Examination arrangement

Course content

The aim of the Master's Thesis is for the student to complete a defined and independent research project under supervision following relevant research ethics. The topic of the Master's Thesis should be within the topics covered by the master's program in Clinical Health Science, and specifically in line with the chosen specialization. The thesis should be oriented towards patient groups or the arena where patient health services are provided. Research focus areas may be the assessment of mechanisms, risks and causes, methods, treatments and interventions or classification and categorization of patient groups. Also topics within health care organization, external conditions, costs and interaction between sectors and professions may be chosen. The topic and thesis statement should be developed together with the supervisor(s). It is advisable to link the research to active research groups and clinical projects within the specialization. Work with the thesis will include planning (designing thesis question and project description) and carrying out the research project. This includes data analysis and writing a project report following ethical aspects, guidelines of research and good scientific practice within the applied research method. The Master's Thesis has to be written individually. More information about the thesis is given in the Guidelines for the Master's Thesis at the Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. These guidelines must be followed. For the Master's Thesis in Clinical Health Sciences the thesis must follow the IMRaD-structure, and has a maximum of 25 000 words. If the thesis is written as a scientific paper to a specific journal, it is necessary to add a summary article ("kappe"). The summary must include theoretical and methodological aspects of the masters project that can not be fully covered within the format of a scientific paper. Such theoretical aspects may be more indepth theoretical accounts and discussions, whereas methodological aspects may include critical reflections of methodological issues and limitations of the study. The thesis' summary also allows the candidate to lift the discussion to a more general level and reflect on how the theoretical perspectives have been applied in the study and also how the study contributes to the existing base of knowledge.

Learning outcome

After completing KLH3901, the student should: Knowledge - have thorough knowledge of scientific methods in the research field - have in-depth knowledge of the theme the thesis is built upon Skills - should be able to formulate a precise research statement - be able to scientifically test and answer a research statement - have skills in preparing and analyzing study data - have skills in preparing the results in an academic format using sound language and precise statements - identify and discuss research ethics in general and specifically related to the thesis - present his/her own thesis statement and discuss the results in light of relevant literature - identify challenges concerning the theme of the thesis and discuss relevant methodological approaches General competencies - complete an independent, defined research project, under supervision following guidelines for research ethics - know how to present a research statement and discuss the results critically by use of scientific literature - describe a scientific work in a clearly written report (the Master's Thesis) - contribute to development of knowledge in the field of the thesis

Learning methods and activities

A project description must be approved before the project is started. The project description should be submitted at the end of the second semester.

The students are obliged to attend all activities in the Master's seminar, including oral presentation of their project plan or progress report. The master's seminar is a learning arena where the focus is on the entire master's project process. The master's seminar has sessions and other activities in all four semesters.

Compulsory assignments

• Master seminar

Further on evaluation

The Master's Thesis is evaluated on the basis of the written work and an oral exam. The examiners will set a preliminary grade on the written work before the oral exam. The oral exam consists of a 20 minutes long presentation and an 1 hour long examination. The grade given on the written work may be adjusted after the oral exam; maximally one grade, up or down. The student is only notified of the final grade, not the temporary. If the written work is given the grade F, no oral examination will be held. In case of not passed exam, the candidate must submit a new version of the Master's thesis within 3-6 months.

Specific conditions

Required previous knowledge

The student must be admitted to the Master of Science in Clinical Health Science. In order to be eligible to submit the Master's Thesis the student must have passed all exams, i.e. compulsory and elective courses worth 60 credits in total.

Credit reductions