Study Guide

Objectives (course unit)

This course familiarises the student with the principles and methods of academic research and academic writing at Master’s level at a university of applied sciences.

After completing the course, the student will

• know the key concepts, rules and ethics of academic research
• know some of the most common research approaches and methods
• be able to analyze academic texts
• have developed their own Research Plan
• be able to choose suitable research methodologies for their research
• plan their research schedule
• create a structure for their thesis

Content (course unit)

• Analysing other thesis works
• Formulating research questions
• Concepts in academic research
• Looking at research approaches and methods
• Tips on how to write a thesis
• Understanding the ethics of using Artificial Intelligence in the thesis writing process
• Familiarisation with TAMK’s thesis writing process
• Producing a Research Plan

Prerequisites (course unit)

None

Further information (course unit)

None

Assessment criteria, pass/fail (course unit)

In order to pass the course, the student must have been able to complete all the course tasks, develop a Research Plan to a satisfactory degree and have submitted their thesis topic proposal.

Location and time

Online meetings

Exam schedules

No exam

Assessment methods and criteria

Student is able to use academic concepts of research, identifies academic texts and is able to analyze them. Student is able to write thesis/research plan where he/she implements skills of setting research objectives and justification, research questions, data and methods and introduce theoretical background including suitable topic references.

Assessment scale

Pass/Fail

Teaching methods

Lectures, team working, individual writing task : thesis research plan

Learning materials

Will be published during the course

Student workload

5 ECTS = 135 hours of student work.

Completion alternatives

Must be discussed with teacher beforehand

Practical training and working life cooperation

The thesis is intended to be related to the student's work environment.

International connections

International student teams and working life connections

Further information

Course is mainly virtual including learning tasks in virtual learning environment

Assessment criteria - pass/fail (Not in use, Look at the Assessment criteria above)

Student is able to analyze and write academic text and write thesis/research plan on the personal field of study based on thesis instructions. Teacher might ask to fulfill report or thesis/research plan.