Description
Students choose (one of) the thesis seminar(s) offered within their specialisation. It is strongly recommended that students start thinking about the topic of their thesis before the start of the classes. Attendance is compulsory for all classes. Detailed information about the study material and the writing process can be found on Brightspace.
Course Objectives
Objective 1: To deepen the understanding of theories and methods related to research on the theme of the Master Specialisation.
Objective 2: Applying them to a specific topic as part of the student’s Master thesis project.
General information session
See 'Information and Deadlines' for the time and date of the information session.
Thesis seminar Themes:
Theme 101: Researching the Fractured: Power, Identity and the State (Dr. R. Sharenkova-Toshkova)
‘Identity’ is a concept that is increasingly important in the study of politics, especially in the context of states and nations. With an ongoing wars, the insecurity of Europe, nationalism in former communist countries and even the increasingly supplementary digital identities and the debate on multiculturalism highlights the importance and relevance of studying identities with an interdisciplinary approach. Beyond the sense of belonging, common language and history identities are important to understand as they also affects the way we communicate with others.
This seminar will introduce and discuss theories, ideologies and/or ideas of nation, state and identity building. It combines these ideas with themes that are directly or indirectly related to relevant concepts and additionally builds on a variety of approaches in the social sciences.
This thesis seminar welcomes projects, among others, on the construction of political identities, the notion of national identities (including memory, language and religion) and the idea of ‘the other’ (external and internal). The seminar is open to topics discussing the cultural and emotional depth of identities, their shaping of politics, as well as interdisciplinary approaches to the role of media in identity building, regarding Europe and the Nation State. The seminar accommodates research projects on cases of economic and social crisis and the rise of the ‘national’ in Europe and beyond. From political and cultural to national and citizen identities the seminar aims to discuss and analyse the diffusion of identities in modern societies.
Additional Information
Please note that for some seminars there will be no additional substantive readings than the ones discussed in the courses they build on.
Registration
See 'Information and Deadlines'.
Examination
The thesis seminar is composed of a research proposal (first 8 weeks) and a thesis (remaining of the course). The research proposal ensures that the student is on the right track to carry out the research and write the thesis. It must be approved by both readers (see below), but is not awarded a grade. The grade of the thesis corresponds to 100% of the grade of the thesis seminar.
Research Proposal
The research proposal includes a problem statement, theoretical foundation, conceptualization as well as a sound explanation of the methods and techniques for data collection and analysis. The proposal must be approved by the supervisor and a second reader. The second reader will be designated by the Director of Studies. Please note that teachers are not obliged to provide thesis supervision if the proposal is not approved. The research proposal is not graded, it receives only a pass/revise/fail evaluation.
Master Thesis
The MSc thesis needs to comply with high standards of academic research. The formal requirements of the Master thesis are stated on the page ‘Thesis seminar information and deadlines’. The thesis evaluation form with the evaluation criteria will be published on Brightspace.
Students that drop or fail the course have to retake the complete thesis seminar (in the 2nd semester of the next academic year). Students should contact the Exam Committee if they are unable to complete the master thesis by the deadline due to circumstances beyond their control.
Timetable
See 'MyTimetable'.