VMS4195 – Master's thesis in Viking and Medieval Studies
Course content
The theme of the master`s thesis in Nordic Viking and Medieval Studies is chosen in collaboration with, and must be approved by, the thesis supervisor. The thesis must represent a piece of independent research work and must be an interdisciplinary study within the field of Viking and/or medieval studies.
The emphasis may be placed on one of the following disciplines:
Old Norse philology
Irish philology
archaeology or/and history combined with Old Norse philology
Old Norse philology combined with Irish philology
Old Norse philology and Irish philology combined with archaeology or/and history
history combined with archaeology
The research question should be precisely defined, the method well founded and the argumentation systematically presented. The master’s dissertation should consist of maximum 50 pages,?of approximately 2,300 keystrokes, excluding spaces, per page
Learning outcome
The objective of the master’s thesis course is to train students in argumentative, source-critical and problem-orientated research and to acquaint them with various theoretical and methodological research approaches. Through conducting independent research, students will learn how knowledge is created and how to assert their own expertise. The writing of the thesis itself will strengthen students’ ability to write good prose and to structure a written composition.
Admission to the course
Students who are admitted to study programmes at UiO must each semester register which courses and exams they wish to sign up for in Studentweb.
If you are not already enrolled as a student at UiO, please see our information about admission requirements and procedures.
Formal prerequisite knowledge
Passed ILN4900 – Project Semester for Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies or ILN4950 – Research project semester for Linguistics and Scandinavian Studies.
Recommended previous knowledge
This course builds on previous knowledge equivalent to a bachelor’s degree in Western-European Medieval Studies or another bachelor’s degree majoring within a discipline covering the Viking or Nordic Medieval period.
Teaching
Supervision in connection with writing the master`s thesis is obligatory. In order to be assigned a supervisor, students must agree to and sign a supervision agreement for masters students enrolled in the Department.
Each student is entitled to up to 9 hours of supervision. Some of the supervising can be given in groups.
Students must register via Studentweb.
Examination
The master's thesis is submitted in the last semester after the other courses in the degree have been completed. The submission deadlines are June 1 in the spring semester and 15 December in the autumn semester.
Formal requirements and templates for the master's thesis can be found here.
The assignment must be up to 50 pages (2,300 characters each without spaces). The assignment must be written in English or any of the Scandinavian Languages. The master's thesis is assessed with letter grades by an internal and an external examiner.
This Certificate form must be submitted together with the master's thesis:
On the master's thesis pages of ILN you will find more information about supervision, formal requirements, deadlines, submission of master's, examination and diploma.
Language of examination
The master`s thesis may be written in English or any of the Scandinavian Languages
Grading scale
Grades are awarded on a scale from A to F, where A is the best grade and F is a fail. Read more about the grading system.
More about examinations at UiO
- Use of sources and citations
- Special exam arrangements due to individual needs
- Withdrawal from an exam
- Illness at exams / postponed exams
- Explanation of grades and appeals
- Resitting an exam
- Cheating/attempted cheating
You will find further guides and resources at the web page on examinations at UiO.