The thesis is a written report of research which the student has carried out under supervision by a lecturer but with a high degree of independence.
In principle, the thesis must be of sufficient quality (possibly following some modifications) to be published in an academic journal in the relevant field.
Once the student has selected a topic, formulated a tentative thesis statement on the basis of one or more research questions and put together a provisional bibliography, the Thesis Proposal form can be completed (see Thesis Proposal form. The Thesis Proposal form should include the provisional title of the thesis and a brief description of the topic. The Proposal must be approved and signed by the supervisor. It is then submitted to the Board of Examiners no later than three months before the planned graduation date. The Board will inspect the thesis proposal to ensure that it is of an appropriate academic level and will appoint the second reader.
The thesis must demonstrate among others that the student is able to:
a. Completely independently formulate a research question which displays insight into the methodological principles, central issues and state of the art of his or her field of research;
b. Independently formulate a realistic research plan which fulfils the criteria set in the relevant field of research;
c. Critically and analytically report on existing academic debates and propose creative solutions based on secondary literature;
d. Apply the more complex concepts/methods of his or her field to a corpus of primary source material (whether existing or collected during the student’s own research);
e. Formulate ideas clearly and correctly.
The scope of the MA thesis generally corresponds to a maximum of 1000 words per EC including notes, bibliography and appendices per credit point. A ResMa thesis of 25 EC equals around 25.000 words.
See also Master Thesis Regulations