Thesis for Master Degree in Social Work

Knowledge and understanding

After completing the course, the student shall be able to:

• demonstrate thorough knowledge of national and international research in an area relevant to social work
• demonstrate in depth knowledge of research design and the importance of research design for a scientific study

Skills and abilities

After completing the course, the student shall be able to:

• identify and define a researchable problem with relevance to social work
• conduct a representative summary of research for the chosen problem
• argue for the chosen problem as based on the state of knowledge in the field
• select and apply an appropriate theoretical framework
• select and apply an appropriate research design
• interpret and analyze his/her own data so that the research question is answered
• compose and integrate the different parts of a scientific work so that the various parts are coherent, logical and consistent
• clearly report and, both orally and in writing, present and defend a scientific piece of work and its results

Evaluation ability and approach

After completing the course, the student shall be able to:

• demonstrate an understanding of and apply legal and ethical guidelines in the implementation of a scientific piece of work
• critically reflect on the importance of research design for the scientific piece of work
• critically examine other scientific pieces of work

In the course key aspects in writing a scientific essay are discussed. Students will discuss their research plans, and present a scientific review of literature and a preliminary research and time plan.

In seminars research strategies are discussed with the aim of supporting the writing.

Examination takes place on two occasions: during the PM seminar and the thesis seminar, where the finalised thesis is presented and defended. The essays are examined by way of content, public discussion and defence.

The Swedish grades U–VG.

Number of credits:

• Thesis, 15 credits