MINT5900 Master's Thesis Course description

Pass-Fail.

The summative assessment is carried out by a representative of the practical training establishment and a representative of the university. The final decision on whether to award a pass or fail grade is made by the university.

INTENPRA20 and MINTPRA20 overlap 100%.

Academic content is overlapping with INTENPRA2 and MINTPRA2.

Regular seminars are organised in connection with the master’s thesis at which the students present and discuss the drafts of their theses in a larger forum. Important topics relevant to work on the master’s thesis will also be dealt with at these seminars as required.

Supervision is an important part of the work on the master’s thesis and provides a necessary quality-assurance, for example that the work complies with the applicable guidelines for research ethics. The person responsible for any research work will be the supervisor. Each student/group is assigned a supervisor. Ten hours of supervision is provided per thesis. In addition, students receive supervision in connection with the master's thesis seminars. One hour of supervision on start-up of the project is compulsory.

If problems arise in the supervisor-student relationship, the student(s) shall first raise the matter with the supervisor and then, if relevant, contact the programme coordinator for the master’s programme.

Students have a duty to keep their supervisor informed about their work. This duty also applies to practical matters that could have a bearing on the project’s progress. Relevant ethical principles must be observed. All external correspondence must be approved by the supervisor. Applications to approval bodies, for example the Regional Committees for Medical and Health Research Ethics (REC) and the Norwegian Centre for Research Data (NSD), must be approved by the supervisor before submission.

Groups/students who fail their master’s thesis are offered three more hours of supervision.

The following assignments must have been completed and approved in order for a student to take the exam:

• Up-to-date and approved project description
• At least one presentation of his/her own work and one acting as an opponent in relation to another student's work at master's seminars
• A syllabus of at least 2,000 pages chosen by the student must be approved by the supervisor before a student can submit his/her master's thesis for grading

A master’s thesis written individually or in groups of up to three students, and an individual oral exam. The thesis must be written in accordance with the applicable master’s handbook.

Monographs shall have a scope of approx. 15,000 words (+/- 20%). If the article manuscript format is chosen, the supplementary memo/introduction (‘kappe’) shall have a scope of approx. 3,000 words (+/- 20%). If another format is chosen, the supplementary memo/introduction (‘kappe’) shall have a scope of approx. 9,000 words (+/- 20%). The same requirements apply to the scope of an individual master’s thesis and a master's thesis written by groups of students.

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

Grade scale A-F.

For a thesis written by a group, all the students in the group are awarded the same grade.

The students are awarded a preliminary grade for the written master's thesis. Only students who have been awarded a pass grade (A-E) for the written master's thesis are permitted to take the oral exam. The final grade is set following an individual oral exam. The whole grade scale can be used when adjusting the preliminary grade.

The following applies when the grade F is awarded:

Written thesis:

If the master’s thesis is written by a group, the whole group will be awarded this grade. The students will not be permitted to take the oral exam.

The students are given one opportunity to submit a new or reworked version of the master’s thesis for grading.

Oral exam:

If the grade F is awarded following the oral exam, F will be the student's final grade. In such cases, the student will have to retake the exam by submitting a new or reworked master’s thesis for grading. If a pass grade is awarded for the written thesis, the candidate can take the oral exam.

Appealing against grades

The grade for the written thesis can be appealed. If the grade is changed as a result of re-grading, the student must also take the oral exam again.

All master's theses are assessed by two examiners, one of whom must be external.

Vibeke Lohne