SHDM16006U Master's Thesis

Volume 2024/2025
Content

The master’s thesis/project is a research report written  at the end of the Master of Headache Disorders.

The master's thesis/project must demonstrate the student's ability to formulate, analyze and process issues within a relevant, limited scientific subject in a qualified way.

It must be scientifically structured and be founded in theory and literature within Headache Disorders field. It must satisfy academic standards and must be written in English.

The student will be assigned a supervisor from the Danish Headache Centre. Before starting the thesis/project, the student and the supervisor will sign and submit a thesis/project agreement.

The master project comprises a minimum of 30 and a maximum of 35 A4 pages (1 page = approximately 2400 characters including spaces), excluding the cover page, abstract, table of contents, acknowledgements, list of figures, references and annexes. In addition, the thesis must be accompanied with an  Abstract that summarizes the research question, the methods used, important findings a discussion if relevant and a conclusion.

Upon enrollment in the master's thesis, students are entitled to a max of  30 hours of total guidance from the main and/or  co-supervisor  for an individual master's thesis/project. 

Learning Outcome

On completion of the course, the participants should be able to:

Knowledge:

  • gain insight into the scientific process, literature searches and writing an overview of a selected subject.
  • acquire knowledge about scientific communication and presentation technique as well as learn to take responsibility for own development/learning.
  • acquire knowledge at the highest scientific level within a specially selected area of headache disorders.

 

Skills:

  • make a thorough and broad summation of a specific topic in the area of headache disorders and facial pain based on a scientific approach.
  • independently assess and critically evaluate and communicate a selected topic and data material.

 

Competencies:

  • select and analyse a scientific area and to communicate their work at an international level with a view to contributing to future research.     
Literature

The suggested literature from Module 1-5 in addition to a detailed topic related literature search based on the selected research area within Headache Disorders and Facial Pain.

As a pre-requisite to Master's Thesis Module, students should have completed and passed all examinations in Modules 1-5.
Participants must have completed all courses and passed all exams on the master programme before the master project oral exam.
Independently writing a master thesis under the supervision of an academic supervisor from Danish Headache Center or at the Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Copenhagen.
  • Category
  • Hours
  • Preparation
  • 450
  • Seminar
  • 14
  • Guidance
  • 25
  • Exam Preparation
  • 10
  • Exam
  • 1
  • Total
  • 500
Oral
Individual
Credit
20 ECTS
Type of assessment
Written assignment
Oral defence, 1 hour
Type of assessment details
Written assignment (master's project) with oral defence
The Exam includes an overall evaluation and assessment of the written thesis, the oral presentation and the subsequent discussion.

The Master's Thesis/Project
The master's thesis is prepared in accordance with the approved thesis contract and the MHD Thesis Guidelines and correspond to min. 30 and max. 35 A4 pages (1 page = approximately 2,400 keystrokes, font size 12 pt. line space 1.5) excluding preliminaries i.e. cover page, table of contents, etc., the references and annexes.

The thesis should include an abstract in English of no more than 1 A4 page and summarize the research question, the methods used, important findings, a discussion if relevant, and a conclusion. The abstract will be included in the overall assessment of the master’s thesis.

Assessment will be based on the student’s spelling and writing skills as well as the scientific content of the thesis. The scientific content will carry most weight.

The Oral Exam/Defence
The duration of the oral exam/defence is 60-minutes including evaluation. The oral 60-minute exam consisting of 15-20 minutes of oral presentation of the master's thesis followed by 25-30 minutes of scientific discussion focusing on the issues of the thesis.
The oral 60-minute exam consisting of 15-20 minutes of oral presentation of the master's thesis followed by 25-30 minutes of scientific discussion focusing on the issues of the thesis.

If student and supervisor agree, it is possible to hold the oral exam online. Together, the student(s) and supervisor must decide:
- Whether the exam is to be held solely physically
- Whether the exam is to be held solely online
- Whether the external examiner can participate online if they wish.
The supervisor must inform the exam coordinator when booking an external examiner.
Aid
All aids allowed
Marking scale
7-point grading scale
Censorship form
External censorship
Exam period

See exam schedule.

Re-exam

The exam form for the reexam is the same as the ordinary exam. See dates in the exam schedule.

A reexamination will be possible if the student fail the first examination.

 

 

Criteria for exam assesment

To achieve the maximum grade of 12, the student must be able to :

Knowledge:

  • gain detailed insight into the scientific process, literature searches and writing an overview of a selected subject.
  • acquire detailed knowledge about scientific communication and presentation technique as well as learn to take responsibility for own development/learning.
  • acquire knowledge at the highest scientific level within a specially selected area of headache disorders.

 

Skills:

  • make a thorough and broad summation of a specific topic in the area of headache disorders and facial pain based on a scientific approach.
  • independently assess and critically evaluate and communicate a selected topic and data material.

 

Competencies:

  • select and analyse a scientific area and to communicate their work at an international level with a view to contributing to future research.