|
The purpose of
the thesis is to expose the student to a
reasonable independent research experience
that enhances his/her academic
development. The student should prepare,
carry out and report a structured and
methodical study of importance.
Publication of this work in journals,
conference proceedings, and /or poster
presentations is strongly encouraged.
In comparison with a
Ph.D. thesis a M.S. thesis relaxes the
requirement of originality. It is desired,
nonetheless, that the M.S. student could
add, at least, some minor new twist or
innovation to the field or subject under
study. The student is still required to
work with a large degree of independence
and initiative and should be able to
clearly communicate his/her findings or
improvements to the scientific community.
A MS thesis should at least tackle the use
of known methods in unique or innovative
ways. When the Master thesis involves a
comparison of techniques a clear criterion
for comparison should be used. The
comparison should be novel and in any case
the proposed work should be relevant.
Note that theoretical research that
does not have immediate practical
applications as it main focus could also
constitute a valid and relevant thesis
work.
The student should
present to his graduate committee, before
his enrollment in the second Thesis
quarter (Thesis extension), a Thesis
Proposal.
Such proposal will be approved and
signed by the graduate committee, thus
becoming a road map for the completion of
the student’s Thesis. It provides an
established scope and states the degree of
depth and extension of such work. Thesis
objectives and procedures should be
clearly described in the proposal.
Since it is in the research own
nature that new roads may be opened,
changes regarding the original proposal
are permitted in the final Thesis
document. These changes are discretional
to the student’s graduate committee.
Proposal
Structure
1)
Cover
Page: It should have the same general
format as the thesis cover page including
thesis title, institution, and student
name. It should include the names of the
student’s graduate committee members.
2)
Brief
Description of the Proposed Research:
Emphasize topic relevance and expected
original contribution.
(One to two pages).
3)
Previous
Work: Describe
the state of the art regarding your
selected topic of study. This is achieved
by summarizing the most important and
recent publications regarding the topic of
research. (Two to five pages).
4)
Objectives:
What you plan to achieve, what are your
goals and particular objectives. (One to
two pages).
5)
Methods:
How are you going to achieve your research
objectives? Include equipment, software
and methods to be used. (Two to five
pages).
6)
References.
Include here any reference mentioned in
the proposal. Use IEEE format.
Further
Reading
PUPR
Graduate Catalog, Latest Version.
Vaisey
J., Thesis Information; a brief guide.
January 10, 2001
, Version: 3:4,
(http://www.ensc.sfu.ca/people/faculty/vaisey/research/thesis_advice.pdf)
Thesis/Design
Project Writing Procedures. PUPR, Latest
Version.
(http://www.pupr.edu/gs/gprogram.asp?ID=144)
|
