Duration
Number of credits
| Master in oceanography (120 ECTS) | 25 crédits |
Lecturer
Collégialité
Coordinator
Language(s) of instruction
French language
Organisation and examination
All year long
Schedule
Units courses prerequisite and corequisite
Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program
Learning unit contents
The students of the Master in Oceanography must realise a Final Thesis in one of the research groups of the Université de Liège, or at a Belgian or international research unit. The final thesis is realised under the scientific supervision of a researcher of the Université de Liège or from an outside group, in which case a co-supervisor must be chosen within the Université de Liège. Guidance all along the realisation of the thesis can be also provided by a young researcher of the research unit, called "collaborator".
All proposals for a final thesis subject must be approved by the jury of the Master in Oceanography.
Several subjects are proposed by the supervisors. These subjects will be collected by the secretary of the studies board of the Master in Oceanography along with a brief description of the topic, techniques, and any other relevant information. This information will be provided to students, who will choose a topic within the second semester of the first year in the Master of Oceanography. Before the second year of the Master in Oceanography starts, the students must provide a document with the topic chosen, name of supervisor(s), board of reviewers (composed of 4 persons) and the optional courses that will be followed by the student to complete the final thesis.
Students are encouraged to visit the different research groups in order to obtain more information about the possible subjects.
The final thesis is presented during one of the exam periods. Only in exceptional situations a presentation out of this session will be allowed, and this needs the approval of the Faculty of Sciences.
Learning outcomes of the learning unit
The final thesis is a personal work that calls upon the skills acquired throughout the various courses of the Master in Oceanography. It aims at developing the independence, as well as the critical and scientific spirit of the student. This allows the student to discover the work of a scientist.
Prerequisite knowledge and skills
The course of the Bloc 1 provide a first basis for the realisation of a final thesis in oceanography. Once the subject of the final thesis is established the student will choose, with the agreement of the supervisor, the optional courses necessary for the successful completion of the thesis.
Planned learning activities and teaching methods
These will depend on the subject chosen, and can consist of field work, laboratory analysis, computer analysis, etc.
Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)
Certain activities (field work, laboratory analyses...) will need the presence of the student. The student is encouraged to inform the supervisor on a regular basis about the progress of their work, and to discuss any relevant scientific question with the supervisor. The supervisor can establish at the beginning of the academic year a calendar and/or a list of specifications defining the goals of the thesis work.
Organisational adjustments related to the current health context
Recommended or required readings
The supervisor can recommend reading scientific articles or books allowing the student to improve his/her knowledge of the subject.
Assessment methods and criteria
Below you will find information on the evaluation methods planned for in-person and remote exams as well as those planned for hybrid sessions. Depending on how the health crisis evolves, the chosen method will be communicated to you no later than one month before the start of the exam session.
The final thesis must be clear and to the point. It will have a maximum length of 50 pages, with the following sections: Introduction, Methodology, Results, Discussion and Conclusions. A table of contents will be place at the beginning and a full list of bibliographic references will be placed at the end, before annexes (if present). A 1-page abstract in French and English will summarise the main results and conclusions, and will be placed at the beginning of the thesis. The following text will be also placed in one of the first pages: "According to the rules imposed by the jury of the Master in Oceanography, this document must not exceed 50 pages in Times 12 or an equivalent font".
The cover page will contain: the ULiege logo, name or logo of the research group, the title, name of student, academic year, and any other information that the supervisor requests.
The font used will be large enough (Times 12 for example, line spacing of 1.5).
The final thesis can be written in English.
Annexes cannot contain data necessary for a correct understanding of the work. Annexes can only contain information like raw data tables, which may allow a better understanding of the text or a verification of certain calculations.
The table of contents, abbreviation list, bibliography and annexes do not count towards the maximum page count of 50.
The board of reviewers is composed by 4 or 5 persons (including the supervisor) with a PhD or equivalent degree. There will be no more than 2 persons from the same research group or more than 3 persons from 2 research groups.
The final assessment is established as follows:
- written report 50% = 40% for the manuscript and 10% for the work realised during the year
- oral defense 50% = 20% oral presentation and 30% response to question
Criteria
The evaluation guide applied by the board of reviewers is available for students (for both the written report and oral exam). For the written report, the criteria include the quality of the document (orthography, grammar, readability, general structure), knowledge of the state of the art in the field of study (adequate bibliography, critical view, formatting of references, completeness) , the presentation of the objectives of the work, the methodology and results (clarity, precision), interpretation of results (structure, relation with objectives, use of bibliography, critical thinking).
During the oral presentation the following will be evaluated: style (figure, orthography, clarity of the oral presentation), content (knowledge of the subject, precision, objectives), and the response to the questions (reasoning, relation with other subjects, precision, knowledge of the subject)
Work placement(s)
Not foreseen, but depending on the subject traveling might be necessary. This will be discussed with the supervisor.
Organizational remarks
When submitting the final document to the supervisor, the student must provide as well the pdf version of the manuscript, the raw data, code and programs used and necessary for the continuation of the work. All material used by the student must be given back at the moment of submission.
The pdf of the manuscript must be uploaded to the ULg website MatheO at the time of submission. Only manuscripts submitted there will be evaluated.
Oral defenses will take place in a room with the necessary material (projector etc).
The dates for the final submission and the oral defenses will be announced by the board of studies, and will be displayed in the website of the Faculty of Sciences.
Contacts
Mme Aida ALVERA AZCARATE
a.alvera@uliege.be
Mme Mariellla LUNETTA
M.Lunetta@uliege.be