Prüfungen und Arbeiten

Exam

• 4 hours, written
• 2 topics to prepare; one topic will be chosen
• In German or English (you may use a dictionary)

****Send me an email to register your exam by the first day of the faculty registration period: BA-Abschlüsse****

Exam preparation

Grading Criteria

Your final grade is a composite of your preparation phase and the actual exam.

Expectations concerning exam preparation:

• Time frame and deadlines are respected
• Topics are developed independently 
• Identification and convincing selection of relevant research literature
• Incorporation of feedback from the examiner
• Submission of bibliographies and bullet point lists in due time
• Correct and complete references

Criteria for the exam:

• The essay responds to all aspects raised in the research question
• Lucid and succinct narrative
• Accurate factual statements
• Convincing application of concepts and theories (if applicable)
• Clear structure
• Correct spelling and grammar (unless you are not a native speaker)

Exam

• 30 mins oral exam
• 2 topics to prepare; both topics will be addressed
• In German or English

****Send me an email to register your exam by the first day of the faculty registration period: MA-Abschlüsse****

Exam preparation

Grading Criteria

Your final grade is a composite of your preparation phase and the actual exam.

Expectations concerning exam preparation:

• Time frame and deadlines are respected
• Topics are developed independently 
• Identification and convincing selection of relevant research literature
• Incorporation of feedback from the examiner
• Submission of bibliographies and bullet point lists in due time
• Correct and complete references

Criteria for the exam:

• Answers are succinct and relevant
• Answers reflect the candidate’s capacity to deal with research literature and sources in a competent and independent manner
• Factual correctness of the given answers

Exam

• 60 mins oral exam
• 3 topics to prepare; all three topics will be addressed
• In German or English

****Send me an email to register your exam by the first day of the faculty registration period: MA-Abschlüsse****

Exam preparation

Grading Criteria

Your final grade is a composite of your preparation phase and the actual exam.

Expectations concerning exam preparation:

• Time frame and deadlines are respected
• Topics are developed independently 
• Identification and convincing selection of relevant research literature
• Incorporation of feedback from the examiner
• Submission of bibliographies and bullet point lists in due time
• Correct and complete references

Criteria for the exam:

• Answers are succinct and relevant
• Answers reflect the candidate’s capacity to deal with research literature and sources in a competent and independent manner
• Factual correctness of the given answers

MA Thesis

1. You approach me with an idea for a topic and a timeline; ideally, you have developed the topic in the context of one of my courses
2. Register for one of the teaching formats in which we discuss ongoing MA work: ‘Africa – Method – Theory’ (fall term) or ‘Research Seminar African History’ (spring term)
3. Submit an exposé (see below); we discuss it in my office hours
4. Submit a revised exposé
5. Submit a piece of writing for ‘Africa – Method – Theory’ or for our ‘Work-in-progress Workshop’; it can be an extended exposé, an early draft of a chapter, or a source discussion; you will obtain oral and written feedback from me and your peers; do not miss out on this great opportunity!
6. While you are in the main researching and writing phase, write/talk to me if you have questions
7. Writing sample: if you wish, you can send me a writing sample of max. 5 pages; I will give you detailed feedback on these (regarding argumentation, use of evidence, writing style)
8. Submit your thesis (ca. 75 pages): one printed copy for me, a digital/printed copy to the second supervisor, one printed copy to the library
   1. Ca. 75 pages, 1.5 spaced, 12pt for the main text
   2. Title page with title, name, address, email, matriculation number, names of supervisors
   3. Table of contents
   4. Introduction, main text, conclusion 
   5. Bibliography (sources and research literature)
   6. Redlichkeitserklärung
   7. If applicable: declaration on your use of AI (see below)
9. Assessment process: you will receive a detailed written assessment of your thesis. If you also take your exam with me and chose your MA thesis as one of your topics, I will send you extracts from my report in advance. Do not hesitate to contact me if you wish to discuss my feedback report in detail
10. Assessment criteria: They are essentially the same as for seminar papers, but more emphasis is placed on your work with primary sources

Seminar Papers

1. You suggest a topic/question; I provide feedback, may ask for reframing, give approval to develop an exposé
2. You write an exposé (see below); we discuss it in my office hours
3. You write a revised exposé (if necessary)
4. You submit your paper via email attachment by the deadline (early September/early February, or as mutually agreed); I return your paper within 6 weeks with written feedback
5. You read carefully through my feedback and write whether you would like to discuss my assessment during office hours; only after that will I enter your grade
6. Revision after final assessment: You can only revise the paper if it has been assessed as fail. At this point, the maximum grade you can achieve is a 4.0
7. You can write in German, English or French

!!! Please consult the History Department’s excellent toolkit for students to get help with writing a paper.

Exposé

Prepare an exposé (1–3 pages) for your planned term paper/ master thesis; the following elements should be included:

1. (Working) title/ topic
   • What interests you? What would you like to learn more about? Which source or event particularly fascinates you?
2. Research question/ research objective (relevance)
   • What exactly would you like to understand/trace? Ask how and why questions. Ask about historical change, the role of actors, the influence of ideas or structures…
3. Preliminary thesis (not mandatory)
   • A good thesis is debatable! It is particularly convincing when it intervenes in a field of research, in an academic debate, is logically argued, and is empirically substantiated.
4. Outline and methodology 
   • How would you like to answer your question? Which source(s) will you examine? Which tools and methods will you use? What structure for the paper follows from your approach?
5. List of sources and literature (annotated!)
   • Organize the list into historical sources (primary) and research literature (secondary). After each title, write one or two sentences explaining how the text can help you answer your research question.

Assessment Criteria

Academic Integrityand Use of AI 

Within an academic community, mutual respect and honesty is key to producing good scholarly work. Your submission of written work for academic credit indicates that the work is your own. All resources must be properly cited (including the use of AI). Plagiarism will, without exception, result in failing the assignment.

At this point, we have enough insight into the use of AI to realize that – especially when you ask it to do intellectual work for you – it will produce mediocre results at best. Thinking is hard and laborious, and it only gets better with practice. Writing is thinking. And I’d much rather read your voice, your thoughts, your questions and ideas coming into their own than the soulless, uncreative phraseology of a machine. Always start your research by going to the library and using library catalogs. Seek inspiration from academic writers you admire. If you feel insecure (but again, it is by making mistakes that you learn), you can ask AI to help you with translations, spelling and grammar (see also the university’s Guidelines «Citing AI Tools»).