MAFAR5900 Master´s Thesis Course description

The master's thesis is an independent research work conducted under supervision.

The students are offered research topics that can be related to either research projects at OsloMet or external Norwegian and foreign institutions with which the university has signed agreements. In special cases, the topic may stem from the student’s own idea for a research project.

Students choose their master’s thesis topic based on their academic background and interests. Relevant project outlines are made available digitally.

Students must have passed all exams in the first year of study before they can begin the course.

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

Knowledge

The student

• can acquire advanced knowledge in the subject area of the master’s thesis from relevant research and specialist literature
• can explain the theoretical basis for the topic of the master’s thesis and for the methods included in the work
• can critically evaluate previous research, existing theory and methods that form the basis for the research questions in the master’s thesis
• can assess previous research as a basis for critically evaluating own results

Skills

The student

• can develop a project description for the master’s degree project under supervision and in line with research methods
• can carry out an independent, limited research or development project under supervision and in accordance with applicable standards of research ethics
• can explore methods, calculations, analyses and examinations of relevance to the master’s thesis in an independent manner
• can quality assure his/her own work
• can present results in a scientific manner and discuss these in relation to previous research

General competence

The student

• can apply research methods to new and unknown disciplines and formulate new research questions
• can carry out critical analyses of and combine knowledge from different sources
• can communicate an extensive independent work, both orally and in writing, in relation to applicable conventions for scientific reporting
• can communicate research results in both scientific and popular science form
• can identify and discuss ethical issues in research in accordance with applicable laws and international conventions

The thesis can be written individually or in groups of two students.

In collaboration with one or more supervisor(s), the student(s) develops a project description with an associated progress plan, based on a problem proposed by the supervisor. All project descriptions must be approved by the main supervisor within given deadlines. Up to 25 hours of supervision is normally available per project. The scope will depend on the subject area and working methods concerned. The supervision is intended to ensure satisfactory work progress and quality.

An agreement is made between the student/student group, the main supervisor, and any co-supervisors after the project description is approved. The agreement should regulate responsibilities and rights issues, time frames, and availability. When a group of students work together, the thesis must include an appendix that documents each student’s contribution.

Students meet for seminars during the period they are working on the master’s thesis. The seminars give them an opportunity to share experience from their own project work. Students will take part in academic discussion and practise structuring and wording academic reasoning and convey constructive criticism. Presenting their work and receiving feedback from fellow students and teachers are important parts of the seminars. The seminars will be held digitally or through physical attendance on campus.

Detailed guidelines for the master’s thesis will be published online.

The following must have been approved in order for the student to take the exam:

• two oral presentations (up to 30 minutes) at the master’s seminars
• project outline with a progress schedule in accordance with specified criteria

Written master’s thesis, individually or in groups of two students, followed by an individual oral exam including a presentation of the thesis, up to 1.5 hours. The master’s thesis can be written as a monograph of up to 80 pages or an article manuscript with a supplementary introductory chapter of up to 45 pages.

The written thesis must be awarded a grade of A-E (preliminary grade) in order for a student to take the oral exam. The final grade is set after the oral exam. The grade can be adjusted up or down by one grade based on the oral exam.

Theses are written in Norwegian or English. The oral exam can be taken in Norwegian or English, regardless of which language the thesis was written in.

Resit exam: If the master’s thesis is awarded the grade F (fail), the student will be given one (1) opportunity to submit a reworked version.

Students can appeal against the grade set for the written part of the exam. If the grade is changed after an appeal against the grade, and the oral exam has already been held, the oral exam must be retaken.

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

Grade scale A-F

All the exams are assessed by an external and an internal examiner. The student’s supervisor cannot be one of the examiners.