ESM500 Master Thesis (Autumn 2026–Spring 2027)

Upon completion of the course, the student should be able to:

• plan, organise, and carry out research and development projects
• critically evaluate existing research and theory within their own field
• apply research methods correctly and ethically within their chosen area, including designing, conducting, analysing, and interpreting research effectively
• communicate their project and research findings clearly and effectively in both written and oral form
• work independently on a large and complex project over an extended period
• understand and apply ethical guidelines for research within their field

During this part of the programme, the students will work independently and in cooperation with a supervisor or supervisory team to plan, carry out, and report their master’s project.

• The master’s thesis is an individual assignment. However, students may use parts of the same data material from larger joint projects. If the thesis is part of a larger project, this project must be described. It must be clearly stated which part of the project the master’s student is responsible for, what the student has carried out independently, and which data has been provided by others. The selections made and the methods used to collect and process both the student’s own and collaborators’ data must be described in detail.
• The thesis must be written in English.
• A 60 ECTS thesis should be between 20.000 and 25.000 words. The title page, abstract, table of contents, tables, figures, reference list, and appendices are not included in the word count. Formatting requirements: Times New Roman, 12-point font, 1.5 line spacing, and normal margins (2.5 cm).

• The master’s thesis may also be submitted as a scientific article. This type of thesis consists of two main parts:

  • An introduction, and
  • A scientific article.
• In the complete document, the introduction is usually presented before the article. The introduction should be 8,000–10,000 words, excluding front matter and references. Its main purpose is to demonstrate that the candidate has strong theoretical knowledge of the topic and methodological insight beyond what is presented in the article. The article must be written in English and follow the author guidelines of the chosen journal, including international standards for scientific reporting relevant to the research design used (e.g., CONSORT, STROBE, PRISMA, STARD, SRQR). The student must be the first author, and the article-based master’s thesis must be the student’s own work.
• Reference is made to separate guidelines on formal requirements for the content and structure of the master’s thesis.
• The thesis must be submitted in PDF format in WISEflow. A separate template is provided for the title page. The thesis must also be published electronically in NIH’s institutional archive, Brage.

Within three months of admission, students must submit an abstract outlining the topic, study population, and planned conduct of the project, together with the name of a proposed local supervisor. The local supervisor must hold a PhD and be affiliated with an academic institution at the student’s home institution. The principal supervisor shall be employed at the Norwegian School of Sport Sciences.

At an early stage of the project, students must also submit a project description and obtain the required ethical approvals. These must be in place and approved before the project can begin. Once the necessary approvals have been obtained, data collection may start, followed by analysis, results, and discussion. Students will receive supervision throughout the process.

Students are graded on a scale from A to F.

• The final grade is based on an overall assessment of the written master’s thesis and the oral defence.
• To be admitted to the oral examination, the written thesis must first be passed, with a minimum grade of E. If the thesis is assessed as failed, it must be resubmitted and passed before the oral defence can take place.
• During the oral defence, the student will give an initial presentation of approximately 15 minutes. The total examination time is approximately one hour.
• After the examination, the student will receive an oral explanation of the grade awarded.
• The examination committee consists of three members: the supervisor, one internal examiner, and one external examiner. The supervisor chairs the committee but does not participate in the final grading.

Plagiarism Control

• Please note that thesis submitted in WISEflow will be checked for plagiarism.