1. Joan Lofgren, Program Director
BACHELOR’S THESIS
INFO SESSION 2
Joan Lofgren, Program Director
AALTO UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF BUSINESS Mikkeli Campus BScBA Degree Program
October 11, 2017
Oct. 11, 2017

2. Agenda Purposes of the thesis & requirements Selecting a topic
Key elements of the process
Thesis grading rubric
Academic Integrity
Other issues
Next sessions/key dates
Oct. 11, 2017

3. 1. Purposes of the thesis—to:
Gain experience in academic research
Plan and implement a research project
Understand and apply theoretical approaches
Strengthen academic writing skills
Gain transferrable skills
Experience working independently
Analytic skills – problem-solving
Field work, eg contacting companies
Oct. 11, 2017

4. Essential Requirements
Basic standards – the thesis must be written in:
the field of international business
English
formal academic style
Academic standards – it must:
rely on academic literature
have a theoretical foundation
Oct. 11, 2017

5. Essential Requirements (cont.)
Management of the thesis project—you are expected to:
meet all deadlines (time management)
maintain communication with your supervisor
participate actively in the thesis meetings and workshops
Personal ethical standards – it must:
be your own work (no plagiarism)
give appropriate credit for the work of other scholars
Oct. 11, 2017

6. The research hourglass Source: http://www. socialresearchmethods
Oct. 11, 2017

7. 2. Selecting the Thesis Topic
Current knowledge
Where are you on the research hourglass at present?
Are you familiar with the vocabulary/terminology around this topic?
What will you need to do to specify the topic?
Pairwork activity: One person talks about his/her topic for one minute, then the other person in the pair does the same. What did you learn in this exercise?
Oct. 11, 2017

8. 2. Motivation & interest/s
Personal interest
Develop your current expertise
Potential professional interest
Interests of key stakeholders
Individual activity: in 2-3 minutes, write down a few ideas on your personal motivation in the thesis process
Oct. 11, 2017

9. 3. Resources Time – manageable in this time frame?
Financial – need to do field work?
Languages – enough sources available in the ones you read? Do a quick search.
Overall: a suitable topic for you, now?
Oct. 11, 2017

10. In IB terms Current knowledge – what you know
Internal capabilities of the firm – you!
Firm-specific advantages, networks
Core competences
Motivation & interest/s – what you care about
Internal versus external motivation, ie your interest in the project
Your interests related to the project
The interests of stakeholders related to your project
Resources – what you can mobilize
Resource view of the firm + networked view
Who is standing behind you, beside you. . . “using” your social capital network in the best possible way.
Oct. 11, 2017

11. Research comfort zone Find a balance. . . Creativity versus pragmatism
Ambition versus feasibility
Stepping out of comfort zone vs. personal resources needed for the research
Individual/Pair work task:
Draw your research comfort zone/s in concentric circles
Where you are today?
List 1-3 things that you could do in the thesis process that are outside the zone.
Discuss your diagram with a neighbor.
Oct. 11, 2017

12. Healthy panic Deadline for Indication of Interest Area form:
October 26, 2017
Have your panic attack now, and start talking with friends, family, program director
Oct. 11, 2017

13. 3. Key parts of the process
Research plan – road map
Thesis outline – evolves with your research
Draft reference list – signposting where you are
Literature review – key in undergrad research
Methodology – driven by research questions
Interpreting findings – humility and hedging
Oct. 11, 2017

14. 3a.Research Plan: The First Step
Interest and relationship to thesis topic -- cf motivation/resources
Research problem – trend, puzzle, something to follow up on
Research question(s) – avoid either/or questions
Research objectives – how you will address the questions
Significance of the research – why should we care?
Methodology – desk or field research?
Literature to be used – diagnostic tool
Critique of a journal article related to your topic – rusty skills?
Action plan – use a Gantt chart! (see next slide)
Deadline for first draft of Research Plan:
December 1, 2017
Oct. 11, 2017

15. Sample Gantt Chart Source: http://slideplayer.com/slide/7687098/
Oct. 11, 2017

16. 3b. Thesis Outline
Helps identify the flow of the thesis and indicates the direction and detail of the thesis to the supervisor.
Should be updated constantly to match your actual research
Use this thesis outline to develop the table of contents of the thesis.
The electronic form “model outline” is available on Into.
Deadline for first draft of your thesis outline:
Dec. 14, 2017
Oct. 11, 2017

17. 3c. Reference List Purposes include:
Digging deeper into the literature on your topic
Diagnosing any problems with your literature review
Serving as a checklist for next steps in lit review work.
Deadline for draft reference list:
January 10, 2018
Oct. 11, 2017

18. 3d. Purposes of the Literature Review—to:
Assess the situation
Chart what is already known about the topic.
Identify possible gaps in the current research.
Facilitate problem definition
Immerse yourself in the subject
Become proficient in the language of this field.
Transferrable skill for later studies/working life.
Develop your own framework for analysis
Conceptual frameworks developed by others
Adapt? Develop a new one of your own?
Oct. 11, 2017

19. Keep in mind re: the literature review
What it is. . .a survey of scholarly books, articles and other sources relevant to a particular issue, area of research, theory or methodology
What it is not. . . a list of article summaries (he said this, she said that, they said another thing) – you structure the discussion, the themes, the headings.
More discussion of the lit review coming on Nov. 16.
Deadline for first draft of Literature Review:
February 2, 2017
Oct. 11, 2017

20. 3e. Common methods used Case studies Survey Semi-structured interviews
Questionnaire (using eg Webropol, SurveyMonkey)
Structured/standardized—directly administered/online
Closed vs. open-ended questions
Questions must be approved by supervisor before administering
Semi-structured interviews
Experts – for background
Small set for rich description, some generalization if clear pattern emerges
Content analysis
Oct. 11, 2017

21. 3f. Interpreting findings
Common pitfall: over-generalizing based on your findings
Learn to use hedging language
Listen to your supervisor if they alert you to problems in the interpretation.
Your interpretation will be determined in part by your methods.
Oct. 11, 2017

22. 4. Thesis Grading Rubric
Used by all supervisors, at least to grade the final draft of the thesis and final version.
Shows areas for improvement.
Grade of 0 in one attribute results in failing grade for the thesis (at final stage).
Different aspects are weighted differently.
Project management is included, ie whether you meet deadlines, participation in info sessions and workshops.
The rubric is available on Into:
Oct. 11, 2017

23. 5. Academic Integrity
Academic Integrity is a core value in any university.
Dishonest academic work of any kind strictly forbidden and is subject to severe disciplinary action.
Each student has the final responsibility for her/his learning and for knowing what is permitted and what is not permitted.
The Academic Integrity Confirmation form you signed in your first year of studies is still in force.
See the Program’s Citation and Referencing Guide: The Harvard System for more details on plagiarism:
Oct. 11, 2017

24. Turnitin
We will use Turnitin as a writing support tool, and to check for plagiarism in the thesis process.
A high similarity percentage doesn’t automatically mean plagiarism has occurred – it could mean there is too much direct citation, not enough paraphrasing.
Keep in mind that resubmitting work in Turnitin can take 24 hours!
More information on Turnitin will be provided in a later info session (Nov. 29, 2017).
Oct. 11, 2017

25. 6. Other issues Role of the thesis supervisor
Meets with students to discuss their work, mainly individually but also as a group if the supervisor so wishes.
Academic expert and mentor
Provides advice on literature and methodology
Provides feedback on work submitted
Evaluator of thesis
Reads and evaluates thesis
Submits thesis grade
Oct. 11, 2017

26. Keep in mind. . .
Your thesis supervisor has commitments at home, he/she is not available in the same way as professors are during a 3-week module.
Don’t expect instant answers to your questions, so ask questions early enough to resolve them without pressuring your supervisor.
Example—what not to do: You’ve set up an interview and only send the interview questions to your supervisor for review the day before. . .
Oct. 11, 2017

27. Initiative, taking opportunities
Your performance matters!
Non-starters must drop out of the process.
Performance review by supervisor late Feb.
Overall performance affects grade
Information Specialist Jaana Santala available for info retrieval sessions.
All relevant documents on Into (open intranet)
Oct. 11, 2017

28. Contacting the staff
Talk to Mari Syväoja about any concerns questions about the process in general, with your supervisor about thesis-specific issues.
If you have academic concerns not addressed in these ways (eg your thesis topic), contact me.
If you later consider dropping out of the thesis process, think again – weigh the consequences of postponing versus the marginal potential gain from finishing the thesis later. Contact Mari or me if you are considering dropping out!
Oct. 11, 2017

29. 7. Next sessions Info Session 3: Tues., October 17, 16.00-18.00
Part I: Info retrieval (Jaana Santala)
Part II: Open-ended Q&A on topic selection
Note: devices allowed
Info Session 4: Thurs., Nov. 2,
Thesis groups and topics announced
Info Session 5: Thurs., Nov. 16,
Literature Review
Info Session 6: Wed. Nov. 29,
Oct. 11, 2017

30. Key Dates Full Draft of Thesis: March 15, 2018
Final thesis: April 9, 2018
Thesis Presentation and Proficiency Test
April 13, 2018
Oct. 11, 2017

31. Good luck!
Oct. 11, 2017