When and how to start?
The thesis work starts in the 26E99905 Master’s thesis seminar. Thesis seminar is meant to be taken during the second year of the master’s studies, and earliest during the first year's spring. Students are advised to have a topic / area of interest ready when registering for the seminar, but the topic does not have to be finalized. If you are doing a qualitative research, it is further advised that you take the course MNGT-E1011 Qualitative Methods at the same time with the seminar.
By registering to the seminar and indicating a topic / interest area, a supervisor will be assigned for the student. You will find out your supervisor during the first sessions of the seminar.
The thesis topic will be finalized with the supervisor.
The thesis seminar is designed to help the students to start their thesis work. Thesis seminar is held twice per academic year and the registration is done via Sisu (course code: 26E99905 Master’s Thesis Seminar).
Can I start the thesis work before the seminar?
As the thesis seminars run twice a year, in principle thesis supervisors will not be allocated outside the thesis seminars. A supervisor can be allocated outside the seminar only for very good reasons. Missing the seminar does not count as a good reason.
Do I have to attend the thesis seminar?
The seminar is organised online with voluntary guidance sessions on campus. You can find the full course description in Sisu under the code 26E99905.
Do I need to find the supervisor by myself?
No. When registering for the Master’s thesis, you are required to provide thesis topic / area of interest, and thesis supervisor suggestion (if you have one). Thesis supervisors will be named based on this information but note that not all supervisor wishes can be fulfilled. You will find out your supervisor during the first sessions of the Thesis Seminar.
Who approves the research topic?
The research topic is approved by the thesis supervisor. Please negotiate with your thesis supervisor prior accepting commissioned work to make sure that the topic and its theoretical framing is adequate for a Master’s thesis.
If I want to do my thesis for a company/organization, how do I proceed?
Speak to your supervisor to make sure that the topic and thesis itself will meet the criteria set by the degree regulations.
Please note that the school/department does not provide agreement templates for company assigned thesis, this is between you and the company/organization.
Can thesis be written in Finnish?
By default, the language of the thesis is English. Please discuss this issue with your supervisor.
Finishing the thesis, hand in and evaluation process
Return the first version of your thesis to your instructor for comments. The instructor gives his/her comments and if needed, you should make the necessary corrections to the thesis.
Once you consider the thesis is ready, get the permission from your instructor to hand in your thesis for evaluation on MyCourses. Each thesis will be read and graded by two reviewers, of which one is the reviewer who supervised the thesis. Your superviser will find the second reviewer.
You need to submit your thesis to MyCourses for the evaluation.
See further instructions under During your studies > Thesis.
How do I complete the maturity test?
The abstract of the thesis serves as a maturity essay required to complete the degree. The abstract is submitted as part of the thesis and evaluated together with it. Specified instructions on submitting the thesis is found under During your studies > Thesis.
Can master’s thesis be classified confidential?
According to the decision by the Ministry of Education and Culture that Master’s theses may not be confidential (the principle of transparency) and therefore there is no possibility for keeping MSc theses as confidential.
All the theses are required to be uploaded to Aaltodoc. Student can then decide whether the work can be accessed online freely or only within Aalto network.