Department of Management Information Systems

GT Guide

Processes, Policies, and Procedures

MIS 429 Graduation Thesis

1. Introduction

The Thesis for Bachelor's Program course, MIS 429 (6 ECTS) has a mission of an academic career for undergraduate students. Under the supervision of the assigned mentor, students are expected to conduct a scientific research study, report it based on the academic writing rules and principles, and finally, present it in a seminar.

Students interested in undertaking MIS 429 should read all sections of the policy and procedures before submitting a proposal.

2. Planning

Theses are independent studies. A thesis may grow out of an idea or an understanding of a real-world problem. Successful theses will involve significant preparation. As such students interested in pursuing a thesis are strongly encouraged to consult with their mentors early in their undergraduate program in order to plan for appropriate coursework and research well in advance.

3. Timing

Thesis for Bachelor's Program may only be undertaken in the spring semesters. Generally, students will complete these in their final year at MIS Department. Students planning to graduate in June should plan to complete thesis in the preceding year.

4. Credits

The MIS 429 Thesis for Bachelor's Program is a fourteen-ECTS-credit course of study, requiring a minimum of eight and ten contact hours respectively between student and department mentor during the course of the convening semester. The arrangement of contact hours will vary depending on the needs of the specific thesis and the students’ level of progress.

5. Requirements

While expectations for theses will differ depending on the nature of the work undertaken, certain minimum standards apply generally. In particular, all theses require a written component as determined and developed in consultation with department mentors. Theses should follow appropriate academic standards of documentation, argumentation, and analysis.

All theses will be individually assessed by department mentors on their own merits mentioned in the section 9. Evaluation.

6. Mentors

Students arrange to execute their theses under the guidance of an MIS faculty member. In most cases, students are already acquainted with the department mentor who will be supervising the study. The department mentor should help the student clarify the thesis proposal to ensure that it includes all necessary components. In the semesters that the thesis is undertaken, department mentors meet regularly with the student to discuss readings and progress, as well as provide feedback on the development of the final product. At the end of the semester, department mentors submit anecdotal grade reports that briefly describe and provide a final evaluation of the student’s work to accompany the assignment of a letter grade. Department members are limited to supervising no more than one thesis per semester.

7. Proposal

Only complete proposals will be considered. A complete thesis proposal will include the following elements:

a. Thesis Description: The description should be approximately three double spaced pages, and should clearly state the proposed research question of the project. The proposal must explain how the student has prepared to carry out this thesis and how the student intend to complete the thesis within one semester. The thesis’ relation to the students’ ongoing work or area of concentration should be clear. The proposal should also clearly specify the expected output (i.e., a research paper, a conference proceeding) and discuss the specific methods with which the thesis will be completed. These criteria will be determined between the student and the department mentor, and they will be used in evaluating the final thesis at the end of the semester.

b. Annotated Bibliography or Relevant Works: The bibliography should situate a student’s thesis within a body of work in their field. This should include books, articles, key documents, applications, cases, etc. Please provide the full citation and a short description of the relevance of each text or work to the proposed project (preferably in APA style).

c. Form: Complete Thesis Proposal Form.

Proposals will be reviewed with an eye toward selecting projects of exceptional promise. The department mentor will evaluate proposals based on the following criteria:

• clarity of project goal(s), mode of inquiry, and final product
• thesis’ relation to concentration and course of study
• feasibility of the thesis within one semester through an articulated timeline
• clear articulation of student/mentor relationship, including schedule of meetings
• the degree to which the project would culminate in an original design or scholarly work

8. Registration

Please note that students are responsible for the course registration process.

9. Evaluation

Each thesis will be evaluated by the department mentor for its ability to meet thesis aims as delineated in the thesis proposal as well as the degree to which the final product exemplifies original interdisciplinary work. Successful completion of the thesis will be noted in two ways:

(1) student will receive a letter grade awarded by the department mentor for the courses titled “MIS 429 Thesis for Bachelor's Program,”

(2) all theses will also receive written evaluations from department mentors, submitted to the Chair's Office of MIS Department.

10. Deadlines

Thesis proposals and final theses must be submitted according to the following firm schedule of submission deadlines:

Semester of MIS 429 Thesis for Bachelor's Program: Spring

Thesis proposal due: The last day of the third week of the semester

Thesis is due: In Final Exam period of the semester. -Exact date will be announced-

11. Student Checklist

Complete the following by the appropriate deadlines:

a. Approximately two weeks prior to the proposal submission deadline

• Consult the GT Guide website for information and policies on designing your study.
• Identify and contact the department mentor with whom you would like to work.
• Discuss thesis plans with your mentor.
• Develop the description of the study and the annotated bibliography or relevant works.

b. Approximately one week prior to the proposal submission deadline

• Complete the Thesis Proposal Form, which will be sent to your department mentor.
• Within a few days of submission of the form, follow up with your mentor to make sure he or she has received the proposal.

c. Approximately one day prior to the proposal submission deadline

• Confirm with mentor that he or she has submitted his or her approval to MIS Department.
• If you have not received confirmation from your mentor that he or she has approved your proposal, contact your mentor. Do not wait until the submission deadline to notify MIS Department for problems.

12. Proposal Form

• Name, Surname and Student ID for the student
• Year and semester of registration, expected graduation year and month for the student
• Undertaken ECTS credits in the semester for the student
• Mentor Name and Surname
• Mentor E-mail
• Title of the thesis
• Thesis description
• Annotated bibliography or relevant works

13. Mentor List

Prof. Erman Coşkun, PhD.

Prof. Abdulkadir Hızıroğlu, Ph.D.

Prof. H. Kemal İlter, Ph.D.

Assoc. Prof. Onur Doğan, Ph.D.

Assoc. Prof. Emine Uçar, Ph.D.

Assist. Prof. Ourania Areta, Ph.D.

Assist. Prof. Hunaida Awwad, Ph.D.

Assist. Prof. Fares Dael, Ph.D.

Assist. Prof. Serhat Peker, Ph.D.

14. Selection

Thesis students are selected by the MIS Department. Here is the selection process:

Step 1. Indicating your choices for mentors (2 options: First, and Second).

Step 2. Scoring student's mentor selection (10 for First, 8 for Second, 4 for other mentors).

Step 3. Creating an assignment problem for matching students and mentors.

Step 4. Solving the problem to maximize student's satisfaction (maximization of overall satisfaction).

Step 5. Assigning students to mentors.

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