Mas­ter's Thes­is

Course content

The Master’s thesis is the final assignment required to complete the study programme. It is either a monograph or article-based (see details below) and deals with a specific topic in a cohesive manner. The subject of the thesis must be within the programme profile’s particular academic identity and theoretical field(s).

The thesis is to be motivated by a problem with relevance to the contents of the study programme. This problem is to be addressed through acknowledged research methods including, but not limited to, the use of empirical research methods and/or design-oriented methods.

Students identify a potential topic and develop their research approach under the guidance of a supervisor. Finding a supervisor is in the responsibility of the students (see my.cbs.dk). Students embark on independent research activities over multiple months in which they also successively write up their work. 

The supervisor can give feedback at multiple stages of this process, for example, on the topic delimitation, planned methodology, thesis structure, as well as on drafts of individual chapters of the thesis. Supervisors are not supposed to review drafts of results and conclusion sections of the thesis before the final hand-in deadline.

Article-based Master's thesis

The research conducted in the Master's thesis may lend itself to a format that is suitable for presentation to an academic audience. In such cases, students may agree with their supervisor to write a Master's thesis in the form of a research article. An article-based Master's thesis consists of two main parts: An extended summary and an article manuscript. The extended summary typically serves as a framework for the article, providing context and explaining the choices made during the writing process. The article manuscript, on the other hand, is a ready-to-submit piece of scholarly work for a selected peer-reviewed journal or academic conference with proceedings within the study programme's core scientific field. Students must also include a short introductory chapter explaining how the extended summary and the article manuscript complement each other and justifying the choice of the intended academic outlet for the article.

In the extended summary, the student(s) should elaborate on or describe otherwise relevant features of the research that add depth to what is included in the article, helping them to demonstrate that the above-mentioned learning objectives have been achieved (e.g., more extensive discussion of theory; analytical approach; methodological issues, traditions, and reflections; ethical issues; contextual and policy implications). The extended summary should be between 15 and 30 standard pages in length (excluding table of contents, foreword, summary, reference list, and appendix), depending on the length and complexity of the article manuscript. However, if two students are working together on a joint article-based thesis, the length of the summary should be increased to 25 to 40 pages and 35 to 50 standard pages for three students. The extended summary must include a separate reference list. The extended summary and the article manuscript combined cannot exceed the page limits listed above (i.e., 80/120/160 pages depending on the number of students).

The article manuscript should be ready for submission and must therefore conform to the formal publication guidelines for the chosen academic outlet (i.e., journal or conference). The length of the article will vary, but most outlets require a length between 5,000 and 12,000 words. Information on the types of articles that can be submitted, article structure, word count, referencing style, and how to submit can be found in the outlet’s submission guidelines, which should be included in the appendix of the thesis. Students are strongly encouraged to publish the article, but submission to the outlet may not occur until after the oral defence.

The article manuscript is an independent piece of scholarly work and therefore must be written solely by the student(s). Supervision during the thesis is not sufficient to justify co-authorship for the supervisor. Rather, after the oral defence, the student(s) and supervisor may consider whether the article manuscript merits further processing and editing for submission to the chosen academic outlet. The supervisor's co-authorship will then be discussed, and the Danish Code of Conduct for Research Integrity must be considered. 

In conclusion, the article-based Master's thesis is an excellent way for students to develop and demonstrate their research skills, while contributing to the discourse in their academic field. This format is particularly – but not exclusively – relevant for students considering further academic study or a research career.