HOW TO WRITE A MASTER THESIS IN NEUROSCIENCE FEW TIPS AND ADVICES TO HELP YOU GO THROUGH IT By Aurore Perrault, PhD Student
PLAN Master thesis 1.01 Plan of Action Academic Form General Outline Administrative Stuff to Do Oral presentation Evaluation Tips from PhD students
WHAT IS A THESIS? HOW SHOULD IT LOOK LIKE? A master thesis is, basically, a research report on your experiment. The content should Address a specific issue Describe what is already known about this issue Describe what you ve done during these two years of research and its purpose. Be enough original to make a contribution to the field. The form should Be well organized with a clear outline Be written in a simple voice Understood, not only by expert in your field, but should be accessible to nonspecialist
PLAN OF ACTION Writing a thesis is a long-lasting process! Sit and think on how you want to proceed before jumping into the action Set a time-frame Literature processing Idea processing and proposal/improvement by your adviser Pure research: experiment, collection of data, analysis Thesis writing Literature and methods (can be written pretty early during your master) Results and discussion Conclusion, introduction and abstract Re-write until final version First draft should be done and send to your adviser 2 months before deadline Edition Triple-check your spelling! Do not skip the formatting part (at least 1-2days) Ask at least 2 non-specialist persons to read your work (spelling? global comprehension? outline?... )
ACADEMIC FORM 45-80 pages - A4 Font 12 point font: Time New Roman 1,5 line space 2,5cm margins Whole text should be justify First line of each paragraph should be moved forward Number each pages (except flyleaf, abstract & appendices) Print only one sided Bind your thesis but do no use staples. M-Print-shop(http://www.migrosprintshop.ch/) UniCopy (http://www.unicopy.ch/)
Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices GENERAL OUTLINE
Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices GENERAL OUTLINE
ABSTRACT 1 page max. MAJOR part of your thesis! Should contain A short introductory sentence: from general theme to your particular research field Quick method (techniques, design, conditions, groups of subjects) Highlight your best results Conclusion on these results/your research Ask several persons to read it!
GENERAL OUTLINE Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices One page max. Can also be the list of contributions (help from others lab-members )
GENERAL OUTLINE Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices 1-2 pages Very precise BUT no more than 3 subtitles Use Word «!styles!»
GENERAL OUTLINE Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices 1page In alphabetical order or in order of appearance Don t use too many abbreviation: only if the word/phrase is use >5 times in your thesis
Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices GENERAL OUTLINE
REVIEW OF LITERATURE 10-30 pages!«funnel!» theory Review of literature should guide the reader from a general theme to your particular field of research Present background of this field Introduce idea/concept that the reader will need later to understand your work Possible structure Brief introduction on your field of research An organized explanation of the different theories/concepts/brain areas/cells Logical links from the theoretical background to your research Question/Objectives/Hypothesis of your research Each concept need to be link to your research and wellexplained by several references Provide non-specialist with a clear understanding of the field NO PLAGIARISM! Be very careful in how you retranslate others ideas/results
MATERIALS AND METHODS 5-10 pages How did you perform your experiments? What kind of material/methods did you use? What population/ cells? Should contains Subjects/Groups/Cells Experimental techniques used (staining, patch-clamp, fmri, EEG, behavioral measures ) Experimental design/paradigm Data analysis Statistical analysis No results, only methods Always anonymize your human subjects!
RESULTS 10-20 pages Organized and logical presentation of your results Do not analyze your results here Comment/interpret all your results in the discussion section Entitle and comment all your figures, graph, table For statistical results, always specify if it is significant and add the F value (or t, chi2 ) and its p value. 6.2 Z = 2.3 Figure 3.2 FULL condition related activities in controls. The color code (right) represents the Z-score associated with activated voxels. FULL condition activates the IPL, ACC, M1, SMA, S1-M1, DLPFC and cerebellum.
DISCUSSION 5-15 pages Interpretation of your results and how you include them in your field of research (link to background part) Possible structure Recall your project Summarize and analyse results presented Possible interpretation and comparison with others theories Consistant with others results? Why or why not? Support or contradict theories? Strenghts and limits Place your findings into a bigger perspective How your experiment could be improved Direction for future studies on the subject Possible clinical application
GENERAL OUTLINE Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices 1-2 pages Recall of your research, results obtained and possible interpretation
Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices GENERAL OUTLINE
REFERENCES Minimum 50 references There is never too much references! No outdated research sources! Use the most up-to-date research/articles/authors Except if seen as a basic Alphabetical order or order of appearance In the text: (Neurogod et al., 2013) APA format NEUROGOD, A., BIOGODDESS, B. & PSYCHOGIRL, C. D. (2013). How to write a thesis. Journal of Important NeuroStuff, 7 (45), 314-356 http://citationmachine.net
GENERAL OUTLINE Flyleaf Abstract Acknowledgments Table of Contents List of Abbreviations Review of Literature Methodology Results Discussion Conclusion References Appendices Not numbered Can be: List of participants (age, sexe, condition )/Type of cells Details on the procedure/technique/ conditions Complete table of your statistical analysis
ADMINISTRATIVE BORING STUFF TO DO (I) When you and your adviser decide that you re ready to graduate: Find 2 jury members (ask your adviser) One must be a UNIGE faculty member (professor, assistant, MER ) They should represent at least 2 institutions: Faculty of medicine (HUG, CMU, Belle-Idée), faculty of psychology and/or sciences. Fix a date for your oral presentation At least 2 weeks after all the jury members receive your thesis Book a room for the oral presentation (Unimail, CMU or Sciences) Make sure you fulfill all the requirement to graduate Acquisition of mandatory and optional credits (30ECT) Complete seminar sheet Supplementary internship Presentation of your project/data at a LabMeeting
ADMINISTRATIVE BORING STUFF TO DO (II) Send an email to your faculty and Mona when you re ready to graduate and ask them about their protocol Mandatory documents Official report of your master thesis Attestation for the supplementary internship Seminar sheet (12) Each faculty has a different protocol to validate your master Psych: go directly to the faculty desk and give: official report of your master thesis (+attestations), attestation of research, attestation of the library (psych intranet), flyleaf of the thesis, digital version of your thesis (CD-ROM) Science: give directly to Mona Spiridon the 3 mandatory documents + copy of your thesis binded
ORAL PRESENTATION Your adviser + 2 jury 30min presentation + 30min of questions Brief PowerPoint with an emphasis on your results and interpretation Send your final version of your thesis at least 2 weeks before the presentation Can be in English or in French (ask your adviser) Do not forget to bring the official report of your thesis!
EVALUATION Characteristics of evaluation Clarity of the research question and goals Scientific knowledge and insight on the field of research Justified methods Precision of the data analysis and controllability of the data Discussion argumentation Data fit in the discussion Care given to the presentation and language Appropriate layout No grammatical, structural or spelling errors Coherency, organization, comprehension If the jury think that your thesis doesn t reach these criteria (grade <4), you ll have 1-2 weeks to re-write In master thesis, they won t judge you on your results but on the knowledge and insight you have on your research!
MASTER THESIS TIPS FROM PHD STUDENTS (I) No plagiarism! Read a LOT of articles Take notes and references for every articles Do not wait the last months to write your review Manage your time Should be understand by non-specialist reader. Explain any scientific jargon that is not common knowledge (ex: calcium dye, BOLD signal ) Articles in your field can help you organized your thesis but also write the methods section Keep track of everything you do/your results/material you use in a labnotebook All results must be explained and linked to theories in your field
MASTER THESIS TIPS FROM PHD STUDENTS (II) Think about the way you will be read! What do you want them to keep from your thesis? Is it clear? Rule out what is not necessary/ambiguous Be careful with long sentence sometimes short is better! All your figures/graph/tables should have a title and explained Don t forget about the scale for fmri scans Plan ahead your outline and time-frame! Don t get lost in all your data/articles/ideas Don t be a mess! Don t play solo: ask for help when needed, take everyone s comment into account, talk with your adviser regularly Do not wait until the last minute!
QUESTIONS? THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION & GOOD LUCK!