MESTD5930 Master’s Thesis Course description

The master’s thesis must be an independent and supervised research or development project.

The student chooses the topic for their own master’s thesis. Students can initiate the subject based on their academic background and interests. A master’s thesis may also be related to research projects at the university, or external Norwegian or international institutions with which OsloMet has an agreement.

All compulsory and elective courses under the programme must be passed before the student can submit the master’s thesis for grading.

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

Knowledge

The student:

• can acquire advanced knowledge from relevant research and academic literature in the subject area of the master’s thesis
• can explain the theoretical basis underlying the topic of the master’s thesis and the chosen methods
• can critically evaluate existing theory and methods that form the basis for the problem setting in the master’s thesis
• can discuss and evaluate their own research results in relation to previous research

Skills

The student:

• can analyse and apply relevant theories and methods in the master’s project
• can carry out an independent, limited research or development project under supervision and in line with applicable research ethical guidelines
• can carry out processes, methods and analyses relevant to the master’s thesis in an independent manner
• can analyse and relate critically to various sources of information and use these to structure and formulate academic reasoning
• can present results in a scientific manner and discuss these in relation to previous research

General competence

The student

• can critically analyse and integrate knowledge from different sources
• can identify and discuss ethical issues in research in line with applicable legislation and international conventions
• can apply their knowledge and skills in new and innovative ways
• can communicate with specialists and society on the basis of their own master’s project

Students can write their master’s thesis individually or in groups of two.

The student/student group will be assigned a supervisor for the master’s project. The supervisor can be internal or external. Up to 14 hours of supervision are normally given for individual projects, and 21 hours for groups of two students. The scope of the supervision will depend on the subject area and working methods. The supervision will ensure the satisfactory progression and quality of the work. The student/student group, main supervisor and co-supervisors will establish an agreement after the project has been approved by the person responsible for the course. The agreement will concern rights and responsibilities, time frames and availability. When several students write a thesis together, they must attach a document to the thesis that clarifies what each student has contributed.

Students gather for seminars during the master’s thesis period. The seminars give students the opportunity to share experiences related to their own project work. Students will participate in academic discussions, will practise structuring and formulating academic reasoning, and will convey constructive criticism. Own project presentations and feedback from fellow students and teachers are an important part of the seminars. The seminars will be conducted online or in person at the university.

Detailed guidelines for the master’s thesis will be published on OsloMet’s learning platform.

Course requirements

The following coursework must have been approved in order for a student to be permitted to take the exam:

• Two presentations (up to 30 minutes) at the master’s seminar

If a master’s seminar is held in English, the presentation must be held in English.

A written master’s thesis written individually or in groups of two students, followed by an individual oral exam, including presentation of the thesis, up to 45 minutes. The master’s thesis can be written as:

• An individual monograph of up to 20,000 words, +/- 10%
• Or as a monograph of up to 30,000 words, +/- 10% for groups of two students
• Or an article manuscript which adheres to the instructions and academic requirements of a specific scientific journal

In order to take the oral exam, the written assignment must be graded A-E (preliminary grade). The final grade will be determined after the oral exam. The grade can be adjusted one grade up or down after the oral exam.

The thesis is written in English or a Scandinavian language. The oral exam can be taken in English or a Scandinavian language, regardless of which language the assignment is written in.

New exam: If the master’s thesis is assessed as F (fail), the student can submit a revised version of the thesis one (1) time.

The grading of the written part of the exam can be appealed. If the grade is changed after appeal of the grading, and the oral exam has already been held, the oral exam must be held again.

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

Graded scale A-F.

Each exam is assessed by two examiners, of whom at least one is external.

The student’s supervisor cannot be an examiner for the master’s thesis.

30 ECTS MESTD5900

30 ECTS MEST5930