Study book: Course information
9. Thesis grading criteria
General thesis characteristics
- A Master’s thesis is an independent research assignment.
- The work should lead to your own well-founded conclusions, based on the empirical work.
- You are to link your study with current research in the field.
- You are also to link to relevant theories, and the results are to be formulated in a way that makes it clear how you have contributed to the research in the field with new perspectives.
- You are also to present your study in such a way that it is possible for readers to understand and evaluate the results.
The criteria for grading are as follows:
- Formulation of the purpose (why this is important research), aims (what are the specific objectives) and research questions of the thesis and a reasonable delimitation of the empirical study that is well-motivated in relation to the thesis' purpose.
- Familiarity with current research in the area of study.
- Familiarity with central theories of relevance, choice and motivation of theoretical starting points and definitions of central concepts.
- Choice of method and treatment of source material.
- The theory-method-implementation link, i.e., a thesis disposition where the results of the analysis are presented clearly, and the scientifically interesting aspects are highlighted and linked to theoretical tools and current research.
- Implementation of the study in an ethically acceptable manner.
- Formalities, use of templates and correct use of language.
- The subject’s degree of difficulty and originality and the author’s independence and effort.
Grading (A-F)
- The grade A constitutes the highest grade on the scale and the remaining grades follow in descending order where the grade E is the lowest grade on the scale that will result in a pass. The grade F means that the student’s performance is assessed as fail.
F: direct fail criteria include: not having provided feedback to fellow students (during course, not as reviewer at thesis seminar); not having regularly met with supervisor (and did not inform about problems) or posted to fora in a timely manner according to instructions for the given module; thesis not having a section on ethics; thesis not answering the stated research question(s); thesis not having enough references; thesis less than 40 pages of core text (in LNU template) or more than 100.
E: Purpose, aims and RQs (research questions) are roughly formulated; key relevant literature is referenced; relevant theory is simply applied and concepts defined; choice and application of methodology are satisfactory but far from ideal, with ethical concerns being addressed; basic, sound results are reported and put in relation to literature and theory at a basic level; formatting, language, and templates are used/applied with a number of errors; the choice-of-research and implementation are minimally challenging, while the author exhibits a low level of effort and independence.
D: Purpose, aims and RQs are clearly formulated; sufficient relevant literature is referenced; relevant theory is applied and concepts defined; choice and application of methodology are appropriate, with ethical concerns being addressed; sufficient, sound results are related to literature and theory; formatting, language, and templates are used/applied with some errors; the choice-of-research and implementation are not particularly challenging, while the author exhibits a lower level of effort and independence.
C: Purpose, aims and RQs are clearly formulated; sufficient relevant literature is referenced; relevant theory is applied to a satisfactory level and concepts are defined; choice and application of methodology are appropriate, with ethical concerns being addressed; sound results are reported at a good extent and well related to literature and theory; formatting, language, and templates are used/applied well, albeit with some errors; the choice-of-research and implementation are somewhat challenging, while the author exhibits a sufficient level of effort and independence.
B: Purpose, aims and RQs are very clearly formulated; relevant literature is amply referenced; relevant theory is thoroughly applied and concepts are well defined; choice and application of methodology are very appropriate, with ethical concerns being addressed; ample, sound results are related to literature and theory; formatting, language, and templates are used/applied with a very few errors; the choice-of-research and implementation are quite challenging, while the author exhibits a high level of effort and independence.
A: Purpose, aims and RQs are very clearly formulated; relevant literature is amply referenced; relevant theory is thoroughly applied and concepts are well defined; choice and application methodology are excellent, with ethical concerns being addressed; ample, sound results are reported and related to literature and theory; formatting, language, and templates are used/applied flawlessly; the choice-of-research and implementation are highly challenging, while the author exhibits a great deal of effort and independence.