Bachelor Thesis
Full course description
The Bachelor Thesis is a major component of the Arts and Culture programme and invites you to reflect upon and conduct a more in-depth analysis of topics, problems and/or approaches you have encountered during your studies and the graduation phase in particular. As the final academic project of the AC/CW bachelor program it enables you to convey and materialize your individual academic profile through a concrete academic product, on a topic related to the program. It offers you the opportunity to choose your own topic within a set of themes that is relevant to the program and work under supervision of an experienced staff member on a research paper of 8,000-10,000 words. This is substantially longer than most papers you have been writing so far. To complete this, you will apply the skills acquired in the courses Research and Writing 1 & 2 and Doing Research in Arts and Culture. You will also prepare for this work by setting up research design in the four-weekk course Writing a Research Proposal in period 4. You will research and write the actual Bachelor Thesis during period 5 and 6.
Course objectives
The students show their ability:
- To systematize theoretical and practical knowledge acquired during the study;
- To use their knowledge and insights (incl. methodological skills);
- To address theoretical and practical issues related to their specialisation;
- To work independently;
- To communicate their ideas and insights in writing to the reader;
- To research, summarize and logically reflect on the reading materials.
Prerequisites
ACU1900 & 2900 Research and Writing 1 and 2, ACU3014 Doing Research in Arts and Culture
Corequisites
Recommended reading
- Booth, W.C., Colomb, G.G., & Williams, J.M. (2008). The Craft of Research. (3rd, rev. ed.). Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
- Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences. (2009/2010). Style Sheet CW/AC. Maastricht. F Geetham, B. (2009). How to Write Your Undergraduate Dissertation. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan.
- Rawlins, J., & Metzger, S. (2009). The Writer’s Way. (7th, rev. ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin.