Master's Thesis and Final Exam
The final exam consists of the development and presentation of a thesis project, aimed at demonstrating the level of your technical, scientific, and professional preparation. The thesis offers an opportunity to apply the skills acquired throughout the programme in an integrated way and to tackle complex problems, real-world datasets, or advanced use cases, in line with the specialisation tracks of the study course. The work done is presented and discussed in front of a graduation committee during a public session.
What is a thesis project?
The thesis project is an original piece of work, which can have an applied, theoretical, or research-oriented focus. The topic is agreed upon with a faculty member from the study programme, who will guide you as your supervisor through the definition of the subject, the planning, and the development of the project, providing scientific and methodological support
A well-structured thesis is built around clear and relevant research questions. It usually begins with a review of the state of the art — that is, an analysis of what has already been done in the chosen field. From there, the core project is developed and presented in the thesis, along with the methodology, data analysis, discussion of the results, potential future developments, and open questions.
You can also develop your thesis in collaboration with companies, supercomputing centres, or research institutions, in some cases as part of a voluntary curricular internship, provided that the project is agreed upon and supervised by an academic supervisor.
Moreover, strongly supported by the Standing Student Committee under the ‘Merit Project’, 'thesis abroad' scholarships have been designed to encourage and support students who wish to develop all or part of their thesis abroad.
Evaluation
If the work has a strong innovative or research component, the supervisor may propose the involvement of a co-examiner ("controrelatore") for the final discussion. This is a second faculty member appointed to independently assess the quality of the thesis and act as opponent.
During the graduation exam, you will present your thesis project and answer questions from the committee. The duration of the presentation may vary depending on whether a co-examiner is involved.
The final evaluation takes into account the quality of the written thesis, the oral presentation, the discussion, and your overall academic performance.
The final grade is based on the grade point average of the exams effectively taken during your studies, converted into a scale out of 110. To this base, additional points may be awarded by the Degree Committee, up to a maximum of 8 points for theses with a co-examiner, or up to 4 points for theses without a co-examiner.
On the website of the School of Industrial and Information Engineering, under the Bachelor's and Master's degree exams page, you can find:
- the Master of Science graduation exam regulations and the supplementary regulations for each Study Programme;
- information on the procedures for graduation sessions, deadlines for registration, and thesis submission;
- thesis format templates: templates for both the traditional thesis format and the article-style format, as well as the executive summary template (which must be submitted along with the thesis in case of a thesis with a second reviewer).
Looking for some thesis examples?
Below you’ll find some of the master's theses completed in past years by students who graduated in HPC Engineering. This may help you get a sense of the topics covered and the types of projects developed.
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