SUM4091 – Master's Thesis in Development, Environment and Cultural Change
Schedule, syllabus and examination date
Course content
The master’s thesis is an independent scientific product. Through the work on the master’s thesis, the student should demonstrate the ability to analyse a specific topic in an original and meaningful fashion. The student should demonstrate a mastry of relevant theory and/or literature, carry out empirical research and write a scholarly treatise that encapsulates the approach and the results.
Learning outcome
After completing the course, you will have:
- learned how to plan and complete an extensive research project
- learned how to gather and critically systematize and analyse a substantial amount of information on your selected topic
- increased knowledge of relevant interdisciplinary theory and research methods
- gained academic writing skills in English
Admission to the course
This course is only for students who are admitted to the Master Programme Development, Environment and Cultural Change (master's two years). Students must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in StudentWeb, including the semesters they are working on the Master`s thesis.
Formal prerequisite knowledge
Admission to the masters programme Development, Environment and Cultural Change and passing grades in the compulsory courses:
- SUM4100 – Research Methods and Project Design
- SUM4200 – Advanced Introduction to Development and Environment
- SUM4300 – Text Lab
For students who started their CES Master`s degree before Autumn 2012:
- SUM4000 – Development and environment: Theory and policy challenges (discontinued)
- SUM4100A
- SUM4011B – Research Methods (II)
- SUM4012 – Cross-Cultural Perspectives on the Environment
Teaching
Mainly individual supervision (or supervision in groups). The students are assigned a supervisor after the completion of SUM4100 – Research Methods and Project Design.
As a general rule, the scope of the supervision relationship should encompass from 10 - 15 hours, beginning with an initial meeting in the student’s second semester and ending with the thesis submission. Meetings between advisor and student are more effective when both agree beforehand on the subject of the meeting and the issues/questions to be discussed. In the final writing phase, the subject will usually be drafts of sections of the thesis, which should be submitted to the advisor in advance of meetings.
Beginning in autumn 2020, the course will encompass not only individual supervision and writing the thesis itself but also participation in Masterlab sessions. The sessions will be divided unequally between the autumn and the spring semesters. Read more about regulations regarding compulsory activities.
Examination
Starting Spring 2025: The final Master`s degree exam consists of an individual Master`s thesis (80-100 pages, front matter, appendix, and bibliography not included) and an oral examination. A commission consisting of one internal and one external examiner assesses the thesis, and the oral examination may adjust the final grade. The oral examination will only be held if the Master`s thesis is given a passing grade.
Until autumn 2024: The final Master`s degree exam consists of an individual Master`s thesis (90-130 pages, front matter, appendix, and bibliography not included) and an oral examination. A commission consisting of one internal and one external examiner assesses the thesis, and the oral examination may adjust the final grade. The oral examination will only be held if the Master`s thesis is given a passing grade.
For practical information, please read more about Submitting the Master's Thesis at SUM.
Language of examination
English
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
Resit an examination
A master’s thesis that is not passed may be resubmitted only once, and then within the agreed time and in revised form. A master’s thesis that is passed may not be resubmitted in revised form.
If you?withdraw from the exam?after the deadline, this will be counted as an examination attempt.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.