Bachelor Project Future Planet Studies – Future Earth

Bachelorproject Future Planet Studies – Future Earth

Course manual 2024/2025

Course content

Objectives

• Construct a coherent and complete research proposal
• Follow correct data handling procedures for data collection and documentation
• Select and use relevant data analysis methods
• Construct a coherent and complete scientific thesis
• Present the research in a clear oral presentation
• Present the research effectively in a visual manner, both in the thesis and the presentation
• Show academic and professional attitude in communication with supervisor, colleagues and participants
• Show independence in and take responsibility for organising, planning and implementing your work

Contents

During the course of the Bachelor Project, students will apply the research skills that they have learned throughout the FPS program, as well as learn new skills for carrying out their own scientific research either within the track Future Earth (i.e. from the domain of the geo-bio sciences and/or chemistry) or within Future Society (bridging domains of political science, human geography and/or spatial planning). Within each track, students will choose their research topics from projects proposed and supervised by a(n) UvA (assistant) professor, in collaboration with one or two process supervisors.

The first few weeks of the course are devoted to working out a detailed research proposal for the individual thesis. During the execution phase, each student delivers a contribution from within the field of his/her expertise. Critical reflection of relevant theories and literature on the chosen subject forms part of the research as does reflection on the relevance, reliability, and validity of the gathered data, and the methods and techniques that were used to obtain them.

At the end of the Bachelor Project, the student reports the findings of the research in a thesis. The thesis is a clear, systematic, and scientifically well-founded report on the research project and its results. Writing the thesis is more than merely writing a report. Students must be able to show that they have gained and applied essential research skills, and the report needs to incorporate all essential elements of an academic research project that the student has engaged in including a critical analysis of the results which are discussed in the context of contemporary scientific insights on the theme.

Registration

Students have to enroll in time. Subscription for classes is possible per semester. The registration period for classes in Block 4, 5 & 6 (second semester) is in December. The exact dates will be announced HERE. 

Teaching method and contact hours

• Seminar
• Presentation/symposium
• Self-study
• Working independently on e.g. a project or thesis
• Supervision/feedback meeting

Time

The schedule for this course is published on DataNose.

Study materials

• Literature:
  • Literature provided with each topic by the supervision team (either compulsory or suggested literature).

Min/max participants

Students can indicate their preferences as regards the topic that they would want to work on and the supervisor they would like to work with. We will try to assign students to their preference as much as possible, given certain preconditions and limitations of the course and available hours form the supervisors.

Assessment

• Writing a Research Proposal for the individual Bachelor Project.
• Presentation of the Bachelor Thesis.
• Bachelor Thesis.

Remarks

The specific set-up of the course is dependent on the track (Future Earth / Future Society), topic and research design; the supervisors will decide upon the best set-up and work-flow, including how many meeting will be planned with the main (content) supervisor and the process supervisors.

Objectives

• Construct a coherent and complete research proposal
• Follow correct data handling procedures for data collection and documentation
• Select and use relevant data analysis methods
• Construct a coherent and complete scientific thesis
• Present the research in a clear oral presentation
• Present the research effectively in a visual manner, both in the thesis and the presentation
• Show academic and professional attitude in communication with supervisor, colleagues and participants
• Show independence in and take responsibility for organising, planning and implementing your work

Teaching methods

• Self-study
• Working independently on e.g. a project or thesis
• Supervision/feedback meeting

Students will approach researchers involved with Future Planet Studies or professional or academic experts that operate in relevant work fields to ask for projects. After students have been accepted by a supervisor, groups will be formed which will be supervised by the expert. The supervising expert bears ultimate responsibility for the content and methodology of the Bachelor Project.

Learning activities

Attendance

Programme's requirements concerning attendance (OER-B):

• Participation in fieldwork is compulsory and cannot be replaced by assignments or other courses.
• In case of practical sessions, the student is obliged to attend at least of 90% of the sessions and to prepare himself adequately, unless indicated otherwise in the course manual. In case the student attends less than 90%, the practical sessions should be redone entirely.
• In case of tutorials/seminars with assignments, the student is obliged to attend at least 7 out of 8 seminars and to prepare thoroughly for these meetings, unless indicated otherwise in the course manual. If the course has more than 8 seminars, the student can miss up to 1 extra meeting for every (part of) 8 tutorials/seminars. If the students attends less than the mandatory tutorials/seminars, the course cannot be completed.

Additional requirements for this course:

Completion of all first-year courses of Future Planet Studies

Having obtained at least 42 EC of the second year of Future Planet Studies

Assessment

• For research proposal: Resit in case of a No-Go: within 1 week after the received feedback
• For thesis report: Resit only if grade < 5.5 (see *) and with a maximum of 6

• If you do not agree with the assessment procedure and/or your final grade, take the following steps:
  - Make use of the inspection moment to get further clarification of the assessment procedure and the way your final grade for the Bachelor Project was determined.
  - If there are any remaining ambiguities, ask the examiner to give further explanation.
  - If, after consultation with the examiner, you cannot reach an agreement about your final grade and you are still convinced you have sufficient reason to object, you can contact the program coordinator. The program coordinator can try to mediate between you and the Bachelor Project examiner.
  - Finally, if you cannot reach an agreement internally, you can lodge a formal objection with the Examination Appeals Board (CBE - College van Beroep voor de Examens). Such an appeal must be lodged within six weeks after the announcement of the final grade.

* If your thesis fails to meet the minimum criteria, you are allowed to rewrite the thesis, using the feedback that the supervisor has provided you with in the assessment form. In order not to conflict with courses in Block 6, the deadline for the rewritten thesis is at least 4 weeks after the student obtains the assessment form from the supervisor. As by then the summer holidays have started, your supervisor will decide about what is a feasible deadline for the revised thesis. In no case can this deadline be later than August 12, 2022. 

A revised thesis can obtain a maximum grade of 6. If your rewritten thesis still does not meet the minimum criteria, you will fail the course and must take part in the course next year. You then have to write a completely new research proposal and thesis.

If your final thesis is graded >5.5, there is no second chance; you cannot submit a revised thesis based on the feedback that you have been provided with in the assessment form. If for any reason you feel you are not able to write an optimal final thesis (yet), you can put a motivated request before your supervisor and ask for a delay of the deadline.

Assessment diagram

Fraud and plagiarism

The 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' applies to this course. This will be monitored carefully. Upon suspicion of fraud or plagiarism the Examinations Board of the programme will be informed. For the 'Regulations governing fraud and plagiarism for UvA students' see: www.student.uva.nl

Course structure

Last year's student feedback

Vanaf 2013-2014 hebben we ervoor gekozen om d.m.v. onderstaande tabel de studenten meer inzicht te geven in de kwaliteitszorg. Daarom nemen we een korte weergave van de feedback van de studenten op en de daaruit voortvloeiende acties ter verbetering van het vak.

Contact information

Coordinator

• dr. E.R. Burdfield Steel