The Master's Thesis

Information about what you need to know regarding the Master's thesis and what the entire process looks like.

When writing your thesis, you should follow these steps: 

  1. Register for and participate in the Research Seminar of your major subject / Master's Programme. Please note that you must fulfil the prerequisites to participate in the seminar (see the course description in Sisu). In the Research Seminar, you will choose or be assigned a topic for your thesis. You will also have a thesis supervisor.  

  1. Remember to fill in the data processing description.  

  1. Use the right structure and follow the formatting guide  (NB! use another browser than Google Chrome to access the formatting instructions) when you begin to write your Master's thesis. 

  1. The scope of the thesis should be 60-70 pages of factual content. The maximum number of pages for an acceptable Master's thesis (including cover page, tables of contents, references, and appendices) is 100 pages. Deviations from the page count are only allowed if agreed upon in advance with the supervisor. 

  1. Familiarise yourself with the Writing and Referencing tools on the library's homepage and return to the writing guides during the thesis process. 

  1. If you study in Swedish and want to write your Master's thesis in English, you must apply for permission to do so (see below). In order to write your Master's thesis in English, you must fulfil one of the specified criteria before submitting your thesis. Check this at an early stage! Your Master's thesis will not be assessed if you do not fulfil one of the given criteria for writing it in English. 

  1. Write an abstract of your thesis in the language in which the thesis is written (Swedish or English, or possibly English AND Swedish, see below). 

  1. If you have written your Master's thesis in English, but are studying in Swedish, you must submit an abstract (approx. 1 page) of your thesis in both English and Swedish. The abstracts are placed directly after the cover page, first the English and then the Swedish version. 

  1. When you consider that your Master's thesis is ready, follow the instructions for submitting your Master's thesis (see below). It is good to check with the supervisor that the thesis can be submitted. Please note that a thesis that has been submitted cannot be withdrawn. 

When your Master's thesis is finished, you must submit it according to the instructions below. Note that it is your responsibility that the version of your thesis you submit is the final one and that you have done all the corrections/additions agreed with your thesis supervisor. Once the thesis is submitted, no corrections or additions can be made. Also note that a thesis that has been submitted for grading, and that is failed cannot be submitted again.    

  1. When you have received final approval to submit your thesis, contact your thesis supervisor and the department amanuensis to decide a date for your maturity test .  

  1. Fill in the electronic form for Submission of Master's Thesis by logging in with your Hanken user ID and password. You have to attach a PDF/A-file of your thesis to the form. Read the Instructions for saving your file as PDF/A. If you study in Swedish but write your Master's thesis in English, you must also include an abstract in Swedish. If you need more information about publishing of your thesis or questions about PDF/A format, please contact: library@hanken.fi.  

The E-form must be submitted at the latest during the day of deadline . If you miss the deadline, your thesis is going to be evaluated at the next available Academic Council meeting, provided that you have submitted all materials as instructed. You are responsible that all the material concerning your thesis is submitted on time. We will not contact you if some of the materials are missing from your submission, neither can we begin your thesis process.

If there is any kind of problems with the E-form, please contact Daniela Smeds (daniela.smeds@hanken.fi ).

  1. Write the maturity test at the agreed date. The maturity test must be approved by the supervisor approximately one week before the Education Council meeting - this must be taken into account when booking a time to write the maturity test. Please note that your thesis cannot be processed by the Education Council until your maturity test has been assessed and approved. 

Remember to apply for a degree certificate when you have submitted your Master's thesis and completed all other courses included in your degree. 

IB Bookstore in Helsinki will help you if you wish to have a binded copy of your thesis, for your personal use.  

The Master's thesis is usually written in Swedish in the Swedish-speaking programme and in English in the English-speaking programme. 

If you study in Swedish but want to write your Master's thesis in English, you must fulfil the English language requirements and inform the examiner of the seminar course that you are writing your Master's thesis in English. 

Permission process:  

1) Consider the following carefully before deciding to write in English:  

  • The recommendation is that the thesis in the Swedish- speaking Master's programme at Hanken is written in Swedish. 

  • For those writing the thesis in English, the course 5160 Academic Writing is recommended, but not required. 

  • The quality of the language is important for the overall impression of the thesis and therefore affects the grade. As a student, you should recognise your responsibility and the consequences of your decision if you do not have sufficient language skills. 

  • A thesis written in English by a student in the Swedish-speaking Master's programme at Hanken must always include a Swedish summary that the Swedish teacher approves before the assessment of the thesis is final and communicated to you. The Swedish teacher does not correct the language, but it is the student's responsibility to ensure that it is of good quality. 

  1. You apply to write your thesis in English by informing the examiner of the course seminar, so that this can be taken into account when assigning supervisors. Please note that if you choose to write in English, it is possible that you will be assigned a supervisor who does not speak Swedish. In that case, all communication with your supervisor can be in English. 

  2. The examiner will not necessarily check that you fulfil the English language requirement (see below). It is your responsibility to ensure that you meet one of the criteria listed below. If it is later found that you do not, you will not be allowed to submit a thesis written in English. 

English language requirements  

In order to be granted permission to write your Master's thesis in English, you must demonstrate at least one of the following achievements:  

  • A completed exchange semester in which you studied in English as part of your Bachelor's or Master's studies at Hanken.  

  • A completed Bachelor's, Master's or University of Applied Sciences degree in English, either in Finland or abroad.  

  • A completion of both courses 51003 Apprentice Level (2cr) and 51004 Mastering Academic Writing (3cr) OR the course 5160 Academic Writing (5/6cr) OR Professional Academic Writing OR the course 5171 Upscaling Your Academic Writing, with a minimum grade of 3 (good). 

Please note that you can only be permitted to write your Master's thesis in English on the above criteria. 

If you are studying in Swedish at Hanken, but have been allowed to write your master's thesis in English, you must write an abstract in both English and Swedish. 

All Master's theses are public and cannot be classified as confidential. The theses become public once they are approved. Any potentially confidential background material shall not be submitted to Hanken as a part of the Master's thesis. Even if your thesis is sponsored by a company, you must not include confidential material in your thesis. If you have confidential background material that the reviewers of your thesis have to read to be able to grade your thesis, you must submit this material separately directly to the reviewers. It is therefore your own responsibility to decide how to divide the content between the Master's thesis and the background material.

Hanken’s programmes and courses are continuously evaluated and developed through the Assurance of Learning process (AoL). The Master's theses are an important point of measurement for assessing what you, as a student, have learned during your studies. Master's theses are therefore assessed using an Assurance of Learning – assessment rubric  which also serves as a tool to support you during the writing process.

Latest

Events

09
Oct

Hanken Network Day

10:00
Helsinki