Thesis

Thesis track

Link to presentation

Link to the official Projects Bank

How do I select my supervisor?

A thesis is a 24 credit project = equivalent of 8 courses = equivalent of 864 hours. So you’d better like it ;-).

You need to find a good topic for your life after graduation.

Some steps:

  1. Have a look at the different expertise from our faculty here. You can have a supervisor or a co-supervisor from another department, but please start first from our specialization.

  2. find a topic with an international business dimension. Your supervisor will help you, and if s.he forgets because of the excitement, please remind her/him that it needs an international dimension!!! There is always a way to make it international. Think about myself with data science as a methodology! Well, there is always a way to study an international topic about global transformations through data science.

  3. Your supervisor should have the domain and the methodological expertise. Do not only consider the domain, think in terms of methodology as well. Those are the skills you will develop for your life after graduation.

  4. Can I have two co-supervisors from our department? Yes, most definitely.

When should I think about my thesis?

Start thinking of the subjects that interest you and be proactive in starting the entire There is no rush, but you should be starting the process in the 2nd semester of your program.

Consult the web pages of the professors of the department supervising the M.Sc. (in particular to know the courses they give, the research centers to which they belong, their publications, the methodologies they use and the works they have already framed - this will feed your future exchanges with them)

Talk to several professors (at the end of a class, by asking them for an appointment, etc.) before committing to a specific path. Their questions and tips will help you refine your ideas.

Use the databases accessible from the library website (e.g., ABI Inform Collection/Proquest) to identify and read several scientific articles on topics of interest to you (e.g. by performing a keyword search in the title) paying special attention to the section “Pathways for future research”.

Look for compatibility between the professor’s expertise and the topic you are interested in (as well as the proposed methodology).

Contact the professor who interests you by email to make an appointment including the material requested in the same document (see below). Attaching your CV and last transcript will help you to know you better. Your subject will probably not be well defined at that time but you should be able to articulate some tracks of interest.

In your discussions, find out whether there is compatibility in terms of objectives (e.g. quality and time) and the way of working (frequency of meetings, degree of autonomy, etc.). Before entering a coaching relationship, make sure that the coaching mode of the teacher matches your expectations. It is essential to communicate from the outset any information likely to influence the progress of the project (e.g. work, travel plans, constraints, etc.).

Find a supervisor

The process

Submitting your Topic for Approbation by the Administration

After choosing your supervisor and defining a topic and methodological approach with her/him, you will submit a request for approval to the administration. The electronic form will first go to your Supervisor, then to the Academic Advisor, and finally to the Program Director. Please consider that each of the people involved should be given a minimum of 2-3 business days to move the process along. To facilitate this process, make sure that the short text you write contains as many of the following elements as possible. It is understood that there is some degree of uncertainty at the beginning of any project. The idea here is not to set things in stone but rather agree on a direction and help an “outsider” understand what it is that you will be working on.

You will fill up a form with the following sections: description and methods. Here are the elements you have to put in those boxes (validate with your supervisor):

Description section:

• Domain: identify the general domain of your work (international strategy, global governance, international development, etc.)

• Research question: state the research question or “problem” in one sentence

• Justification: explain why addressing such question/problem is needed/important

• Contributions: state the expected managerial and theoretical contributions of your work

• Key references: establish your key influences with a few bibliographic references

Methods section:

• Approach: Identify the type of methods that you will use - quantitative, qualitative or mixed method approach

• Type and source: name the type and sources of your data (e.g. primary or secondary data, organizations or databases)

• Analytical methods: identify the type of analysis that you will do (e.g., regressions, content analysis)

• Key references: establish your methodological influences with a few bibliographic references

The following webpages and documents will provide you with further guidelines:

Evaluation criteria

J’utilise les mêmes que ceux des projets supervisés et mémoires

Voir ici: https://formulaires.hec.ca/repository/registrariat/files/private/guide_evaluation_ps_fr.pdf

et ici: https://www.hec.ca/etudiants/mon-programme/maitrises/documents/Guide_PS_Nature_et_exigences_fra.pdf

Excellent Très bien Bien Passable Insuffisant
1. Démonstration de l’autonomie
L’étudiant(e) a respecté l’échéancier établi
L’étudiant(e) a fait preuve d’initiative pour mettre en œuvre les moyens nécessaires à la réalisation du projet
2. Formulation du problème
Clarté de la formulation du problème étudié
Liens établis avec les connaissances acquises dans le domaine de spécialisation
3. Recension de la littérature permettant de cerner et de résoudre le problème étudié (pour un travail d’une envergure de 9 crédits)
Pertinence des références
Utilisation judicieuse de la littérature
4. Choix des méthodes pour la résolution du problème
Pertinence des méthodes choisies
Justification des choix
5. Application des méthodes
Rigueur dans l’application des méthodes
6. Analyse des résultats et conclusion
Justesse de l’analyse et de l’interprétation
Profondeur de l’analyse et qualité de l’argumentation pour un travail d’une envergure de 9 crédits
Discussion des limites et voies d’amélioration
7. Qualité de la communication dans la rédaction d’un rapport
Maîtrise du langage associé au domaine de spécialisation
Clarté, structure, et niveau de concision dans la rédaction du rapport
Respect des règles énoncées dans le guide pour la rédaction d’un travail universitaire
Note finale Excellent (A+, A) Très bien (A-, B+) Bien (B, B-) Passable (C+, c) Insuffisant (E)
Commentaires qualitatifs sur le projet supervisé

Constitution of an Evaluation Committee

Once you have made good progress and about 3 weeks before the initial submission of your work, ask your supervisor to indicate names of Professors to form your evaluation committee. You can also suggest a few (e.g. professors whose courses you have taken and whose expertise is well aligned with your work). Your supervisor will make the final decision. If your supervisor decides not to contact them himself/herself, he/she will then invite you to email these professors and inquire about their interest in evaluating your work. In your email, briefly present your project/thesis and ask them about their availability. Due to other constraints on their agenda, some professors may have to decline. This is why it is important to start this process early so that you can then turn towards someone else. As a professional courtesy, it is highly recommended that you obtain the consent of the persons concerned before giving their names for your evaluation committee at the time of your initial submission.

Have questions after reading all this? Do not hesitate to contact me

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