ERGOB3900 Professional Development and Methods - Bachelor Thesis Course description

In their third year, students will work on a bachelor thesis. The work on the bachelor thesis provides the students with experience of systematic project work over time, where professional development and the development of new knowledge in common is key. Philosophy of science and research methodology knowledge and skills are recurrent topics in the work on the bachelor’s thesis.

In part one, which starts at the beginning of the autumn semester, focus will be on how to plan project work. The student will start by working in-depth with a topic that forms the basis for their bachelor thesis. Students will be assigned a supervisor who follows the development of the project outline.

In part two, which concludes the programme, focus will be on completing the project and writing the bachelor’s thesis.

The bachelor’s thesis must be related to a research and development work in occupational therapy and occupational science.

After completing the course, the student is expected to have achieved the following learning outcomes defined in terms of knowledge, skills and general competence:

Knowledge

The student

• is capable of explaining organisational and structural factors that affect professional practice at the practical training establishment
• has knowledge of human rights and ethics and can relate this to the current practical training establishment and its position in the society locally and globally
• can choose and describe relevant strategies for supervision and management in relation to users, colleagues and other partners
• is capable of reflecting on how activity analyses can be applied in the development of services in an innovative manner

Skills

The student is capable of

• carrying out systematic activity analyses at individual, group and/or system level, and develop measures that enable participation
• working in an evidence-based and independent manner on work tasks that are relevant at the practical training establishment, for example mapping, assessment, intervention and evaluation at individual, group and/or system level
• applying therapeutic and ethical competence in an independent manner in relation to people who are in a learning, coping or change process
• searching for and critically assessing scientific literature of relevance for his/her own professional practice
• using clinical reasoning to develop his/her own professionalism
• leading groups and meetings with users or colleagues
• identifying needs for development or new knowledge in occupational therapy related to the practical training establishment, and contributing to academic dissemination of knowledge in relation to this

General competence

The student is capable of

• taking responsibility for, showing initiative and cooperation skills, flexibility and independence
• discussing and critically reflecting on ethical dilemmas and practise in accordance with professional ethical guidelines
• taking the initiative to and contribute to interprofessional cooperation and disseminating occupational therapy competence in this context
• disseminating and documenting occupational therapy professional practice in writing and orally in the forms and procedures relevant to the practical training establishment
• assessing and preventing the risk of undesirable incidents and is familiar with methods for following this up in a systematic manner

The practical training period takes place over twelve weeks and starts with a week’s preparation as part of the programme. During the practical training weeks, the students spend 30 hours at the practical training establishment and the rest on teaching activities in the programme. The students will be assigned a supervisor at the practical training establishment and a contact lecturer at the university. Students who apply to take their practical training as part of a project can have a supervisor with a background other than in occupational therapy. In such case, the contact lecturer will offer closer follow up.

Work and teaching methods include independent work, project work in groups, lectures and seminars. The seminars will focus on different scientific methods and approaches.

Project work

Students work independently in groups and receive supervision in relation to the project work and how to write assignments. In part one, the students are to document a project plan through writing a project outline. In part two, the students are to carry out the project and write the bachelor thesis. The supervision is organised on the basis of the projects the students work on, and takes place partly in larger groups with presentations and discussions with peer feedback, and partly in the individual bachelor groups.

In order to be permitted to sit the exam, the following must have been approved:

• application for approval of the topic and an overview of those who will write the assignment
• a written assignment in the form of a project outline for the bachelor thesis, up to 1,500 words. The project description must be written and submitted in groups normally comprising two students.

Written bachelor’s thesis in groups normally comprising two students, up to 7,000 words.

Resit exam: If the bachelor’s thesis is awarded a fail grade, the students have the right to submit a reworked version once.

All aids are permitted, as long as the rules for source referencing are complied with.

A-F.

All answers are assessed by two examiners. An external examiner is used regularly, at a minimum of every third completion of the course. When selecting answers for external evaluation, a minimum of 10 percent of the answers shall be included, with no fewer than 5 answers. The external examiner’s assessment of the selected answers shall benefit all students.