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2025/2026  KAN-CBIOO2000U  Master's Thesis

English Title
Master's Thesis

Course information
Language English
Course ECTS 30 ECTS
Type Mandatory
Level Full Degree Master
Duration One Semester
Start time of the course Spring
Timetable Course schedule will be posted at calendar.cbs.dk
Study board
Study Board for Markets & Innovation
Course coordinator
  • Markus Simeth - Department of Strategy and Innovation (SI)
Main academic disciplines
  • Entrepreneurship
  • Innovation
  • Strategy
Teaching methods
  • Face-to-face teaching
Last updated on 01-07-2025

Relevant links
Learning objectives
The subject of the thesis must be within the programme profile’s particular academic identity and theoretical field(s).
  • Address a complex problem in Biobusiness that goes beyond the level and content of the compulsory courses
  • Develop and address research questions that effectively link a relevant and timely challenge in Biobusiness to scholarly literature and available data
  • Select, combine and apply relevant concepts, theories, and literature
  • Make appropriate methodological choices, including the collection of relevant data and information, and evaluate the strength and limitations of the applied methodology and research design
  • Provide consistency and coherence in the relationships between problem statement, theoretical perspectives, analysis and conclusion
  • Articulate and discuss the research results, and their implications for managers, scholarly literature, and potentially policy makers
Course prerequisites
Students or the Study Director may choose that the student writes an academic, case-orientated, master´s thesis without an internship.

To be allowed to defend the Master´s Thesis, those students who conduct an internship must have finished the 16 weeks' Internship, as it is part of the Master's Thesis.

It is very important that all 3rd-semester courses are passed before the internship starts as it may have an influence on the performance of the tasks in the company. If one student has not passed the 3rd-semester courses before the start of the internship, the study program may reserve the right to cancel the internship.
Examination
Master's Thesis:
Exam ECTS 30
Examination form Oral exam based on written product

In order to participate in the oral exam, the written product must be handed in before the oral exam; by the set deadline. The grade is based on an overall assessment of the written product and the individual oral performance, see also the rules about examination forms in the programme regulations.
Individual or group exam Individual oral exam based on written group product
Number of people in the group 2
Size of written product Max. 120 pages
The master’s thesis must not exceed 120 standard pages for a joint thesis submitted by two students. If a student writes alone, the max. number of pages is 80.
Assignment type Master's thesis
Release of assignment Subject chosen by students themselves, see guidelines if any
Duration
Written product to be submitted on specified date and time.
45 min. per student, including examiners' discussion of grade, and informing plus explaining the grade
Grading scale 7-point grading scale

The student’s spelling and writing skills are taken into consideration in the overall assessment of the examination performance, but the academic content is given the highest weight.
Regulations regarding the summary The summary (max. one page) must be written in English. The summary is included in the assessment of the thesis.

For rules regarding individual exams, see your programme regulations and my.cbs.dk.
Examiner(s) Internal examiner and external examiner
Exam period Spring
Make-up exam/re-exam
Same examination form as the ordinary exam
If the student has submitted their thesis, but is ill at the oral defense, a new defense will be arranged as soon as possible based on the thesis already submitted.
If the student receives a non-passing grade at the regular exam, they have used an exam attempt. It is then a requirement that the Master’s Thesis contract is renewed, i.e. the student must further clarify their original topic delimitation, which must then be approved by the thesis coordinator.
Description of the exam procedure

Deadlines for submitting the Master's Thesis: The thesis has to be handed in no later than June 1st. 

 

The oral defense will take place within 4 weeks after the master's thesis has been handed in. Regular exams are not held in July.
 
Course content, structure and pedagogical approach

The master's thesis consists of a written report based on the analytical challenges examined during the internship.

 

The master's thesis addresses selected analytical issues relevant to the challenges examined during the internship. The internship is concerned with practical problems in the conduct and commercializing bio-innovations, and results are presented in terms of practical implications and conclusions. 

 

The main idea of ​​the thesis is to revisit one or several such analytical challenges so as to examine and reflect upon them in depth, from an academic perspective. That means situating the problem in the academic literature, applying advanced theoretical and methodological tools, critically considering the strength of conclusions. 

 

The bio-science behind the innovations considered in the internship project are relevant for their commercialization and other related business decisions. For instance, based on the scientific origins of an innovation, alternative commercialization routes or knowledge protection strategies are available. The thesis must highlight these relationships between the science, the innovation, and implications for commercialization, demonstrating the student's ability to span and connect issues in bio-science with business implications.

 
Research-based teaching
CBS’ programmes and teaching are research-based. The following types of research-based knowledge and research-like activities are included in this course:
Research-based knowledge
  • Classic and basic theory
  • New theory
  • Methodology
  • Models
Research-like activities
  • Development of research questions
  • Data collection
  • Analysis
  • Discussion, critical reflection, modelling
  • Students conduct independent research-like activities under supervision
Description of the teaching methods
Thesis supervision from the BIO faculty is allocated to each student. The supervisor and the student agrees on the topic for the thesis, and supervision is offered regarding all learning objectives for the thesis. The host company assigns a mentor to the assignee. A contact between student, mentor and CBS-supervisor before and during the internship secures that potentially emerging issues are timely addressed, and further facilitates the completion of a thesis based on the internship. If a student writes alone, he will receive 16 supervision hours and two students writing together will receive 24 supervision hours.
Feedback during the teaching period
Feedback will be given during supervision.
Student workload
supervision 24 hours
internship and thesis work 800 hours
Last updated on 01-07-2025