Master’s thesis inquiries

The Innovation, Society & Public Policy (ISPP) research group welcomes inquiries for the supervision of Master’s theses in any of the existing projects as well as on other topics focusing on the intersection of innovation, society, and politics.

If you are interested in writing your Master thesis with us, please make sure to consider the following points before requesting a meeting:

• Our group is principally interested in the social and political questions surrounding technology, innovation, management, and economics. If you want to work with us, your thesis must include at least some component dedicated to these questions, even if you are conducting your thesis work at a company. If you are not interested in social and political questions, this group is not for you.

• It is strongly recommended that you have completed at least one course in the field of Science and Technology Studies at the STS department before commencing your thesis work.

• Please include in your e-mail a statement of your overall research interests (ideally a thesis abstract on the topic you wish to pursue, the literature and concepts you’d like to draw on, and some suggestions for empirical scope- max 2 pages). Please make sure to indicate how your ideas fit with the topics investigated by our group if not evident.

• Please also consider the opportunity to contribute to ongoing ISPP research projects through empirical and theoretical work. If your research interest fits into one of our projects, please mention that in your email.

• As a preparation for a productive first appointment with your prospective adviser, include in your email a brief summary of your research skills (research design, experience in data collection, qualitative and quantitative methods of analysis) as well as a CV, which states your educations trajectory and research-related experiences in and outside of academia.

• Please find out whether or not your program’s regulations allow you to write your master’s thesis with us. We may officially supervise theses at the STS department and the School of Management and potentially externally for other departments upon prior arrangement (for which you might need an official internal advisor from your own department). If you have any doubts about formalities, contact your student advisor or the registrar’s office first before talking to us.

• Please send an e-mail to Johanna Hopp with any inquiries.

If your research interest is compatible with our group, you will then be asked to develop – in coordination with a group member – a thesis proposal that shows how you intend to work on the proposed topic (theoretical approach, hypotheses, research design, materials and methods).