Scientific Writing

Does the thought of writing your Bachelor’s or Master’s thesis feel overwhelming? Do you find yourself staring at a blank page, or at a mountain of impenetrable literature, and are unsure how to even get started? This block course consists of three full-day workshops to support you during your thesis-writing journey.

Course Content

On the first day, you will learn how to define effective research questions, how to efficiently read and manage academic literature, and how to structure your thesis. For each of these tasks, we present strategies, time-saving tools, and examples to guide you as you perform your own thesis research.

On the second day, we go on a deep dive into strategies for effective academic writing and editing. Writing is an iterative process, and everyone can become a better writer. We practice the strategies we discuss using hands-on examples from your own research topic so that you can strengthen your texts and communicate more clearly with your readers.

Finally, the third day is dedicated to the effective communication of the data and results of your research. We walk through the software setup to create compelling charts and other visualizations within your thesis.

Learning Objectives

After successful completion of the module, students:

• Know how to structure a research paper
• Are familiar with formal and structural norms regarding outline, format, bibliography, etc.
• Understand the principles of good scientific writing, can apply them to their writing, and revise the manuscripts of others accordingly.

Exam

Students are required to:

• Submit a research proposal
• Submit drafts of their thesis and revise them according to peer feedback
• Review drafts by peers

Schedule