MODULE Master's Thesis

ECTS-Credits 15 ECTS (pre SS2019 intake), 18 ECTS (post SS2019 intake)

Descriptor MATH
School School of Business
Course of Study MSc in International Management
Type Core Research Module
Module Coordinator Prof. Dr. Lynn Lim
Phone and E-Mail +41 62 957 25 29 / lynn.lim@fhnw.ch
Lecturers Assigned Supervisor
Phones and Emails
Level Advanced
Semester Autumn and Spring
Completion of All Core Coursework, Cooperative Learning Project, Research Proposal, and
Pre-requisites
Master Thesis is in the final semester.
Restrictions -
Contact hours 20h
Overall hours
(contact hours plus 540h (Kick-off session, Meetings with Supervisors, Master's Thesis Defence; self-study)
self-study)
Exclusions -
Teaching and Students undertake guided independent study throughout the semester with the support of
Learning Methods an assigned supervisor. Students build up knowledge by means of independent but guided
theoretical and empirical research in international management related fields.

Students are required to present their work both orally and in written format to complement
the learning outcomes.

Deadline for withdrawing research modules differ from the other core or elective
modules:
For Spring Semester: 30 November; or For Autumn Semester: 31 May by 12:00h

Language of Tuition English

Kick-off Session -Official for Autumn Semester (AS) registration: Week 11 Friday
Information to Students for Spring Semester (SS) registration: Week 43 Friday

Time: 12:15h - 13:00h (RP and MT)

Mentoring Phase

Location: Olten OVR

Official ESP enrolment Programme’s Secretary will send you an email notification to
register. For SS: mid-November or For AS: mid-May

Key Dates Latest withdrawal or
deregistration from module
Allocation of Supervisor
Start of Project or Research
Upload Supervision
Superv
For SS: 30 November or For AS: 31 May by 12:00noon
For SS: 1 December or For AS: 1 June
For SS: I January or For AS: I July
For SS: 1 January to 30 June or For AS: I July to 31 January

Minutes
ision

Online Submission of CLP, For SS: 1 June or For AS: 1 December

RP & MT
Online Submission of MT For SS: Calendar Week 24, Wednesday before 12 noon
Examination

Defence Presentation For AS: Calendar Week 2 or 3, Wednesday before 12 noon

MT Defence Presentation For SS: Calendar Week 25 or For AS: Calendar Week 2 or 3
 Students will meet the following outcomes in alignment to all the programme’s goals and
learning objectives for MSc International Management.

- To be able to identify a focus (topic, problem, theory, questions, etc) suitable for
cross-cultural/ cross-border or international management focus.
- To demonstrate the ability to define and descript concept.
- To be able to present or write convincing arguments for the relevance of concepts.
- To apply critical thinking and comprehension of the concepts.
- To demonstrate appropriate theorising of focus for the research.
- To use relevant and supporting sources and evidence to justify arguments.
- To demonstrate initiative and proactiveness throughout the research process with
stakeholders (e.g. interview partners, experts, supervisor, etc)
- To be able to handle the differences of national, organisation and professional
cultures.
- To demonstrate cooperative attitude and interpersonal skills towards feedback.
- To develop a clear, appropriate academic and logical structure of reports and
Learning Outcome
presentations for the chosen research design.
(complying to
- To produce readable documentation with clarity and show language ability in oral
Programme
and written communication.
Learning
- To apply the referencing style in in-text citation and reference list with correctness.
Objectives)
- To justify the application and appropriateness of sound methodology and state of
art.
- To demonstrate the ability to explain and justify data collection procedure.
- To demonstrate the skills in data analysis techniques.
- To uphold responsible research practice and research integrity.
- To integrate ethical consideration of the potential social, political, economic and
psychological implications of the research.
- To demonstrate an understanding and consideration of inherent uncertainty in
doing research.
- To demonstrate judgement and quality in rich and robust empirical findings.
- To demonstrate systematic and substantiated evaluation of the findings.
- To address the limitations of research.
- To be able to include broad implications for business and/or society.
- To derive meaningful contribution to theory and knowledge.
- To explain comprehensive and convincing implications.
- To generate systematic statistical and/or theoretical generalisation of findings.
- To be able to inspire with substantiated suggestions for future research.
- To demonstrate actionable evidence-based recommendations for practice.
- To compose internationally relevant contribution.
- To demonstrate ability to consider different national contexts.
- To produce contribution that reflects a long-term orientation.
Module Description Students must PASS All Core Coursework, Cooperative Learning Project, Research
(200-300 words Proposal and at least four electives (for full-time students) and five electives (for part-time
students) before starting the Master Thesis (MT).

The MT is of central importance to the award of Master degree. During the thesis, the
student combines knowledge from previous modules and use it for planning, conducting
and writing up a research project. Students build up knowledge by means of an
independent but guided theoretical, scientific and empirical research. This includes:
• Autonomous scientific project management of an empirical research project
• Interacting with a supervisor and – eventually – external clients or collaboration partners
• Applying research methods at an advanced level, working with empirical data (collecting,
analysing)
• Identifying, retrieving and using scientific literature

The MT should report an investigation of current issues in international management, global

marketing and communication, international financial management or international business
related problem or research gap, which the research has to
- apply scientific and empirical methods (i.e. evidence needs to be collected through
observing or interacting with management and business practice. Quantitative or qualitative
methods of data collection and analysis – or a mix of them – are both permitted)
- review current research literature and current concerns (The research should connect to
theories and existing knowledge on business and management and demonstrate the use of
scientific literature.)
- contribute to theoretical development, practical implications or developing business
practice, and new knowledge creation (Applied Research)
- be doable within the given time frame and resources

While most theses are likely to involve the collection of primary data, any combination of
primary and secondary data may be used.

The topic of the Master’s thesis must lead to research and address problems and questions
of industries, international companies, non-profit organisations or (economic) policy. The
Master’s Thesis can be written on behalf of or in cooperation with an international company,
non-profit organisation or governmental department. The topic and research can – but not
necessarily has to – involve organisations located in Switzerland.

The Master’s Thesis is written individually. Students will be assigned to a supervisor for
advice during the process of research. Each student chooses a supervisor to discuss
problems arising during the preparation of the project. The supervisor needs to be a lecturer
approved by the MSc International Management programme at FHNW School of Business.

The Master’s Thesis will produce the following products:

1. Final Report: Each student will be expected to submit a Final Report of 15,000 –
20,000 words. The report should include a problem description, research
objectives, research questions, rational for conducting the research, a theoretical
background/review of the existing literature on the problem, a description of its
research strategy and methods, findings, a concise presentation of evidence, and
conclusions including theoretical development, practical implications, and
knowledge contribution. The report should reference all sources of information and
contain a bibliography of relevant literature.

2. Defence: Each student has to present and defend her/his thesis and results in a
defence of 50 minutes. The presentation of the defence should last max. 25
minutes. Another 25 minutes will be reserved for questions and answers from
the supervisor and a second assessor. The second assessor can be an external
and meet the criteria for internal supervisors. He or she will be appointed by the
Module coordinator. Other audience who has interests in this research can
apply to attend the defence.

Please note that research that requires signing of binding contracts or agreements
from the school or university is not suitable for student’s project or thesis.
Supervision We assign student to a supervisor based on the expertise of the supervisor. At any point of
time, the assigned supervisor and students may reconsider the plan to ensure that the
focus remains current, is set within a strategic framework and applying the relevant
approaches throughout the research journey.

The supervisor also ensures that the student designs, plans, executes, and reports on a
project or research that proves to be highly relevant to the specific academic field, with
achievable aims and processes within the given time frame. He/she also ensures that the
topic meets the requirements of International Management context.

Students take the initiative in organising meetings or appointments with his/her supervisor
and maintain regular contact with him/her until the completion of presentation or defence.
The main form of supervision during

- MT: will be at least Five (5) face-to-face meetings

All supplemented by email support, or online conversations. Online conversations may be

minimally a replacement for face-to-face meetings, except for students who are studying
abroad.

Supervisors help students to expand their knowledge of applied empirical research and
develop their skills as researchers. The main tasks of the supervisors are to:

- evaluate if the students display sufficient mastery of the relevant research skills and if they
apply these skills at a sufficiently high (Master’s) level. Emphasis will also be laid upon the
level at which the process and outcomes are reported which are expected to be sufficiently
high at a Master’s degree level.
- support students in refining a research focus and assess the relevance and feasibility of
the research.
- support and advise students in making methodological choices.
- assess the suitability of their methodological approach and instruments (interview guides,
questionnaires etc.).
- guide students on the relevant theories and literature for their research.
- attend the MT defence.
- evaluate and grade the final submissions.

Supervisors are NOT responsible for providing access to external collaboration partners
(companies or other organisations) or securing the access to data unless they have
explicitly and in writing agreed to do this at the start of the project. Student must notify the
module coordinator in advance of this arrangement. Communication between supervisor
and students should be in English.

Students must document all face-to-face meetings, extended phone calls or online chats
with their supervisor. Upon completion of each meeting or discussion, each group must
write minutes of discussion using a template named ‘Supervision Minutes and Record’ (see
Appendix or a word document is available on Moodle). Both students and supervisors must
agree the minutes before uploading them on Moodle throughout the research process.

The assigned supervisor will give the main assistance to students. Student and supervisor
must resolve any occurring problem between them. If the problem continues, the module
coordinator will take further action. Document the problem in written form to the module
coordinator, who may hear the involved parties and ask for further assistance from the
Programme Head. Further assistance on general and administrative questions should first
consult the FAQ on Moodle, then module coordinator.
Data Collection and At an early meeting with the assigned supervisors, students need to discuss the time plan
Ethical for data collection and a number of ethical considerations relating to their research project,
Considerations such as working with minors (below legal age), asking sensitive questions, rights to
participate or rights to withdraw, etc.

Although the school does not have a formal research ethics policy, students must take
considerable care when dealing with human or animal subjects. Before data collection or
pilot study, students are required to discuss their data collection instruments
(interview questions or survey questionnaires) with the assigned supervisors. The
supervisors will provide students with advices such as the appropriate use of wordings for
the questions. This is to ensure that students conduct the research in a professional
manner while at the same time maintaining the reputation of the school and the programme.
Please also make certain that the supervisor approves your data collection instruments
before the start of data collection.

Students may not use the name or logo of the University on questionnaires, covering letters
or requests for cooperation and assistance addressed to third parties. Print required
documents on neutral stationery. However, the supervisor may contribute covering letters or
requests for assistance written on the stationery of the University of Applied Sciences and
Arts Northwestern Switzerland.

If the research methods change in any way, please re-discuss any issues with the
supervisor before taking further action. Similarly, for a change in collaborating company,
please consult the supervisor and seek his/her approval before issuing a termination notice
to the working partner or company. Supervisor, module coordinator and Programme Head
will evaluate student’s professionalism throughout the research process.

Confidentiality, The submitted reports, thesis, presentations and defence presentations are generally in the
Non-disclosure public domain. Defences are public and final reports are available in the local library
Letter & (currently the HSW or School of Business library in Olten).
Publications
A research that requires non-disclosure letter is unsuitable for student's work, given that
FHNW is a public university. Normally, a confidentiality arrangement indicates that the
student will treat the names of the participants or the company as anonymous, while the
student, supervisor and the school remain the right to present the findings for knowledge
sharing and for advancement of future research. Upon the written request from the students
or the supervisor and upon mutual agreement, the final reports and/or defences can be
«confidential». The request needs to provide the grounds and explain the potential harm
that may result from publication. If a final thesis is confidential based on valid grounds
that potential harm may result from publication, the final report will not be available to the
library and/or the public. However, a publishable version is required from the student for
future accreditation and review.

External and private publishers are constantly sourcing our students’ MT for commercial
benefits. The copyright of MT generally belongs to and is the property of FHNW. This
extends to students and supervisors at FHNW who co-own the copyright of the work during
the process of the research and submission. Students should rework their research with
supervisor, turning the research into a co-authorship, scholarly and polished quality paper
for publication in a quality conference or a journal.

This publication, upon acceptance after peer reviews, could lead to positive future
implications for the student. Public resources for the benefits of the society or community
fund our students’ work and supervisors’ contribution. Therefore, we are against private
publishers using the submitted MT for commercial capitalisation.
Referencing and Upon submission of the final report, the module coordinator will conduct a plagiarism check
Plagiarism using plagiarism detection methods. Plagiarism refers to taking or using another author’s
thoughts, writings, computer programs, inventions, and among others as one’s own. This is
theft, a form of fraud and is one of the most serious offences. Plagiarism can be done on
purpose or result from carelessness.

Submit written work in own words without cutting or pasting from other literatures or
publications such as journal articles, books or the World Wide Web. Students can quote
other authors’ work, cite as a reference, and include them in the reference list and
bibliography. As a precaution, close all files and logout when finished working on a
computer or common device, so others cannot copy the work as this may be treated as
aiding and abetting.

Any submission found guilty of plagiarism will be punished in all cases. In general, the
supervisor will be informed, and the extent of the plagiarism will be assessed. The general
rules of dealing with plagiarism at the School of Business of the University of Applied
Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland will be applied. If proven, penalisations will be
decided by the supervisor and the module coordinator depending on the extent of
plagiarism. In severe cases, it could lead to failure of your entire MSc International
Management award. Appeal such as ignorance or lack of knowledge in relation to
plagiarism will NOT be accepted by the University. Please do not attempt to try on
plagiarism. It is wiser to fail and repeat in the next semester, rather than to be excluded
from the University with
immediate effect.

Please use APA Referencing Style, which can be found on the Moodle link for 'MSc IM
Students’.

Assessments To measure programme objectives 1.1 to 5.2. Grading is based on rubrics of the master
thesis in line with the programme objectives.

100% Individual coursework – Master's Thesis Report and Defence

Submission Date for Master’s Thesis and Defence presentation slides, and Master Thesis
Defence Schedule: See Moodle for more information

Submit the Master Thesis on Moodle. Format your Filename according to:
StudentLastnameFirstname_SupervisorLastnameFirstname_MT 1 of 1

For eg. SmithAdam_LimLynn_MT 1 of 1.pdf, or SmithAdam_LimLynn_MT 1 of 1.docx,

(if more than one file)
SmithAdam_LimLynn_MT 1 of 2.pdf,
SmithAdam_LimLynn_MT 2 of 2.pdf
or
SmithAdam_LimLynn_MT 1 of 2.docx,
SmithAdam_LimLynn_MT 2 of 2.docx

*If the Research Proposal consists of more than one file, please make sure that each
individual file size does not exceed 2MB. This is to facilitate ease of transferring these files
to the examiners. There will be an email confirming the submission if the file is submitted
correctly.

Grading is based on rubrics in line with the programme goals, objectives and learning
outcomes.

The Supervisor and a second examiner will evaluate the Research Proposal. The module
coordinator and a panel of evaluators will review all other submissions to ensure consistent
and quality grading across all supervisors before a final grade is awarded.
Deregistration, The last day of withdrawal or deregistration is shown in the ‘Key Dates’ section. After this
Withdrawal, date, any discontinuation or failure to submit will warrant a 'fail' (Grade 1.0). Students can
Extensions and keep the existing research focus for the next semester if the withdrawal is done before the
Late Work deadline. Assessed work submitted after the deadline will be graded a mark of one (Grade
Submission 1.0).

Student who received a ‘Fail’ in her/his first attempt, including those who failed to submit the
master thesis before the deadline, may be considered to be given a final chance to repeat
in the following semester, provided that the student has not used her/his wildcard. This final
attempt will incur additional charges and registration fees. In this final attempt, student has
to do a new topic in a new research direction. A new supervisor will be assigned to the
student. Since the research proposal was already passed and the study regulation stated
that student cannot repeat a module that is already passed (see details in the latest study
regulation), this means that an ungraded research proposal for the new research direction
must be approved by the research committee and the programme head before the final
attempt master thesis can start. Semester break between the failed attempt and the repeat
attempt will not be granted without valid mitigating reasons and written approval from the
programme head. Usually in such case, we ask for document proof such as medical
certificates signed by a registered medical doctor in Switzerland to support the request.

Exemptions for late submission shall be granted only if there are extenuating circumstances
before the submission deadlines, and where the student has made a case in writing to the
supervisor and module coordinator one week before the deadline for submission. Examples
of normally acceptable extenuating circumstances include serious illness, serious illness or
death of a close relative, civil unrest, etc. In general, significant events, usually outside the
student's control, may be acceptable. Examples of normally unacceptable extenuating
circumstances include social activities and their consequences (e.g., hangover), minor
ailments, minor disruptions such as moving to a new house or failed transport
arrangements, external work commitments, overseas travel, etc. In general, minor events,
usually within the student's control or which could have been planned for, will not be
acceptable.

For circumstances which require extension of work submission in advance due to valid and
approved medical or hospitalisation reasons, the extension is usually up to a maximum of
two weeks. Application must be made to the supervisor and the module coordinator by
sending an email. Upon receiving the application, a programme committee will assess the
case. Depending on a case-by-case basis, some applications may take longer to approve,
due to the additional time required to verify with internal and external parties who are
involved in the requests (e.g. require a written confirmation from a hospital).

Subsequent Course
Completion of Master of Science in International Management
Subject
Other

Depends on the topic of the Master’s Thesis.

Learning Resources
 Assurance of Learning

Programme Goals and Learning Objectives

for
MSc International Management

Our Master Graduates will

Goal 1 (Remember & Understand): have an integrative cross-cultural/international management

and leadership knowledge.

Objective 1.1: identify and describe cross-cultural/ cross-border/ international management

focus.
Objective 1.2: explain the relevance of cross-cultural/ cross-border/ international concepts.

Goal 2 (Apply): be professional collaborator and communicator.

Objective 2.1: demonstrate the ability to work with a diverse set of stakeholders.
Objective 2.2: demonstrate academic & professional communication & writing skills.

Goal 3 (Analyze): be a diligent and reflective analyst and scientist.

Objective 3.1: design and conduct analysis using empirical and/or theoretical scientific
research skills.
Objective 3.2: employ ethical aspects in responsible decision-making.

Goal 4 (Evaluate): be integrative and innovative problem solvers and managers.

Objective 4.1: make judgments based on disciplinary criteria and standards through checking
and critiquing.
Objective 4.2: derive implications for business/societal practice and theory.

Goal 5 (Create): be able to contribute to international management knowledge.

Objective 5.1: generate knowledge that is useful and novel for science and business
Objective 5.2: compose managerial/scientific contribution that aligns with international
management context