Thesis application requirements

Bachelor Thesis: 120 ECTS must have been completed and graded.
Master Thesis: 60 ECTS must have been completed and graded.

Registration for Thesis

Registration for the Bachelor or Master thesis is done via the Examination Office () by submitting the signed form and a proposal (PDF). It is the student's responsibility to obtain the signature or consent of the First Evaluator. This can be done by signing the form or by electronic confirmation by the First Evaluator to the Examination Office.

The application and the consent of the Evaluator must be submitted correctly and completely to the Examinations Office at least one week before the respective meeting of the Examination Committee. The application deadlines are the same for all degree programmes in the School of Social Sciences; the different submission deadlines in the respective degree programmes can be found in the lists of deadlines.

Advice on the content of the thesis is given in the respective thesis colloquia of the degree programmes and with the chosen supervisors. You are advised to seek advice on the process of registering and submitting your thesis at the Examinations Office. Individual appointments can be made by telephone or e-mail. The consultations can take place in person or on Zoom, as desired.

Application form for English programmes

Proposal Template for English programmes

Declaration of Academic Integrity

Deadlines for M.A. Pastoral Ministry

Deadlines for M.TS Adventist Studies / Mission Studies

Preparation and submission of the final thesis

Extract from the study and examination regulations

§ 12 Production and Grading of the Bachelor’s or Master’s Thesis

(1) The Bachelor’s thesis is an academic paper of 40 to 60 pages and can be written in German or English. The time allowed for completion is 16 weeks from the admission by the Examination
Committee.

(2) The Master’s thesis is an academic paper of 60 to 80 pages and can be written in German or English. The time allowed for completion is 24 weeks from the admission by the Examination
Committee.

(3)  The topic of the Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis might be changed once within the first four weeks of the time allowed for completion. This must be requested by the student to the Examination Committee in writing. If a fundamentally new topic is chosen, the full time allowed for completion is available

(4) The time allowed for completion might be extended once upon request for a further 4 weeks. The application must be submitted to the Examination Office before the end of the regular time allowed for completion. Upon request, the Examination Committee might grant different times allowed for completion in exceptional hardship

(5) In the case of an illness verified by a medical certificate, the time allowed for completion is extended by the duration of the sick

(6) Two bound copies of the Bachelor's or Master's thesis and an electronic version as a PDF file must be submitted to the Examination Office within the period stipulated. The date of submission must be documented. If there is no timely submission of the Bachelor's or Master's thesis, the performance will be graded "insufficient".

Formal Requirements

The proposal template can be used as a cover sheet for the thesis.

Bachelor's theses must be 12,000-18,000 words in length, Master's theses must be 18,000-24,000 words in length.

The thesis must be written in Arial 12 (or similar). 1.5 line spacing must be maintained. Left margin 3 cm, right, top, bottom 2.5 cm, justified. If the formal requirements are not met, the thesis may be rejected by the Examination Office.

If interviews are conducted as part of the Master's thesis, the transcriptions must be attached to the Master's thesis as a PDF file when submitted electronically as a second file. They do not have to be printed additionally.

The PDF must be submitted electronically by midnight on the deadline date at the latest. Both printed copies must be submitted to the Examinations Office within office hours together with a signed and dated declaration of oath. If sent by post, the postmark must be dated no later than the date of submission; the theses must be sent by registered post so that they can be tracked. The burden of proof lies with the student.

The reviewers' correction period is six weeks.

Master's theses in the programmes M.A. Theology and M.A. Pastoral Ministry must also be publicly defended. The examination office decides on the date with the Evaluators.