedback from the 1st supervisor: end of December
Due date final thesis: early January
Thesis supervisor submits exam notes at Student Desk before the end of January
Cohort September: exact dates on Brightspace
Students are assigned to supervisors and first meeting between student and supervisor takes place no later than at the start of block 3 (no fixed date).
At the end of block 3 students submit a partial draft which is graded by the supervisor (25% of the final grade). At the start of the thesis writing process student and supervisor agree on what should be submitted at the end of first block of thesis writing to be on schedule with the thesis writing.
Due date of the full draft of the entire thesis: half of May.
Deadline feedback from the 1st supervisor: end of May.
Due date final thesis: early June.
Thesis supervisor submits exam notes at Student Desk before the end of June.
Assessment method
The partial draft to be submitted at the end of block 1 (or block 3, depending on when the student started with the thesis) counts for 25% of the final grade. This partial draft is only graded by the supervisor. The full thesis submitted at the final formal deadline is 75% of the final grade for the Master thesis. The full thesis is assessed by the supervisor and a second reader. Only the grade for the full thesis needs to be a sufficient grade to pass the Master thesis. It is possible to compensate an insufficient grade for the partial draft with a sufficient grade for the full thesis. The grade for the partial draft cannot be retaken. There is a retake possibility for the full thesis (see below and the manual published on Brightspace). When the final grade for the Master thesis is an insufficient due to a too low insufficient grade for the partial draft, students needs to make use of the retake for the full thesis.
A full thesis can only be graded when it is submitted before the formal deadline. The formal deadlines are in June or in January. After submission, the supervisor conducts a plagiarism check, reads the thesis and determines whether the thesis is at least close to a sufficient grade. When the first reader comes to a positive judgement, the thesis is sent to a second reader. Both readers have 15 working days to grade the thesis and arrive at a final grade. Both the supervisor and the second reader grade the thesis through the thesis tool. They do this independently from each other. After the grade forms are finalized by both readers, the supervisor contacts the second reader to discuss the final grade. There can be several outcomes:
When the supervisor and the second reader graded the thesis with a sufficient grade, a final grade will be agreed together by both readers after discussing the assessments. If there is more than 1 point difference between the two independent assessments, the readers justify the final grade they came to agree on in the assessment form.
In case both supervisor and second reader agree on an insufficient grade for the thesis submitted before the deadline, the student can re-submit the thesis at the extended deadline*. The extended deadlines are at the beginning of March or August. If the thesis is still not sufficient in March/August or the extended deadline passes without the student re-submitting the thesis, the student needs to submit the thesis at the next formal deadline, either in June or in January.
If a student submits the thesis after the extended deadline and no personal circumstances apply (known with study advice), the maximum grade which can be obtained for the thesis is a 7.5.
In case one of the readers gives an insufficient grade and the other reader a sufficient grade, it is also possible that after consultation between the readers a sufficient overall grade is given to the thesis. In case there is no consensus after discussing the assessments by the readers, a third reader can be asked to assess the thesis. This assessment needs to be independent from the first and second assessment and the third reader does not know the grades given by the first and the second reader. After the three readers graded the thesis, the median of the three grades is calculated. This is the final thesis grade. The third reader is assigned to a thesis by the MPA programme director.
A third reader can also be involved in assessing the thesis when both the first and the second reader grade the thesis with a sufficient grade but there is more than 1 point difference between the grades of the first and second supervisor and no consensus between the readers after consultation. After the three readers graded the thesis, the median of the three grades is calculated. This is the final thesis grade. The third reader is assigned to a thesis by the MPA programme director.
The first and second reader can decide to invite the student to defend the submitted full thesis orally. The defence is optional and functions as an additional check to assess whether the student worked independently on the thesis. Working independently means that a student needs to show during the thesis writing process that he/she can independently make decisions and efficiently carry out feedback from the supervisor. During the defense, the student answers questions connected to the thesis for about 30 minutes. The defense gives the student the opportunity to discuss choices, challenges and findings with the supervisor and the second reader. The student needs to receive a pass for the defense in order to receive a passing grade for the full thesis.
Read more about expectations and requirements for the thesis process on Brightspace.
*The extended deadline is also for students who are for 90% finished with their thesis at the time of the formal deadline in January/June. The supervisor and the student need to apply for this deadline. The application form can be found on the MPA thesis Brightspace page.
Reading list
Library use / Leiden catalogue
How to search for books and articles in Leiden? And how do you get hold of the publications you have found, in digital or printed form?
How to quickly and easily search for books or articles of which you have some details? How to search books by subject? And finally how to get hold of the book or article? It might be available online! Learning materials for all sorts of databases, like PiCarta, ERIC or Web of Science, can be found on the Libraries website.
When you have completed your thesis and passed all other courses you can apply for graduation NL / ENG
Registration
Students will be registered by the programme.
Deregistered and planning to start the thesis next semester?
Are you currently deregistered from the programme and do you wish to write your thesis next semester? Please e-mail the study advisors 3 months before the start of the semester. If you wish to start working on the thesis from February then the deadline is November 1st. If you wish to start in September the deadline is June 1st. If you e-mail us in time, we can ensure that there is a fitting supervisor available. Please make sure to arrange your registration for the MSc in Studielink. If you contact us after that date, we may not have a supervisor for you and you'll have to wait a semester or you will not be able to write about the subject of your choice!
Already started writing your thesis? Please inform your supervisor that you will continue.
Contact
Thesis coordinator MPA: Ms. J. Schipper thesiscoordination@fgga.leidenuniv.nl
Thesis coordinator MPA: Dr. R. de Ruiter r.de.ruiter@fgga.leidenuniv.nl