A research report or thesis contains all the information another researcher would need to continue with the research where the student stopped. Research reports contain at least an introduction, methods section, results, discussion, conclusion and references. The detailed requirements are specific to the type of research and preferences of each research group. Students should always check with their supervisors what they expect.

The first page of the thesis should be a title page that contains at least the following information:

• title
• student name
• student number
• MSc programme (Chemistry or LST)
• MSc specialisation (Research, Business, Communication or Education)
• start date of the research
• end date of the practical/theoretical research
• date of the final version of the report
• number of EC
• institute and research group name and address
• supervisor names (main supervisor, external supervisor (if applicable), daily supervisor)

Also make a note on the title page when confidentiality or an embargo is applicable. The title as presented on the front page of the thesis is used on the diploma of the student, so should not be written in all caps! 

The writing of the thesis is part of the project, and a reasonable amount of time should be allocated within the agreed upon time period to write the report. As a guideline, an amount of time equal to 10% of the EC of the project is allocated for writing the report (e.g. 6 EC, one month, for a 60 EC project). 

All theses are subjected to originality scans to detect possible issues with incorrect use of existing literature. Plagiarism is a serious offence and will be reported.

The final grade for a research project is decided by the main supervisor with input from the daily supervisor, the second reviewer and the jury of the thesis talk. They use the online assessment form on the master’s website to assess the project of the student. 

For external research projects, the internal supervisor sends an invitation to the external supervisor to fill in an evaluation of the student’s work. Combined with their own opinion of the thesis and the thesis talk (major projects only), the internal supervisor decides on a grade for the student.

Evaluation of major and minor research projects are started up by the student by filling in the form and uploading the thesis on Brightspace. 

The file below shows the rubric used for evaluation of the student's research project.