Tutorial
The tutorial is an individual course that consists of a series of talks with the thesis supervisor or other researchers. The tutorial is not meant as the start of work on the Thesis proper, but as a course in which students explore the larger historiographical and/or archival context in which the thesis can/will/should/may be embedded. The tutorial has a study load of 10 ects and consists of 6 to 8 contact hours.
In the course of the tutorial a senior university lecturer prepares the individual student to conduct research independently, creatively and critically. If the needs of the student require it, some of the tutorials can also be conducted by other scholars from the LIUH or another university. The tutorial serves as a first step in the planning and framing of the research master’s thesis. Students may use the tutorial to orient themselves on relevant approaches in other disciplines, to discuss literature on new or unfamiliar areas, to explore new conceptual and theoretical angles, or to do a pilot study of a potential source material. Tutor and student will decide jointly what is most appropriate. Consequently, the methods of assessment vary in each individual case.
In the third semester, the tutorial may take on the form of actual thesis supervision. The supervisor acts as first reader of the thesis and is chiefly responsible for monitoring the implementation of the thesis and planning a set number of meetings with the student. Tutorials help students to formulate a well-defined research question and a feasible research plan for their thesis.
Students do not get a mark for their tutorial; they either pass or fail. However, the instructor will be required to inform the student on his substantive considerations concerning the tutorial.