EN-501 Master's Thesis (Alternative 2)
- ECTS Credits:
- 45
- 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
- Advanced Teacher Education level 8-13, 5-year Master's Programme
- Master's Programme in English
Teaching language
EnglishPrerequisites
For students in the disiplin master's programme: 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).
For the teacher-training students: EN-410 and EN-411 or the equivalent, and, in addition, 15 ECTS credits in English at master's level.
Course contents
The thesis belonging to Alternative 2 is stipulated to take two semesters, but as part of this alternative students take one additional 15 credit course in their third semester along with working on their thesis. The thesis should be approx. 20.000 words in length. An Alternative 2 thesis is both more limited in length than that of Alternative 1, and should also concentrate on a more limited field of research. The project is to be an analytical investigation of a literary or linguistic topic, involving a critical assessment of relevant sources. Teacher-training students also have the option to write their thesis on a cultural or didactic topic.
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: The student will futhermore
-
develop the ability to work independently with academic issues
-
develop a problem-oriented, methodological and theoretically mature approach to the research
-
develop skills in the composition and rhetoric of academic prose
-
develop the ability to qualify arguments, evaluate relevance and criteria of quality
-
develop competence to engage productively in academic discussions
General competence: The student will also
-
develop the ability to communicate the nature of the research project and its findings to others
Examination requirements
Compulsory individual tutorials (approximately 12 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 12 hours) and a writing seminar. Estimated workload: Approximately 1200 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 with the examiners. The duration of the oral exam is usually 45 minutes. The oral exam may adjust the grade given for the thesis by one grade.