EN-500 Master's Thesis (Alternative 1)
- ECTS Credits:
- 60
- Responsible department:
- Faculty of Humanities and Education
- Course Leader:
- Allison Louise Wetterlin
- Lecture Semester:
- Autumn
- Teaching language:
- English
- Duration:
- 2 terms
The course is connected to the following study programs
Teaching language
EnglishPrerequisites
EN-410 and EN-411 or the equivalent, and, in addition, 45 ECTS credits in English at master's level. 30 ECTS credits must be within the same area of specialization as the master's thesis (literary or linguistic).
Course contents
The master's thesis is based on independent research and writing on a topic either dealing with English literature or English linguistics. The topic of the thesis may be related to one of the courses in the master's programme. Alternative 1 thesis should be approx. 30.000 words in length. The project is to be an analytical investigation of a literary or linguistic topic, involving a critical assessment of relevant sources. alternatively, students may choose an experimental linguistic topic, involving the collection and interpretation of a novel dataset.
Learning outcomes
Knowledge: Through the work on the master's thesis the student will
-
gain insight into scholarly literary or linguistic research methods, relevant literary or linguistic theory, and thorough knowledge of the field of research related to the master's thesis
-
gain specialized knowledge of the topic of the master's thesis
Skills: Through the work on the master's thesis the student will
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develop the ability to work independently with academic issues
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develop a problem-oriented, methodological and theoretically mature approach to the research
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develop ability in the composition and rhetoric of academic prose
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develop the ability to qualify arguments, evaluate relevance and criteria of quality.
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develop competence to engage productively in academic discussions
General competence: Through the work on the master's thesis the student will
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develop the ability to communicate the nature of the research project and its findings to others in a clear, concise academic style
Examination requirements
Compulsory individual tutorials (approximately 15 hours). Formal supervision of the thesis starts after an approved project description has been handed in (preferably in the second semester). The master's thesis may not be submitted for assessment until all courses have been successfully completed.
Teaching methods
Compulsory individual tutorials (approximately 15 hours) and a writing seminar. Estimated workload: Approximately 1600 hours.
Evaluation
The study programme manager, in consultation with the student representative, decides the method of evaluation and whether the courses will have a midterm- or end of term evaluation, see also the Quality System, section 4.1.
Assessment methods and criteria
The master's thesis is marked separately and a graded assessment is given. After the thesis has been assessed, an oral examination is arranged. In the oral exam, the candidate gives a short presentation of the argumentation of her/his master's thesis, followed by a discussion of the topic. The duration of the oral exam is approximately 45 minutes. The oral exam may adjust the grade given for the thesis by one grade.