ESS409 Diploma Seminar

Faculty of Social Studies
Autumn 2018
Extent and Intensity
0/2/0. 14 credit(s). Type of Completion: z (credit).
Guaranteed by
doc. Mgr. Filip Černoch, Ph.D.
Department of International Relations and European Studies – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Olga Cídlová, DiS.
Prerequisites
Students enrol this course in their last intended term before they sit for final exam. Defence of the thesis is a part of the exam.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
The student’s task is to conduct independent research under the guidance of their supervisor in their chosen field of study. By the end of the course, students will analyze the results of this research and prepare the presentation of the research. They will compose an academic text, according to the length and formal standards common in their field (incl. structure of the thesis, abstract, key words, format, citation standard and list of references and bibliography). This involves the following specific outcomes:
- Defining a specific research topic in their field
- Organizing, designing, and managing independently conducted research
- Collecting and recording data
- Analyzing and interpreting the data
- Relating the data analysis to social science theory
- Composing an academic text meeting the theoretical, methodological and formal standards in their field
- Preparing to defend their thesis
Syllabus
  • The course has the form of individual consultations with the supervisor in all stages of thesis completion.
Literature
  • How to write a thesis. Edited by Rowena Murray. 3rd ed. Maidenhead, England: McGraw Hill, 2011, xviii, 325. ISBN 9780335244294. info
  • MARCZYK, Geoffrey R., David DEMATTEO and David FESTINGER. Essentials of research design and methodology. Hoboken, N.J.: John Wiley & Sons, 2005, x, 290. ISBN 9780471470533. info
  • BECHHOFER, Frank and Lindsay PATERSON. Principles of research design in the social sciences. 1st pub. London: Routledge, 2000, ix, 172. ISBN 0415214432. info
  • HAKIM, Catherine. Research design : strategies and choices in the design of social research. London: Routledge, 1987, xii, 211 s. ISBN 0-415-07911-X. info
Teaching methods
The student participates in individual consultations with the supervisor in all stages of thesis preparation, writing, and completion.
Assessment methods
The course is based on the student’s individual consultations with their thesis supervisor. The supervisor issues a credit (zápočet) based on the text submitted by the student into the Homework Vault of the Diploma Seminar in the IS. The course is successfully concluded in the regular deadline if the text is submitted into the Vault by the date determined each semester in the department term calendar. To be awarded a credit, the submitted text must also fulfil the KMVES designated criteria both in content and form. If a credit is not issued in the regular deadline, the student may edit the draft according to the supervisor’s instructions and resubmit to an alternate set date. In such a case, the thesis defence will take place in the following (or subsequent) semesters.
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught each semester.
The course is taught: in blocks.
Listed among pre-requisites of other courses
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2016, Autumn 2016, Spring 2017, Autumn 2017, Spring 2018, Spring 2019, Autumn 2019, Spring 2020, Autumn 2020, Spring 2021, Autumn 2021, Spring 2022, Autumn 2022, Spring 2023, Autumn 2023, Spring 2024, Autumn 2024, Spring 2025.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Autumn 2018, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/autumn2018/ESS409