0x010088F6312065A70A44B630A6848498EAD80093CFEAFE161DC94D83C7C5C9A5A748B8

The course consists primarily of supervision by the individual supervisor assigned to each student at the beginning of the academic year (fall semester). An MA thesis workshop is the only (obligatory) activity. This enables students to focus on researching and writing their MA thesis with limited to no additional coursework. Students are generally satisfied with the course, although their level of satisfaction may depend on their supervision experience and the extent to which divergences between their supervisor preferences and those of the internal and external examination committees members impacted their grades. The sensurveiledning, which the evaluation committee should use as the guiding document when assessing theses, provides an assessment framework where those divergences should not substantially impact the final grade.

The course learning outcomes are:KnowledgeCandidates have<ul><li>in-depth, expert knowledge in their field of research</li><li>detailed knowledge about issues of relevance for students of European Studies</li><li>are familiar with planning and conducting research, finding and working with various kinds of sources, and presenting their research findings in a scholarly manner</li></ul>Skills:Candidates are<ul><li>able to conduct independent and original research</li><li>able to collect and critically interpret relevant empirical data and apply appropriate theoretical and/or conceptual frameworks</li><li>are capable of designing and operationalizing a research proposal</li><li>sharp in their academic writing, argumentative and presentation skills</li></ul> They reflect the general skills and knowledge that students should have acquired after completing their MA thesis. The learning outcomes are usually communicated and implemented through the research/writing process and in individual discussions between the supervisors and the students.

In addition to the regular supervision meetings between the students and their assigned supervisor, the MA thesis workshop is the only course activity (obligatory). The workshop's format was slightly revised to take into account changes in the course, which used to include a limited number of 'refresher' lectures when EUR3415 (Research and Project Planning) was bloc-taught at the beginning of September. From 2020-1, EUR3415 is taught as a normal, semester-long course, a format that made the former refresher lectures redundant.The new format was apparently problematic for (some) students. However, some of their critics (e.g., length of the workshop -- 9:15 to 14:30 with several coffee breaks and a 1hr lunch in-between) appear relatively unjustified. Students' proposal to hold another workshop is unpractical for various reasons. First, staff participation in the workshop is work-intensive and time-consuming for staff who have to read and comment 3-4 theses drafts, which is normally taken during regular supervision hours. Second, the organization of the workshop itself mobilizes a fair amount of time and work from the course coordinator and admin support staff. Students are more than welcome to take the initiative to organize themselves a workshop, and they have access to all the facilities to do so (room booking, etc.) without necessarily needing staff support or involvement. In this spirit, the course coordinator offered at the beginning of the semester to help create Bb study groups, with no follow-up from students.The organization of thematic panels, which the reference group also suggested, is difficult given the considerable heterogeneity of topics. The almost inexistent level of student engagement, as reflected in the meager participation in the general discussion at the end of the panels, was regrettable. However, students were instructed to read the theses in their panel but few appeared to have done so in preparation for the workshop.Advancing the date of the workshop to 3-4 weeks would mean that students would need to have substantial enough written material by late February/early March, which is, in my experience, rarely the case for the majority of students.

The skills and knowledge acquired by researching and writing the thesis are assessed by the committee appointed for the oral examination/viva. The latter allows the student to demonstrate their command of the topic, justify choices (RQ, methods, theories, sources, etc.) and elaborate on any unclear aspects. The sensurveiledning, which is revised regularly (last revision done last academic year) reflects the acquisition of the skills and knowledge outlined in the learning outcomes.

NTNU:TIA:REST

Engelsk

Anbefalte forkunnskaper

Bachelors degree in European Studies and Foreign Languages or equivalent. EUR3415 Research and Project Planning.




Mer om vurdering

Students who wish to write their thesis in a language other than English (e.g. Norwegian) should consult their supervisor.

A temporary grade will be given prior to the formal examination. This temporary grade can be adjusted up or down after the examination.


Forkunnskapskrav

Requires admission to the Master's programme in European Studies/masterprogrammet i Europastudier.

Faglig innhold

The Master's Thesis is an individually written, research-based academic paper on a topic that is relevant to the study of contemporary Europe broadly conceived, the European integration process and European/EU relations since 1945. The MA thesis should have a length between 20.000 and 30.000 words, including notes, bibliography and figures. It should relate and contribute to existing research on the chosen topic and include a theoretical and/or conceptual framework.


Læringsformer og aktiviteter

Students are expected to engage in independent research. The assigned supervisor will provide guidance throughout the elaboration of the MA thesis.

Compulsory activities include meeting with the thesis supervisor and a one-day seminar with fellow students.

Normert antall veiledningstimer for masteroppgaver ved Det humanistiske fakultet er beskrevet i følgende link: https://innsida.ntnu.no/wiki/-/wiki/Norsk/Masteravtale+HF


Læringsutbytte

Successful candidates are expected to have acquired the following knowledge and skills:

Knowledge:
Students have
- in-depth, expert knowledge in their field of research
- detailed knowledge about issues of relevance for students of European Studies
- are familiar with planning and conducting research, finding and working with various kinds of sources and presenting their research findings in a scholarly manner

Skills:
Students are
- able to conduct independent and original research
- able to collect and critically interpret relevant empirical data and apply appropriate theoretical and/or conceptual frameworks
- are capable of designing and operationalizing a research proposal
- sharp in their academic writing, argumentative and presentation skills


One-day seminar

Master's Thesis in European Studies

Europakunnskap

Europastudier

Historie

Statsvitenskap

European Studies (Master's Programme)

Europastudier - masterprogram

Web/Lists(guid'8b698a2d-6ad0-4f7d-b3be-219cc1979f02')/Items(10973)/FieldValuesAsText

The course contained two main components: a limited number of lectures that were designed as "refreshers" on key issues addressed in EUR3415 in the Fall (then normally taught as a block seminar early September) and individual supervision with a supervisor assigned at the beginning of the academic year. The lectures had been added based on students feedback in previous years. Some repetitions with what some students, esp. those who completed a Bachelor in European Studies at NTNU was inevitable but also necessary in order to account for the background diversity of international and ntnu students.The workshop, whose format was slightly changed in 2020-2 and will become the course's obligatory activitiy in 2021-2, was usually well appreciated by students who deemed it a useful occasion to get feedback from their peers and faculty staffs, beyond the social aspects. Scheduled shortly after the introduction of lockdown due to the COVID19 pandemics it had to be cancelled. Depending on guidelines provided by the Norwegian government in spring 2021, it will take place either physically or digitally.As of the academic year 2020-1, EUR3415 runs normally throughout the fall semester. This entails that the "refresher" lectures will not longer be provided. Individual supervision, along with a couple of select course activities (e.g. MA thesis workshop) will thus be the main course components as fo the academic 2021-2.Prior preparations to the viva were organized at deparment level for all programmes not course level. Given that the MA in European Studies is the only international study programme at IHK, it may be advisable to organize such a meeting as part of the course (rather than for the entire department) and only in English so as to ensure the same level of preparedness regardless of norwegian language proficiency.The concerns re.: the disparity of supervision and the lack of adequate follow-up of international students raised by the reference group are entirely novel and somewhat puzzling. They were forwarded to the then programme leader and nesteleder for undervisning by email after a meeting with the reference group last semester. While different styles of supervision along with possibly different usages of digital tools for supervision (rendered necessary by the lockdown) are almost inevitable, there hasn't been in past year any major discrepancies among supervisors in the general expectations and academic criteria to be fulffiled.

The learning outcomes are as follow:Knowledge: Students have in-depth, expert knowledge in their field of research; detailed knowledge about issues of relevance for students of European Studies; are familiar with planning and conducting research, finding and working with various kinds of sources and presenting their research findings in a scholarly mannerSkills: Students are able to conduct independent and original research; able to collect and critically interpret relevant empirical data and apply appropriate theoretical and/or conceptual frameworks; are capable of designing and operationalizing a research proposal; sharp in their academic writing, argumentative and presentation skills.The learning outcomes are relevant for the skills and knowledge that 2d-year MA students are expected to have achieved upon successful completion of the MA thesis and MA in European studies degree. They were updated 3 years ago when the International Master was established.They are communicated to the students through the course manual, the lectures and through supervision meetings.In order to research and write their MA thesis (and complete the course successfully) students will need to build upon and further refine knowledge and skills they have acquired in prior EUR-coded course.

Re.: the learning activities, see above box "general". the lectures were designed to provide insights into qualitative analysis, case study anc omparative analysis, or interview techniques -- the main methodological tools that most students use in their thesis. The lectures were designed to re-fresh and complement knowledge acquired in EU3415 Research and Project Planning in the fall semester. The workshop is an opportunity for students to receive detailed and extensive feedback on their work-in-progress from peers and faculty staff (other than their supervisor). It also contribute to honing students presentation skills of an academic topic on which they have acquired in-depth expertise.For the first year since I have been coordinating this course the reference group raised important concerns re.: the disparities in supervision and treatment of international students. These are serious concerns, which clearly have had an impact on the student's experience of their learning environment and motivation and should to be addressed at the relevant level(s).

The MA thesis is an adequate form to assess the academic, research and writing skills and knowledge acquired by students thoughout the MA curriculum and through researching for and writing on a specific topic for their thesis. The grading criteria for assessors also reflect the extent to which students are expected to demonstrate their acquisition of the skills and knowledge outlined in the learning objectives.

Students are expected to engage in independent research. The assigned supervisor will provide guidance throughout the elaboration of the MA thesis.

Compulsory activities include meeting with the thesis supervisor and a one-day seminar with fellow students.




Knowledge
Students will
- Acquire in-depth, expert knowledge in their field of research;
- Gain detailed knowledge about issues of relevance for students of European Studies;
- Be familiar with planning and conducting research, finding and working with various kinds of sources and presenting their research findings in a scholarly manner.

Skills
Students will 
- be able to conduct independent and original research;
- be able to collect and critically interpret relevant empirical data and apply appropriate theoretical and/or conceptual frameworks; 
- be capable of designing and operationalizing a research proposal;
- sharpen their academic writing, argumentative and presentation skills.



Europakunnskap med fremmedspråk - masterstudium

Web/Lists(guid'8b698a2d-6ad0-4f7d-b3be-219cc1979f02')/Items(4235)/FieldValuesAsText

Master's Thesis in European Studies - EUR3001