8. Final thesis seminar

Final thesis examination seminar

  • The examiner schedules the seminar to take place in the last week of the course and announces the time and Zoom link in the forum of the final module.
  • The seminar is to take cca 60 minutes.
  • During the seminar:
    1. The examiner opens to seminar and asks the author for any final changes, errors etc. he/she noticed after the submission (up to 5 min).
    2. The examiner invites the reviewer to briefly summarise the thesis and proceed with key reflections and questions to the author (15-20 min).
    3. The examiner gives her/his comments and suggestions.

The reviewer's assignment

  • Each student needs to review one thesis.
    • Who will review which thesis will be announced once all theses are submitted ahead of the examination seminar.
  • The assignment is a 2-page written report and an oral presentation / discussion.
    • The reviewer is to post the 2-page report (cca 1000 words) to the forum as a reply to the post by the examiner, as soon as possible and no later than 24 hrs before the start of the thesis seminar.
      • The report should include:
        • Opinions about the thesis, using the grading criteria as a checklist. 
        • A list of formalities (e.g., referencing etc.) to address. 
        • At the end, a short summary of the thesis' strengths and weaknesses, suggestions for improvement, including formalities and language use. 
    • At the examination seminar the reviewer brings up key aspects from the written report, both as her/his reflection and questions for discussion with the author.
      • This is to primarily focus on the choice of theory, empirical material and method, interpretations and conclusions.
      • The review is to be both constructive and critical.
      • You have to dare to point out issues and to provide alternative suggestions.

The respondent's task

  • As respondent, you have to be prepared to explain and argue for the reasons for your choices. You should be able to argue for your choices and interpretations but also take constructive critique. Have open attitude. There are always aspects to discuss and challenge in a thesis, no matter how good it is.
  • If the reviewer wants to look at empirical material that is not generally available, such as questionnaire responses or transcriptions of interviews, the respondent is to provide these on request before the seminar.

After the thesis examination seminar

  • The examiner sends the summary of changes needed within 24hrs of the seminar, as a reply to the post announcing the examination date and place.
  • The author makes the changes, using tracked changes and sends the revised version as a reply to the above post, within 10 working days since the examiner posted the summary of changes.
  • The examiner and the supervisor discuss how to grade the thesis. The examiner then informs the thesis author of the grade with a brief description of the grading decision. 

  • The author uploads the final PDF to designated place for plagiarism check with Ouriginal. 

  • The examiner checks and informs the author if fine to proceed with registration in DiVA.

  • The examiner checks the DiVA version and enters the grade to Ladok.