Type: Compulsory | ECTS: 60
Course aim and description
In order for students to graduate and receive the Postgraduate Research Diploma (MRD) in "International Business Administration", they must complete a Postgraduate Diploma Thesis (research), which corresponds to 60 ECTS. The Master's Thesis must have a length of 45,000 - 60,000 words, concerns to a topic related to the academic subject of the Program and constitute an integrated set of original research with a significant contribution to knowledge (contribution to knowledge) of the specific academic subject it covers.
The Master's Thesis will give students the opportunity to research in depth a topic of their own choosing and develop their research and analytical skills. Developing their ability to communicate in written form and manage their time effectively are also an integral part of the whole process.
The main objective of the Master's Thesis, as well as the entire Research Master's Program, is the preparation of students for conducting a Doctoral Thesis and the acquisition of a Doctoral Diploma (DD).
After the start of the Program, in November, the professors announce their proposal which contains up to five (5) general research topics. The subjects of the master’s theses should be related to the science of Business Administration and Organizations with the aim of producing research that will lead to new knowledge (basic or applied). Students are required, by the end of May at the latest, after consultation with the professors who propose the topics, to prepare and submit their specific research proposal which will include: (a) An extensive bibliographic review (of the last 20-25 years) of the specific knowledge field to be researched and from which the direction the research will turn in order to cover possible research gaps that have not yet been researched by others, (b) Description of the research methodology that will be followed (research method, sample, statistical analysis methods and software that will be used), (c) The new knowledge (contribution to knowledge) that will be produced at the end of the research, and (d) Timetable of conducting the thesis.
The thesis is conducted in the second year (third and fourth semester of studies) after the end of the teaching of the courses and under the condition that the student has successfully completed all the courses of the Study Program. The writing of the thesis is performed using a specific template following the standardized instructions regarding the formation of the content and its overall appearance (i.e. numbering, spacing, cover structure, content format, etc.).