Examinations
Supervision and review of theses
Prof. Dr. Hans Vorländer is available for the supervision and review of your final thesis (Bachelor's/Master's thesis).
An initial contact by e-mail will serve to present your concrete research project, which should be oriented towards the thematic areas of the Mercator Forum Migration and Democracy.
Hints for the preparation of theses
1. time planning
Start planning and designing your thesis early. To avoid being pressed for time, you should start at least one semester before you plan to submit your thesis. However, as soon as the topic has been decided, you must register it immediately with the examination office due to the principle of equal treatment.
2. topic identification
Theses in the field of political theory and history of ideas should be thematically oriented towards the teaching and research content of the chair. Research topics can be found on our homepage (see here). In general, own suggestions for topics from the whole range of the field of political theory are possible.
3. supervisor
Please contact the person you would like to have as a supervisor for your topic early on via e-mail. After you have found a first supervisor, please arrange for a second supervisor to write the second paper. Your first supervisor can help you with this.
4. concretization of the topic
As soon as you have thought about the topic and the structure of your thesis, you can further concretize it together with your supervisor during the consultation hours. To do this, please register for a consultation with your supervisor.
5. exposé
Bring an initial synopsis with you to the consultation session, which outlines the topic and structure of your thesis. You can present the exposé to your supervisor during the consultation and then revise it. Afterwards you should have a detailed plan for the further procedure.
6. registration of the thesis
If your supervisor agrees with your draft, you can register your thesis at the examination office (here is the link to the examination office of the Faculty of Humanities with forms and further information). The exact registration procedure varies depending on the course of study. With registration you will receive a binding submission date, which you must adhere to. In the Bachelor of Political Science, for example, you have exactly 12 weeks from the registration date for processing.
7 Preparation of the manuscript
The formal design of the manuscript is based on the standards for scientific papers. The length of the paper should not exceed 40 pages for Bachelor's theses and 80 pages for Master's theses. The necessary information for the cover sheet can be found in the information sheet, which you will receive from the respective examination office when registering your thesis.
8. research colloquium
Theses supervised at the professorship can be presented in a research colloquium by arrangement. This gives you the opportunity to receive feedback from an extended group of people. Furthermore, in the context of the colloquium, the examination performance according to §28 of the examination regulations (dated 09.12.2012), which is required for the Bachelor thesis in Political Science, can be performed at the same time. Further information about the colloquium can be found here.
9. submission
Please make sure to submit your thesis in due time via the examination office responsible for you. You will receive detailed information about the submission formalities from the examination office when you register your thesis.
10. defense
Please keep in mind that some fields of study require a defense of the thesis. For Bachelor's theses in political science, the explanation of the Bachelor's thesis in the colloquium (see above), as mentioned in §28 of the examination regulations, can replace the defense.