Apparatus - framing (2 ECTS)

Aims

The “Thesis framing” course ensures depth and breadth of discursive academic knowledge in within each candidate’s individual discourse within architecture and design. The content of the course provides a foundation for generating original academic knowledge in order to make a substantial contribution to a discipline or area of professional practice.  The workshop serves to support the final stages of composition in a PhD thesis, whether it is by article compilation or written as a monograph. The exercise can be used to check the structure scope and design of your PhD (issues of overclaiming, do research questions, research activities and research results align) and question about mediation clarity and orientation. The workshop aims to improve the robustness of the kappa that contains your thesis, or of the key chapter that introduces it. 

Course content

A week in advance of the course, participants submit a full draft of either an introduction or an exegesis (“kappe”), which are then circulated to the other participants. All participants read through and prepare peer-review comments on each other’s drafts. Teaching occurs over a full week (three days as plenum sessions, and two days with individual work). At the first day of the workshop week, participants present their submission in an oral presentation, focusing how the submission is situated in the overall research project. After receiving peer-review comments, participants work individually with improving the submission, before submitting again before the final day of the workshop. At the last day of the workshop, the supervisor(s) will join the presentation and we will have a plenum discussion about the further work.

Compulsory assignments

  • Submission of full chapter/paper a week in advance of the workshop week

  • Detailed feedback on two-three of your peers’ submissions and

  • Act as reader to a first-year PhD Candidate’s literature review

  • Active participation in discussions

To pass this course, you must: Attend 100% of the workshops, turn in all assignments on time, and pass assessment of defined deliverables. All participants are expected to actively participate in discussions which are part of the course.

Learning outcomes

At the end of the course, the PhD Candidate:

  • can position the overall argument of his or her own PhD project in relation to both a specialized research field and the disciplinary field at large

  • can communicate clearly the main findings and conclusions of the PhD project

  • has advanced knowledge about academic writing

  • applies knowledge to demonstrate authoritative judgement, adaptability, and responsibility as an independent scholar or leading practitioner.

  • can formulate logical and compelling written arguments in a well-structured text.

  • applies skills to demonstrate scholarly autonomy and responsibility as an expert and leading practitioner or scholar.

  • can give advanced peer-review feedback on a written text

  • identifies relevant concerns in research ethics.

Examination

The compulsory activity needs to be approved by the PhD Programme and the course is evaluated as pass/fail.