2023-2024 / ATFE0010-1

Master Thesis (including an introduction to methodology and research)

Duration

750h Proj.

Number of credits

 Master of Science (MSc) in Civil Engineering25 crédits 

Lecturer

Bertrand François

Language(s) of instruction

French language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the second semester

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

The master thesis is a substantial individual project that can also be realized in collaboration with a private company or research center, in Belgium or abroad. We generally consider that it amounts to 4 months of full time work. The subject must be proposed or approved by an advisor who must be an academic member or a permanent researcher.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

The goal of the master thesis is to prepare the student to his/her future career in a private company or in research. The student will have to prove that (s)he can carry out a substantial project based of the theoretical and practical knowledge and skills acquired during his/her studies. This project will almost always include a preliminary study, some research or substantial development, and a final evaluation of the results.

This course contributes to the learning outcomes I.1, I.2, II.1, II.2, II.3, III.1, III.2, III.3, III.4, IV.1, IV.2, IV.3, IV.4, IV.5, V.1, V.2, V.3, VII.1, VII.2, VII.3, VII.4, VII.5, VII.6 of the MSc in civil engineering.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

It is advised to choose the optional courses that will help achieve the thesis objectives.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Professors propose thesis subjects for which they will act as official advisor. These subjects are either conceived by the advisor on topics related to his/her research fields, or by private companies. A student can also make a proposal, but it must be approved by an advisor. Students should choose a subject as early as possible, ideally at the end of the previous academic year, to increase the chances to finish by the deadline. The council of civil eng. studies will make sure that all students have a subject and will also check the composition of the jury. The student will keep his/her advisor informed of his/her progress on a regular basis.

Recommended or required readings

Depending on subject.

Exam(s) in session

Any session

- In-person

oral exam

Written work / report


Additional information:

The evaluation is first based on the report written by the student. There are no formal constraints on its length, but it will typically consist of around 100 pages. It should describe the context of the work, the problem addressed, the proposed solution with some justification of the choices, an evaluation, a conclusion and possibly some appendices. The thesis defence by the student is oral and public. It consists of an oral presentation, a question/answer session, and is followed by a short deliberation. The final grade takes account of the amount and quality of the achieved work, the quality of the written report and of the oral presentation, as well as the relevance of the provided answers.

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

The regulation, detailed guidelines and proposed topics can be found on the faculty web site

Contacts

  • President of the jury: Prof. B. François, bertrand.francois@uliege.be
  • Apparitorat: Mrs. B. Tondeur, benedicte.tondeur@uliege.be

Association of one or more MOOCs