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2010/2011  KAN-OECON_KAN  Master's Thesis

English Title
Master's Thesis

Course Information

Language English
Point 30 ECTS (900 SAT)
Type Mandatory
Level Full Degree Master
Duration One Semester
Course Period Autumn . Spring
Time Table Please see course schedule at e-Campus
Study Board
Study Board for MSc in Advanced Economics and Finance
Course Coordinator
  • Peter Bogetoft - Department of Economics
Main Category of the Course
  • Economics, macro economics and managerial economics
  • Finance
Last updated on 29 maj 2012
Learning Objectives
Learning objectives for the Master’s thesis are divided into two aspects. One concerns the methodical results of working on the thesis, the other concerns the elements the thesis must consist of.

The Methodical Results
After having completed the Master’s thesis, students must be able to demonstrate that they can:


  • Handle an iterative process where preparation of knowledge and formulation of a problem are mutually interdependent
  • Formulate a problem to steer and structure the work with the master’s thesis and its contents
  • Provide argumentation for the formulation of the questions answered to solve the problem
  • Explain and evaluate the methodology used to answer the questions and solve the problem
  • Select and process theory used to formulate the problem, draw up questions, analysis and conclusion
  • Provide argumentation for the relevance of the selected theory
  • Select and process primary and secondary sources used as documentation in the analysis and solution to the problem
  • Explain and evaluate the overall correlations between: formulation of the problem, selection and use of theory, empirical gathering and processing and conclusion
  • Explain the overall correlation according to scientific theory
Prerequisite
The Master's thesis ends the education, cf. the Ministerial order of the study programmes §19, stk. 5
Examination
Individual oral examination based on a traditional Master's Thesis or a Business Project
Assessment Thesis
Marking Scale 7-step scale
Censorship External examiners
Exam Period May/June
Aids Please, see the detailed regulations below
Duration 60 Minutes
Examination
Master’s thesis
Examination regulations. The examination in the Master’s thesis is held as an external examination and takes the form of an oral examination based on a written thesis. The assessment is carried out by the supervisor (if there are more supervisors, then only the primary supervisor) and one external second examiner.

The grade given must express an overall assessment of the written thesis (including the abstract), the oral examination and the student’s spelling and style, although the academic content will carry most weight. A Master’s thesis may be written and assessed either individually or jointly by two students. No regular examinations are held in July.

The Master’s thesis may not be more than 80 standard pages (one standard page consists of 2275 characters including spaces) in length for one student and not more than 120 standard pages for a joint thesis submitted by two students.

The Study Board lays down detailed guidelines for the oral defence at e-campus.

In the case of a student being ill at the time of the oral examination then as soon as possible afterwards a new defence will be organised.

In the event a student has not passed the regular examination in his or her Master’s thesis, he or she has the option, upon consultation with the supervisor/examiner, to either submit a revised version of the Master’s thesis or submit a new Master’s thesis on another topic, cf. detailed guidelines at e-campus.


Business Project and short Master’s thesis
Examination regulations. In the case of a business project and a short master’s thesis, the student is responsible for entering into an agreement forming the basis of the cooperation with the firm. This agreement between the student and the firm must be approved by the supervisor.

The examination in the Business Project and the short Master’s thesis is held as an external examination and consists of two parts: a written Business Project and a written short master’s thesis followed by an oral examination based on both the Business project and the short master thesis. The assessment is carried out by the supervisor (if there are more supervisors, then only the primary supervisor) and one external second examiner. The exam is graded using the 7-point scale. The grade given must express an overall assessment of the written Business Project and the short master’s thesis (including the abstract), the oral examination and the student’s spelling and style, although the academic content will carry most weight. If it is an open exam representatives of the firm can be invited to the defence but they cannot participate in the evaluation.

The Business Project is a consultancy report supervised both by a corporate advisor and a faculty member. It is a written report with the expected length of maximum 30 standard pages (one standard page consists of 2275 characters including spaces) in length for one student and not more than 45 standard pages for a joint project submitted by two students.

The shorter Master’s thesis is supervised by a faculty member and the expected length is maximum 25 standard pages for one student and not more than 37 standard pages for a joint thesis submitted by two students.

In the case of a student being ill at the time of the oral examination then as soon as possible afterwards a new defence will be organised.

In the event a student has not passed the regular examination in his or her Business Project and short master’s thesis, he or she has the option, upon consultation with the supervisor/examiner, to either submit a revised version of the Business Project or/and the short master’s thesis or submit a new Business Project and/or short master’s thesis on another topic, cf. detailed guidelines at e-campus.


Criteria of Contents
The grade 12 is given when the Master’s thesis meets the following criteria in an excellent manner i.e. with no or only few minor weaknesses:
• The master’s thesis is steered from a problem formulation that is developed by the student and is relevant for the programme.
• The thesis is defined so that analysis and discussions are relevant, necessary, and adequate when it comes to answering the problem formulation.
• Consistency between problem formulation, delimitation, outline, analysis and conclusion exists so that the answer to the problem statement appears logical.
• Discussion and explanation for selection and de-selection regarding topic delimitation, theory, methodology and empirical data (if empirical data is included).
• The thesis reflects critically upon the selected theory, methodology and empirical data (if empirical data is included) and it evaluates their applicability in connection to answering the problem statement.
• Consistency is evident so that selection and use of theory and empirical data interplays thereby complementing the production of knowledge (Applies to empirical theses).
• Hypotheses are documented and/or proved in the analysis and conclusion
• Considerations on how the results of the thesis resemble or differ from similar studies in the same area are included in the analysis.
• The analysis focuses on a well-defined problem i.e. it explores and creates synthesis based on theory and possibly empirical data.
• The thesis demonstrates understanding of correlations within the context of the subject and it provides a perspective on and generalises the results found to match other similar situations outside the context in question.
• The thesis is based on (research) literature relevant to the topic.
• The thesis discusses the premises of the theory and the significance of these premises as to what type of knowledge can be created. (Applies “especially” or “only” to theoretical theses).
• The thesis contributes with a new perspective e.g. by using known theory on empirical data that has not been studied before or by using a new combination of theory on a well-known problem.
• The student’s spelling and writing skills are considered in the assessment.
• Executive summary containing the main points of the thesis is part of the assessment. The executive summary must be written in a foreign language.

An executive summary (no longer than 1 page) must be appended to the Master thesis or the short master thesis. The summary may be written in English, Danish, Swedish or Norwegian.
Prerequisites for Attending the Exam
Course Content

The student may choose either to write a (traditional) master’s thesis or to write a business project and a (shorter) master’s thesis.

The (traditional) master’s thesis serves as a test of the student’s ability to engage in in-depth study and independently describe, analyse and process a complex issue within economics and finance at the master’s level.

The Business Project is a consultancy report supervised both by a corporate advisor and a faculty member and aims to solve a concrete problem for a given firm (or organization or institution) using state-of-the art metods from economic and finance. The consultancy aspect will be part of the evaluation, including issues like relevance of the problem for the firm, choice of methods, the ability to apply relevant economics and finance, and the actual solution proposed.

The (shorter) master’s thesis takes the form of an academic, scientific article. The article should deal with an economic or finance problem related to the business project in a short and concise way. It may deal with the problem in a novel way or it may provide a survey of existing literature.

The topic of the master’s thesis and/or the business project must fall within the academic profile of the M.Sc. in Economics (Advanced Economics and Finance).