Master's Thesis (pdf) - SAMK

Criteria for the evaluation of the Master’s thesis Revised: on 20 September 2012Assessment criteria 5 (Excellent) 4 (Good) 3 (Good) 2 (Satisfactory) 1 (Satisfactory) FailChoice of topicThe purpose of theMaster’s thesis is todevelop and provethe student’s abilityto apply scientificinformation, to usethe selectedmethods foranalysing andsolving problems ofworking life and toworkinindependent,demanding expertduties. (GovernmentDecree on thePolytechnics, 15 May2003/352)– topic is notablycurrent, innovative andparticularly significantfor the development ofworking life– choice of topic iscomprehensivelyjustified, and the topic isclosely related to theneed for developing thefield– topic is current andimportant for thedevelopment of workinglife– choice of topic isclearly justified– topic is related to theneed for developing thefield– topic is justified with theneed for developing asingle working-lifeorganisation or the field ingeneral– approach isconventional– topicality andconnection withprofessional field orsignificance for thedevelopment of workinglife is inadequate– choice of topic isinsufficiently justified– topic is not connectedwith the aspect ofdeveloping working life orthe field and is based on theauthor’s personal interest– choice of topic is poorlyjustified or not justified at allCriteria for a failedperformance have notbeen defined because thesupervision process aimsat a pass.Use of theoretical basis (studies, literature, empirical data)use of theoreticalbasis andconstruction offramework– field-specificdevelopmentchallenges– framework tied to thetheoretical basisdemonstrates thestudent’scomprehensive andcritical familiarity withcurrent knowledge andmethodologicaltheoretical basis relatedto the thesis– frameworkdemonstrates thestudent’scomprehensivefamiliarity withknowledge andmethodologicaltheoretical basis relatedto the thesis– framework steers the– some familiarity with thetheoretical basis relatedto the thesis andmethodology, but thebasis is only partiallystructured as a frameworksteering the thesis– theoretical basis buildson the objectives of thedevelopment task or the– theoretical basis relatedto the thesis andmethodology is ratherlimited and framework isunstructured– the used theoreticalbasis only partly supportsthe structure of the thesisand the methodologicalprocesses– theoretical basis related tothe thesis and methodologyis inadequate and poorlyserves the objectives,purpose andmethodological processesof the thesis

– framework clearly andlogically steers thestructure of the thesisand the methodologicalprocesses– source material – source material iscurrent, comprehensive,international and of ahigh quality– source material hasbeen selected criticallyand used skilfully andcomprehensively,aiming at synthesisImplementation and resultsbackground,objectives anddefinitionschoice, suitability andcommand of methods– purpose, objectivesand problem are clearlydefined and reasoned– definitions are clearand well-founded– methods selectedsuccessfully in relationto the objectives of thethesis– use and justification ofmethods demonstratean excellent commandthereof– chain of reasoning isreliably and criticallyjustifiedstructure of the thesisand the methodologicalprocesses– theoretical basis hasbeen usedappropriately, and it hasbeen applied logically inthe thesis– source material iscurrent, comprehensiveand critically selected– source material hasbeen used skilfully,aiming at personalconclusions– purpose, objectivesand problem are clearlydefined and partlyreasoned– definitions are clear– methods selectedappropriately in relationto the objectives of thethesis– use and justification ofmethods demonstrate agood command thereof– chain of reasoning isreliably and well justifiedcentral concepts– source material is up-todateand comprehensive– source material hasbeen used appropriately– purpose, objectives andproblem are defined butinsufficiently reasoned– selected methods aresuitable for the thesis– use and justification ofmethods mainly incommand– chain of reasoning isclearly expressed– source material ismainly up-to-date butinadequate and one-sided– source material hasbeen used like in ascrapbook– purpose, objectives andproblem are described– selected methods aresuitable for the thesis butinsufficiently used– selection of methods isexplained superficially orinsufficiently– chain of reasoning isinsufficiently expressed– source material isinadequate and one-sided– purpose, objectives andproblem are describedfragmentarily and notreasoned– selection of methods israther unsuccessful– explanation for theselection of methods ismissing or faultyReliability ofresults/outputs– attainment ofobjectives set for thethesis and factorsinfluencing it arerecognised andreported transparently– attainment ofobjectives set for thethesis and factorsinfluencing it are mainlydescribed– results and outputs– attainment of objectivesset for the thesis andfactors influencing it areexpressed– results and outputs arereported– attainment of objectivesset for the thesis andfactors influencing it areinsufficiently evaluated– results and outputs arepresented in an– attainment of objectivesset for the thesis andfactors influencing it areinadequately evaluated– results and outputs arepresented superficially or

Usability ofresults/outputs in thedevelopment ofworking life– analytical andreflective approach ismanifest in thestructured way ofpresenting the results– results/outputs aresignificant andapplicable to thedevelopment of the fieldare reported clearly,thoroughly and carefully– results/outputs areconvincing andapplicable to thedevelopment of the field– results/outputs aresignificant for the client oroutput is generallyinteresting for the fieldunstructured manner– usability ofresults/outputs is limitedfragmentarily– results/outputs have littlesignificanceConclusions,connection betweenresults/outputs andtheoretical basisDiscussionReportingWritten expression– conclusions areconstructivelycommented and justifiedon the basis of thematerial– reflection on thetheoretical basis isconvincing andinsightful– thesis constitutes awell-functioning,balanced and logicalentity– discussion is critical,profound andconvincing– further plans are welljustified and insightful– lively, fluent, correctand analytical factuallanguage– headingssuccessfully illustratethe central content andaspects of the thesis– references and list ofreferences have beensystematically preparedin accordance withSAMK’s instructions (or– conclusions are clearfrom the perspective ofthe development of thefield– clear connectionbetween results/outputsand theoretical basis– discussion is thoroughand convincing– further plans arejustified and feasible– fluent, correct andanalytical factuallanguage– headings express thecentral content andaspects of the thesis– references and list ofreferences have beensystematically preparedin accordance withSAMK’s instructions (orother official reference– conclusions are justified– results/outputs andtheoretical basis supporteach other– discussion iscomprehensive– further plans arepresented– clear and mainly correctfactual language– headings express thecentral content of thethesis– references and list ofreferences have beenmainly prepared inaccordance with theinstructions– conclusions aresuperficial– reflection on theconnection betweenresults/outputs andtheoretical basis isinsufficient– discussion is superficialor fragmentary– further plans are forcedor inappropriate– mainly correct factuallanguage– headings are nonspecificor fragmentary– references and list ofreferences have beenpartly prepared inaccordance with theinstructions– conclusions areinadequate– reflection on theconnection betweenresults/outputs andtheoretical basis is missing– discussion is inadequate– no further plans arepresented- major deficits in language– headings are fragmentaryand illogical– referencing does notcomply with the instructionsor comprises severaldifferent styles– thesis has no logicalstructure– plenty of incorrectlanguage use– clumsy and incorrectsentences– references areinsufficient and faulty

Layoutother official referenceinstructions)– thesis layout iscareful and entity isappropriately illustratedinstructions)– layout is clean andcomplies with the thesisinstructions– layout mostly complieswith the thesisinstructions– layout deviates greatlyfrom the thesisinstructions– layout is unfinished anddoes not comply with thethesis instructions– layout does not complywith the thesisinstructionsWeighting coefficientsChoice of topic 15%Use of theoretical basis (studies, literature, empirical data) 30%Implementation and results 40%Reporting 15%