TOWARDS A GOOD THESIS CCG

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TOWARDS A GOOD THESISCCG Tourism Programme

• What is a thesis?
• How do I get started?
• New exam form, deadlines etc.
• Future thesis meetings

Malene Gram, Aalborg University, Study Coordinator
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BASIC FEATURES

• Purpose
• Product 35-70 pages academic text pr. student
  (ind. max 80)
• Analytical genre Reliable new knowledge
• Key evaluation criteria
• in-depth relevant knowledge new elements
• relevant theories/methods applied show that you
  can define analyse your problem
• well-argued, well-documented text be critical,
  show independent thinking
• 35 -70 pages (35-80 if you write by yourself), no
  more, no less
• appropriate and correct language
• weight 2/3 written report, 1/3 oral exam

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STRUCTURED COMMUNICATION

• Central elements
• Problem formulation
• Literature review
• Theory
• Methods
• Background
• Analysis
• Conclusion

• Please
• precise, not trivial
• existing debates
• concepts/framework
• clarity, choices
• keep brief
• argue, not speculate
• answer ( perspective)

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PROBLEM FORMULATION Kicking off - a gradual
process

• precision (narrowing down)
• question/hypotheses - what do I expect to find?
  (reconsidering)
• conclusion not self-evident (several answers)
• related to academic literature (review)
• real-life implications ? (worldly relevance)

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Getting started

• Choose a topic within the framework of the master
  programme
• The topic
• interesting to you possibly dealt with before
• supports your profile
• From 1 to 2-3 persons
• Pros cons
• A purely theoretical thesis / secondary data /
  primary data
• External contacts (traineeship or other)
• Pros cons
• Decide on main theoretical angle(s)
• Make a time schedule time supervision
  available

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Supervision

• 22, 35, 45 hours (incl. preparation exam)
• 5 meetings or major mail contacts
• Make sure that you plan meetings and profit fully
  from them
• Meeting 1 Brainstorming,
• Meeting 2 Problemformulation and introduction to
  thesis
• Meeting 3 Theory
• Meeting 4 Feedback on analysis/empirical section
  
• Meeting 5 discussion of critical issues/comments
  on conclusion and perspectives

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Deadline, exam

• 15th of June 2009 submit title, table of
  contents, introduction
• 31st of July 2009 hand in Masters thesis
  breakfast!
• Oral exam ultimo August 2009
• Exam
• 45 min (incl. evaluation)
• 5-8 min presentation
• discussion of presentation, written project
  perspectives
• in case of group project individual exams

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Future Thesis Meetings

• Next meeting March 3rd 2009 from 14-15
• Presentations of work in progress (10 min two
  projects)
• delimitations of the research question
• methodological considerations in relation to your
  research
• theoretical considerations concerning your thesis
• how to structure / analyse your data
• preliminary results of your analysis
• Or just round-table discussion